2018 Annual Report. Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Hunterdon County Staff

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1 2018 Annual Report Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Hunterdon County Staff Family and Community Health Sciences Sandra Grenci, MS, RD, LDN, CDE County Extension Department Head Family & Consumer Health Sciences Educator, County Agent II 4-H Youth Development Sherrie Peterson Program Assistant Agriculture & Resource Management Megan Muehlbauer, PhD County Agricultural Agent III Atanas Atanassov, PhD Tree Fruit IPM Program Associate Rebecca Magron Horticultural Consultant and Research Associate (Home Horticulture) Administrative Support Staff Kimberley Frey Anna Pinkerton

2 2018 Rutgers Cooperative Extension Program Impact by the Numbers Educational Contacts: School & Child Wellness: 550 Adult Nutrition Health & Wellness: 758 Diabetes Awareness & Self- Management: 378 Food Safety & Food Preservation: 619 Youth Involved: 304 Volunteers: 150 Community Service Hours: 55,300 Volunteer Service Hours: 15,600 Farm Visits: 170 Instructional hours: 28 IPM Reports: 325 Pest Reports: 325 Farm Visits: 31 Calls, Office visits, s: 96 Soil Reports: 155 Farm Certificates: 383 Produces donated to food pantries: 141,471 lbs Trained Volunteers: 120 Resident Contacts: 8415 Community Service Hours: 16,361 Volunteer Hour Value: $394,320

3 2018 Family and Community Health Sciences Sandra Grenci, Family and Community Sciences Educator, County Agent II Staying healthy, eating right, being active, raising healthy families, and enjoying a good quality of life! RCE s Department of Family and Community Health Sciences helps people meet these goals. Diabetes Awareness and Self-Management: Improving quality of life and health outcomes Individual Encounters School and Child Wellness: Forming healthy lifestyle habits for optimal growth and development Adult Nutrition, Health and Wellness: Eating well, staying active, and preventing chronic disease Food Safety and Safe Home Food Preservation: Reducing the risk of Foodborne illnesses In 2018, FCHS launched the first Mindfulness Based Eating Awareness Program (MB-EAT) for consumers in Hunterdon County reaching 75 people in its 1st year. Mindful eating is a practice that aims to reconnect people to the basic experiences of eating and enjoying food, through meditation and tuning into inner hunger/fullness and satisfaction cues. Research has shown positive outcomes of mindful eating on weight control, diabetes, and other health conditions. Program participants have shared: This class has literally been life changing for me. I have struggled with eating issues my whole life. I've tried various diets and such, but nothing has stuck. Because of this class, I not only started eating mindfully, I started living mindfully. This class has greatly improved my self-awareness about diet, weight control, and healthy and conscious eating I have improved my overall health directly by participating in these classes. These sessions have provided so much science-based information that is new to me. It s really been eyeopening. Sandra Grenci is a wonderful teacher. She s enthusiastic, non-judgmental, supportive and chock-full of information on the topics.

4 H Youth Development Sherrie Peterson, 4-H Program Assistant 4-H impacts our community and enriches the lives of our youth 4-H has always placed emphasis on the importance of youth becoming more involved in their communities. County residents join interest-focused clubs for hands on learning about topics such as livestock, small animals, the Seeing Eye program, food and nutrition, science, engineering and technology, shooting sports, and robotics. The 4-H program teaches life skills that help shape youth into well-rounded, caring citizens. Participants develop skills in public speaking, record keeping, setting and achieving goals, citizenship, leadership, self-discipline, responsibility and public service. One of the most predominant county 4-H programs is the Annual Hunterdon County 4-H and Agricultural Fair. Hunterdon County 4-H has been a major partner in the Fair for nearly 100 years. Youth have the chance to showcase their projects, show livestock, and demonstrate their skills while doing community outreach. We believe the 4-H program shapes our youth into well-rounded, responsible individuals and that our youth really do Make the Best Better.. 4-H has allowed me to become an influential part of my society is every way imaginable. By learning how to communicate in groups, speak publicly, and keep track of records...as I attend college this upcoming fall, I am confident that I will be able to utilize all the tools 4-H has given me to truly make the best better. I will be forever grateful for the experiences and opportunities I have been provided with through my involvement in 4-H. Rebecca Merriken, 4-H Ambassador 4-H has helped me develop great public speaking skills, over the years...i will get my message across in less time, along with commanding the room...this life skill will stay with me for the rest of my adult life. Jack Dabb, Fur n Feathers Small Animal Club I love the Fair!! Those words have been said to me thousands of times over the 25 years I ve been a 4-H Leader!...The relationship between the Hunterdon County 4-H program & the Hunterdon County Fair has helped shape our youth in our county, and will do so for many more generations to come! Barri-Lynn Everitt, 4-H Assistant Fair Manager 4-H taught me the skills I needed in order to succeed in college, as a young professional, and now as a law student. Growing up in the Hunterdon County 4-H program...i firmly believe that I was ready for the rigor of law school because 4-H equipped me with the skills to handle tough challenges." Sarah Phillips, 4-H Alumni.Community service is a large part of the county 4-H program. Some service projects include clean-up at local parks, volunteering at the local food pantry and putting together Thanksgiving meals for families in need. 4-H youth have many opportunities to learn about the importance of helping others through community service. Anita Christman, 4-H Volunteer

5 2018 Agriculture and Natural Resources Megan Muehlbauer, PhD, County Agent III 31 Farm 383 Farm Visits Certificates Issued 96 Calls, Office Visits, s 141,471 lbs of Produce Donated to Food Pantries 155 Soil Reports Research: All of the provided examples work to show how I was helped. It is unbelievably helpful to have an expert's insight and have the chance to communicate with them Projects have included: Honey Crisp Apples, Hardy Plum variety for New Jersey, Wine Grape Variety Trial, Hop Trial Optimal Maturity to harvest, How New Jersey growers might adapt to grow Hazelnuts and Hard Cider Varieties Publications: Megan has contributed five articles in publications for growers Grants: My conversation with Megan was very valuable. Not only will I likely get more out of my crop this year but we also talked about possibilities to apply for grants. To put a dollar value on the conversation, it could easily be worth in the thousands of dollars. Alampi Fund Grant for top working one of the older blocks at Snyder Research and Extension Farm New Jersey Horticultural Society research funding for apple rootstock trial Grant to develop hop maturity guidelines SARE grant Comparison of Five Methods of Crop Thinning in Pinot Noir and their Effects on Fruit Composition and Wine Quality Education: Megan gave valuable training and pruning methods for our newly planted orchards. Getting our orchards off to right start will pay huge dividends in the future Presentations to groups including Master Gardeners, Farmers, Growers and Industry Professionals Other Engagements: T he efforts provided a sense of comfort and support. I was given a person that cared about my situation and tried to help me work through my problems that were going to cost me money and hardship. It was very helpful. Doubled the attendance at Hunterdon Board of Agriculture meetings and engaging younger farmers to attend and participate in the meetings Tracking of confirmed cases of Spotted Lantern Fly in Hunterdon County.

6 2018 Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Program Atanas Atanassov, PhD, Tree Fruit IPM Program Associate 170 visits to commercial farms to help growers protect crops 325 written IPM reports for grower s use 325 written pest control recommendations 28 hours of instructions and education In 2018 Atanas s work helped commercial tree fruit growers to: Protect trees and fruits from devastating insects, mites, and diseases. Increase yield of fruits and improve quality of fruits for fresh market. Drastically reduce or completely exclude carbamate and organophosphate insecticides from spray programs of tree fruit growers. Grower Feedback: We need and wait for your visits every week. We rely on your reports and recommendations for pest control. The IPM Program also Supports a Healthy Environment: Practices focus on implementing insecticide free methods for control of the most economically important insects in tree fruit orchards (codling moth, oriental fruit moth, peach borers, and dog wood borer). No extra sprays or waste chemicals are used to prevent diseases. Outreach is provided on a schedule of weekly visits to growers farms, to monitor and discuss pest problems, and guide growers on the best control practices.

7 2018 Home Horticulture Rebecca Magron, Horticultural Consultant Master Gardeners of Hunterdon County enhancing outreach services, benefitting our community 8,445 resident contacts in ,361 hours serving community residents in Hunterdon County during 2018 RCE home horticulture with Master Gardener engagement is a vital part of our program at Anderson House. Our clients greatly benefit from learning to produce real food for their table, grounding skills, community connections and immediate success with positive people. It provides clients with a lifelong skill - Helen McIntosh, Clinical Director, Anderson House $28.32 hourly rate defined by IndependentSector.org $394,320 dollar value of 2018 volunteer hours 1,137 service contacts in garden therapy 2,725 service contacts in youth programs 1,995 contacts with formal education 2,628 event contacts and problems solved The Home Horticulture office at Rutgers Cooperative Extension began the Master Gardener program to extend its reach into the community with its first graduating class 25 years ago. Now a thriving volunteer outreach service, the Master Gardener program maintains 120 trained and active volunteers that readily strengthens outreach, improves residents lives and strives to deepen our reach to vulnerable populations and populations with special needs. Since its inception 25 years ago, 275,674 volunteer hours have contributed over $6,246,000 of service in our communities. Master Gardeners assist extension in providing accessible horticultural experiences for vulnerable populations and people that have special needs. Horticultural education programs were provided to local High School Students with special needs, women in recovery for drug and alcohol addiction, seniors in assisted living and nursing homes, and the ARC of Hunterdon. For six years the Master Gardeners of Hunterdon County have been committed in their endeavor to support and nurture the Special Needs learners at Hunterdon Central... The level of commitment the Master Gardeners have shown to our school community has been remarkable. The Gardeners are nurturing, amenable and committed to students growth and development; their contributions have been immeasurable. -Suzanne Vrancken, Teacher Hunterdon Central High The Seed to Salad program is a unique program where horticultural education is delivered at local schools. During 2018, over 2,700 contacts were made at four public schools in Hunterdon County. Formal presentations were provided to multiple civic organizations, such as garden clubs, libraries, seniors groups and service clubs. Furthermore, Master Gardener volunteers, also County residents, received formal education and training in a variety of formats as training or Continuing Education to maintain their annual certification. The Hunterdon County Helpline is a unique service and vital part of Cooperative Extension s Home Horticulture. Over 600 phone calls, walk-ins and s where questions were answered and problems solved during Master Gardeners are available at eight community events, providing individualized information to over 2,000 people. Photos Courtesy Barbara J. Berger and Jean Agostinelli

8 Sherrie Peterson 4-H Rebecca Magron Home Horticulture Sandra Grenci FCHS Megan Muehlbauer, PhD Agriculture Atanas Atanassov, PhD IPM Kimberley Frey & Anna Pinkerton Support Staff About Rutgers Cooperative Extension (RCE) Rutgers Cooperative Extension is part of the Federal Land Grant University system serving as the educational outreach arm of the United States Department of Agriculture. We provide research-based information and programming developed at New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, part of Rutgers, the State University. RCE strives to better the lives of the residents of Hunterdon County through a cooperative agreement between Rutgers, the State University and the Hunterdon County Board of Chosen Freeholders. Our Goals For more than 90 years, RCE of Hunterdon County has worked in the local community to ensure healthy lifestyles for residents of all ages; provide productive futures for youth, adults and communities; enhance and protect environmental resources; ensure economic growth and agricultural sustainability; and improve food safety and nutrition. Cooperative Extension of Hunterdon County 314 State Route 12, Building #2 PO Box 2900 Flemington, NJ co.hunterdon.nj.us/rutgers.htm njaes.rutgers.edu/extension Agriculture / Horticulture H FCHS Master Gardener