Category: Agriculture

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The 54th Annual Henderson County Farm & Ranch Tour hosted by the Athens Chamber of Commerce was held Tuesday. This year, the event started and ended at First United Methodist Church Athens.

The agriculture industry generates $125 million in income annually in Henderson County thanks to the many bulk grain handling system parts used in at the farms, according to the tour program.

Stops on the 2017 tour included: Gardens at Peaceful Valley, Castle Oaks Vineyard & Winery, and Carzon-Pitchford Cattle Co., LLC.

Continue reading “Tommy Barnett named Agriculturist of the Year at 54th Annual Farm & Ranch Tour”

By Kate Pittack/Extension Agent

What do you do when you get back from a week-long 4-H conference? You grab your ear tagger, tattoo gun, nose printing materials, DNA collection envelopes and ethics forms and head to livestock validation. In order to show a livestock project in 4-H (and FFA), animals need to be properly identified.

The degree of identification/validation varies depending on the species and which show(s) a youth decides to attend. If you’re attending a major show (Fort Worth, San Antonio, Houston, etc.) there is quite a bit of paperwork involved. We hold youth accountable that the animal is being taken care of by them at the location they specify. They are also required to sign an affidavit in regards to the ethical upbringing/treatment of their animal(s).

Continue reading “Clover Connection: Livestock need to be property identified for shows”

By Lydia Holley/Special to HCNow

If you have questions about composting, or are interested in starting a compost pile, Henderson County Master Gardener Bob Erickson will be giving a free presentation on composting on Tuesday, October 18, 6-6:30 p.m. at the Clint W Murchison Memorial Library, 121 S Prairieville Street, Athens.

What is an ounce of gold worth? These days, a lot. What is compost worth? To the gardener, a lot. Although most gardeners make compost out of materials that are free, they know that the finished product is so beneficial it’s worth it weight in – well, possibly gold.

Compost benefits clay soil by binding with and enlarging the tightly packed particles that make clay sticky and heavy. This allows air and water to move through the soil, improving drainage and the soil’s texture. Compost also benefits sandy soils in the same way. By binding together with the sandy particles, water is slowed from draining too quickly and improves sandy soil’s texture.

Continue reading “Free presentation on composting”

By Kate Pittack/Extension 4-H Agent

What do Hamburger Festivals have to do with 4-H? Actually, quite a lot! This will be the second time that Henderson County 4-H will be making an appearance at the “Uncle Fletch Hamburger Festival” held in downtown Athens. Our team of chefs includes Callie and Cassie Turner, Colton Hemphill and our newest cook team member, Bethany Hinnant. This group of 4-Her’s also known as “The Chuck Wagon Gang” are eager to bring their burger cooking expertise to the event! They are also looking to reclaim their title of “Most Spirit”.

Along with the cook-off, we’ve got some other exciting events coming up. We are having our first 4-H robotics meeting of the year on Thursday, September 22nd. It will be held at 6 p.m. at the Henderson County Sr. Citizens Center (next to the Fair Park complex in Athens). If you are new to 4-H or even if you’re not a part of 4-H please come and join us and see what 4-H robotics is all about! We’ll also be doing some science and technology related activities this year and a plan is even in the works to visit the NASA balloon station by Palestine.

Continue reading “Clover Connection: Plenty going on with 4-H”