NATIONAL 4-H WEEK:
October 1-7 is National 4-H Week with many 4-H opportunities available. Did you know that:
- 4-H is one of the largest youth development organizations in America with more than 6.5 million young people, ages 5-19, 538,000 youth and adult volunteers, more than 3,500 staff and 60 million alumni?
In 2004-05, Arizona had 13,904 youth in 4-H clubs. There were 3,053 adult volunteers. Overall, 70,199 youth participated in 4-H learning experiences last year.
- 4-H, with its direct connection to the land-grant universities, is the first experience many young people have with higher education? The Arizona 4-H Youth Development Program provides 4-H in the state on the 2 Army and 2 Air Force installations as well as at Air Force bases in Osan, Korea and Kadena, Misawa, and Yokota, Japan.
- in the Arizona 4-H Program, ethnically, the participation is nearly 43% Hispanic or Latino members, and 57% white non-Hispanic or Latino ethnic populations? 4-H includes both genders with is split 54% female and 46% percent male.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REVIEWS:
APRs for county agents will be due on Monday, January 15, 2007, and this is an early reminder to begin preparation. If you have any questions, contact Patti B. (520.621.5308) or Robert Armstrong (520.621.3872).
CALS STAFF IN-SERVICE REGISTRATION:
For county staff that plan to attend this year's one-day CALS Staff In-Service, you can now register at http://ag.arizona.edu/dean/inservice/registration.htm (for the meeting, lunch and breakout sessions). The in-service is on Thursday, November 2, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., at the Hacienda del Sol (5601 N. Hacienda del Sol Road, Tucson). The planning committee has an outstanding group of speakers lined up including Sean Power, Linda Block and Jack Elliot. Breakout sessions will include topics that impact staff including “The Name Game” (how to remember 90% of the people you meet), “Small Steps to Health and Wealth,” and “What's Your Style: Making the Pieces Fit” (figuring out your style to understand why you and others approach situations in difference ways). The registration website includes a link to session descriptions. Registration deadline is October 20.
CITIZEN SCIENTISTS:
Recruitment is underway. If you are a resident of the Southwest and have a backyard rain gauge, you can become a citizen scientist by participating in Rainlog.org . Web site registration includes a Google map utility to pinpoint the latitude and longitude of gauge locations, plus guidance on selecting and installing rain gauges. Also included is information on collecting high quality observations. Uploading data after rain events is a simple, straight-forward process using web forms. Those who have had rain gauges for years are invited to upload historic data in their own personalized “My Data” section of the site. Now numbering over 400, the ranks of citizen volunteers is growing. Rainlog.org is a partnership between the National Science Foundation's Sustainability of Semi-Arid Hydrology and Riparian Areas Center and the University of Arizona's Cooperative Extension.
RESEARCH PROPOSAL OPPORTUNITY:
The UA's Water Resources Research Center is accepting proposals for research grants under the Water Resources Research Act, Section 104B. Funded by the U.S. Geological Survey, Section 104B provides support for small research projects on water-related issues of importance to the state and region. The WRRC usually funds three to five small grants of about $10,000-$12,000 over a 12-month period. Funded projects start March 1, 2007 and proposals are due by 5:00pm on November 27. For additional information contact Terry Sprouse (520.792.9591, ext.13). Guidelines are available on the WRRC web site .
NEW PUBLICATIONS:
There are two new CALS publications that have been posted: “ Small Grain Varieties for Arizona 2006 ” and “ Nondormant Alfalfa Varieties for Arizona 2006 ” by Mike Ottman.
UPCOMING EVENTS & DEADLINES:
- The 5th Annual Arizona Dairy Production Conference will be held next Tuesday, October 10 at the Phoenix Sheraton Airport Hotel in Tempe (1600 S. 52nd Street). This conference is geared toward dairy producers, their employees, extension personnel, veterinarians, nutritionists, milk quality specialists and others involved in the dairy industry. If you are interested in attending, you may register at the following link: https://pubs1.cals.arizona.edu/sales/reginfo.cfm?ID=52 . Registration will also be available at the door. For questions or more information, contact Laura Rittenbach (520.626.9382).
- A Range Monitoring Workshop is taking place on Friday, October 13 from 8:00-3:55 in the Payson area. It is necessary to register (by October 10), so contact Susan Bolt in the Gila County-Payson office (928.474.4160). The workshop is being sponsored by the Tonto Natural Resource Conservation District, Arizona Cooperative Extension, the School of Natural Resources, the Natural Resources Conservation Service and USDA-NRCS.
- On Tuesday, October 17, from 9:00-11:30am (PT), there will be a nationwide satellite/videostream conference called “Stormwater Management from a Watershed Perspective: Extreme Western Climates" that will feature projects in Arizona. Host sites and contacts are: 1) Phoenix - Maricopa County Extension Office, 4341 E. Broadway Road, Charlene Saltz (602.470.8086 x335); 2) Flagstaff - Northern Arizona University, Kaibab Room, Student Union, Brian Wallace (928.220.1058); 3) Tucson - University of Arizona, NEMO Program, Harvill Building, Room 203, 1103 E. Second Street, Kristine Uhlman (520.621.5951).
- The CALS Controlled Environment Agriculture Center Arizona will present two back-to-back conferences in January at the DoubleTree Hotel Tucson at Reid Park: 1) GREENHOUSE CROP PRODUCTION AND ENGINEERING DESIGN SHORT COURSE – January 14-17, 2007. Now in its 7th year, this Short Course offers three days of intensive education and practical experiences in the science of hydroponic crop production, and the engineering of controlled environments. Attendees will be provided with a roadmap and the knowledge necessary to develop a successful greenhouse operation. Registration fee is $499 ($599 after December 4, 2006); 2) The Second Annual GROWERS MARKETING FORUM: Farm to Fork (GMF3) – January 17-19, 2007. The Forum gives greenhouse and field growers important insights and knowledge on how to succeed in the vegetable and specialty crop marketplace. Attendees will learn from the experts about entry into wholesale and retail markets, optimal market sizes and types, distribution, branding, and packaging. Includes a tour to a state-of-the-art greenhouse tomato production and packing facility. Registration fee is $650 ($795 after December 4, 2006). For more information and to register for these conferences, go to http://ag.arizona.edu/ceac/ or contact Glenn McCreedy , Coordinator (520.626.9566).