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The Lee County Ledger, Thursday, October 4,2001 - Page 7A Thundering Springs Baptist Church 18th Annual Community Day Saturday, October 6, 2001 Serving Catfish Plates 6 Pm-6:45 Pm, (No Cost) Sing Begins 7pm, Featuring "Sacred Heart" All activities outside, weather permitting PLEASE JOIN US J Sept. 27 and Oct. 4 duce. Now, that's important to commercial growers. It's the main reason they use plastic. Second in importance to grow ers are increased yields, which mean more products to sell and more profits. Reducing weed problems comes in third. However, weed problems are reduced only if you use a black mulch or some other wavelength-selective mulch that blocks photosynthesis. Even those aren't perfect. Nut sedges are some of the most trou bling and most persistent weeds in gardens. And plastic mulch doesn't slow them down. Those are the major advantages. But that's only part of the story. There is a downside. Plastic has to be installed very carefully and precisely to very stringent stan dards, or it can quickly become more a curse than a blessing. To be effective, the plastic needs to be on raised beds and must be installed tightly to the bed. There must be plenty of soil, too, on the outside edges holding the plastic down, or it probably will blow into your neighbor's yard with the first wind gust. Commercial growers have to install plastic to these same rigid standards. But they have the ma chinery to throughly and properly till the soil, make the required bed and properly place and secure the plastic. Since most gardeners don't have this specialized, very expensive equipment, these chores must be done by hand. From experience, I can verify that these are very hard, physically demanding tasks. For those willing to make a sub stantial investment, at least one company has begun marketing "garden-sized" equipment for making beds and laying plastic. Check with your garden supplier for availability and costs. Getting water under the plastic mulch can be a problem, too. True, the mulch helps conserve soil moisture. But eventually it will become depleted. It's hard, or impossible, for rain or over head irrigation to adequately wet the soil under the plastic. That's why farmers install drip irrigation tubes under the plastic. Gardeners who grow on plastic should use drip irrigation, too. Another downside is that most plastic mulches aren't biodegrad able, At the end of the garden sea son. you have to remove and properly dispose of (not bum) the plastic. Again, this can be quite a chore. Next spring, when it's decision time, review this list of benefits. Then carefully consider the chores of tillage, bed preparation and plastic installation. Weigh all these factors in the balance. Some gardeners will elect not to use plastic film mulch. Others will decide the positives outweigh the negatives. The decision is yours. (Darbie Granberry is an Exten sion Service horticulturist with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmen tal Sciences) Kinchafoonee Primary School Model Students for the month of September are: Kindergarten (front row): Kaylyn Thompson, Halee Nutt, Courtney Kirt, Morghan Calhoun, Callie Futch, Stephanie Leddon, Nicholas Sturtz, Summer Flournoy, Devan Tindell, Carson Caldwell, and Jerry Jenkins. First Graders (second row) are: Caitlyn Davis, Jenna Barnes, Ty Mcallister, Amber Young, Zachary Barr, Sarah Dowling, Emily Dearing, Hailey Scott, Lance Martin, Nivia Collier, and Paige Adams. Second Graders (third row): Alexandria Lemacks, Jessica Robison, Kaitlyn Adams, Caleb Anderson, Autumn Parsons, Shelby Burr, Ivy Singleton, Tiffany Timmerman, Mason Moody, Ashleigh Bodiford, and Tenisha Ross. Not pictured are Mason Brown, Karon West, and Morgan Dockery. Growing Up in Georgia Plastic Film Mulch in Your Garden? By Darbie Granberry University of Georgia Traveling through the country side, you may have seen fields of beds covered with plastic film mulch. Or maybe you've read about it in farm and gardening magazines. Growing vegetable crops on plastic film mulch is common throughout the Southeast. But up to this point, few have chosen to use plastic in their gardens. You may feel you need to know more about its benefits and possible disadvantages. Why use plastic? Farmers are growing thousands of acres of vegetables on plastic. So why do they use it? For farm ers, plastic film mulch: 1. Promotes earlier production in the spring. 2. Often increases yield over bare-ground production. 3. Reduces weed problems. 4. Reduces fertilizer leaching. 5. Reduces evaporation of soil moisture. 6. Reduces soil compaction. 7. Eliminates root pruning from hoeing and cultivation. Plastic film mulch provides these same benefits to gardeners. But let's look a little closer. All seven factors on this list are helpful. Because plastic mulch warms the soil and enhances early growth, spring vegetables grown on plastic can often be harvested 10 days to two weeks earlier than those grown on bare ground. Historically, buyers pay higher prices for earlier-harvested pro- Parrish Johnson Johnson Awarded Parrish Johnson was awarded first place recognition for an es say contest entitled "Why I Am Proud To Be An American". She was one of three students chosen from among the other third through sixth graders at Brown Elementary. She is the daughter of Darren and Chimene J ohnson. Boutique & Things Announcing Lori Tatum to Sisters Boutique & Things 1626 S. Philema Rd. - Leesburg, Ga - 17 Years Experience Specializing in haircut and styling, Monday & Tuesday . 8-5 haircoloring, dimensional foiling, Wednesday 12-7 bodywaves, formal occassion styling Friday 8-5 (Proms, weddings, photos), facial waxing, S aturday by appointment paraffin wax treatments and many others. Walk-Ins Welcome Call for your appointment today... (229) 432-5001 * Bring this ad in and receive 15% off your total services. One ad per person, offer valid until November 30th, 2001. Hugh O. Morris, P.C. ATTORNEY AT LAW I Criminal Defense Personal Injury Family Law 506 N. Jefferson St. Albany, GA 31702-0582 (229) 420-4104 email: hughmorrisattorney @ hotmail.com WOODSTONE APARTMENTS 320 Main Street, Leesburg, GA 759-8258 Call Sharon - Office Now Open Monday thru Thursday 8-12 MOVE-IN NOW! VERY AFFORDABLE! Located in the city limits of Leesburg, minutes from dowtown Albany. Enjoy this professionally landscaped community and grilling out at our pavilion $290 .. $340 .. $370 .. 1 BEDROOM 2 BEDROOM 3 BEDROOM Rent Includes: Water, Sewer, Garbage Laundry Facility • Community Room Energy Efficient • Central Heat & Air Dishwasher • Disposal • Stove Refrigerator • Carpeting • W/D Hookups EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY TDD# 1-800-255-0056 State Awards $410,000 to Historic Preservation Projects Governor Roy Barnes an nounced that the Georgia Heri tage Grant Program has awarded 31 grants totaling $410,000 for historic preservation projects throughout state. The Georgia Heritage Grant Program is ad ministered by the Historic Pres ervation Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and provides matching grants for development and pre-develop ment projects. Development projects include stabilization, preservation, rehabilitation, and restoration activities. Pre-devel opment projects include plans and specifications, feasibility studies, historic structure reports, or other building-specific or site specific preservation plans. Sixty-one ap plications were received request ing a total of $1.2 million in grant assistance to complete over $2.3 Local Student Graduates From Valdosta State University The following Lee County stu dent is a summer 2001 graduate of Valdosta State University in Valdosta, Ga. Sara B. DiMino of Leesburg received a Master of Science de gree in Marriage/Family Therapy million in project work. According to Historic Preser vation Division Director Ray Luce, Georgia Heritage Program grants are an important tool that helps ensure the preservation of the state's heritage, which is in creasingly at risk. "This program creates effective partnerships with local governments and pri vate nonprofit organizations to preserve historic resources that are increasingly threatened by changing land use, fire, neglect, and the lack of adequate fund ing," he said. "These modest 'seed' grants energize preserva tion projects and put into place lasting relationships that con tinue to grow long after grant funds are expended. Our com munities and our state are richer because of the state's commit ment to heritage stewardship," he added. Lee County Courthouse. Lees burg, Lee County was awarded $13,000. The Lee County Court house has served Lee County since its construction in 1917. Grant funds will be used to re pair wooden windows and install handicap accessible restrooms. The Historic Preservation Di vision (HPD) of the Georgia De partment of Natural Resources serves as Georgia's state historic preservation office. In addition to Georgia Heritage 2000 grants, other HPD programs include ar chaeology. environmental re view, Historic Preservation Fund grants, historic resource surveys, tax incentives, community plan ning and technical assistance, and the Georgia African Ameri can Historic Preservation Net work. For more information, please ca 11404/656-2840 or visit our Web site at www.gashpo.org. Davis Auto Parts Used Auto Parts Minor Auto Repair Work We Buy Junk Cars 434-1793 Monday - Friday 8:00 - 5:30 209 E. Century Road - Leesburg St ^heSpiscoP al Church or Shine ~ No Ear# S * te * DAY, OCTOBER 5 ( _ Come for lunch and browse! HOTDOGS DRINKS twf 4SURESGAL0REI