Newspaper Page Text
Page 12 — Wednesday, December 12, 2009, TheTrue Citizen
CUSTOM HOMES
The Frontier
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Make Your Holiday Season Safe
By Roosevelt McWilliams
County Extension Agent
The old saying “There’s noth
ing like the holiday season” has
a lot of truth to it. Even if it is 80
degrees outside and dry as the
desert, it is hard not to catch the
holiday spirit in December. Holi
day decorations, cards, songs,
parties, family gatherings and
gift giving infect everyone with
good cheer and happiness.
A big part of the holiday sea
son are our decorations. Unfor
tunately, our decorations can also
be one of the most dangerous
parts of our holidays. Live
Christmas trees that are not prop
erly cared for can become fire
hazards. Artificial Christmas
trees can become electrical haz
ards if the wiring is not checked
regularly. Other holiday green
ery such as wreaths, mantel and
table decorations and tree deco
rations can be poisonous or fire
hazards.
Artificial trees should be thor
oughly examined for shortage in
wiring, sharp edges and other
hazards before setting them up.
Natural (live) Christmas trees
should be chosen and handled
properly from the beginning.
Take care to select a tree that is
fresh. To check freshness of a
tree, bend the foliage and
branches. If they spring back to
their original shape the tree is
usually fresh enough to do well
in the home.
You may also shake the branch
against your hand. If the needles
don’t fall off this is a good sign
that the tree is fresh. Those who
are able to go to a Christmas tree
farm to choose and cut your own
tree will be assured of getting the
freshest possible tree.
Whether you get your Christ
mas tree at a sales lot or cut it at
a tree farm you must properly
care for it when you get it to your
home. At home you should saw
off Vi to one inch of the bottom
of the tree before putting it in the
tree stand or placing it in a bucket
of water for temporary storage.
The cut removes possible clot
ted resins that could prevent the
tree from absorbing water. This
cut also exposes fresh absorbing
tree tissue that has not collapsed
and dried out.
Once the tree is securely
mounted in the tree stand keep
the stand filled with water daily
depending upon the species of
tree and its size. Room tempera
ture and humidity also affect the
tree’s need and use of water. Al
ways use a water holding stand
that has a capacity of one gallon
or more. Do not place the Christ
mas tree near a fireplace, over a
heat vent or near any other
source to heat.
To make sure your holiday
greenery (table and mantle deco
rations) are safe follow these
simple tips:
The key to keeping greenery
safe is to replace it every week.
Test the freshness by grabbing
the needles. If the needles bend,
they are still fresh. If they break
or come off in your hand, they’re
too dry and should be exchanged
for fresh greener.When cutting
greenery from a live source, im
mediately dip the cut ends in wax
or put them in a vase of water
until ready to use. Treat it like
fresh flowers.
OPEN
Alcoholics
Anonymous
Meetings
Sardis Baptist
Church
Sardis, GA
Thursday:
8 PM
Saturday:
8 AM
Commercial Cleaning
After Construction
Churches - Janitorial
Q & C MULTI-SERVICES
Reuben Cooper
706-231-5247 706-796-9906
I hope you and your family
enjoys the holiday season and
has a joyous and safe occasion
for everyone.
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Robert Fountain elected middle Georgia
vice president for Farm Bureau
CHANCE 4 HYDRICK
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In the Furrow
Calcium, pH and Liming Forages
By Peyton Sapp
County Extension Coordinator
Timing your application of
lime is nearly as critical as
knowing how much lime to ap
ply to pastures and hayfields.
Calcium is critical for plant
functions such as cell growth,
cell division and stress detec
tion. Plants perform better
when the soil pH is maintained
properly. Understanding the
interaction between soil pH,
calcium and liming is the key
to healthy forages.
Soil pH is a measure of soil
acidity. Most of our forage
crops grow best in a pH range
of 6.0 to 6.5. Keeping soil pH
at the appropriate level allows
most essential soil nutrients to
be freely available to forage
plants. In addition, proper pH
prevents high concentrations of
toxic elements like aluminum
from injuring roots. Most of our
soils will tend to become more
acidic over time, especially
when fertilizer is applied. Lime
is applied to supply carbonate
ions that neutralize this acidity.
It is difficult for lime to
quickly work its way into the
soil profile. Often in pasture or
hayfield situations, the soil sur
face may be closer to neutral
and the subsoil may be very
acidic. Lime could be applied
any time of the year; however,
because it does take time to
work down into the soil, it is a
good idea to lime as soon as soil
tests indicate it is necessary.
Some estimations are that it can
take six to eight months for the
benefit of a lime application to
take affect.
There are other products that
can deliver calcium more
quickly. Gypsum is used often
times to deliver calcium quickly
but, it does not adjust pH. There
are liming agents other than "Ag
lime” that are available, but cost
can be a factor.
Research shows that infiltra
tion of lime into the top two feet
of the soil profile is better in no
till situations and permanent sod
than in conventional till situa-
Home & Garden Tips
From Staff Reports
Georgia Larm Bureau mem
bers in the organization’s
Middle Georgia Region recently
elected Robert Lountain of
Emanuel County to represent
their region on the board of di
rectors for a three-year term.
The election was held last week
during the 71 st annual Georgia
Larm Bureau Convention on
Jekyll Island. The GLB Middle
Georgia Region is comprised of
56 counties in the mid-part of
the state, including Burke
County.
Lountain previously held the
position from 1997 to 2006 dur
ing which time he served on
numerous GLB administrative
advisory committees. He has
served as the Emanuel County
Larm Bureau president since
2004 and previously served as
vice president and county direc
tor. He has also served on the
GLB hay and beef commodity
advisory committees.
He is a third generation
farmer in Emanuel and Johnson
counties and raises cattle, hay,
timber, small grains and pecans.
In addition to Larm Bureau,
Lountain is an active member of
numerous other agricultural or
ganizations including the Geor
gia Cattlemen’s Association, for
which he served as president
from 2001-2002. Since 2002
Lountain has represented Geor
gia Larm Bureau on the Geor
gia Beef Board, and last year the
U.S. secretary of agriculture re
appointed Lountain to a second,
three-year term to the National
Cattlemen’s Beef Board.
A graduate of the University
of Georgia, Lountain earned his
B.B.A. in management and ag
ricultural economics and his
M.B.A. in management and fi
nance.
Lounded in 1937, the Geor
gia Larm Bureau Lederation is
the state’s largest general farm
organization.
Locally Owned & Operated
706.790.8567
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LAST CHANCE FOR DEEP
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Burke County Agricultural and Family & Consumer
Science Calendar of Events
Jan. 25 - Parent Night - Burke Co. Office Park - 6 p.m.
UGA Cooperative Extension is an equal opportunity
affirmative action organization committed to a diverse
work force. Phone (706) 554-2119 for more information.
Burke County 4-H Calendar Dates
Dec. 18 - Portfolios Due - Call the 4-H office to make
an appointment to work on your portfolio.
tions. This is mainly attributed
to the larger pores that exist in
un-tilled fields. Proper soil pH
is critical in helping “natural soil
activity” (breakdown of organic
matter, soil microbe activity,
etc.) occur. So, regular lime ap
plications are a must.
Soil pH and soil calcium lev
els are related. It is important
to soil sample regularly to moni
tor pH and soil nutrients. Lime
according to your sample re
sults. It is just as, if not more
critical, to maintain proper pH
than it is to control weeds in
your pasture!
Lor more information, contact
the Burke County Extension
Office at (706)554-2119.
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