Educators' Outreach Blogs
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Soil no longer qualifies as MEGO
MEGO is the "my eyes glaze over" factor when an uneventful topic crops up. Like soil. What could be duller than dirt? Truth is few things are more critical to Earth's future than soil and keeping it arable.
Find out why in National Geographic's "Our Good Earth: The Future Rests on the Soil Beneath Our Feet." Then visit the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History exhibit, "Dig It: The Secrets of Soil," an investigation of soil's physical, biological, and cultural influences on our daily lives. Five environmental science and technology (ENST) faculty--soil experts Delvin Fanning, Brian Needelman, Martin Rabenhorst, Ray Weil, and Dick Weismiller--helped bring the multimedia exhibit to life.
The link that connects university research with community needs, University of Maryland Cooperative Extension, offers fact sheets detailing soil fertility, irrigation, decontamination, and more. |
Viticulturist Joe Fiola
Joe knows wine
Wine production in Maryland has tripled during the past 7 years thanks to educator Joe Fiola, University of Maryland Cooperative Extension. The specialist in viticulture and small-fruit production describes "the best job in the world" on AgTube. |
Embarrassed by a sparse, weedy lawn?
For repairing a wretched lawn, the easiest thing to do is hand the job over to a lawn-care expert. A far less expensive route is watching "Putting in a Perennial Lawn," a production of public TV's Delmarva Gardens series. In the video, Ginny Rosenkranz, horticulture specialist for University of Maryland Cooperative Extension, walks you through the steps of mending a lawn plagued by weeds, sparse grass cover, or both.
Fine tune the instructions to fit the soil in your part of Maryland by contacting the Home and Garden Information Center (800-342-2507) or your local Extension office. |
Jimsonweed by any other name--
--is still poisonous. Aka devil's trumpet and Jamestown weed, jimsonweed was a recent culprit in the poisoning and hospitalization of a Montgomery County family from India. When six family members landed in intensive care, the cause of their illness proved a mystery. And so it remained till the state health department contacted University of Maryland Cooperative Extension educator and commercial horticulture specialist Chuck Schuster. A visit to the family's backyard revealed jimsonweed stems, shorn of leaves a family member had picked and used to season a stew. Once Schuster identified the plant--which resembles an edible Indian herb--poison control prescribed an antidote. The family quickly recovered. |
Wei's Way
Welcome, Dr. Robert Buchanan, new director of the university's Center for Food Safety and Security Systems (CFS3). The former senior science advisor for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition has been highly involved in global food protection, safety, and security.
Welcome, Dr. Ray Stricklin, acting assistant dean for Academic Programs. Ray, who replaces the recently retired Dr. John Doerr, is associate professor and animal behavior specialist in the Department of Animal and Avian Sciences.
Congratulations, Dr. David Ross, recently inducted as a Fellow in the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. David is a professor and horticultural engineering expert in the Department of Environmental Science and Technology and University of Maryland Cooperative Extension. He was honored for his distinguished accomplishments during the past 35 years as a faculty member, educator, and Extension specialist.
Congratulations, Dr. David Tilley, associate professor, Department of Environmental Science and Technology, who won the Outstanding Gemstone Mentor award in May for his work with Team CRABS. |
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