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The Great Coon’ Bait Caper

By
Steve Gilliland
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When it comes to eating habits, raccoons are a lot like teenage boys; they’ll eat anything that smells good, and a lot of things that don’t. Common home-grown coon’ baits are marshmallows, jelly beans, peanut butter, barbeque sauce, maple syrup and cream corn. There are people raking in the dough selling custom baked pet treats, so a couple years ago, after the Kansas Fur Harvesters convention, I opened the Gilliland Coon’ Bait Test Kitchen, intent on dazzling the trapping world with my coon bait creations.

First order of business was to put on my lab coat and hair & beard net. My brother once ran the R&D department at a brand name dog food plant and had to wear hair and beard nets to guard against getting hair in the dog food, so I thought it only right that I guard against hair in my raccoon bait! I needed some early success, so for my first creation I used a jar of product I bought at that year’s trapper’s convention. The jar contained all the flavors and smells the seller used in his raccoon bait; you merely added the jar contents to one pound of dog or cat food. I marched into my woodworking shop turned test kitchen with a bag of Wal-Mart’s cheapest cat food under my arm. In a monstrous zip lock bag, I mixed the cat food and the powder in the jar, which smelled sweet and yummy like butterscotch. The whole shop (I mean test kitchen) smelled like butterscotch for three days. It’s good I’m not a sleep walker; I probably would have awakened late that night and found myself eating a bowl of it with milk.

For my second creation I wanted to try a recipe I found on the all-wise, all-knowing internet. The base for this recipe was commercial pond fish food. I poured the commercial fish food into a one-gallon ice cream bucket which I placed on the step going into the garage. When I returned a while later, there sat an empty ice cream bucket on the step. It suddenly dawned on me that the bucket was exactly like the one that held the dog food in the pantry for our two small dogs. My wife saw the bucket of fish food on the step, thought it was nice of me to refill it and promptly fed the dogs a bowl of commercial pond fish food! No harm done, the ingredients are probably not much different than those in dog food anyway, but then, not only do the dogs love to get a bath, I had to chase them around the sink as they keep swimming away from me!

With a zip lock bag of the fish food and various other ingredients, I entered the SATELITE test kitchen, aka my wife’s real kitchen. This was still a test, so I used just a small amount of the fish pellets, then added mini-marshmallows, molasses and vanilla according to the recipe. I mixed it all together and sealed the bag. It promptly turned to a glob of goo that smelled like my grandmothers ginger cookies times ten, but looked like it had already been eaten once. In my defense, at least it was a palatable kitcheny’ smell and didn’t reek of rotten eggs or dirty gym socks like many trapping baits.

I let the concoction marinate for a few days, then decided it was not exactly what a finicky, man-of-the-world raccoon might want to smear all over his face, so I found a bulk food store and came home with butterscotch oil, peppermint oil and anise oil, all of which, by the way are oft-used ingredients in commercially made raccoon bait.

Anise oil smells like black licorice and I decided to play with it first. I opened the jar of the afore-mentioned gingerbread smelling goo and tore off a softball sized chunk, put it into its own container and

began adding the anise. My drum beats to the tune that “More is always better,” so I dumped every last drop from the three tiny bottles into the goo and mixed it as best I could. It was soft and pliable all right but mixing it was like trying to stir something into a volley ball. When I finished, it smelled like an explosion at a black licorice factory, but looked like a bowl of cow brains.

Next was the butterscotch oil. I only had two little bottles of it, so again I ripped off a chunk of the gingerbread goo and added the oil. It actually smelled yummy like a combination of grandma’s cookies and Werther’s candies, but looked no different than the first.

Last but not least was the peppermint oil. Again, I pried off a chunk of the goo and added the peppermint. I intentionally took a big whiff of the oils before adding them to the mix, and the peppermint was the sharpest of the three. It was sweet like peppermint, but almost overpowering. When finally mixed, this last attempt smelled like wonderful sweet wedding mints, but still looked like cow brains.

I’m embarrassed to say that the test kitchen experiments that year were the highlight of the project. The only catch made with my experimental offerings were a few possums; understandable I guess, using bait that looks like cow brains. Anyway, it all made for a good story and taught me a lesson………No it didn’t; I’m sure I’ll try it again some year! Continue to Explore Kansas Outdoors!

Steve can be contacted by email at [email protected].

What I learned

By
Guest Columnist
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What I learned early on in my career is that homeowners love their trees! Trees serve many purposes around the home from providing shade to creating aesthetic beauty and adding value in the landscape. It is important to give young trees a good start when planting so it can thrive and be healthy. Many young, smooth, thin-barked trees such as honeylocusts, fruit trees, oaks, maples, lindens, and willows are susceptible to sunscald and bark cracks. Sunscald normally develops on the south or southwest side of the tree during late winter. Sunny, warm winter days may heat the bark to relatively high temperatures. Research done in Georgia has shown that the southwest side of the trunk of a peach tree can be 40 degrees warmer than shaded bark. This warming action can cause a loss of cold hardiness of the bark tissue resulting in cells becoming active. These cells then become susceptible to lethal freezing when the temperature drops at night. The damaged bark tissue becomes sunken and discolored in late spring. Damaged bark will eventually crack and slough off. Trees often recover but need special care — especially watering during dry weather.

 

If you have seen this type of damage in previous years or fear you have susceptible trees, preventative measures are called for. Applying a light-colored tree wrap from the ground to the start of the first branches can protect young and/or recently planted trees. This should be done in October to November and removed the following March. Failure to remove the tree wrap in the spring can prove detrimental to the tree.

 

Wheat Scoop: AgriLand inspires generations at Kansas State Fair

By
Guest Columnist
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Contact: Marsha Boswell, [email protected]

For the audio version, visit kswheat.com.

What started as a small idea nearly three decades ago has grown into one of the most popular attractions at the Kansas State Fair. AgriLand, the interactive agricultural exhibit in the Pride of Kansas Building, has been giving families and school groups a hands-on look at farming and food production since 1995. For Kansas Wheat and other commodity groups, it remains a key way to tell the story of agriculture in a format that sticks with visitors long after they leave Hutchinson.

 

The inspiration for AgriLand came after the 1994 Kansas State Fair, when Cindy Falk, while working with the Kansas Wheat Commission (KWC), noticed that booths with interactive features drew more attention.

 

“Every year, busloads of schoolchildren came to the fair, wide-eyed and ready to explore,” Falk said. “I couldn’t help but think how powerful it would be to have a place just for them, a space where they could see, touch and learn about the important role agriculture plays in their everyday lives.”

 

Soon after, Falk and KWC Administrator Steven Graham began conversations with the Kansas Department of Agriculture, Kansas Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom and commodity organizations across the state. Together, they launched the first AgriLand exhibit, a 260-square-foot space in the middle of the Pride of Kansas Building. The idea quickly gained momentum, and with support from the fair staff and building superintendent, the display expanded to the east end of the building.

 

“Honestly, I don’t remember any real obstacles,” Falk said. “Everyone pitched in to help fund it, build it and work the exhibit.”

 

The original goal was to highlight the wide variety of Kansas farm products and show how they connect to everyday life. Falk remembers lockers filled with items made from Kansas crops and livestock, such as crayons, a wool scarf and a football. Visitors could climb into a combine cab, step onto a livestock scale or explore bins of different grains.

 

“Agriculture is the foundation of life, the one industry every person depends on to survive,” Falk said. “Here in Kansas, we are especially blessed. Our land, climate, water and people make this state one of the best places on earth to grow the crops and livestock that nourish families, not only here at home but all around the globe.”

 

Over the years, AgriLand has grown into a staple of the state fair. Children line up to take turns on the combine simulator, which features harvest footage filmed on Kansas farms. Families pause for photos with animal cutouts, while teachers use free lesson plans and educational resources that extend the learning into classrooms across the state. Additions such as the cotton display, walk-through soil tunnel and an animatronic cow named Maybelle have kept the exhibit fresh and engaging.

 

Falk said some of her fondest memories are of families sharing laughter inside the exhibit or kids so eager to try each activity that volunteers needed stopwatches to move them along. She also recalls building the first Food Guide Pyramid with a wooden garden display, paint and food items, turning it into a colorful and inexpensive nutrition display. Today AgriLand continues to grow, with commodity groups and farm organizations taking turns staffing the exhibit and sharing their stories with visitors.

 

For Falk, the most rewarding part is seeing how the exhibit has impacted generations.

 

“It is inspiring to see its lasting impact, like the little boy who once perched on a horse saddle in AgriLand and is now returning as a high school senior to assist in the exhibit,” she said. “Generations of families will keep exploring, learning and connecting with Kansas agriculture in a way that is as engaging as it is unforgettable.”

 

The Kansas State Fair opens on Sept. 5 – 14, 2024. This year, AgriLand has a brand new Gleaner Combine Cab for everyone to explore! Visit AgriLand for an action-packed, interactive agricultural experience in the Pride of Kansas Building, which has been giving families and school groups a hands-on look at farming and food production for generations.

KU News: Fair will offer opportunity to explore technology to increase accessibility, independence

By
Guest Columnist
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From the Office of Public Affairs | https://www.news.ku.edu

Headlines

Fair will offer opportunity to explore technology to increase accessibility, independence

LAWRENCE — University of Kansas staff will offer the public an opportunity to explore technology options for work, home, employment and recreation at the AT Fair on Sept. 9 in Topeka. The event will feature hands-on demonstrations of assistive technology to help Kansans with daily tasks, employment and recreation.

University Distinguished Professor to examine ‘America First’ influence on trade law

LAWRENCE — Raj Bhala, the first University of Kansas School of Law faculty member to earn the title of University Distinguished Professor, will present “Deceitful Destruction of International Trade Law: America First and Xenophobic Autarky” at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 15 in the Kansas Union. The event is free and open to the public.

Charlotte Street award show draws on artist’s Asian heritage

LAWRENCE – In the current exhibition of Charlotte Street Visual Artist Award winners at the University of Kansas’ Spencer Museum of Art, KU lecturer Merry Sun has constructed three monumental sculptures made of interlocking concrete pieces that weigh hundreds of pounds each and three fish-shaped windsocks made of paper-thin Tyvek fabric that hang on a wall, twisting in the slightest breeze. “My Mother’s Tongue Ties Me Together” is on view until Jan. 4, 2026.

Full stories below.

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Contact: Jen Humphrey, Life Span Institute, 785-864-6621, [email protected]
Fair will offer opportunity to explore technology to increase accessibility, independence

LAWRENCE — With an aim to share the wide variety of advances in technology including smart home technology, Meta Glasses and accessible gaming, University of Kansas staff will offer the public an opportunity to explore technology options for work, home, employment and recreation at an upcoming fair in Topeka.

Specialists from Assistive Technology for Kansans (ATK) will offer the AT Fair from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 9 at the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library, Room 123, 1515 SW 10th Ave. Individuals can drop by the fair any time to learn about tools designed to make daily tasks more functional and enjoyable.

Abby Azeltine, ATK director, said event attendees can test devices, check out hands-on demonstrations and speak to specialists about options.

“Technology offers so many ways to make the world more accessible — from smart home tools that let you control your lights with your voice or a tap on your phone to devices that make it easier to take your medication, to solutions that help you hear your TV more clearly,” Azeltine said.

The fair is for people in all stages of life, whether they are working professionals or enjoying retirement.

“No matter the need, technology can be a great tool to support accessing the world around us,” Azeltine said.

This fair will promote technology to support adults with memory, mental health, smart homes, medication management, activities of daily living like cooking and getting dressed, communication, vision, hearing and employment.

ATK, which is federally funded through the Administration for Community Living and is a part of the KU Life Span Institute, works with Kansans across the state to increase access to and acquisition of technology for people with disabilities and health conditions.

Azeltine said people are generally surprised by how useful the tools can be.

“People generally state the following or some variation, ‘What? I did not know that was a thing!’ or, ‘Whoa I had no idea!’” she said.

In addition to adults who may benefit from these technologies, Azeltine encouraged professionals in occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech language pathologists, vocational rehabilitation counselors, social work, managed care organizations and others to attend.

“We’re encouraging anyone who would be a user or promoter of assistive technology to attend,” Azeltine said.

More information about ATK and the event is available at the ATK website.

 

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For every $1 invested in KU, taxpayers gain $2.90

in added tax revenue and public sector savings.

https://economicdevelopment.ku.edu/impact

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Contact: Elizabeth Barton, Office of Faculty Affairs, [email protected]
University Distinguished Professor to examine ‘America First’ influence on trade law

 

LAWRENCE — As one of the world’s foremost international trade law scholars and teachers, Raj Bhala is the first University of Kansas School of Law professor to earn the title of University Distinguished Professor. Bhala is renowned for his scholarship in trade law, law and literature, and Islamic law, and he has written 13 books and over 100 law review articles.

Bhala will focus on aspects of his international trade law scholarship during his inaugural University Distinguished Professor lecture, “Deceitful Destruction of International Trade Law: America First and Xenophobic Autarky,” which will take place at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 15 in the Kansas Union’s Kansas Room on the sixth level. Individuals can register to attend the lecture in person or via livestream, and a recording of the lecture will be posted afterward on the Office of Faculty Affairs website.

During the lecture, Bhala will explore how international trade law is being destroyed, why it is happening and whether it is worth preserving.

“I will argue that trade law is being destroyed through a series of ‘America First’ unilateral trade measures, which violate international — and in some cases U.S. — law due to xenophobic autarky,” Bhala said. “By that I mean a misguided impulse to onshore or reshore industries and jobs in lieu of trade (autarky) owing to a distrust, even dislike, of foreign sources of goods and services (xenophobia). Preserving trade law is important because destroying legal rules and diplomatic norms hurts the U.S. by eroding its economy and political soft power and its hard power military alliances.”

Bhala’s publications embody signature themes in each of his specialties. In trade, he highlights why attention to the interests of poor countries matters, explores the link between trade and national security and connects practical issues to Catholic social justice theory. In his work in law and literary classics in the Western canon (especially Shakespeare), he trisects the field of law “and” literature into interpretation (law “as” literature), themes (law “in” literature) and rhetoric (law “with” literature). In Islamic law, which he taught to U.S. special operations forces as well as at the School of Law, he explores the distinction between authentic and inauthentic dogmas and identifies common themes across the Abrahamic faiths.

Among Bhala’s published articles are three trilogies, on precedent “stare decisis” (the principle that courts should adhere to previously decided cases) in international trade law, the failed Doha Round of World Trade Organization negotiations and India’s inconsistent trade law and policy, plus a major piece on Brexit, and one on literary criticism and treaty interpretation. His upcoming lecture draws from his latest research, including two forthcoming articles in the Texas International Law Journal on U.S. tariff policy during the second administration of President Donald Trump.

Among Bhala’s books is the sixth revised edition of “International Trade Law: A Comprehensive E-Textbook,” all eight volumes of which are available via Open Access on KU ScholarWorks and used at over 100 law schools around the world. He also wrote the two-volume “Modern GATT Law,” the first treatise on the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade in nearly 50 years; “Trade War: Causes, Conduct, and Consequences of Sino-American Confrontation,” the first comprehensive analysis of a seemingly forever trade war between the U.S. and China; and “Understanding Islamic Law (Sharī‘a),” the first textbook in the field written by a non-Muslim American legal scholar. Bhala’s current book project is “Principles of Law, Literature, and Rhetoric: A Shakespearean Approach.”

Bhala has taught around the world, including on both sides of hot zones in India and Pakistan, China and Taiwan, and Israel and Arab countries. He is widely quoted in the world’s media, including the Associated Press, Bloomberg, Reuters, CNN, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Business Insider, Financial Times (London), The Globe and Mail (Toronto) and numerous other international outlets.

Bhala was born in Toronto and is of Indian (Punjabi) and Celtic (Scottish-Irish) heritage. He earned his bachelor’s degree at Duke University, was a Marshall Scholar in England and obtained a master’s degree at the London School of Economics and Oxford (Trinity College). His juris doctor is from Harvard University. Bhala practiced international banking law at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, where he twice won the President’s Award for Excellence for his work on payment systems, and for his service as a United States delegate to the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law to draft a Model Law on International Credit Transfers.

The first distinguished professorships were established at KU in 1958. A university distinguished professorship is awarded wholly based on merit, following exacting criteria. A complete list is available on the Distinguished Professor website.

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KU provides fire, rescue and law enforcement training across Kansas.

 

https://ku.edu/distinction

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Contact: Rick Hellman, KU News Service, 785-864-8852, [email protected]
Charlotte Street award show draws on artist’s Asian heritage

 

LAWRENCE – In the current exhibition of Charlotte Street Visual Artist Award winners at the University of Kansas’ Spencer Museum of Art, Merry Sun has constructed three monumental sculptures made of interlocking concrete pieces that weigh hundreds of pounds each and three fish-shaped windsocks made of paper-thin Tyvek fabric that hang on a wall, twisting in the slightest breeze.

Sun is a third-year lecturer in KU’s Department of Visual Art and the new director of its Off-Site Art Space.

Sun said she is drawn toward industrial materials in her work.

“I like the idea of a working object where labor and service are built into its intrinsic nature,” she said. “That is something I feel a kinship to.”

Sun’s concrete sculptures are a reference to the ancient Chinese dougong bracketing system used to support the roofs and eaves of temples and other large structures. They’re titled “In the Tempest, Through the Eaves?”

“I’ve reimagined them in concrete here,” Sun said. “Traditionally, dougong are timber-framed architectural structures. Here, the material shift acts as a metaphor for myself and my immigrant identity. When you sever something from its place of origin and transplant it somewhere else, I imagine that maybe some material change would occur, like petrification or calcification.”

Terra cotta roofing tiles are strung from the center sculpture toward the tops of the museum’s columns.

“I formed each tile on parts of my body when the clay was still wet, like plate armor,” Sun said.

When viewers walk around the piece, vibrational sounds are triggered and cascade down the ceramic tiles.

The original dougong bracketing system was engineered to endure strong earthquakes along China’s many fault lines.

“I took earthquake data from near the places I’ve lived in my 28 years and translated the seismographs into soundwaves,” Sun said.

Sun was born in China and emigrated to the United States as a child, growing up in North Carolina before earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in art.

The fish sculptures also stem from Sun’s heritage.

“Each fish is dedicated to one of my deceased family members,” Sun said. “I took traits from that person as I was designing their respective fish.”

“This first one is my maternal grandfather, who was a scholar and the chief of surgery at his hospital. The white-on-white stitching on his fish references his white doctor’s coat.

“The middle fish is for my paternal grandmother, who was a seamstress and a devout Buddhist. And the last fish is my uncle. He was a gentle, charismatic soul, and so he has this really big, vibrant fish.”

Additionally, Sun said, the windsocks reference the Chinese Dragon Gate myth.

“It is a story about carp that are strong enough to swim upstream in the Yellow River and to jump over a waterfall and through a Dragon Gate. The carp are thereby transformed into dragons,” she said. “So I’m eulogizing my family members as powerful water dragons in their afterlives.”

Sun said she is proud and grateful to have been chosen for the Charlotte Street Visual Artists award, with its $10,000 grant. Noelle Choy and Hùng Lê are the other award recipients this cycle.

“It allowed me to make this body of work — the largest sculptural installation that I’ve built to date,” Sun said. “This is also the first time that three people of Asian descent have won the Charlotte Street Visual Artist Awards in the same year. So I’m also really proud to be a part of that and to be able to exhibit alongside my friends and fellow artists.

“We decided to combine our work into one big show this year. The exhibition is about our individual personal histories, but it also brings our stories together through broader, overarching themes.”

“My Mother’s Tongue Ties Me Together” is on view until Jan. 4, 2026.

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KU News Service

1450 Jayhawk Blvd.

Lawrence KS 66045

[email protected]

https://www.news.ku.edu

 

Erinn Barcomb-Peterson, director of news and media relations, [email protected]

 

Today’s News is a free service from the Office of Public Affairs

 

Increase flower power by dividing overgrown perennials

By
Guest Columnist
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As clump-forming perennials mature, they often become overcrowded, competing among themselves for light, water and nutrients. This typically results in fewer blooms, said David Trinklein, state horticulture specialist with University of Missouri Extension.

Don’t despair. “With a little garden surgery, new life can be instilled into ragged, overgrown perennials,” said Trinklein.

While division may seem like a spring task, early fall is ideal, he said. Cooler weather and reduced water stress help plants recover and reestablish roots before winter. Root growth continues into late fall as long as soils remain warm.

Why divide perennials?

Overcrowding stresses plants and reduces flowering. Dividing them restores vigor and lets gardeners expand their beds or share plants with others.

How to divide perennials

  • A sharp spade or garden fork works best.
  • Slice the clump, making sure roots remain intact.
  • Take half the clump with as many roots as possible.
  • Refill the original hole with good soil and replant the removed portion elsewhere, or pass it along to a friend.
  • Keep the soil moist for several weeks while the plant settles in.

What to divide, and what not to

Some perennials thrive when divided, including:

  • Daylilies.
  • Irises.
  • Ornamental grasses.
  • Black-eyed Susans.
  • Purple coneflowers.

Not all perennials require division. Peonies prefer to stay put. If unsure, check plant care recommendations or consult the MU Extension website.

Fertilizing: timing matters

Avoid fertilizing in fall, since winter cold may damage new growth. Wait until spring, when plants break dormancy. Use a balanced fertilizer and follow label instructions.

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