Debbie Carter
907-474-5406
4/11/11

The Tanana District Cooperative Extension office will celebrate its new location with eight days of community classes and an April 20 open house.

The series of 20 classes will cover everything from worm composting and estate planning to crock pot cookery. Classes will be offered at 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., beginning April 11, at Extension’s new home, upstairs in the Fairbanks Community Food Bank building. See the full schedule linked at www.uaf.edu/ces.

The open house will run from 2-6 p.m. April 20 and will begin with a talk by Extension director Fred Schlutt about the future of Extension. Light refreshments will be provided. The entrance is at the rear of the building, at 724 27th Ave.

The district office moved in February. The leased space includes offices, a publications display area and a large classroom with videoconferencing capabilities. Extension has retained Room 154 at the University Park Building for meeting and classroom space.

All open house classes are free except for the pesticide applicator class. Space is limited, so registration is requested at 474-2450.

The Cooperative Extension Service is a nationwide education network supported by a partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and land-grant universities, such as the University of Alaska Fairbanks. For more information, call the Fairbanks office at 474-1530.

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Roxie Dinstel, Tanana District health, home and family development agent, at 474-2426 or [email protected].

ON THE WEB: www.uaf.edu/ces

DC/04-11-11/200-11

Debbie Carter
907-474-5406
3/29/11

Cooperative Extension Service community sustainability coordinator Rich Seifert will teach his Cold Climate Homebuilding Techniques workshop Saturday, April 2 in Schaible Auditorium on the UAF campus. The free workshop will run from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and includes a manual and a CD.

The workshop will focus on insulating homes and will cover options for retrofit, ventilation, indoor air quality and permafrost and foundations. It is also designed to help homeowners who plan to participate in the state’s home energy rebate program.

Call 907-474-7201 or 907-474-6366 to register.

MEDIA CONTACT: Cooperative Extension community sustainability coordinator Rich Seifert at 907-474-7201. Debbie Carter, CES public information officer, at 907-474-5406 or [email protected].

DC/3-29-11/183psa-11

Debbie Carter
907-474-5406
3/15/11

The Sustainable Agriculture Conference March 23-24 in Fairbanks will cover a variety of topics, from novelty potato research to raising dairy goats.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service will host the seventh annual conference at the Fairbanks Princess Riverside Lodge. Speakers will include producers, researchers and representatives of agricultural agencies.

Special guest speaker Lorrie Conway, who runs a licensed raw milk dairy in Washington state with her husband, Shaun, will talk about how raising dairy goats and making cheese can be successful on a small family farm. Speakers also will address various considerations of running a small dairy, including raw milk regulations, cheese and meat regulations in Alaska and sheep and goat parasites.

Other topics will include agriculture funding programs, organic fertilizer research, school gardens, community-supported agriculture in Homer, the Alaska rhubarb industry, small fruits and berries and raising chickens in Interior Alaska. Panels will discuss food security, root cellars and employment strategies for small Alaska farms.

Two preconference workshops will take place on March 22. Lorrie Conway and Susan Kerr, a veterinarian and county Extension director from Washington state, will lead a goat and small dairy workshop from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Princess. The Conways will teach goat cheesemaking from 3 to 6 p.m. in the Hutchison Institute of Technology kitchen.

Preconference workshops are $35 and registration for the two-day conference is $75 or $55 for one day. Preregistration is requested for planning purposes. See a full conference schedule or download a registration form at www.uaf.edu/ces.

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Taylor Maida, agriculture and horticulture technician, at 907-474-2422 or via e-mail at [email protected].

ON THE WEB: www.uaf.edu/ces

DC/03-15-11/172-11

<i>Photo by Jeff Fay </i><br>Research technician Kate Idzorek makes a batch of instant soups in the test kitchen at Extension’s state office in Fairbanks.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service will host an open house at its test kitchen March 5 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event will take place at Extension’s state office at 308 Tanana Loop on the UAF campus.

Experts from Extension, the Department of Environmental Conservation and the Alaska Small Business Development Center will be on hand to talk to individuals about their food-based business ideas and state regulations that could affect them. Extension develops nutrition fact labels and provides assistance with label and logo design and with navigating the obstacles to becoming a small, food-based business.

Extension announced last fall that it had made its Department of Environmental Conservation-certified kitchen available to the public for an hourly fee. The idea was to help entrepreneurs who are trying to get their businesses going but do not have access to a certified facility.

Kate Idzorek, who coordinates use of the kitchen, said she hopes the open house will spur interest in the test kitchen and also help entrepreneurs with their business ideas.

Light refreshments will be available at the open house. Parking is free on weekends. For more information, call Idzorek at 907-474-5391.

ON THE WEB: www.uaf.edu/ces

DC/2-25-11/159-11

Debbie Carter
907-474-5406
2/18/11

Farmers, researchers and representatives of agricultural agencies will gather in Delta Junction Feb. 26 for the annual Delta Farm Forum.

The forum provides attendees with crop production information, research results and agricultural agency updates. Ed Fogels, deputy commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, will welcome participants at 9 a.m. in the Delta High School small gymnasium and presentations will run until 4 p.m.

Bob Bishop, an export and logistics manager from Larsen Farms of Dubois, Idaho, will talk about lab-tested, disease-free seed potato exports. Other morning speakers will address phosphorus and potassium fertilizer trials, the Fort Greely biofuels proposal, canola production and Environmental Protection Agency fuel storage regulations.

Franci Havemeister, director of the Alaska Division of Agriculture, will open the afternoon session with agency updates. Other speakers will talk about the HomeGrown Market in Fairbanks, the flavor of barley flour and the Salcha-Delta Soil and Water Conservation District.

The Delta FFA chapter and the DJ Saddletramps 4-H club will serve as masters of ceremonies for the forum and will assist with the program. The Saddletramps also will host the second annual 4-H roundup and open house in the high school large gym during the forum.

A potluck luncheon will begin around noon. More information about the forum is available at www.uaf.edu/ces/.

The 2011 Delta Farm Forum is co-sponsored by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service and the Salcha-Delta Soil and Water Conservation District. For more information, call Extension’s Delta Junction office at 907-895-4215 or the conservation district at 907-895-6279.

ON THE WEB: www.uaf.edu/ces/

DC/02-18-10/153-11

Debbie Carter
907-474-5406
2/10/11

The Alaska Produce Growers Conference Feb. 15-16 in Palmer will provide vegetable and fruit growers with the latest research and recommendations.

Conference organizer Stephen Brown, a Palmer agriculture and horticulture agent for the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service, said this year’s conference will also include information on Rhodiola rosea, a high-value medicinal plant that is harvested wild in Siberia. Brown said a relative of the plant was discovered in Hatcher Pass and Alaska growers are experimenting with growing it. An Alaska producer who planted 100,000 of these plants in Anchorage believes they can be grown profitably on a small amount of acreage, said Brown.

The grower, Anchorage physician Dr. Petra Illig, received an Alaska Division of Agriculture Innovation Grant to grow the plant and has founded the Alaska Rhodiola Products Cooperative. Illig will lead a rhodiola-growers information meeting during the conference.

“This is maybe a new cash crop for Alaska,” Brown said.

Kwesi Ampong-Nyar ko, a research scientist from Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, will talk about research and the commercialization of Rhodiola rosea in Alberta.

Conference speakers will include experts from the university and state and federal farm agencies and producers. Presentations on Feb. 15 will highlight issues of interest to potato growers. Ashok Alva of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Research Service in Washington state will talk about the best management of irrigation and fertilization for high yields and quality potatoes. Other topics will include updates on potato disease control, potato research and an Alaska field guide to potato pests. A series of farm safety and health workshops also will be offered.

On Feb. 16, speakers will talk about Rhodiola rosea, composting with fish products, weed research, small fruit growers, a sod-harvesting business, vegetable processing and farming off the grid.

The Palmer Community Center at 610 S. Valley Way will host the conference. A schedule and registration form may be downloaded from www.uaf.edu/ces. For more information, contact extension’s Mat-Su/Copper River District office at 745-3360.

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Steve Brown, Palmer Extension agriculture and horticulture agent, at 907-745-3639 or [email protected].

ON THE WEB: www.uaf.edu/ces

DC/2-10-11/146-11

Pink peony

Back-to-back conferences in Anchorage Jan. 26-28 will provide education and support for the Alaska horticultural industry.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service will host the Alaska Greenhouse and Nursery Conference Jan. 26–27 and the Alaska Peony Growers Conference Jan. 27–28. Both events will take place at the Hilton Anchorage.

The 30th annual Greenhouse and Nursery Conference is geared to commercial operations, but home gardeners are welcomed. Sessions will cover heating greenhouses with a solar panel hot water system, berry production, greenhouse research, agricultural agency updates, a comparison of mowers and information about a potential new crop in Alaska, a medicinal herb called Rhodiola rosea.

Keynote speaker at the Greenhouse and Nursery Conference is Harvey Lang, the director of technical support for Syngenta Flowers, one of the largest wholesale breeders of hybrid flower seed in the world. Stephen Brown, Extension agriculture and horticulture agent for the Mat-Su/Copper River District, said Lang’s sessions on greenhouse production of hanging baskets and new flower varieties will be of particular interest to producers.

The fifth annual Peony Growers Conference will bring together information on research trials and varieties, and tips from growers. Julie Riley, Extension horticulture agent for the Anchorage District, said peonies continue to be a new crop of great interest among Alaska growers because the flowers bloom here at a time when they are not available to florists elsewhere in the world. More than two-dozen Alaska producers have planted tens of thousands of peonies in the past five years.

Riley said the conference will be relevant both to those who are considering peony production as well as seasoned producers.

“It will be a chance to rub shoulders with those who have planted peonies already and those who have recently cleared land,” she said.

Featured speaker Roy Klehm, of Klehm’s Song Sparrow Farm and Nursery in Wisconsin, will talk about growing tips and strategies and variety selections. Klehm, who is recognized as one of the world’s leading peony authorities, has selected, hybridized and introduced many peony varieties.

See the complete agenda and registration form for both conferences at www.uaf.edu/ces.

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Stephen Brown on the Greenhouse and Nursery Conference, 907-745-3639 or via e-mail at [email protected]. Julie Riley on the Alaska Peony Growers Conference, 907-786-6306 or via e-mail at [email protected].

ON THE WEB: www.uaf.edu/ces

DC/01-14-11/128-11

Debbie Carter
907-474-5406
1/7/11

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service is seeking host families in the Anchorage, Kenai Peninsula and Mat-Su areas for the summer 2011 LABO Japan-Alaska 4-H Youth Exchange.

Each family must have a 10- to 16-year-old child who is willing to host a Japanese youth from July 21 to Aug. 19. The host brother or sister will be matched with a Japanese youth of the same gender and similar age and interests.

The deadline for applying is April 1. Applications are available through 4-H offices at Cooperative Extension Service district offices in Anchorage, Soldotna or Palmer. Applications and additional information are also available by e-mailing Tony Nakazawa at [email protected] or Marianne Kerr at [email protected], or by calling Nakazawa at 907-786-6300 or 907-460-0825. The exchange is part of the States’ 4-H International Exchange Program. For more information, visit www.states4Hexchange.org.

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Tony Nakazawa, Extension economist, at 907-786-6300 or 907-460-0825 (cell) or via e-mail at [email protected].

ON THE WEB: www.uaf.edu/ces

DC/1-7-11/122-11

Doug Schneider
907-474-7449
12/10/10

If disaster strikes, do you have enough food to weather the storm? Does your community have enough provisions? Are your everyday food choices nutritious and affordable?

To learn more about how Southeast Alaska communities view their food security, the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service and Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program are asking Southeast Alaskans to complete an online survey. Researchers hope survey results will reveal the region’s food security concerns and identify how the university can help communities address them.

The five-minute survey is online at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/foodsecurity.

Food security is a broad term that means different things to different people, explained Glenn Haight, business specialist with the Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program. For communities, it may mean knowing how much food is generally stocked in local stores so that emergency planners have an idea of how many days the community can survive should transportation routes be cut due to storms or other events. For individuals, it may mean how much food is on hand in their homes and its nutritional and cultural value and cost.

“Food security relates to individual’s food quality, nutrition, health and cost,” said Haight. “Also, many remote Alaska communities depend on subsistence foods and shipments of manufactured food, so community food security is also a factor.”

The online survey will be open through the end of the year, and the results will be tabulated soon after.

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Glenn Haight, Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program fisheries business specialist, 907-796-6046, [email protected]. Sunny Rice, Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program agent, 907-772-3381, [email protected].

ON THE WEB: www.alaskaseagrant.org

DS/12-10-10/111-11

Photo courtesy of Kaylyn Hale
Kaylyn Hale and her Japanese host, Mayu, viewed the Golden Pavilion Rokuon-ji temple in Kyoto, Japan during a summer 2010 visit through the Alaska 4-H Exchange Program.

Youths ages 13-18 who are interested in Japan and its culture may request an application to participate in an Alaska 4-H exchange trip to Japan.

Applications must be received by Jan. 11 for the exchange, which is July 6 to Aug. 4, 2011. Applicants who are not currently 4-H members will be enrolled in 4-H prior to going to Japan.

Each Alaska youth will be matched with a Japanese youth of the same gender and similar age and interests. After orientation in the United States, participants will travel to Japan with a chaperone and join their Japanese host families.

Exchange coordinator Jill Holmgren said participants do whatever their host families do and experience life in Japan from the inside, rather than as a tourist or guest.

The exchange between 4-H and Japan has been ongoing for more than 40 years. For more information, e-mail [email protected] or call Holmgren at 907-455-6987. Participants pay a program fee that includes transportation, orientation and all other expenses except spending money.

4-H is a national youth development program and is administered in Alaska by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. Information about 4-H and the Alaska 4-H Exchange Program is located at www.alaska4h.org.

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Jill Holmgren, Alaska 4-H Program coordinator, at 907-455-6987 or [email protected].

ON THE WEB: www.uaf.edu/ces