REGISTRATION DEADLINE: July 12, 2013

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1 EXTENSION CONNECTIONS July - Aug 2013 University of Illinois Extension Jersey County Unit 18 - Serving: Montgomery County Main Office #1 Industrial Park Dr. Hillsboro, IL Phone: FAX: Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Christian County Branch Office 1120 N Webster St. Taylorville, IL Phone: FAX: Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Jersey County Branch Office 200 North Lafayette, Suite 6, 2nd Floor Jerseyville, IL Phone: FAX: Hours: Monday & Wednesday 8:00 a.m. 12:00 p.m. & 1:00 4:30 p.m. Macoupin County Branch Office #60 Carlinville Plaza Carlinville, IL Phone: FAX: Hours: Monday -Thursday 8:00 a.m. 12:00 p.m. & 1:00 4:30 p.m. DON'T MISS OUT ON SUMMER CAMPS Hosted By University of Illinois Extension! JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! University of Illinois Extension, Jersey County, is offering three different day camp experiences this summer. Junior and Super Spectacular Scientist Camp which includes Biology, Food Science, Engineering, Machines and More! And Robotics Camp, which is hands-on Lego Mindstorm robotic building! Junior Scientist Camp (5-8 years old) will be four days of "Spectacular Science", held on July 15 th - 18 th, 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. daily. The cost for the camp is $15 (includes lunch). Super Scientist Camp (9-14 years old) will be four days of "Spectacular Science", held on July 15 th -18 th, 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. The cost for the camp is $20 (includes lunch). REGISTRATION DEADLINE: July 12, 2013 Robotics Camp (8-14 years old) two days of Robotic Building on July 29 th and 30 th, 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. daily. The cost for the camp is $20 (includes lunch). REGISTRATION DEADLINE: July 26, 2013 The camps will be held at the Feyerabend Buidling, located by Lions Park. Space is limited and registrations can be made online or by calling the Jersey County Extension office at We are on the web! Scholarships available upon request. University of Illinois / U.S. Department of Agriculture / Local Extension Councils Cooperating University of Illinois Extension provides equal opportunities in programs and employment.

2 4-H News 4-H & YOUTH STATE POULTRY JUDGING CONTEST This contest will take place at the Illinois State Fair on Thursday, August 8th in the Orr building from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. This will be held right before the Junior poultry show begins. HOLD THE DATE!!!!! SHOOTING SPORTS STATE DAIRY JUDGING CONTEST This contest will be held at the Illinois State Fair on Saturday August 17th with registration starting at 9:00 a.m. in the Livestock Center. More details are posted on the State 4-H website at: web.extension.illinois.edu/state4h/events/judgingcontest.cfm Check out the Leaflet Great source of information about the 4-H Program. Visit 4-H ers enrolled in Shooting Sports in Unit 18 (Christian, Jersey, Macoupin and Montgomery Counties) are invited to attend a shooting event to be held at the Brittany Shooting Park located near Bunker Hill, IL on Saturday, September 14th. More information will be coming soon on the times, the events and awards. GIRL TECH JULY 25TH GIRLS ONLY! Join us for a day of fun exploring technology with hands-on activities including creating your own computer games, technology in the kitchen, hi-tech design, computer hardware and more! Girl Tech, sponsored by University of Illinois Springfield (Computer Science Department) and University of Illinois Extension will be held at the Lincoln Land Community College campus in Litchfield on July 25th from 8:30 a.m. 5 p.m. Girl Tech is geared toward girls entering the 7th, 8th or 9th grades in the fall. The registration fee is $20 per girl, which covers lunch, snacks and a participation t-shirt. Scholarships are available upon request. The registration deadline is Thursday, July 18th. Registration is online at: Extension Connections July-Aug 2013 Page 2

3 4-H & YOUTH Illinois State Fair News 4-H members in Unit 18 (Christian, Jersey, Macoupin and Montgomery Counties) will be exhibiting their General Projects such as Food, Clothing, Photography, Woodworking, Natural Resources, Horticulture and more on Friday, August 9 th in several different locations on the grounds of the Illinois State Fair. JUDGING LOCATIONS Judging will be held at 4 major locations on the fairgrounds. Judging schedules will be divided between morning and afternoon to accommodate project areas. Horticulture & Floriculture at the Emerson Building East Annex Fashion Revue and Public Presentations at the Illinois Building in the Theater Natural Resources, Woodworking, Welding, Forestry, Small Engines, Wildlife, Entomology, Geology, & Tractor in the 4-H Tents in the Happy Hollow area. All Other Exhibits will be in the Exposition Building on the Mezzanine STATE FAIR WINDOW Make sure you check out the Unit 18 State Fair window on the south side of the Illinois Building. There you will find a variety of 4-H projects from Christian, Jersey, Macoupin and Montgomery Counties. You can view the window any time of day from August 8 th through August 18 th. SUPERIOR YOUNG PRODUCERS CONTEST 4-H youth are encouraged to participate in the Superior Young Producer s Contest at the Illinois State Fair. Youth do not have to show a live animal at the state fair in order to participate in The Superior Young Producer Contests for horses, swine, beef, dairy, or sheep. Twenty-five $1, scholarships will be awarded to the top five individuals in each specie contest. These contests will be held at the Illinois State Fair Grounds dates and locations are: Horses 6:00 p.m., Thursday, July 25th, lower level of the Livestock Center Swine 6:00 p.m., Wednesday, August 7th, Livestock Center Beef 6:00 p.m., Wednesday, August 7th, Livestock Center Sheep 4:00 p.m., Thursday, August 8th, Open Sheep Barn Arena Dairy 8:30 a.m. Saturday, August 17th, Livestock Center 2013 STATE FAIR JR LIVESTOCK BOOKS & ENTRIES The Illinois State Fair Jr. Livestock Department books and registration forms are available only online at Our offices DO NOT receive books. You will need to look up your classes on the web, fill in the online registration forms, print the forms off and either mail or deliver to the Entry Department at the Illinois State Fair. Entries DO NOT come to the Extension offices any longer. Entries must be postmarked by July 1st. Extension Connections July-Aug 2013 Page 3

4 SNAP-Ed FOOD & NUTRITION FOOD FOR THOUGHT Getting Kids to Try New Foods Every parent knows that some times kids won't eat new foods, but that doesn't mean that they will never eat that food. Kids change their minds often so if you offer that same food again they may decide they like it, gobble it up and ask for seconds. It is good to encourage a child to try new foods. That's how they develop their taste preferences. Parents shouldn't force children to eat all of a new food, or to clean their plate. A small taste this time may lead to a bigger taste next time. Here are some tips to get children to try new foods: Have a positive attitude. Serve new foods to your child and expect that they will eventually learn to like them. Don't force your child to eat. Children sometimes do not like to eat food they have never seen before. Keep serving the food to your child. As they become more familiar with it, they may decide to taste it. Let your child help prepare the food. This can be something simple like tearing lettuce for a salad or stirring pancake batter. This will help your child become familiar with the new food. As you prepare it together, you and they can talk about the color, shape, and texture of the food. Serve new foods when your child is hungry. Let the new food be the first thing your child eats. He might not want to try something new if he has already filled up on his favorites. Serve one new food at a time. Don't overwhelm your child by serving a plate full of new foods. Instead, try offering one new food on the plate with familiar foods. Respect your child's food preferences. There may be some foods that your child doesn't like no matter what you try. That's okay. Just be sure to offer your child other foods from the same food group at other meals and snacks. Be a good role model. Eat a new food in front of your child and let them see how much you are enjoying it. Extension Connections July-Aug 2013 Page 4

5 ASSOCIATION FOR HOME AND COMMUNITY EDUCATION JERSEY COUNTY HCE, Elizabeth Schwab, County Treasurer & Publicity Director TOUR OF FULKERSON FARM - HAZEL DELL Notes from the June HCE Lesson for Living Cornelia s father, Joseph Russell, platted much land in the early 1830 s, not only in Tennessee, but also in St. Louis, Missouri, Alton and Jersey County, Illinois. After the war, opportunities were limited in the South. In 1866 William and Cornelia arranged to purchase 640 acres in Jersey County, Illinois from Joseph Russell, leaving Rogersville with their two children, Francis and James, and three former slaves that chose to accompany the family as servants. After arriving in Jersey County they built a beautiful home in two stages with William Embley as the architect. The first stage was finished in 1866 and after starting a successful Short-horn cattle operation and accumulating some wealth the second stage was finished in The Colonel attended to many fine details of the home that was designed for entertaining, writing out specifications including stained glass doors, the great hall and spacious south wing. The most modern amenities were purchased, a gas machine in the basement to provide gas for the many chandeliers, an inside bathroom with three different level stools and a wooden bathtub, and marble-top sinks in all bedrooms as well as in the North Parlor that was used as an office and family room. The Colonel was well aware of the importance of cleanliness from his experiences during the War. Great Britain hauled wagons down to Macoupin Creek to get mud to make bricks for the home. While building the home, a blind man stopped to ask for a job. He was asked what he could do without his eyesight. He replied that he could tell if the bricks were fired correctly and usable by feeling each brick. He was hired and the bricks picked by him have remained good through the years. A Carriage House was built as well as several barns, fences, and a large garden. The farm was named Hazel Dell. The Colonel and his wife added three children to their family Sarah Blanche, Joseph Russell, and Frank Eberle and all the children were kept busy tending to the garden and carrying wood to the six fireplaces in the winter time. One day a small package arrived for the Colonel. It contained the spur that had been found on the battlefield fifteen years later with the Colonel s name inscribed on it. The Colonel had books and brochures printed to promote his cattle and potential buyers were wined and dined for several days before a sale was made. Two glass showcases were built to display a massive collection of first place ribbons and awards received through the years. The Colonel had over 200 horses at Hazel Dell and perhaps this is why the James Gang came to Hazel Dell in order to obtain fresh horses. Although the visits by the James Gang were never made public by the Colonel or the Fulkerson family, it was widely known that the Colonel sympathized with Jesse and Frank James. The James Gang was not the only famous visitors to Hazel Dell. Charles M. Russell, a nephew of William and Cornelia would often visit Hazel Dell and developed his love of horses when learning to ride on Great Britain with the Colonel as his instructor. As teenagers, Charles Russell and the Fulkerson s oldest son, James, traveled to Billings, Montana in 1883 where James died of Rocky Mountain Fever at the age of 18. This was the third family tragedy for the Colonel. He lost his brother, James, a Major in the Civil War at the Battle of Missionary Ridge in 1863 and his brother Robert, a Major in the Civil War, died at the Colonel s home in 1880 from a tumor caused by a blow on the stomach from a longhorn Texas steer. Extension Connections July-Aug 2013 Page 5

6 EXTENSION NEWS Extension Celebrates 100 Years of Extending Knowledge Illinois might have been known for growing clover and cranberries rather than corn and soybeans if farmers in the early 1900s hadn't followed recommendations from University of Illinois Extension agents to apply lime to the state's highly acidic soil. Demonstrations at agricultural experiment stations and on farmers' fields across the state showing the benefits of using lime as a soil additive convinced farmers to use lime to balance the ph, making it possible to produce abundant crops of corn, soybeans, alfalfa, and other ph-sensitive plants. "Lime is made of calcium carbonate, which is also an ingredient in cement, so farmers feared using it. They thought it would make the soil hard," said Robert Hoeft, U of I Director of Extension in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences. According to Hoeft, the use of lime is just one example from the past 100 years of the value of Extension whose mission is to bring researchbased information to the public. Hybrid corn was another example. "The process to produce hybrid corn was created by university scientists and passed on to companies to grow and market the seed to farmers. Extension played a large part in getting farmers to adopt the use of hybrid seed by establishing demonstration plots in farmers' fields. Planting these demonstration plots near welltraveled roads gave farmers the opportunity to visit them to observe the difference in disease pressure and ultimately yield between openpollinated and hybrid corn," Hoeft said. Although Extension's roots are in the rural agricultural community, Hoeft said it has spread to urban areas of the state. "Major efforts are being expended to improve the diets of Illinois residents in both rural and urban areas diets that will help reduce health problems associated with obesity, including diabetes and heart disease," he said. "Today people want information faster," he said. "Extension's farmdoc website and its new SALUTE TO AG DAY Plan to attend the Salute to Ag Day at the University of Illinois on Saturday, September 7 and help the College of ACES celebrate agriculture! Come cheer on the Illini against the Cincinnati Bearcats! Registration will open mid-summer once kickoff time has been determined. mobile app is an example of how Extension responded to farmers so that they can get information when and where they want it. With a webinar, we can take a presentation or demonstration right into their home. People can watch it at their leisure or if they watch it while it's being broadcast live, they can type a question and get an answer from the presenter in real time." Extension units throughout Illinois are currently celebrating the 100- year anniversary of the 1914 signing of the Smith-Lever Act that established cooperative extension services. A centralized interactive website has been created with photos, Extension highlights, a 100-years game, and Pinterest accounts. The site welcomes people to upload photos and comments to help document the 100-year legacy of University of Illinois Extension. Visit us at web.extension.illinois.edu/100yrs. Extension Connections July-Aug 2013 Page 6

7 EXTENSION NEWS New Community and Economic Development Educator Hired for Unit 18 Chris Casey, of University of Illinois Extension, is the new Community and Economic Development Educator for Unit 18, serving the counties of Christian, Jersey, Macoupin and Montgomery. Chris grew up just outside of Hardin, located in Calhoun County in southwestern Illinois, north of St. Louis. He attended Lewis and Clark Community College and graduated from the University of Illinois at Springfield with a Bachelors Degree in Political Studies/Communication in 1999 and a Masters Degree in Political Studies in Before joining the University of IL Extension, Chris worked for the American Institute of Architects, Illinois Council (AIA Illinois) as Special Projects Coordinator. His responsibilities included helping the Executive Vice President and the Contract Lobbyist on advocacy initiatives. He assisted with legislative issues, grassroots coordination and served as Assistant Treasurer of the Illinois Architects Political Action Committee. Additional past experiences included working for a highranking legislator in the Illinois House and the Office of Lieutenant Governor/Governor s Rural Affairs Council. RAIN GARDENS Add Beauty and Benefit to Your Landscape Source: Andrew Holsinger, University of Illinois Extension Educator, Horticulture Rain gardens are a type of landscaped area with the appropriate mix of flowers, grasses and other vegetation that catches excess rain water from a roofline or gutter system and filters it back into the ground, where it can recharge groundwater resources. A rain garden detains runoff in a simple depression each time there is a storm event. These gardens can be built with a simple design that will lead to easier maintenance. Planting in masses creates a unified design. Plant selection depends on the type of construction method that is used to build the rain garden. Rain gardens can vary from a deep basin, dry creek or sloped depression on upper side with a berm on the lower side. Installation of plants should be placed with drought tolerant plants near the outside edge of the rain garden. Plant species that require medium moisture should be located near the slope and wet tolerant plant species located in the middle of the rain garden Plants selected for rain gardens offer a unique, beautiful landscape feature that provides a habitat for wildlife such as hummingbirds and butterflies. Native plants are often used in rain gardens. Some popular choices include: Blue Vervain (Verbena hastate) Golden Alexanders (Zizia aurea) Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium maculatum) Prairie Blazing Star (Liatris pycnostachya) Queen of the Prairie (Fillipendula rubra) Sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale) Stiff Goldenrod (Soliadago rigida) Turtlehead (Chelone glabra) Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) Blue Flag Iris (Iris virginica shrevei) Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis) Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) Spiderwort (Tradenscantia ohiensis) Sweet Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia subtomentosa) False Solomon s Seal (Smilacina racemosa) Extension Connections July-Aug 2013 Page 7

8 Jersey County 200 N. Lafayette, Suite 6 Jerseyville, IL Address Service Requested University of Illinois Extension - Unit 18 Christian, Jersey, Macoupin & Montgomery web.extension.illinois.edu/cjmm JERSEY COUNTY STAFF: Amanda Cole, County Extension Director, acole1@illinois.edu Chris Casey, Community and Economic Development, ccasey1@illinois.edu Peggy Hampton, 4-H Youth Development, phampton@illinois.edu Andrew Holsinger, Agriculture & Natural Resources, aholsing@illinois.edu Gary Letterly, Environmental & Energy Stewardship, letterly@illinois.edu Judy Benz, 4-H Program Coordinator, benz@illinois.edu Linda Eberlin, SNAP-Ed, leberlin@illinois.edu Donna Renken, Office Support Assistant, drenken@illinois.edu Anna Marshall, Extra Help, amarsha@illinois.edu Kelsey Moore, Extra Help, kmoore@illinois.edu Shelby Lahey, Extra Help, clahey1@illinois.edu Unit 18 - serving Christian, Jersey, Macoupin and Montgomery If you have questions about these or other programs, don t hesitate to contact our staff. The University of Illinois Extension Jersey County is dedicated to working for you.