Great use of video

Here's an excellent example of using video / YouTube within Extension (from the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture YouTube channel)

Blueberry Growers Information Portal

This is from North Carolina, but the information may be more generally useful: Blueberry Growers Information Portal

Note also how their Extension Specialist is using a blog: http://ncblueberryjournal.blogspot.com/

Growing Wisdom YouTube Channel

Have any of you checked out the Growing Wisdom Gardening channel on YouTube?

It would be great if educators and specialists took a look and identified some of the most accurate and useful ones, and shared them with the Ed Center and clientele.

NRCS Contract Funds

Just wanted to thank all of you for submitting updated NRCS contract work.  We just submitted an invoice to NRCS for more than $17,000 for this work!  Given the tough budget times, every little bit (not that this is little) counts so thanks again!  Lisa

Instruction does not cause learning

Nuts and Bolts: The 10-Minute Instructional Design Degree (Learning Solutions Magazine, 9/6/2011)

Etienne Wenger: “Instruction does not cause learning; it creates a context in which learning takes place, as do other contexts. Learning and teaching are not inherently linked. Much learning takes place without teaching, and indeed much teaching takes place without learning.” In other words, knowledge acquisition doesn’t cause behavior change. People learn through experience, through making mistakes, through trying things out, through talking things through with others. Don’t just deliver facts and “content,” but provide meaningful exercises and activities that can help to “cause” learning. Provide performance support tools. Insinuate the learning into the social spaces in which the workers operate. Help the instruction become part of that context in which the learner can learn.

The article is about instructional design, but has broader applicability for our endeavors.

Interesting article on how students are using technology

This is link to a blog posting I follow for university professors and grad students.  This post is an interesting one about how students (and maybe our audience?) is using technology in ways that never occurred to me.

Timeslicing in the Classroom

http://cgi.stanford.edu/~dept-ctl/tomprof/posting.php?ID=1114

Harvesting Flood Ravaged Foragaes

From Pete Erickson:

Due to the recent floods, dairy producers could be in for some further problems with their cows in the upcoming months. Because mud is coating many of the forages, clostridial contamination of the cropcan occur. This along with the potential of mold development can become problematic for many producers.  Here are some tips to help get through this situation:

• Vaccinate your cattle against clostridia, this bacteria strikes fast and kills cows.
•  Pack your silages very well, use an inoculant to help lower pH
•  Try putting plain white salt (50 pounds/400 sq.feet of top surface) this will help reduce spoilage
•  Make sure you cover the silo
•  Feed a mycotoxin binder such as bentonite or MTB 100 to the cattle
•  Don’t feed any non-fermented (green silages) to your cattle.
• 
  

Question on self-sustaining family farms

This question was emailed from a student here at UNH and I would appreciate any information you might have that we could send to her:

I'm an MFA student in the nonfiction creative writing program here at UNH, and I'm writing a profile of a family that runs a small, semi-subsistence farm in Northwood: they survive on their own animals and crops, and the sale of surplus eggs and produce (and maple sugar!) at farmers markets pays their mortgage and meager expenses.

I was wondering if you or someone else at the Cooperative Extension would know how many self-sustaining family farms there are in New Hampshire, and whether the number has been increasing/decreasing/holding steady. I'm also interested in any other farming-related trends or developments you guys are tracking -- I'm almost completely ignorant when it comes to agriculture in New Hampshire. Any information/suggestions/guidance you can offer would be greatly appreciated!

All best,

Jennie Latson

jennifer.latson@gmail.com

Note from FSA on Disaster Preparedness

FYI - This note was forwarded from Marilyn Ricker - FSA (8/31/2011):

I was just on a conference call with FSA GIS Specialists from other east coast states affected by Hurricane Irene.  There are some pretty talented GIS Specialist from other areas of the country that shared with us various disaster resources that can be used in GIS for disaster preparedness / analysis.  Information discussed on this call included data collected by the NOAA Storm Prediction Center (wind, hail, etc), LandSat Aerial Imagery, NOAA Precipitation / Hydro Data, and HURRIVAC data, that is available for our use.  While I have not had the opportunity to review any of this information for NH, I just wanted to let you know that it is available and at any time that you or the SEB would like information for this event, or future events, I would be happy to assist.