The recent issue of UC’s California Agriculture is packed with interesting and informative articles. Two articles help to directly connect farmers and consumers. All articles can be accessed online.

Please see topics below:

• 150 years after Morrill Act, land-grant universities are key to healthy California
• Uncertain future for California’s biomass power plants
• Community Supported Agriculture is thriving in the Central Valley
• UC Cooperative Extension explores a farm-to-WIC program
• Crop rotation and genetic resistance reduce risk of damage from Fusarium wilt in lettuce
• Citrus growers vary in their adoption of biological control (availible only in E-Edition)

The winter 2012 issue of UC’s California Agriculture highlights efforts to connect consumers with farm-fresh food.

On Tuesday, March 6 UC Hansen Agricultural Center (UC HAC) will hold a preschool open house from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm.

Preschoolers and their grown-ups are invited to participate in the following activities:

• Story time in the garden
• Herbie the Seed Puppet
• Worms
• Plant a seed
• Zoo garden hunt

Attendees are invited to enjoy snacks or lunch from home at on-site picnic tables. No food or drink will be available for purchase.

There is no cost to attend, but reservations are required. To register or for more information, please see the UC HAC website .

Learn and explore at UC Hansen Agricultural Center’s Preschool Open House!

The 2011 UC Master Gardener Vegetable Demonstration Garden Project has recently finished. A group of certified Master Gardeners and trainees spent time each week from January 27 through December 15 learning vegetable gardening techniques through hands-on experience.

They documented their project so that they could impart lessons learned throughout the2011 project. This article is the sixth in a series to share this knowledge.

Garden tools:

Tools in the garden can save time and effort.    

• A hula hoe is a great tool to extract small weeds.
• A pocket knife is a handy tool that should be carried while gardening.
• The blades of bypass pruners and loppers should only be sharpened on one side of the blade. If they are sharpened on both sides of the blade, a small gap will be created between the blades allowing the material being cut to wedge itself between the blades and precluding a clean cut. Anvil-type pruners typically need to be sharpened on both sides of the blade. When sharpening tools, only sharpen surfaces that were originally sharpened at the factory.

Questions on gardening? Please contact our Master Gardener helpline at 645-1455 or contact them by email at mgventura@ucdavis.edu.

The 2011 UC Master Gardener Vegetable Demonstration Garden Project provided many opportunities for learning. Shown above is the container garden section of the project.

Co-sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension Groundwater Hydrology Program, Groundwater Resources Association of California (GRA) will present an educational opportunity February 28-29 at Buehler Alumni Center, located on the UC Davis campus.

Directed toward a broad audience, the Introduction to Groundwater and Watershed Hydrology: Monitoring, Assessment and Protection short course will be taught by experienced instructors.

From GRA’s website:

“This short course will review the fundamental principles of groundwater and watershed hydrology, water quality, and water contamination. It will provide an overview of the most common tools for measuring, monitoring, and assessing groundwater and surface water resources. And it will review current local, state, and federal programs dealing with groundwater and watersheds. The course is geared towards a broad audience that is involved in the management, assessment, and protection of water resources, either professionally, as an educator, as a stakeholder, or otherwise. Course attendees who may have some experience with, but no formal training in hydrology or related engineering or science fields, will benefit from the basic and intuitive, yet comprehensive approach of this course.”

Scheduled topics include:

• Surface Water Hydrology and Watersheds
• Groundwater Hydrology
• Water Rights and Water Law
• Surface Water Quality
• Groundwater Quality, Sampling, and Monitoring
• Surface Water Contaminants
• Groundwater Contamination
• Defining Watersheds and Groundwater Recharge Areas
• Vulnerability Assessments
• Understanding Potentially Contaminating Activities
• Protecting Water Resources

To register, or for more information, please visit this page of the GRA website.

Water is essential to life. Protection of water resources require the cooperation and involvement of many.