Nearly two tons of fruit and vegetables grown at UC's Hansen Agricultural Research and Extension Center (HAREC) in Santa Paula have been donated to Food Forward and the Ventura Unified School District (VUSD), destined for children and families.

Some of the vegetables – planted by volunteers and farm staff - became available when UC HAREC's farm field trips were canceled due to COVID-19. Other vegetables were harvested from the student farm located at HAREC, a partnership with VUSD and the city of Ventura. Kale and lettuce at the student farm were planted by youth from DATA and Montalvo schools. 

Every fall and spring, volunteers from the UC Master Gardener program propagate seedlings for schools, bundling them into variety packs of vegetables and herbs, which are given to schools with gardens. Because of COVID-19, plants were given to schools for direct distribution to families. Ventura Unified School District staff partnering in this effort include Kara Muniz, Director of Food and Nutrition Services; Ashely Parrish Decker, Nutrition Educator, who runs the Student Farm; and Alise Echles, RDN. 

Additional fruit and vegetables were harvested from HAREC's citrus demonstration area, the site's educational gardens and the farm grounds.

UCCE's education program manager Susana Bruzzone-Miller said, “We are saddened that spring field trip season is cancelled and miss the sound of children delighting in harvesting, sometimes for the very first time. But, it warms my heart that our field trip garden can help feed so many families in need.”

John Antongiovanni, farm manager, worked with the farm staff to organize the harvest. He said, “Working together during this difficult time is very rewarding.”

Food Forward is a gleaning organization that helps residents turn the surplus produce grown on their property into a nutritious food source for local communities. Rick Nahmias, founder and executive director, indicated that the Food Forward Backyard Harvest team remains active, and may be reached via phone at 805.630.2728 or email. 

 

 

We're pleased to announce that a new online course on managing ground squirrels and pocket gophers has been added to UC IPM's growing library of online training courses. This course consists of eight video segments recorded by Dr. Roger Baldwin, a University of California Cooperative Extension Specialist in Human-Wildlife Conflict Resolution. Originally presented in June of 2020 as part of the UC Ag Experts Talk webinar series, the course covers pest identification, types of damage they cause, and the importance of their biology and ecology.

If you are a pest management professional or grower interested in vertebrate pest management, then check out this course! You'll learn about current control strategies such as habitat modification, baiting options, fumigation, and trapping. The course content is free to anyone who wishes to view it. For those requiring a certificate of completion and continuing education units (CEUs), the regular cost is $20, but we are offering a reduced price of $10 through October 31, 2021. To receive the discount, enter the code SquirrelGopher50 in the voucher box when making the payment.Managing Ground Squirrels and Pocket Gophers has been approved by the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) for 1 CEU in the Other category and also by Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) for 0.5 unit of IPM credit.

If you are a DPR license or certificate holder with a last name beginning with letters M through Z, then this will be your year to renew. Now is a good time to check out the other UC IPM online training courses  offered. All are 50% off the regular price through October 31^st. DPR will be sending out renewal packets in August and strongly suggests returning them by October so that your license or certificate can be renewed before it expires.

UC IPM not only offers courses accredited by DPR, but many courses are also approved by the California Structural Pest Control Board (SPCB), Certified Crop Advisor (CCA), the Western Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture (WCISA), and the Arizona Department of Agriculture.

 

Cheryl Reynolds is a Writer / Interactive Learning Developer for the UC ANR Statewide IPM Program

 

Having a small garden in our backyard can be fun, rewarding, and healthy. Not only does it help us consume more fruits and vegetables, it gets us more active and involved in the backyard while allowing the backyard to flourish with produce we grew ourselves. Simultaneously, it teaches us the skill of growing our own food independently and can be beneficial and exciting for the whole family! There are numerous crops we can grow in the backyard; the decision is entirely up to you! Choose vegetables that are enjoyed by the family, that way the everyone stays motivated to upkeep the garden. But it's always fun to plant something new to taste. You never know, you might discover your new favorite vegetable!  Having the entire family partake in backyard gardening is fun and easy! First, choose a spot in the garden that has the most sunlight during the day. It's important that we choose a nice sunny spot because most crops need at least 6 hours of sunlight per day to thrive. Crops that love the sun include tomatoes, sugar snap peas, kale, corn, beets, carrots, radishes and much more. It's also fun to grow herbs such as mint, dill and rosemary, likewise, those herbs thrive off sunlight. Next, it's important that we use good soil for growing vegetables because soil provides the essential nutrients that vegetables need to thrive. The local nursery will be able to provide information on good  soil to use. however the best soil suitable for growing vegetables should include mostly compost and organic matter. The next step is very fun for kids to do and it includes planting the seeds. Gardens can be big or small, in the ground or in a pot, and even in a recycled container with a hole drilled for drainage. Environmentally friendly fun tip: used disposable coffee cups (or any plastic cup that would likely be thrown away) work excellent for potting vegetables! Simply cut a hole on the bottom of the cup for drainage. Regardless of where or how we decide to plant our vegetables, dig a hole small enough to place the seeds (about the depth of your pinky knuckle). If desired, depending on the size of the pot, plant up to 3-4 seeds. It's important that the seeds have just enough space for the roots to grow and thrive. If you decide to plant in a recycled cup, no more than 2 seeds should be planted.

Lastly, maintenance! It's important to be consistent with your garden, a little love will go a long way. Make sure you check your garden at least once a day because some crops need more water than others, especially on a hot day. Remember what plants need to grow: seeds, soil, water, sun, air, and just a little bit of love.

Need more gardening help? Contact UC Master Gardener Program helpline mgventura@ucdavis.edu. For youth garden education activities the UC Hansen education team at sbmiller@ucanr.edu is ready to help.