The 4-H Update
December 4, 2020
Achievement Application Updates!
Because of a few changes with the Nebraska 4-H program, the deadline for Achievement Applications have been moved to DECEMBER.
Friday, December 18 ALL Achievement Applications are due to our office.
Junior applications will be judged locally and returned by January.
Senior applications will be judged locally and sent on to the State contest in January.
You can read more about Achievement Applications and download them here.
All applications are due to Tayler Wickham via one of the below methods:
- mail to: Nebraska Extension Attn: Tayler Wickham 8015 W. Center Rd, Omaha, 68124
- email to: tayler.wickham@unl.edu
VIRTUAL December Days hosted by Nebraska 4-H Camps
December 12, 2020, 9:00am-12:00pm AND 2:00pm-4:00pm (optional PM session)
Register here: 4h.unl.edu/camps-centers/school-year-camps
Early Bird Registration: $30
December 2020 is upon us and we miss you! Log in online for a fun, fulfilling day of camp magic. Test your critical thinking skills with an escape adventure! Utilize your hands to make a fair project that you could use in the future! Show off your baking skills and build Blessing Bottles for those in need this winter season. Leave the cold behind and warm up with us at December Days!
Special Garden Project Sign-up!
The Nebraska Extension Special Gardening Project lets 4-H members try their hand at growing unusual vegetables and flowers. The project allows experienced 4-H gardeners to grow something fun, new, and different while letting those new to gardening get their feet wet in this project area.
- This project is open to all youth of 4-H age and it will give them the opportunity to learn about growing, harvesting, and exhibiting a tasty vegetable; obtain the tools necessary to be successful gardeners, and learn about the wide range of plant-science related careers. Last year over 1700 4-H members were enrolled in the project.
- The 2021 Special Garden Project is focused on the tasty Hakurei Turnip. These are not your grandmother’s turnips. Hakurei is a white salad turnip that is smooth, round and at its best when harvested under 2”. The roots can be eaten raw or cooked and the tops can also be cooked.
RESERVATIONS ARE DUE JANUARY 29! To reserve your seeds, complete this form & follow the instructions for mailing. Contact Tayler with questions @ tayler.wickham@unl.edu
LOCAL OPPORTUNITIES
THE LAST ONE! Fun with 4-H Learning
Presented LIVE on Webex!
Link and passcode will be sent upon registration
Thursdays from 4:30pm-5:15pm through December 10th.
Please register youth here: https://go.unl.edu/tij9
Join 4-H & UNMC on December 8!
STATEWIDE OPPORTUNITIES
Youth Masters of Beef Advocacy Learning Cohort
Applications due: December 14th by 5:00 p.m. CST.
Program: December 16- January 6th
To register, go to the following link: MBA Cohort Registration. Once registered, you will get information about logging into both Zoom sessions and the MBA site. For questions, contact Brianna Buseman, Youth Meat Extension Educator, at brianna.buseman@unl.edu
Youth who join this statewide learning cohort will gain tools and resources for being a beef advocate, work as a group to become a strong ambassador for the beef community and be able to answer tough questions about beef and raising cattle. The group will meet initially on December 16th to introduce the program, get to know their cohort and learn more about the beef industry as a whole. During the cohort timeframe, youth will complete the Masters of Beef Advocacy program online through National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. In addition to completing the online program, youth will have the opportunity to continue discussion with their cohort through a series of discussion boards, additional learning resources and activities to help put what they learn into action. Youth will then log-in on January 6th for a celebration webinar to mark their completion of the program, learn more about beef in Nebraska and discuss careers in the beef industry.
Agenda for the MBA Learning Cohort:
Both zoom meetings will be recorded and distributed to those registered if unable to attend the live meeting.
- December 16, 6:30 pm: Zoom MBA Program Kickoff
- December 16-January 6: MBA program will be open and available for students to complete their training. During this time additional information, activities, and discussion prompts will be added to the Microsoft teams page for the cohort to interact with.
- January 6, 6:30 pm: Zoom MBA Program Wrap Up
Special Agronomy Project
The Nebraska Extension Special Agronomy Project gives 4-H members an opportunity to experience a crop that is grown, was grown or has the potential to be grown in Nebraska. Youth participate by receiving seed and resources to grow the crop, research traits of the crop and determine the viability of that crop in the part of the state they live. The project allows 4-H members interested in agronomy to grow something fun, new, and different.
To kick-off the inaugural year of the special agronomy project, youth will explore teosinte. The plant looks and is very similar to corn, in fact it is believed to be the wild ancestor of today's corn!
Teosinte produces stalks that produce several small ears with a cob and hard, trapezoidal kernels. Being related to corn, the care is very similar so we will plant and fertilize like corn. Plant the seeds 1-2 inches deep, 8 to 12 inches apart. Teosinte is a tropical grass, so wait till soils are warm before planting. Teosinte can take up to 180 days to mature but we can still admire it's similarities to corn! For more information, go to https://cropwatch.unl.edu/special-agronomy-project.
Contact Brandy VanDeWalle at brandy.vandewalle@unl.edu or 402.759.3712 or Aaron Nygren at anygren2@unl.edu or 402.352.3821.
Winter Adventure Lock-In
Raising Nebraska in Grand Island
Saturday, February 13 @ 1:00 PM CT - Sunday, February 14 @ 1:00 PM CT
Price: $110
Let’s let the parents spend Valentine’s Day weekend by themselves while we experience all that 4-H Camp and Raising Nebraska have to offer! We'll expand our horizons with a new recipe and a fun project! We won’t forget to practice our camp skills. Join us to enjoy a movie night in the grain bin theater! We’ll spread our sleeping bags out under the giant pivot and watch the lights sparkle. You won’t want to miss it!
Wellness in Tough Times
JOKE OF THE WEEK
Nebraska Extension in Douglas-Sarpy Counties
Email: douglas-sarpy4h@unl.edu
Website: www.douglas-sarpy.unl.edu
Location: 8015 West Center Road, Omaha, NE, USA
Phone: 402-444-7804
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NebraskaExtensioninDouglasSarpyCounties/