🎶 If there's something strange,
In your neighborhood (soil),
Who you gonna call?
CO-OP EXTENSIONS! 🎶
Something weird and it don't look good?
Call your Cooperative Extension Office!
They may not carry proton packs like the Ghostbusters do, but they are fierce protectors and investigators of your local gardens and farms.
The Cooperative Extension Service (CES) is a nationwide network of state and county based schools that provides scientific research and educational outreach to farmers, families, and communities. They handle all the dirty work in the world of agricultural science.😎
Cooperative Extension History
Established in 1914 - Coop Extensions were originally a way to bring resources like land grants, tools and information on agricultural research to rural farmers across the country. Back then, more than 50% of the American population lived in rural areas and 30% of the workforce was in farming. As you can imagine, it wasn't easy to get information out to growers and producers.When the Morrill Act was first established in 1862, it granted ‘public’ land to the development of universities for the study of ‘agriculture and mechanic arts.’
It should be noted however, that 'public' is a loose term. It was land and territory that had been seized from Native Americans through violence and erasure.
The Hatch Act of 1887, ensured that each Land Grant University, or LGU, was given resources to actively research all things agricultural sciences in cooperation with the USDA. But it wasn't until The Smith-Lever Act of 1914, that educating and community outreach became an integral part of the services offered by Cooperative Extensions.
The goal of the CES was to connect the latest scientific research to the people who would benefit from it the most; providing funding for the service of assisting farmers and growers in applying new research-based knowledge to their farms.
They exist for the benefit of all home growers - lean on them!
Your local extension is designed for your access and success. They have real, up to date info on what's best for your current growing conditions, programs and resources on topics such as pest management, soil conservation, nutrition, and 4-H youth development. They're continually studying things like crop production, livestock management and even, food safety. They truly do it all. So call 'em!
How to find your local CES
Visit THIS WEBSITE and click on your State to find your local office. They'll have information on workshops and upcoming educational events, planting information and common issues facing farmers and home gardeners-
(though I can't make any promises on their ability to handle Slimer).
Hi, Catherine, we’re so sorry to hear that you’ve been disappointed so far. If you’d like to give us a call at (207) 926-3400 or an email at hello@superseeds.com, we can get more details on your order, trouble shoot what might have gone wrong, and figure out how to remedy this situation for you! Our business hours are 8-4, M-F, Eastern Time.
Dear Friends,
I am a new customer and ordered seeds to plant in my new beds, built up from sheet mulched area with high-grade topsoil and compost. I live in Fairfax, CA, a more or less temperate area, 9. The bush beans almost all came up. The pole beans were disappointing – out of all the seeds, only three have come up and I am nurturing those. The summer squash is doing great. I sprouted those in small containers and transplanted them.
My main disappointment was the lettuce, the Pinetree mix. I planted these seeds direct in a small prepared raised bed, with new high-grade topsoil and compost mixed. Most of the seeds did not come up, even though I kept them moist and covered the bed with netting to keep the birds away. Of the sprouts that did come up, it was very difficult to figure out what they were, whether they were lettuces or weeds! It would be so helpful to have pictures of the kinds of lettuces in the mix, and what the seedlings look like of each kind. Many of the new growth was weeds, to my disappointment, but I had to wait until they revealed themselves fully as not lettuces. I am now going to try another tactic by planting some lettuce seeds in pots and putting them high up on a garden shelf, with filtered sun, and see what happens. I also have the year-round lettuce seed mix. Again, no pictures, but it would be wonderful to have pictures of the seedlings and the types of lettuces included in the mix. Thank you for reading. Thank you for any response you can give.And for 50 years, starting in Seattle Washington, Master Gardeners have helped to extend the reach of the Extension Services. MGEVs are now international and will be celebrating in Kansas City in June at the International Master Gardener Conference!