Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Website: cherokee.agrilife.org Email: [email protected]
4‐H Blogsite: cherokee4h.blogspot.com
The Extension Office is now on Facebook! Go checkout our page and give us a “like”.
h ps://www.facebook.com/CherokeeCountyExtension
Educa onal programs of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service are open to all people without regard to race, color, religion, sex, na onal origin, age, disability, gene c informa on or veteran status. The Texas A&M University
System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County Commissioners Courts of Texas Coopera ng.
Summer 2015
Table of Contents Section Pages 4-H Headlines 2-3 Agriculture 4-5 Horticulture 6-7 Family & Consumer Sciences 8-9 Calendar of Events 10-11
In Loving Memory of Mrs. Madeline Danheim
Mrs. Madeline Danheim passed May 29th. She was an ac ve member of the Central High TEEA Club for 29
years. She had lived in Alto for the last 30 years and was an ac ve member of the A. Frank Smith United
Methodist Church and the pianist for 24 years. She will be greatly missed.
Texas Hobo Cook-Off & Gypsy Jamboree Baking Contest July 4th @ 11:00 a.m.
Contestants may enter each category ONCE! Categories include: cakes, cookies & pies. Registra on runs 10:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Please bring a completed entry form with you the day of the compe on. Cakes & pies cannot be cut before judging. Submit only 6 cookies on a wrapped paper plate. Entries will be judged on taste, texture & appearance. Cakes will also be judged on moistness. Recipes must be typed on an 8 ½” X 11” sheet of white paper & must accompany each entry. Contestant’s name, address & phone number must be printed on the back‐side of the recipe. ***NO BOX MIXES*** The Cherokee County 4‐H is not responsible for any damage done to your food entry or serving items due to weather, humidity, etc. Keep this in mind when choosing your entry. Winners will be announced shortly a er judging is complete. The top 3 winners in each category will receive ribbons and the top place winners in each category will receive 50% of the entry fees collected for their respec ve category with the other 50% going to the Cherokee County 4‐H PALS organiza on. Entry forms can be found at: h ps://www.facebook.com/groups/hobogypsy/ or can be picked up at the County Extension Office.
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Willie Arnwine, CEA—4H/YD
2015 State 4-H Roundup Results Photo Judging—Intermediates 2nd Place, Aus n Pa erson Share the Fun—Solo/Band Performance 7th Place, Jamie Henderson Photography Contest, People Category Blue Ribbon, David Wingard Roundup Archery Intermediates, Compound Aided 10th Place, Colleen Dover Seniors, Recurve 4th Place, Lizzy Dover
Youth 912 Camp
Our 4th Annual Youth Camp will be held on August 4th—7th at the Rusk Civic Center in Rusk. This camp will follow a similar format as the three previous years. It will be a hands‐on day camp for kids ages 9‐12 from 8AM – 4PM each day. This camp is meant to be an introduc on to some of the major projects that 4‐H has to offer. Though the final schedule has not been set, the topics covered will range from Livestock & Animal projects (large and small), Dog projects, Food & Fashion projects, Entomology & Hor culture projects, Shoo ng Sports projects (Archery and Rifle), Public Speaking projects, Consumer Decision Making projects and Water Educa on & Apprecia on. Meals, snacks and refreshments will be provided. You may pre‐register for this camp by contac ng the County Extension Office at(903) 683‐5416. We will then send you the registra on form that you can either mail in or drop off in person by the registra on deadline (July 31st) This camp is open to non‐4‐H members as well as 4‐H members.
In fact, if you are a member and planning to a end, you are encouraged to bring a non‐4‐H member with you to camp.
Enrollment fees for this camp are as follows:
Non‐Member: $80.00
Current 4‐H Member: $60.00
If a family will have mul ple siblings a ending camp, a declining schedule will be applied to each subsequent enrollee. First child enrolls at full rate, each addi onal child enrolls at $10 less than the child before them. Example: Family with three non‐members a ending would be $80+$70+$60=a savings of $30.00.
Remember the Deadline to Register is July 31st at 5PM.
County Record Book Results
Junior Division Kara Wofford—Entomology Intermediate Elijah Russell—Shoo ng Sports John Wofford—Ci zenship Sarah Wofford—Food Nutri on Senior Lee Ellen Pearman—Beef Lizzy Dover—Leadership Lizzy Dover—Safety Lizzy Dover—Shoo ng Sports Lizzy Dover—Community Service Congrats to these members as they will be advancing to the District 5 Recordbook Contest to be held on July 13th. Recordbooks may be picked up from the CEO to make any suggested correc ons but must be returned by July 8th.
District 5 Leadership LAB
Cherokee County 4‐H will be represented by Emily Arnwine, Lee Ellen Pearman and Lizzy Dover at this year’s District 5 Leadership LAB. Best wishes to Lee Ellen & Lizzy
as they run for District Office!
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Aaron Low, CEA-AgNR
BREAKFAST CEU SERIES Cherokee County Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will be hos ng a monthly Breakfast CEU mee ng. We will meet once a month on the third Tuesday of every month at various cafés around the county for a “Dutch Treat” breakfast followed by a one hour pes cide topic worth one CEU. There will be a one‐ me $10 fee for a ending the yearlong Breakfast CEU Series. Anyone a ending a CEU course should bring their pes cide license number with them to receive credit at CEU classes. Driver’s licenses will not be allowed on re‐cer fica on credits.
JULY MEETING CANCELLED August 18th—Jacksonville—Beverly’s Diner—6:30 a.m. September 15th—Rusk—Whataburger—6:30 a.m.
Private Applicator Training Now Available Online!
The Agricultural & Environmental Safety Unit (AES) is excited
to announce a new training opportunity for Private Applicator
license applicants! In addi on to providing Private Applicator
Training at in‐person training programs conducted by County
Extension Agents, Texans seeking to obtain a Private
Applicators license may now complete the Texas Department
of Agriculture required training via an online course.
Now, the Private Applicator Training is available online via
campus.extension.org. The course is designed to provide the
required training to Texans who wish to obtain a Private
Pes cide Applicator license but are unable to a end training
provided by County Extension Agents.
This training tool walks poten al applicators through 11
topics, including Integrated Pest Management, reading and
understanding pes cide labels, pes cide record keeping,
recognizing pests and pest damage, and an updated pollinator
protec on module. At the conclusion of the course, a er
trainees pass a review exam, they will receive a cer ficate of
comple on and an electronic version of the D‐1411 which
they will then submit to TDA. The cost of the online course is
$75, which includes the shipping and handling fees for the
training manuals.
For more informa on on any of the previously men oned programs contact: Aaron Low at 903‐683‐5416 or
For more informa on about this new training opportunity,
visit h p://agrilife.org/aes or h p://agriliferegister.tamu.edu
and search for “Texas Private Applicator.”
If you have ques ons or need addi onal informa on on the
new online training or in person trainings feel free to contact
the County Extension Office.
Free Hay Testing-Cherokee County Hay Show
A great and easy way to get your hay tested for free is to
enter either a square bale or a large trash bag full of hay in our
annual Hay Show and Sale. You will be provided with a
detailed analysis of your hay crop. Hay samples must be
produced in Cherokee County.
Tes ng results will be given during the Annual Hay Show &
Sale held on October 20th at the Cherokee County Exposi on
Center in Jacksonville. A BBQ dinner will begin at 6 p.m. with
the auc on following at 7 p.m. The Grand Champion and
Reserve Champion hay along with the blue ribbon hay will be
auc oned during this event. All proceeds of this event will go
to benefit the youth of Cherokee County. The money will be
used to support the scholarship program by benefi ng the
youth associated with the Soil Conserva on District and the
Cherokee County Jr. Livestock Show.
Hay entry drop off loca ons are at the Extension Office in
Rusk, Hicks Farm & Ranch in Alto, Farm & Ranch Feed in
Jacksonville, Southland Feed in Jacksonville, Steele’s Feed &
Seed in Troup and Tri County Sale Barn in New Summerfield.
The deadline for entering hay samples is September 11th.
For more informa on you can call Aaron Low at the Extension
office at (903)683‐5416.
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[email protected] Kim Benton, County Extension Agent—Horticulture
Cherokee County Horticulture Newsletter
Congratulations to all the winners in the Best Homegrown Tomato Contest at TomatoFest this year!
Garden Goodness at the Hobo Cook-off and Gypsy Jamboree It is me to show off your gardening skills! Gorgeous peaches? Tasty tomatoes? Boun ful harvest? July 4th will be a great day to show them off. Win ribbons, prizes, and bragging rights! No fees to enter. For more informa on call Kim Benton at the
Extension office 903‐683‐5416
Above: Biggest Tomato—Dave Whi nger, 2 lbs 3 oz, Kelloggs Breakfast, Best Plate of 3—Tom Abbo , Celebrity Tomatoes; Best Plate of 3 Heirlooms—Jon Whi nger, Contesualo Genovese Tomatoes. Below: Best Plate of 3 Youth Gardening—Abigail Whi nger, Contesualo Genovese Tomatoes; People’s Choice—Sammy Beall, Romas; Most Unusual—Ka e Whi nger, Red Pear
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Ah, summer, what power you have to make us suffer and like it. ~Russel Baker
Summertime is perfect for planning and creating your scarecrows for the
2015 Scarecrow Trail.
Opening Day: Saturday
October 10th
Biggest Commercial Tomato—David Claiborne with 3lb 3.3 oz Mountain Fresh; Best Plate of 3 Commercial—Jonathon Guinn with Pik Rite tomatoes
Thanks very much to Keith Hansen for coming down to judge for us. It is always a pleasure to work with him!
And of course none of this is successful without the volunteers that help us out. Many thanks to the Cherokee County Master Gardener Association for their help and ETMC—Jacksonville for their
sponsorship!
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Megan Turnmire CEA-Family & Consumer Science [email protected]
WALK ACROSS TEXAS SUCCESS! Our 2015 Walk Across Texas was a HUGE success! We teamed up with our county Texas Associa ons of Coun es representa ve to combine Walk Across Texas and Sonic Boom. We had over 150 par cipants and 18 teams! Due to the high number of county employee par cipants, we held our kick‐off event at 5:15 PM outside the courthouse. At the event we distributed newsle ers, granola bars, bananas, waters, and walked our first mile together! This encouraged par cipa on and gave people a chance to establish some friendly compe on. T‐shirts were ordered in different colors for each team and some teams even found sponsors for their T‐shirts. Every Friday, teams were allowed to wear t‐shirts to work. Weekly emails updates were sent to team captains along with healthy living ps and encouragement. As a result of these efforts, Cherokee County Walk Across Texas par cipants walked over 29,670 miles!!! Members of the winning team were each given a gi basket. Our planning commi ee secured a sponsorship from Harry’s Building Supplies and dona ons from Adrenaline ZipLine Tours, Subway, and Jacksonville Cinema. What did the par cipants have to say when asked, “How did you or your family benefit from Walk Across Texas?” While I was already exercising regularly, Walk Across
Texas mo vated me to train, enter and complete my first 5K.
My seven year old got mo vated to play more out‐side a er seeing me be more ac ve.
Made me more aware of staying moving throughout the day.
Lost weight, feel be er! The total economic impact of the program was over 1.6 MILLION DOLLARS! Way to go Cherokee County Walk Across Texas par cipants!
Caprese Skewers with Balsamic Drizzle
This is the perfect light summer me recipe and it is SO easy! Enjoy!
Ingredients
1 cup balsamic vinegar
cherry or grape tomatoes
mini mozzarella cheese balls (could use regular sized ball cut into bite‐sized pieces)
fresh basil leaves, cut in half if large
salt & pepper
toothpicks Direc ons 1. Bring balsamic vinegar up to a boil in a saucepan, then lower heat to medium and simmer un l it's the consistency of very thin maple syrup, about 10 minutes. Pour into a bowl and let cool. 2. Cut tomatoes in half. Thread a mini mozzarella cheese ball, basil leaf (fold in half if large) and a tomato half onto a tooth pick. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Sprinkle with salt & pepper, then drizzle cooled balsamic reduc on on top.
Recipe from: h p://iowagirleats.com
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Children & Sun Safety Courtney J. Schoessow, MPH
Extension Specialist Health Educa on
Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the U.S. Excessive & unprotected exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet radia on is the primary risk factor for skin cancer. However, skin cancer is one of the most preventable types of cancer! The damaging & cumula ve effects of UV light begin when an infant’s or toddler’s unprotected skin is exposed to sunlight. Protec ng the skin from UV light can prevent approximately 80% of skin cancers. You, as a parent, are important to helping prevent skin cancer! Teach your children early about sun protec on to decrease their poten al for skin cancers.
UVA & UVB Are Two Types of Radia on that Damage Skin It’s important to shield your children’s skin from the damaging effects of the sun. No ma er what they’re doing or what me of year it is, if they’re outside, your children need to be protected. The sun’s rays can penetrate deeply into skin & damage the skin’s lowers layers. It can cause sunburn, wrinkles, freckles, suntans, precancerous skin condi ons & skin cancer. One severe sunburn early in life doubles the chances of future skin cancer!
Build Safe Sun Habits Build safe sun habits into your family’s daily rou ne. Lead by example—children will respond be er when they see you protec ng your skin. Begin by teaching them to: Use sun screan Wear protec ve clothing Wear sunglasses Wear a hat that shades the face, neck & ears Reduce me outdoors between 10 a.m.—4 p.m.
Did You Know? Children receive about 80% of their life me exposure to ultraviolet radia on during the first 18 years of life.
Sun Screen Children & adults should use sun screen everyday—even on cloudy days. Seventy to 80% of the sun’s damaging rays can penetrate through clouds and water. Sun screens work in two ways. The chemical in most sun screens absorb ultraviolet radia on before it can damage the skin. Some sun screens block ultraviolet rays by sca ering or reflec ng them away from the skin.
Apply a sun screen and lip balm with an SPF of 15 or greater everyday! Apply sun screen at least 30 minutes before going out in the sun to allow me for it to work. Use broad‐spectrum sun screen products that block out both ultraviolet‐A & ultraviolet‐B rays. Use waterproof sun screens that will not be washed off through perspira on, and to be sure you’re protected, reapply sun screen every two hours of swimming or swea ng.
Sunglasses Overexposure to the sun can cause short‐and long‐term damage to the eyes. Protec on of the eyes is especially important for young children since the lens of the eye is not able to completely protect the re na from the harmful effects of UV light. Buy sunglasses that block 99‐100% of UVA & UVB rays. Darker sunglasses are not necessarily be er because UV protec on comes from an invisible chemical applied to the lenses—not from the color or darkness of the lenses. Buy large‐framed wraparound sunglasses with Velcro adjustable headbands to protect your child’s eyes from all angles.
Clothing & Hats Clothing can block out the sun’s harmful rays & should be one of the first lines of defense against sun exposure. Fabric is full of ny holes that can allow UV light through. The fewer the number and the smaller the size of the holes in the fabric, the more it blocks UV light. Lighter colors may feel cooler, but darker colors actually absorb UV light & promote more protec on for the skin. Hats offer the best method of minimizing UV light to the face, head, ears & neck. A hat with a wide brim that goes all the way around offers the best protec on. The hat’s brim should be at least 3‐4 inches wide. A wide‐brimmed hat provides approximately 50% protec on from direct exposure.
Did You Know? Swimwear and outerwear are now being made with UV protec on!
Cherokee County 4-H Calendar of Events JULY 3‐4
5 13 13 13‐18 30
Texas Hobo Cook‐off & Gypsy Jamboree —Texas State Railroad Park, Rusk Depot Cherokee County 4‐H Shoo ng Sports Range Day District 5 Recordbook Judging—Nacogdoches County Extension Office, Nacogdoches County Council Mee ng @6:00 p.m.—CEO State 4‐H Shotgun Games—Na onal Shoo ng Complex, San Antonio 4‐H PALs Mee ng @6:30 p.m.—CEO
AUGUST 1 4‐7 12 18
Early Enrollment in 4‐H Connect Opens Youth 912 Camp—Rusk Civic Center 4‐H Club Office Training 4‐H Project Showcase (Tenta ve Date)
SEPTEMBER 1 4 6‐12
New 4‐H Year Begins Club Charter Informa on Due to CEO Na onal 4‐H Week
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July 3 County Holiday—Office Closed 3‐4 Texas Hobo Cook‐off & Gypsy Jamboree—Texas Railroad Park Rusk Depot 30 Beef Quality Assurance Training—Ben E. Keith Building, Pales ne 31 Registra on Deadline for Youth 912 Camp August 4‐7 Youth 912 Camp, Rusk Civic Center 18 Breakfast CEU Series—Beverly’s Café, Jacksonville September 1 Labor Day—County Extension Office Closed 11 Entry Deadline for Cherokee County Hay Show 15 Breakfast CEU Series—WHATABURGER, Rusk
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Cloverleaf 4-H Cow Patty Drop
Snow Cones & Nachos Watermelon by the Slice Bandana Bindle Sticks
Bluebonnet 4-H Wagon Rides
Bounce House Crafts
Snow Cones, Popcorn, Candy
Lookout 4-H Snow Cones
Cotton Candy Face Painting
New Summerfield 4-H Bounce Houses Breakfast Tacos
Cherokee 4-H Shooting Sports
Archery Expo BB Gun Gallery
Water Gun Fights
Cherokee 4-H Clay Crushers
Dunking Booth
Cherokee 4-H PALS Fountain Drinks
Best Home-Baked Dessert
Cherokee Co Master Gardeners
Summer Garden Shootout
Event Sponsors Texas State Railroad Heritage Land Bank
Southland Feed Cherokee County Electric Coop
Pearman Motor Company
(Confirmed Sponsors as of Print Date)
NON PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE PAID
RUSK, TX PERMIT NO. 5416
Cherokee County Extension Service P.O. Drawer B Rusk, Texas 75785