Fall Planting of Asparagus & Rhubarb
We sometimes receive questions as to whether asparagus or rhubarb can be
moved in the fall. Though these crops are traditionally transplanted in the
spring (mid-March to mid-April), a fall move can be successful. Wait until
the top has been browned by frost and then cut back to the ground.
Prepare the soil and fertilize as you would in the spring. See http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/bookstore/pubs/mf319.pdf for more detail on
asparagus and http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/bookstore/pubs/ep99.pdf for more
information on rhubarb.
Water well after planting to insure good root/soil contact. Mulching would
be helpful on the rhubarb to prevent the plant from heaving out of the soil
during the winter but asparagus requires no such treatment as it is planted
much deeper.
Every so often we receive a question about how to make apple seeds
germinate. Often, the person is looking for a way to reproduce an apple
tree that is dying. Unfortunately, apple trees do not come true from
seed. In other words, the apple seed produces trees that differ from the
parent. It is extremely unlikely that any apple produced from seed will
bear quality fruit. About 1 in every 80,000 apple seedlings will produce
commercial quality fruit.
So, how do you reproduce an apple that is like the parent? The most
common way is by grafting. Grafting is a procedure that joins two plants
together. The upper part (or scion) becomes the top part of the tree,
while the lower part (or stock) provides the root system or part of the
trunk. Apples are relatively easy to graft. How to graft is beyond the
scope of this newsletter, but local libraries should have materials that
cover the procedure, or you can find an excellent publication on the web
at http://muextension.missouri.edu/explorepdf/agguides/hort/g06971.pdf
Part of the allure of fall foliage is color variation. There are trees
that turn red, purple, yellow, orange and brown.
Specific plant pigments determine individual colors. Foliage derives its
normal green color from chlorophyll, the substance that captures the
energy of the sun. Other pigments produce fall colors. Reds and purples
are caused by anthocyanins, yellows by xanthophylls, and oranges by a
combination of carotenes and xanthophylls. Browns are the result of
tannins present in the leaf. Most of these substances are present
throughout the growing season but are masked by the green color produced
by chlorophyll. Anthocyanins are the exception and are produced after
the chlorophyll is destroyed in the fall.
If you have ever seen pictures of New England in the fall, you have
probably wondered why trees in Kansas usually do not color as well. This
difference is partly because of the tree species prevalent in New
England. Certain oaks and maples naturally produce good color. Coloring
also is influenced by the weather.
Warm, sunny days and cool nights are ideal for good color. The sunny
days encourage photosynthesis and, thus, sugar accumulation in the
leaves. As fall progresses, each leaf develops an abscission layer at
the base of the petiole, or leaf stem, that prevents these sugars from
being transported down the trunk to the roots for storage. This high
sugar content in the leaves produces more intense colors. Cloudy days
and warm nights prevent some of the sugar accumulation in the leaves and
results in less vibrant colors.
Weather during other parts of the growing season also can have an
effect. Heavy rains in the early spring or hot, dry weather during the
summer can both have a deleterious effect on fall color.
The length of time a tree maintains fall color also depends on weather.
Reds, yellows and oranges are short-lived when trees undergo frosts and
freezes.
BCI training modules focus on E. coli prevention in beef cattle.
MANHATTAN, Kan. – A series of new beef cattle online training modules has been released by the Beef Cattle Institute at Kansas State University. The series was produced in part with funds from a $25 million grant distributed to 16 institutions in 2012.
The purpose of the $25 million effort is to focus on the prevention, reduction and control of the shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) from pre-harvest through consumption of beef products. Awarded to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) National Institute of Food and Agriculture Coordinated Agricultural Project (CAP) grant team is made up of 50 investigators, including many from K-State.
In continued efforts to raise awareness for the grant’s objectives, the latest training modules focus on the fifth major objective of the grant: education and outreach. Made up of 11 sections, the STEC Beef Safety Training, titled “Translation of STEC: Mitigation to Field Implementation,” is a series of comprehensive modules, available in both English and Spanish. Covered topics of E. coli prevention in beef safety include pre-harvest operations that consist of feedlot, cow-calf, veal and cull dairy cows, and post-harvest operations for small-scale processors, distributors and restaurants.
“We are pleased to deliver this important tool for people involved in the beef industry to learn about preventing E. coli in beef and veal,” said Dan Thomson, director of K-State’s Beef Cattle Institute. “I commend the USDA for stepping forward and funding such outreach projects that will reach the trenches of production animal caregivers.”
Since the training modules are available in both English and Spanish, the efforts will likely reach a wider audience.
“Providing bilingual employee-based training will be a great tool for people involved with beef production, from the farm to the plate, to learn how to do their part to provide safe, nutritious beef products,” Thomson added.
Rodney Moxley, professor in the School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at UNL and project coordinator for the STEC CAP grant, feels that working with the BCI to develop the modules will allow them to reach a larger audience.
“This takes advantage of BCI’s expertise, as (the BCI) is state of the art for this kind of education,” he said. “The beauty of the modules is that there is assessment built into the training, providing assurance and documentation of what they’ve learned.”
Whether it’s working with live cattle in the packing plant or on the retail end of beef products, Moxley is confident the modules will help the team achieve its goals in education and outreach, as the trainings target individuals in specific areas.
Cold nights are increasing in frequency now that we are into October. If you
have tomatoes, you may have some that are approaching maturity.
Leave them on the vine until mature or until a frost is forecast.
Tomatoes will ripen off the vine but must have reached a certain phase of
maturity called the ‘mature green stage.’ Look for full-sized tomatoes with
a white, star-shaped zone on the bottom end of the green fruit.
When harvesting fruit before a frost, separate tomatoes into three groups
for storage: those that are mostly red, those that are just starting to
turn, and those that are still green. Discard tomatoes with defects such as
rots or breaks in the skin. Place the tomatoes on cardboard trays or cartons
but use layers of newspaper to separate fruit if stacked. Occasionally a
tomato may start to rot and leak juice. The newspaper will keep the juice
from contacting nearby or underlying fruit. Store groups of tomatoes at as
close to 55 degrees as possible until needed. (Ward Upham)
Fall Planting of Asparagus & Rhubarb
We sometimes receive questions as to whether asparagus or rhubarb can be
moved in the fall. Though these crops are traditionally transplanted in the
spring (mid-March to mid-April), a fall move can be successful. Wait until
the top has been browned by frost and then cut back to the ground.
Prepare the soil and fertilize as you would in the spring. See http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/bookstore/pubs/mf319.pdf for more detail on
asparagus and http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/bookstore/pubs/ep99.pdf for more
information on rhubarb.
Water well after planting to insure good root/soil contact. Mulching would
be helpful on the rhubarb to prevent the plant from heaving out of the soil
during the winter but asparagus requires no such treatment as it is planted
much deeper.
