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I’ve written and read many “Year in Review” columns in my career. It’s the end of the year, so it’s time for another one. This column started out in just a couple of papers at the first of the year, and now it is in several more, so you might not have seen every column this year.

Monday, December 19, 2022

Cold stress increases a cow’s energy requirement and can pull down her body condition.  Thin cows can result in weak calves being born in the spring and/or poor breed up. Winter storms have already swept across the Plains, giving indications this could be a long, cold winter for cows already thin due to summer drought stress.

Spanish: 

In Nebraska, organic crop production is slightly up despite the number of operations decreasing since 2019.

County-level estimates for winter wheat and oat acreage, yield and production are now available for Nebraska.

Cover crop mix (cereal rye and brassicas) in a field on Oct. 12. Last year’s cereal rye residue is still visible. First-year results of a study to assess cover crop establishment using broadcast late-season interseeding in rainfed and irrigated fields.

After 15 years leading the program, Hein is retiring as director at the end of the year. Jeff Bradshaw, a professor of entomology at the Panhandle Research, Extension and Education Center in Scottsbluff, will become the next director effective Jan. 1.

Erin Ehnle Brown/realagstock Workshop attendees will watch keynote speakers simulcast to their satellite locations across Nebraska, Kansas and Indiana, as well as participate in additional on-site presentations, activities and networking opportunities with other participants.

Photo source, Lynn DeVries

As I sit in the warmth and quiet of my home, I see the posts, advertisements, and the excitement of Black Friday shopping. And it starts, the traveling, special programs, shopping, parties and holiday gatherings.  It can take a toll on us all, especially our young children.

Children are even more sensitive to disruptions in their routines. However fun the activity or event may be, parents may observe more displays of behaviors or moodiness from their children during the holidays. Structured routines help children to feel safe and predict what is happening around them. Children learn how to control themselves and their surroundings when they live in a structured, secure, and loving environment. This feeling of security fosters healthy social and emotional regulation in young children.

Tips for a healthy holiday:

Sleep well

A regular schedule will help children sleep better at night and they are less resistive to transitioning to going to bed. Parents can help by sticking to routines and bedtimes that are as consistent as possible during the holidays. Perhaps reading a bedtime story to children after bath time.

Regular meal times

It is best if children eat at predictable times to avoid those “hangry” moments.  Offer a healthy breakfast and small healthy snacks between meals. Eating at the table instead of in front of the television, will reduce overeating, as children can focus on how hungry or full they feel. I recommend family style meals where caregivers sit with and eat the same foods as children.  When children are ready, allow them to serve themselves. They will be more likely to try new foods if given choices.

Traveling

For those long car or airplane trips, bring along a comfort item like a stuffed animal or a busy bag of books, paper and crayons. Mornings seem to be better for children, consider traveling in the morning, and making stops for meals at regular times. I recommend scheduling extra time on road trips to stop and allow children a break from their car safety seats.

Active times

If children are home from school or childcare over the holidays, remember to keep them active.  Build in time for outdoor activities so children can be physically active. If the weather doesn’t allow outdoor time each day, be sure some indoor time allows for physical activity.  Have an indoor paper snowball fight, or build a fort with blankets. Planning out a specific time each day during winter break for an activity will become part of their routine while children are at home.

Limit Screen time

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) states, “Today’s children are spending an average of seven hours a day on entertainment media, including televisions, computers, phones and other electronic devices. To help kids make wise media choices, parents should develop a Family Media Use Plan for everyone in their family.”

I recommend focusing on laps instead of apps. Instead of reaching for a digital “babysitter,” offer more of your time and attention.  What might be seen as attention getting behaviors, could simply be your child’s attempt at wanting more connection with you.

 Photo source, Lynn DeVries

Screen time recommendations:

• For children younger than 18 months, avoid use of screen media other than video-chatting. Parents of children 18 to 24 months of age who want to introduce digital media should choose high-quality programming, and watch it with their children to help them understand what they’re seeing.
• For children ages 2 to 5 years, limit screen use to 1 hour per day of high-quality Parents should co-view media with children to help them understand what they are seeing and apply it to the world around them.

Check out this Media time plan and calculator by the American Academy of Pediatrics, to help you set your own family guidelines.

Transition back to school

As the holiday break ends, if you did stray from routines, help your child adjust by gradually getting back on schedule to similar meal, and bedtime schedules that they will have at childcare or school.

In closing, my wish for you is that you have a safe, happy and healthy holiday with your family. Take time to enjoy the little things and laugh together.

LYNN DEVRIES, EXTENSION EDUCATOR | THE LEARNING CHILD

Peer Reviewed by Leanne Manning, , Lisa Poppe, and LaDonna Werth, Extension Educators, The Learning Child

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

  

Damage from flooded corn field (left) when the carrying capacity of the ditch was reduced due to sedimentation with eroded soil (right) from adjacent field. (Photo courtesy UNL Water) As crop residues provide numerous benefits for soil health and water availability, crop growers should weigh the pros and cons of leaving crop residue in the field — particularly those who farm dryland ground.

The 2023 Soils School at Nebraska Innovation Campus in Lincoln will provide three soil and water, and eight nutrient management CEUs for certified crop advisors. In this two-day course, NU experts will be discussing the latest research on soil fertility, precision ag for nitrogen management, cover crop effects on soil, soil carbon sequestration and more.

Rural resident recruitment is evolving and expanding in its scope. As smaller rural areas continue to depopulate, communities struggle to maintain vital services and businesses. Traditional recruitment efforts have focused on industrial recruitment and attraction. However, with low unemployment rates and a shrinking labor supply, communities find themselves expanding their recruitment efforts to also focus on creative placemaking, tourism and offering a welcoming environment for individuals to stay, work and raise their families.

Bridgette Reese/realagstock Farm and Ranch Management Analyst Glennis McClure discusses potential uses for the 2023 Nebraska Crop Budgets, explaining how producers and farm managers can create enterprise budgets using the UNL budgets as a guide.

State Climatologist Al Dutcher weighs in on what it will take to get adequate soil moisture recharge this winter and predictions for next spring's weather patterns.

A prescribed burn continues to be the most economical approach to controlling Eastern red cedar trees. (Photo by Troy Walz) Extension educators review the most effective strategies for controlling Eastern red cedar trees, and managing net wrap and twine issues for livestock.

The new Nebraska Soil Health School is geared toward Nebraska farmers, ag professionals, UNL faculty/students and USDA NRCS employees, with three workshops planned in 2023. Created to enhance the technical soil-related knowledge of farmers and ag industry professionals, the new Nebraska Soil Health School workshop will be hosted in three locations across Nebraska in 2023.

Chemigation training is offered at face-to-face events and online through the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy, at no cost to the individual.

Concerns about severe drought are at their highest level since the Nebraska Rural Poll began questioning the state’s rural residents about weather events.

New for 2023, certain county extension offices have agreed to host computer kiosks that private applicators can use to complete the program, and extension educators will be hosting Zoom training sessions.

There are five conferences in 2023 where individuals can recertify their pesticide applicator licenses, including Nebraska Extension's Crop Production Clinics beginning Jan. 4 across the state.