Paige Burns Clark Extension @ Your Service
The Extension Open house in 2019 hosted over 100 people for the event.
Photo courtesy of Paige Burns
Fall is a wonderful time to enjoy the outdoors here in NC — the weather is cooler, the humidity is down, and the sky a brilliant blue.
It’s the season for football, fairs and festivals. On Saturday, October 8, we’re having a festival of our own, an Extension Open House, and we hope you can join us!
It’s a great opportunity for family fun, with something for everyone. Whether you’ve been a friend of Cooperative Extension for years or if you’re not quite sure what we do, this is a great opportunity to bring the family and experience all we do best.
The recent pandemic brought many changes to peoples’ lives. While “stuck at home,” many people saw ways they wanted to make changes. Some moved – leaving the city for the suburbs or rural areas. Gardening made a comeback, as many people had more time for gardening and were increasingly interested in becoming more self-reliant. Extension ag agents were manning phones, making house calls and hosting zoom-based programming to provide information needed by gardeners and farmers. Baking and canning became more popular — at one point, it was almost impossible to find canning jars and lids.
Extension Family Consumer Science agents held canning and cooking classes on zoom as well. With kids stuck at home and on the computer for long periods for school, finding fun and educational experiences, especially those that got kids outside, were greatly needed. 4-H stepped in with tons of activities to fill that void.
Now that things are getting back to normal, NC Cooperative Extension continues to offer resources and support for gardening, farming, canning, cooking and health, as well as fun, educational activities the whole family can enjoy. We’ll feature many of these activities at the Extension Open House! We’ll also have several of our partner organizations: members of the Richmond County Beekeepers Association will be out with their hives and honeybee-related products for sale.
The Richmond County Soil and Water office and Natural Resources Conservation Service will share information about their valuable cost-share programs for farmers and landowners. Our friends from the American Legion will be cooking up their famous hotdogs and hamburgers for sale, so plan to have lunch with us and support them. Come out to the Open House to see for yourself all we have to offer!
The event will be held at the Sandhills AGInnovation Center, 1298 Crawford Road in Ellerbe. The SAIC is the location of Extension’s Demonstration Farm, and we’ll be highlighting our projects, including crops in our high tunnel, cool season vegetables, berry plants, and more.
We’ll have a selection of tractors and “essential implements” to accomplish different farming tasks. Our friends at God’s Garden will talk abouat what they use to manage their 10 acre produce farm in Norman. Ag Agent Anthony Growe will lead a demonstration on how to calibrate a sprayer to get effective herbicide control without wasting product (demonstrations will be at 11 am, 12 pm, and 1 pm). Ever wondered why fertilizers come in so many different formulations? Agents will be on hand to take the mystery out of fertilizers so you’ll know what to buy for your lawn and garden.
Got a bug, weed, or plant question? Bring a sample or photo for on the spot diagnosis and help! Family Consumer Science Agent Cheri Bennett and her team of Master Food Volunteers will be creating delicious, seasonal dishes for tasting, such as collard wontons, and demonstrating her healthy juicing program. 4-H will have hands-on fun for kids: soap making, planting seasonal annuals to take home, and much more!
Are you famous for your homemade ice-cream? The 4-H Ice-cream Fundraiser is your chance to see how your recipe stacks up against the competition. The entry fee is $5 for the first entry, $10 for 2 or more entries; judges will choose the first, second and third place. Judging will take place at 12 pm, and you do not have to be present to win (freezers at the SAIC can hold ice-cream).
The Berry Patch is providing gift baskets at a $50, $40, and $30 dollar value for each place. Entry forms are available at the Extension office, EE Vuncannons in Ellerbe, or online at Richmond.ces.ncsu.edu (note: raw eggs may not be used in the recipe; more information on the entry form). Like to eat ice-cream? Once the judges make their decision, $5 gets you a bowl of one or more of the entries for as long as they last. Your support of 4-H in this fundraiser helps send Richmond County kids to camp and supports other programs held throughout the year. 4-H will also be pre-selling blueberry plants and muscadine grape vines for delivery during planting time later this year. A great opportunity to get started growing your own while supporting 4-H!
Cooperative Extension has been in every county for over 100 years, and while there have been many changes in the world since then, Extension has never been more relevant than it is today. As the old saying goes: the more things change, the more things stay the same. We look forward to seeing you on Saturday, October 8, at the Sandhills AGInnovation Center for the Extension Open House. Take Hwy 220 north, exit 33 to Hwy 73, turn left across the interstate, then take the first left on Crawford Road.
Call: T:910-997-3111 F:910-323-1041
Address: 607 East Broad Ave. Suite B., Rockingham NC, 28379