Safe Sitter Workshop

Love kids? Need extra money for the summer? Babysitting might be the job for you! Join us for a Safe Sitter workshop on March 11, 2014 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Bridgeport Community Center (1102 Lawdwin Ave / behind Auto Zone).

            Safe Sitter is a medically accurate program that teaches boys and girls ages 11 to 18 how to handle emergencies when caring for children. The class teaches safe and nutrition child care techniques, behavior management skills and appropriate responses to medical emergencies. This course sums up what every adolescent working with children needs to know in a fun, hands-on way!

            The cost of the program is $50 which will cover workbook and lunch. To register for Safe Sitter, call the Texas A&M AgriLife Wise County Extension office at 940-627-3341.

WALKING...THE BEST EXERCISE FOR DIABETES

Exercise is something most of us love to hate. But there is good news...walking is one of the safest and easiest ways to get the required amount of physical activity we need each week. Let's review the benefits of walking when someone has type 2 diabetes.

Research shows sustained, regular exercise, like walking, reduces the risk of several life-threatening diseases, including heart disease, stroke, and probably certain cancers. For people with diabetes, it improves the way insulin works and gives you improved blood glucose readings!

 It is important to take precautions by checking your blood glucose (sugar) before and after workouts. Foot care is important as well. Check your feet before and after workouts for blisters, breaks in the skin, redness or swelling.

To achieve these health benefits, you need to accumulate at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity most, if not all days of the week. This goal can be accomplished with a single brisk 30-minute walk, several shorter walks that add up to 30 minutes, or with a short walk combined with other physical pursuits, such as yard work, or energetic housework.

The faster you swing your arms as you walk, the faster you'll be able to walk, since your arms and legs move in sync. To swing your arms faster, bend your elbows at a 90-degree angle rather than letting your arms hang down at your sides, and don't let your hands swing higher than chest level. When walking, push off with the balls of your feet, and take quicker strides, not longer ones, since extending your normal stride can cause low-back pain. Your body will automatically choose the right stride length that works best for you.  Remember, keep your head up, shoulders back, and chest out to maintain a comfortable upright posture.

 If you are concerned about pushing yourself too hard during the work-out, take notice of what your body is telling you. You're probably over-exercising if walking feels like drudgery; you have signs of low blood sugar, muscle cramps, leg pain, breathlessness or extreme fatigue.  It's best to walk with someone else, just in case you need extra encouragement or a reminder to check your blood sugar while exercising.

If you would like to get started soon with a walking program, call the Wise County Extension office at 940/627-3341 and ask about Walk Across Texas. This is a free, fun, group physical activity program. All you need is a group of 8 friends, family members, or co-workers who want to keep track of the amount they walk for 8 weeks. You can encourage one another to keep going and see if your team can reach your destination first before other groups participating too. Walk Across Texas starts March 3 and continues through April 27.

Remember, before starting any exercise program, even walking – check with your doctor!

Walk across Texas time again.

 It is that time of the year again to dust off your walking shoes and get going!                       

Safe Sitter Program in March

Ft. Worth Stock Show Results for Wise County

The Ft. Worth Stock Show & Rodeo has came and went! Wise County 4-H’ers exhibited steers, heifers, longhorns, meat goats, dairy goats, rabbits, and pigs. Each participant did a great job with showmanship and represented Wise County well!

Dairy Goat Judging Contest

19^th place Clint Demmitt individual

Participants:

Team #1 Shelby Simmons, Amber Orr, Rosie Stephens, Jordan Mollenhour

Team #2 Hannah Buckner, Emily Egle, Clayton Egle, Christian Cross

Team #3 Michaela Martin, Haylee Barksdale, Kooper Martin, Clint Demmitt

Dairy Goats

Emily Egle- Reserve Champion in Creative Costume, 7th place market wether

Riley Penny - 3^rd place La Mancha wether

Dalton Penny - 5^th place Nigerian wether

Clint Demmitt – 4^th, 8^th place LaMancha Junior Doe, 2nd, 4th, 5th and 8^th place Nubian Junior Doe, 8th place dairy wether

Christian Cross – 5^th, 13^th place wether, 25^th place Nubian doe, Costume Contest 6^th place

Ryan Howell – Reserve Champion Dairy wether

Kooper Martin – Reserve Champion Junior Nubian doe, Champion Junior Nubian Doe, 5^th place Recorded Grade Junior doe

Michaela Martin – 1^st place Recorded Grade Junior doe

Madison Mollenhour – 4^th place Dairy wether

Maegan Crosswhite – 5^th place Dairy wether

 

 

Taylor Martin – 1^st place Dairy wether

Shelby Simmons – 2^nd place Dairy wether

Mason Simmons – 4^th place Dairy wether

Rachae Fowler – 2^nd place, 3^rd place Dairy wether

Haylee Barksdale – 5^th place Dairy wether

Grant Barksdale - participant

Breeding Boer Goats

Clint Demmitt – 1^st, 2^nd in doe class 

Longhorns

Sydney Tucker - 2^nd place heifer

Kalli Winters – 1^st place steer

Heather McDuff – 1^st place steer

Mackinlie Tucker – 4^th place steer

Brodie Allsbrooks - participant

Aubrey McDuff - participant

Open Heifer Show

Lauren Stowers – Reserve Champion Limousin heifer

Tyler Noble – 3^rd place Braunvieh heifer, 5^th place Maine Anjou heifer

Amber Orr – Division Champion Maine Anjou

Jaxon Yates – 2^nd place Braunvieh heifer

Junior Heifer Show

Lauren Stowers – Reserve Champion Limousin heifer

Keith Orr - 2nd place Black Angus heifer

Remi Swensson – 9^th place Shorthorn heifer

Ross Smith – 10^th place Santa Gertrudis heifer

Poultry Show

Bryson Crunk – Large Fowl Champion English Black Orpington Cockerel, Best of Variety English Black Orpington Pullet, 2^nd place English Black Orpington Pullet, 2^nd place Asian Black Cochin Cockerel, 2^nd place Asian Black Cochin Pullet

 Braxton Crunk - Reserve Variety Dominique Cockerel, Reserve American Breed Champion Dominique Pullet, 2^nd place Dominique Pullet, 1^st place Asian Blue Cochin Cockerel, Reserve Variety Asian Blue Cochin Pullet

Breeding Gilts

Cody Holaway - Grand Champion Chester Gilt

Zane Hickey – 6^th place Chester White

Junior Market Wether Goat

Brandon Nelson - Participant

Junior Market Barrows

Carson Read – Reserve Champion Black/Other Purebred barrow

Lauryn Luttrull – Cross participant

Alexis Hofer – White/Other Purebred barrow participant

Junior Market Steers

Seth Byers – Reserve Champion American Steer

Lacey Erwin – European Cross Middle Weight participant

Kaylyn Shallene – Crossbred Exotic participant

Sheridan Shallene – Crossbred Exotic participant

Leah Guinn - Crossbred Exotic participant

Katie Claborn – Polled Hereford Light Weight participant

Carson Read – 13^th place Light Weight Shorthorn

Michael Williams – American Cross Light Weight participant

Chase Blount – European Cross Medium Weight participant

Thomas Lynch – Polled Hereford participant

Bryson Morrow – European Cross Heavy Weight participant

Rabbits

Kendra Crable – Best of Variety Mini Rex tort junior doe, Best of Variety Mini Rex white senior doe, Best Opposite Variety Mini Rex senior black doe, 4th place Mini Rex black buck, 5th, 6th & 8th place Mini Rex broken senior does, 2nd place Mini Rex Broken junior buck, 2nd place Mini Rex tort senior doe, 1st place Mini Rex tort junior buck

Jesse & Dalton Outlaw - Best Opposite of Breed Flemish Giant, Best of Fur Flemish Giant, 1st intermediate doe blue Flemish Giant, 1st intermediate buck blue Flemish Giant, 1st senior doe fawn Flemish Giant, 1st senior buck  fawn Flemish Giant, 1^st intermediate doe sandy Flemish Giant, 1st intermediate buck sandy Flemish Giant, 1st junior doe fawn Flemish Giant, 1st senior doe fawn Flemish Giant

Lauryn Luttrull – Best of Fur Florida White, 4^th place Florida White doe, participant Florida White buck, participant Havana buck, participant Havana doe

Horse

Rylee Maggret – 5^th place AQHA youth working cow horse, 3^rd place AQHA youth reining

Kreece Dearing served as the Official Stock Show Woolfighter that performs in the rodeos during the Ranch Rodeos, Cowboys of Color Rodeo and PRCA Bulls Night Out.  Laramie Dearing volunteered as a Welcome Ambassador to guest and helped with child care in the Rodeo Contestant Hospitality room. 

Now is the Time to Apply Pre-Emergent

If you are interested in controlling annual bluegrass, rescuegrass, henbit, and chickweed (winter annual weeds) in your lawn this winter, apply pre-emergent herbicide in early Sep.  If you are interested in controlling sandbur, goosegrass, and crabgrass (summer annual weeds), apply pre-emergent herbicide in early February.  

If you would like more information on pre-emergent herbicides you can contact the County Extension Office.  Apply these products like a fertilizer according to the directions using a rotary spreader.  Uniform coverage (apply in 2 perpendicular directions) is very important to prevent weed escapes.  Some of these products will stain concrete, so make sure you blow it off your driveway when you are finished.  It may also stain on your pants' leg and spreader.  The product needs to be watered in with a 1/2 inch of water (run the irrigation until several tuna cans laid out randomly in the lawn are half-full).

The product will control winter annual weeds when applied in September and summer annual weeds like field sandbur when applied in February before the weed seeds germinate.  It will not control perennial weeds like dandelion that come back from vegetative structures.  The costs for these products will be around $26.00 per 12,000 ft.

Be careful putting herbicides on St. Augustinegrass.  The fewer herbicides placed on St. Augustinegrass the better.  Even if St. Augustinegrass is on the label, it may still be stunted for a month or more.  Fall pre-emergent herbicide applications for winter annual weed control (henbit, chickweed, annual bluegrass) are safer on St. Augustinegrass than spring applications, but they control different weed spectrums.  One can use the rest of the bag the next season.  The active ingredient can stunt root growth. 

Do not apply the product anywhere you plan to plant seeds like vegetables or flowers or have wild flowers.   You may need to apply again in July, but hopefully, a dense, aggressive turf will prevent sunlight from reaching the soil and stimulating summer annual weed seeds to germinate and a second application will not be necessary.

It is too early for nitrogen fertilizers, so do not apply a pre-emergent herbicide on a nitrogen fertilizer carrier.  A good winterizer is high in potassium and iron with little nitrogen (5-0-31).  Apply the nitrogen once a month starting in April; May would be better if you can be patient.  You may just be fertilizing winter annual weeds.  The more nitrogen fertilizer one adds, the more often one should mow.  If one cannot mow more often than once a week, then use nitrogen fertilizer more sparingly.  Always maximize the amount of slow release nitrogen and iron in the fertilizers for lawns.  More is not better.

The most effective change in management most home owners can make is to raise the height of their mower to the highest setting and mow regularly (only cut 1/3 of the blade off) (stop wheelie mowing).  Turf mowed regularly at a high setting will have longer roots and a closed canopy which will shade the soil, save water, and not stimulate weed seeds to germinate.

For more information please call the Wise County Extension office at 940-627-3341