One stop, row crop production resource gets new look

A web site that corn, soybean, and wheat farmers can use as a home page

Staying profitable in farming means having quick and easy access to practical and concise research-based information and expert recommendations--which is exactly what the newly revised Ohio State University Agronomic Crops Network web site and newsletter is intended to provide.

Farmers, consultants, and ag businesses who regularly visit the site (http://agcrops.osu.edu) will find significant changes to the crop production management resource tool. In addition, the valued Crop Observation and Recommendation Network (C.O.R.N.) newsletter will also feature a new look.

"It's all about getting information in the hands of farmers faster," said Harold Watters, an Ohio State University Extension agronomist. "These changes are based on farmer surveys and focus groups. Farmers told us they don't care about paper anymore. They want their information electronically, fast, and up-to-date, and that's what we are trying to provide with this new look."

The Agronomic Crops Network web site is the hub of OSU Extension's Signature Program, "Increasing Profitable Crop Yields Above Trendline–2014," which aims to meet the growing demand for food, feed, fiber, fuels, and industrial uses of Ohio's crops.

"Profitability is No. 1 in farmers' eyes," said Watters. "Increasing yields increases profits and implementing various production practices, like soil testing, scouting, and IPM, helps bring about those higher yields. Our objective is to share that information--in a central location--with farmers for them to achieve that goal."

--By Candace Pollock

From blight to bloom

OSU Extension helps green-up, re-develop Cleveland with urban farms

Driving through various Cleveland neighborhoods, it's not hard to find large tracts of land vacated by years of population decline and economic struggle. But these days, it's also easy to spot "urban farm" or "community garden" signs going up at many of those sites. OSU Extension is helping make that transformation happen.

The Cuyahoga County office of OSU Extension (Western Reserve EERA) has been working with local residents, area universities, community organizations, and elected officials in a variety of projects and legislation seeking to encourage residents to turn empty lots and backyards into sources of fresh fruit, vegetables, and even livestock.

"Our goal is to re-imagine Cleveland from a rust-belt city into a national model of urban agriculture and 'green' economic development," said Marie Barni, Cuyahoga County office director. "We now work with over 200 community gardens on 60-plus acres of land producing over $3 million worth of fresh produce every season. For-profit market gardens are generating income for urban farmers, youth and adults alike, and they are also helping local hunger shelters."

One project is Stanard Farm, which was developed on the site of the former Stanard Elementary School after Cleveland City Council last November passed legislation transferring the property to the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities (CCBDD). This farm will provide employment and training opportunities for adults with disabilities, while growing fresh local food for people in areas of the city where these commodities are hard to find. CCBDD and OSU Extension have shared a goal to develop 10 such farms in the next five years.

--By Mauricio Espinoza

Other urban agriculture projects in which OSU Extension has played or plays a role in the Cleveland area include:

• Providing expert advice in support of 2009 legislation allowing city residents to raise poultry and rabbits, and keep beehives.

• Training of more than 100 gardeners, half of whom have started agricultural businesses such as selling at farmer's markets.

• Helping coordinate the Cleveland–Cuyahoga County Food Policy Coalition along with Case Western Reserve University and the New Agrarian Center.

4-H at Wright-Patt: Serving our 'youngest heroes'

More than 34,000 Ohio children and teens are in military families, with about one-third of them in the southwestern corner of the state--Ohio State University Extension's Miami Valley Extension Education and Research Area (EERA). Tucked inside that area is Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, which straddles Montgomery and Greene counties. Since 2002, OSU Extension educators Betty Wingerter and Beth Bridgeman have spearheaded 4-H programs at the base.

The 4-H partnership with the Air Force started in 20 states, "and we were one of them," Wingerter said. "Now 4-H is at all Air Force bases--and Army and Navy installations--worldwide."

A $30,000 National Institute of Food and Agriculture grant makes the Wright-Patt partnership possible. County 4-H staff works with employees at two childcare programs and its youth center, reaching nearly 300 youths.

"The idea is to enhance the base's youth programs and offer a sense of continuity to children of military families, who are often uprooted," Wingerter said.

Gary Gray, director of youth services at Wright-Patt, said the program opens the 4-H experience to a whole new audience. "They get involved with animals, with pets, with environmental projects. They go to 4-H camps and experience the outdoors. These are things they wouldn't be exposed to without this partnership."

The materials 4-H provides are also beneficial, Gray said. "The educational portion of 4-H is just outstanding; the curriculum is so well put together that even our inexperienced childcare workers can just pick it up and run with it."

Wingerter is proud to offer support for military youth: "I call them our youngest heroes because they're serving too. They're sacrificing their parent--sometimes both parents--during a deployment, and they often have more responsibility at home than other children. I see that participating in 4-H programs allows them, in at least one way, to be just a kid like every other kid."

For more on Ohio 4-H's partnership with the military, see http://www.ohio4h.org/military.

--By Martha Filipic

Sun safety worshipers

Extension effort aims to protect Ohioans from skin cancer

It's summertime -- prime time to think about sun safety.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, skin cancer is the nation's most common form of cancer. In 2006, 53,919 people were diagnosed with melanoma of the skin, and 8,441 people died from it.

Ohioans appear to be taking the risk more seriously than ever, say Ohio State University Extension educators Pat Brinkman and Rose Fisher-Merkowitz, who co-lead Extension's Family and Consumer Sciences Sun Safety program.

"When we first started doing sun safety programs at pesticide applicator trainings, a lot of the reaction was, 'Oh, I'm not going to worry about this,'" Fisher-Merkowitz said. "Maybe two or three people would approach me to have their skin looked at in the Dermascan. Now, they stand in line. They're out in the sun a lot, and they take it seriously."

Dee Jepsen, OSU Extension's safety leader, said people tend to get excited about using the Dermascan equipment, but it's the Sun Safety educational messages that truly make a difference. "We conducted research with farmers in the 1990s and found that educational programs changed behavior for skin cancer prevention," Jepsen said.

During a 2007 Extension Sun Safety in-service, educators from across the state were trained to use Dermascan equipment and introduced to educational materials and activities. Brinkman uses the materials all year long, at a Fayette County Health Fair that draws 1,400 to 1,600 people a year, at field days and farmers' markets, at Master Gardener meetings, and with teens at area high schools.

"I tell people, if you're over 50 and out in the sun a lot or if you had a lot of sunburns when you were young, it's best to get checked by a health professional now," Brinkman said. "If there's not a problem, you don't have to worry. But if they find something, it's best to find it early."

For information on skin cancer, see the CDC's web site at http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin. To learn more about OSU Extension's Sun Safety programs, contact Brinkman at brinkman.93@cfaes.osu.edu or Fisher-Merkowitz at merkowitz.1@cfaes.osu.edu.

--By Martha Filipic

Neighbors helping neighbors

OSU Extension reaches out to University District

In the shadow of Ohio State University's main campus, the University District is often called "a city within a city," with distinct neighborhoods and a diverse population. In 2002, as a part of the university's outreach efforts, Ohio State University Extension relocated educator Susan Colbert from the Franklin County office to the University District, allowing Extension to directly serve the university's next-door neighbor. Since then, Colbert has forged partnerships with local organizations to meet the needs of
this often underserved community.

"I attribute much of our success to the unique partnerships in the community," Colbert said. "They help us leverage our resources."

Before Extension started working in the neighborhood, things were different, said Joyce Hughes, a member of the Weinland Park Employment Collaborative. "Before there was a just clear divide, the east side of Weinland Park on one side, Ohio State on the other," Hughes said. "Now, people have opportunities that otherwise would not be afforded to them."

For information on OSU Extension's University District programs, see http://udistrict.osu.edu, or watch a video on OSU Extension's YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/OSUExtension; choose "Neighbors Helping Neighbors."

Examples of the partnerships include:

• A partnership with the University Area Enrichment Association and Ohio State's Department of Art Education has led to a successful "Girls and Technology" 4-H program. This unique partnership received funding from an OSU CARES grant.

• A partnership with the Godman Guild has allowed Extension to offer GED classes, computer training, and a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program for neighborhood residents. VITA offers free tax preparation services to low- and moderate-income working families and is estimated to have helped residents gain $2.3 million in tax credits since 2005.

• A partnership with the Weinland Park Employment Collaborative is credited with finding full-time jobs for at least 25 residents at Ohio State and other nearby employers since 2008. As a result of the collaborative's efforts, a new Human Resources position has been created at Ohio State to help more residents gain access to campus employment.

--By Martha Filipic