- Author: Chris M. Webb
This is National Volunteer Week, and our office would like to take this opportunity to recognize our volunteers.
Two main groups of volunteers work with us, our Master Gardeners and our 4-H Volunteers. Both groups contribute thousands of recorded volunteer hours each year, and we know many more donated hours are never recorded. They all work hard to support our efforts, and we are so very grateful for their involvement.
The Master Gardeners support us and our community in many ways. Some examples of their work include: working with our Advisors on research, teaching classes, holding workshops, working in garden sites throughout the county, and answering home gardening questions through our Master Gardener helpline – 805-645-1455.
Our 4-H Volunteers also support our office and the community. They are busy working with our county’s youth. The goal of 4-H is to teach leadership and life skills in a hands-on, learn-by-doing environment. Because of the involvement of these volunteers, the projects and events in which our youth are able to participate cover an enormous range of topics and interests.
Community service is also a big part of 4-H, and we are also very grateful for all of the volunteer hours contributed to our community by our 4-H youth.
More about our Master Gardeners and our 4-H program can be found on previous blog post by following these links Master Gardeners, 4-H.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Savanna Stanley, Citrus Valley 4-H president has submitted the following “Featured Club Happenings” article.
Our club has started off with a rough beginning because we lost a very important member of our group. Laura Heath passed away in December. She has helped our club in many ways and we miss her dearly. She was the past club leader and a project leader, a JFB advisor, a foster mother, mother to Blake, Kyler and Carly, and wife to Warren.
A fundraiser will be held April 18th from 12-4 at the Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Ojai to help the family. There will be a BBQ dinner prepared by Italo De Los Reyes with the meat donated by Kent Short.
The local feed stores (Ventura Hay and American Hay) are generously donating items as well. Tickets are being published and sold. We hope many 4-H members and families will come out to support this great event.
Featured Club Happenings are a part of our Cloverlines Newsletter. Past issues are available on our office website.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
As air temperatures start to rise at this time of year, so too can the mosquito population. There are about 200 species of mosquitoes in the United States, and all require water to complete their life cycle. Although mosquitoes are plant pollinators, they are generally considered a nuisance to humans and can transmit disease.
The Clean Water Act requires states to develop and implement nonpoint source pollution management programs. While these developments are making steps towards improving our water, mosquito management is often overlooked during the planning stages of these projects.
To learn how to integrate mosquito management and stormwater treatment, please read UC’s free publication Managing Mosquitoes in Stormwater Treatment Devices that explains options available for reducing health risks, lowers costs associated with abatement and lessening legal liability.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Just as citizens and businesses throughout California have made changes to adapt to our current economy, so too has the University of California.
As I am sure you have noticed, our blog has a new look. This change is more than cosmetic; this new version has many behind-the-scenes advantages that work to better connect people, ideas and information in new ways.
You might also notice references to “Initiatives” in the tag section at the end of a blog post. These initiatives were born during a strategic visioning process by UC ANR employees last year. UC looks toward the future to determine its direction about every 15-20 years, but this strategic process came at an extremely critical time for California and the University.
The initiatives have been the guiding principles during these major changes and will continue to guide us into the future. All work in our division will focus on these interconnected goals and ambitions. We look forward to serving you in a more focused and interconnected way.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Are you a farmer looking for ways to improve your water management strategies, or a citizen interested in learning about the transformations taking place now in production agriculture? The California Agricultural Water Stewardship Initiative (CAWSI) has an online resource center for you.
Some of the on-farm practices available online include:
- Managing farm water wisely
- Using less applied water
- Transforming the farm into a water catchment and storage system
- Dry farming
- Use of recycled water
- Irrigation and soil management
Each section includes an overview of the practice, estimated water savings, other benefits, case studies and many additional resources.
This online resource will be updated frequently, and can be found here . Check it regularly for new tips and information.
