Feed aggregator

Options for producers facing short alfalfa stands from drought stress and encroaching bluegrass, plus water needs for livestock during summer.

Several local organic farmers who utilize flame weeding will share their experiences with the technique during the workshop Aug. 15 at the Eastern Nebraska Research, Extension and Education Center. Attendees will learn how to do proper flaming to control over 10 major Midwestern weeds in seven agronomic crops — field corn, sweet corn, popcorn, soybean, sorghum, sunflower and wheat.

Though the farm finance and ag law clinics are offered monthly at sites across Nebraska, remote sessions are another option — call the number below to arrange a one-on-one meeting via phone or virtual platform. Nebraskans can attend one of the three dates scheduled for free, in-person farm and ag law clinics in July or call to arrange a virtual/phone appointment.

4-H members from across Nebraska converged in Lincoln for the inaugural Premier Communication Event. The youth had the opportunity to participate in state-level contests, including Illustrated Presentations, Prepared Speeches, Impromptu Speeches, Radio Public Service Announcements, and Video Communications. 

44 presenters participated in the Illustrated Presentations Contest, and the top seniors were:

1. Ava Stewart, Cedar County
2. Aubree Siffring, Butler County
3. Emily Brehl, Clay County
4. Libby Macklin, Webster County
5. Tucker Robinson, Fillmore County

Intermediate division winners were:

1. Mallory Beethe, Sarpy County
2. Andrea Bettenhausen, Lancaster County
3. Maggie White, Gage County
4. Ella Jessen, Knox County
5. Devon Rasmussen, Gage County

92 young people participated in the Prepared Speech Contest. The top five presenters in the senior division included:

1. Hope Roscoe, Burt County
2. Lilee Chevalier, Lancaster County
3. Sophia Burns, Dawson County
4. Ella Brennemann, Frontier County
5. Grace Brennemann, Frontier County

Top presenters in the intermediate division included:

1. Lena Gropp, Saline County
2. Brooklyn Reiman, Dawson County
3. Lorelai Rickertsen, Dawson County
4. Luke Olsen, Kimball County
5. Griffin Owens, Dawson County

35 members participated in the Impromptu Speech Contest. The top five in the senior division were: 

1. Kara Brockman, Gosper County
2. Grace Brenneman, Frontier County
3. Lilee Chevalier, Lancaster County
4. Adrian Svitak, Hall County
5. Kathryn Vance, Scotts Bluff County

The top five intermediate division winners included:

1. Nathan Brhel, Clay County
2. Grace Finnegan, Boyd County
3. Mallory Beethe, Sarpy County
4. Amarita Payne, Lancaster County
5. Ayla Foster, Box Butte County

76 Radio Public Service Announcements were submitted to the state contest. Those in the senior division recognized with top awards included:

1. Campbell Snodgrass, Cuming County
2. Alex Berghorst, Custer County
3. Alexa Brodd, Dodge County
4. Marshall Bratetic, Knox County
5. Jonah Splichal, Scotts Bluff County

Award winners in the intermediate division were:

1. Owens Griffin, Dawson County
2. McKenna Stewart, Polk County
3. Harley Hedrick, York County
4. Cassidy Reiman, Dawson County
5. Alexa Stewart, Polk County

Nine entries were submitted for the Video Communications Contest. Senior division winners included: 

1. Josiah Pitterson, Dodge County
2. Emily Brhel, Clay County
3. Ariana Pitterson, Dodge County
4. Ashley Bauer, Buffalo County
5. Jordan Wagner, Scotts Bluff County

Intermediate division winners included:

1. Nathan Brhel, Clay County
2. Kirstyn Beberniss, Garden County
3. Mallory Beethe, Sarpy County

While new in 2023, the Premier Communication Event is intended to be an annual event held each June at the Univerisity of Nebraska–Lincoln. Participants showcase their communication skills and knowledge developed through other 4-H projects, explore issues related to the communication industry, discover college and career opportunities, and meet other 4-H youth from across the state. To learn more, visit 4h.unl.edu/pce.

4-H members from across Nebraska convened in Lincoln on June 21 and 22 to take part in the annual Premier Animal Science Event. Youth competed as individuals and teams in state-level 4-H contests, including Poultry Judging, Meats Judging, Livestock Skillathon, Livestock Quiz Bowl, and Livestock Judging contests. 

64 youths participated in the Poultry Judging Contest. Gold medals were awarded to:

• Team: Saunders County - Anne Nygren, Hannah Strizek, Joseph Ondracek, and Tony Ondracek
• Intermediate Individual: Rachel Spawn, Platte County
• Senior Individual: Noah Jelinek, Lancaster County

68 young people participated in the Meats Judging Contest. Top awards winners included:

• Team: Dawson County - Parker Walahoski, Barton Beattie, and Preston Beattie
• Intermediate Individual: Paige Walahoski, Dawson County
• Senior Individual: Parker Walahoski, Dawson County

27 teams competed in the Livestock Skillathon Contest. Gold medals were awarded to:

• Senior Team: Dawson County - Bart Beattie, Jacie Wolfinger, Jaelin Wolfinger, Parker Walahoski, and Spencer Walahoski
• Intermediate Team: Buffalo County - Graden Forbes, Arabella Rolfsmeye, Kaitlyn Meints, and Laurynn Andrews

13 teams competed in Livestock Quiz Bowl, with top awards going to:

• Senior Team: Buffalo County - Gracie Wagoner, Justine Pope, Mason Janda, and Skyler Summers
• Intermediate Team: Boone/Nance County - Kahnen Pelster, Katernia Maricle, Dorothy Smith, and Emilyn Kurz

190 4-H members participated in the Livestock Judging Contest. Gold medal award winners included:

• Senior Team: Buffalo County - Justine Pope, Jaylea Pope, and Mason Janda
• Senior Individual: Justine Pope, Buffalo County
• Intermediate Team: Lincoln County - Allyson Kemp, Cauy Robinson, and Arian Gilmore
• Intermediate Individual: Allyson Kemp, Lincoln County

The highest-ranking eligible poultry judging, meats judging, quiz bowl, and skillathon teams now have the opportunity to participate in the National 4-H Contests. The top three senior livestock judging teams can participate in one of three national competitions, including the National 4-H Livestock Judging Contest, the American Royal 4-H Livestock Judging Contest, or the National Western Roundup. 

The Premier Animal Science Event, also known as PASE, is a two-day event held each June at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Participants explore issues related to the animal industry, discover college and career opportunities, and test their livestock skills and knowledge. To learn more, visit 4h.unl.edu/pase.

Participants will learn how to identify soybean gall midge larvae and recognize plant injury, and learn about ongoing research for control options.

Historical crop progress data for Nebraska is available at USDA. (CropWatch file photo by Gary Stone) Dry edible bean planting was 98% complete in Nebraska as of June 25, bringing an end to planting season for 2023.

The crop water use report is updated weekly. Visit PHREC AgLab for more information.

Recent rainfall and hailstorms will impact the next few weeks of crop water use in the Nebraska Panhandle.

Image Source: Canva

Creativity takes center stage when preschoolers begin playing with puppets.  Storytelling also provides a safe space for expressing strong feelings.  Another bonus is the expanding vocabulary your child will rapidly acquire when presenting various puppet plays. We will go over the many ways to build puppets for your child and set the atmosphere for storytelling!  

If you don’t have a whole corner to display puppets, that’s fine.  How about a couple of totes?  One tote can store materials such as paper, markers, yarn, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, ribbon, felt, fabric scraps, feathers, and pom-poms.  The other tote can safely store all of the finished puppets.  Now, it’s time to explore all the various puppets you and your preschoolers can create for dramatic play! 

Dragon Puppet 

Supplies:  colored paper, scissors, markers or crayons, glue, tape, Popsicle sticks or cardboard 

•  Draw the head and tail of the dragon on colored paper. 
•  Cut out the head and tail. 
•  Cut another piece of colored paper in half length-wise. 
•  Fold the two pieces, using accordion folds.  Tape them together to make one long piece. 
•  Glue or tape one end of the folded paper to the dragon head and one end to the dragon tail. 
•  Glue or tape a Popsicle stick to the dragon head and another one to the dragon tail. 
• Decorate with extras to make the puppet colorful.  

Felt Puppet 

Supplies:  felt in multiple colors (at least two pieces), scissors, markers, glue, extras 

•  Trace the desired puppet shape on two pieces of felt and cut them out. 
•  Put the shapes together and glue at the edges.  Leave an opening for the hand. 
•  Decorate with felt scraps and use extras to add hair, clothes, eyes, and other features. 

Finger Puppet 

Supplies:  old glove, scissors, glue, markers, extras 

•  Cut the fingers off the glove where they meet the hand.  Put the hand part in the scrap box. 
•  Decorate each finger with markers or extras. 

Jointed Puppet 

Supplies:  cardboard, glue, scissors, markers or crayons, metal paper fasteners, Popsicle sticks 

•  Cut out the desired puppet shape from the cardboard.  Decorate it. 
•  Cut off the arms and legs. 
•  Poke holes in the body, near where the arms and legs were joined to it.  Poke holes in the arms and legs, near the cut ends. 
•  Reattach the arms and legs, lining up the holes and securing the limbs with metal paper fasteners. 
•  Glue the finished puppet onto a Popsicle stick or piece of cardboard. 

Unstuffed Animal Puppet 

Supplies:  old stuffed animal, glue or sewing needle and thread 

•  Purchase stuffed animals from garage sales or thrift stores. 
•  Determine where the puppeteer’s hand will go, and cut an opening in the back of the stuffed animal. 
•  Remove most of the stuffing, but leave the head filled. 
•  Finish the edges of the hand hole with hand-sewn stitching, glue, or wide tape. 

Image Source: Canva

Supplies:  sock, marker, scissors, cardboard, fabric, glue, extras 

• Put your hand in the sock, with fingers in the toe area and wrist in the heel. 
•  Form a mouth in the sock using your thumb and fingers.  With a marker, draw a straight line where the mouth is. 
•  Remove the sock from hand and cut along the line. 
•  Cut out two ovals, three inches wide and five inches long.  (One from the cardboard and one from the fabric.) 
•  Glue the fabric oval onto the cardboard oval. 
•  Fold the oval in half, fabric side in. 
•  Glue the oval in the mouth hole of the sock. 
•  Decorate the sock puppet. 

Image Source: Canva

Paper Bag Puppet 

Supplies:  paper bag, pencil/pen/marker, glue, extras 

• Lay a paper bag flat, with the bottom folded face-up at the top.  The bottom flap will be the face.   
•  Add eyes, a nose, and a mouth.  The upper lip of the mouth will be on the edge of the bottom flap with the lower lip on the corresponding area of the main bag. 
•  Stick your hand in the paper bag and use your fingers and thumb to move the puppet’s mouth. 

Purchased puppets may be used for a different style of puppet play.  For example: 

•  Oversized puppets can sit on a leader’s lap and engage the children in conversation. 
•  Big-mouthed puppets inspire talkative characters who engage with each other and the audience. 
•  Furry animal puppets are realistic and comforting like familiar stuffed animals. 
•  Molded plastic and rubber hand puppets are easy to wash and tend to be long lasting. 
•  Family puppets come in diverse sets to mix and match depending on children’s cultures and the composition of their families. 

To set the atmosphere as children make their puppets, post photos or posters of puppets from various cultures on the wall.  Check with your local library for books to display about puppets or storybooks to inspire play writing.  Neighbors and family members may be able to donate brown paper lunch bags, fabric scraps, old gloves and socks, or unusual doll-sized hats, purses, scarves, crowns, wands, etc. After finishing their puppets, preschoolers can act out a familiar story or dictate an original script for their puppet show.   

Whether using purchased or self-made puppets, preschoolers may want to perform with their puppets for an audience.  A simple stage may be arranged by using a low bookcase for performers to kneel behind.  Designate someone to introduce the puppets and their handlers before or after the performance. Encourage children to explain the reasons they conducted their puppet show.  

Children may want to make tickets and invitations for parents, grandparents, or siblings.  This may involve some counting and pre-planning.  This can also be the perfect opportunity to talk about hospitality. It would lead to practicing ahead of time the use of good manners to welcome guests and guide them to their chairs/floor space.  Listening to children as they perform with their puppets is guaranteed to entertain, but you will also be likely to gather several new ideas for other puppet performances to capitalize on the children’s interests. 

Source:  Expressing Creativity in Preschool from the editors of Teaching Young Children.  2015.  National Association for the Education of Young Children. 

References:   

Puppet Mania!  The world’s most incredible puppet making book ever! by John Kennedy.  2004.  North Light Books.  Plenty of step-by-step illustrations for making sock puppets and furry animal puppets with lots of personality! 

Easy-to-Make Puppets and How to Use Them by Fran Rottman.  1995.  Gospel Light. 

Reproducible patterns and guidelines for making and using puppets with children ages 2-12. 

Many variations on finger puppets, hand puppets, glove puppets, and paper bag puppets.  Short seasonal rhymes for three and four-year-olds to easily memorize.  Some scripts for puppet plays suitable for older children. 

LADONNA WERTH, EXTENSION EDUCATOR | EARLY CHILDHOOD EXTENSION

Peer Reviewed by Lynn DeVries, Lisa Poppe, and Jackie Steffen, Extension Educators, Early Childhood Extension

Make sure to follow The Learning Child on social media for more research-based early childhood education resources!

Corn leaf rolling is the primary symptom of drought, and yield loss estimates are assumed when drought stress occurs for four consecutive days or more. (Photo courtesy Iowa State University Extension and Outreach) Research insights on yield loss from drought stress during vegetative, silking and grain fill growth stages of corn.

The annual forage plan of insurance gives growers an opportunity to obtain crop insurance for protection against low precipitation. During this webinar, specialists will share insights on how growers can integrate annual forage insurance coverage into their programs. During the free webinar, UNL specialists will discuss planting dates, seeding mix, expected forage production and timing of forage availability for various scenarios.

Because of their high center of gravity, tractors are more susceptible to rolling or turning over. Always hitch loads at the drawbar, never higher. Use front weights to increase tractor stability. Tractor overturns are the leading cause of fatal injuries on U.S. farms, resulting in an average of about 130 deaths each year.

This new webinar features guest speaker Paul Stoddard, a senior lecturer in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign's Paul Stoddard offers actionable steps to empower you to build a better financial future for your farm and your family throughout this free webinar.

Find more information and resources about mental health and wellness on Nebraska Extension's Rural Wellness site. In this webinar, producers can learn how to better identify common stressors, recognize stress symptoms and manage stress.

Figure 1. A grower’s wheat field with severe symptoms of the wheat streak mosaic disease complex in Kimball County on June 15. Severe symptoms of the wheat streak mosaic disease complex were observed in a field in Kimball County, Nebraska on June 15.

Nebraska Extension Weed Management Specialist Amit Jhala shares details about the new corn herbicide Resicore XL, including proper use and how it differs from the original Resicore formula.

It's important for Nebraska growers to apply pre-emergence residual herbicides in soybean — find out why in this new episode of N Field Observations.

There are two reliable methods for overcoming the challenges of lower uniformity and nitrogen application rates when using the center pivot's end gun — using a variable rate injection pump, and, for systems with computer panels, slowing the pivot down when the end gun turns on. The key to knowing the correct setting for a chemigation pump is to first determine how many acres per hour the pivot will cover at the desired irrigation application depth or rate.

FSA encourages producers to complete the ERP Phase Two application, PARP application and acreage reporting for July 15 during the same office visit. FSA has partnered with nine organizations to provide educational and technical assistance to agricultural producers and provide assistance in completing an ERP Phase Two application by the new deadline.

Historical potato stock reports for Nebraska are available at USDA. Nebraska growers, dealers and processors held 300,000 cwt of potatoes in storage on June 1, which represented 3% of 2022 production.