UConn’s Department of Animal Science is holding their annual beef auction on Sunday, October 21st at the Cattle Resource Unit (Heifer Barn) on Horsebarn Hill Road in Storrs. The auction will be held at UConn’s Storrs Campus at the UConn Cattle Resource Unit (Heifer Barn) located on Horsebarn Hill Road. The event is free and […]
Ask UConn Extension
Do you have questions about food, health, or sustainability topics? Ask UConn Extension. Extension educators are working in every town and city in Connecticut to bring the research of UConn to our communities. UConn Extension is on a collaborative journey. We co-create knowledge with farmers, families, communities, and businesses. We educate. We convene groups to […]
Serve and Enjoy Banana Breakfast Cookies
Another popular recipe from our KidEats App developed by our 4-H FANS program and the New Mexico State University Learning Games Laboratory is the Banana Breakfast Cookie. Enjoy them at home with this easy recipe. http://s.uconn.edu/4fb
A Healthy Home is Dry
Our Healthy Homes program offers the following tips on keeping your home dry. You can download the document or print it for easy reference.
Seafood Prepping Tips
Enjoy the healthful benefits of seafood, at least two meals a week. 1. Keep seafood cold* between store and home. Store immediately in refrigerator. 2. Use fresh fish within 1-2 days or wrap tightly and freeze immediately. 3. Thaw seafood overnight under refrigeration. 4. Keep raw seafood separate from cooked/ready-to-eat foods. Prevent raw/thawing seafood from dripping on other foods. 5. Refrigerate […]
Farm Aid 2018
UConn Seniors Casey Lambert and Evan Lentz staffed the joint UConn Extension/UMass Extension Fruit informational booth at the Farm Aid 2018 event on Saturday, September 22nd held at the Xfinity Center in Hartford. They work with Mary Concklin, Associate Extension Educator-Fruit Specialist, with commercial fruit growers on a USDA-iPiPE grant.
Fun Recipe: Fruit Slushies
This recipe is a favorite in the KidEats App that was developed by our 4-H FANS program and the New Mexico State University Learning Games Laboratory.
A Healthy Home is Free of Chemicals
Our Healthy Homes program offers the following tips on keeping your home free of chemicals. You can download the document or print it for easy reference.
Solid Ground Farmer Training E-Learning
Did you miss a class? A selection of trainings from the Solid Ground program are available in an e-learning format at newfarms.extension.uconn.edu. BF 104: Soil Health and Management with Kip Kolesinskas is a three-part course. Participants will learn the basic soil science principles for maintaining healthy soils. Guidance on soil testing and reading soil tests is provided. BF 105: Fruit Production for Small […]
Open House with Fairfield County Master Gardeners in Bethel
Craft Fair and Open House Celebrates the 40th Anniversary of the UConn Extension Master Gardener Program Date: Saturday, October 6, 2018 (rain date Saturday, October 13) Time:9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Where: Fairfield County Extension Office and Grounds 67 Stony Hill Road (Route 6), Bethel, Connecticut The UConn Extension Master Gardener Program is […]
A Healthy Home is Clean
Our Healthy Homes program offers the following tips on keeping your home clean and healthy. You can download the document or print it for easy reference.
Horticultural Opportunities
The UConn Extension Master Gardener program is a program that offers many different opportunities through the horticulture world. There are many qualities that are vital to becoming a Master Gardener, such as being eager to educate your community, participating in training programs, and wanting to learn more about plant care and gardening. It is […]
Climate Corps Course Shapes Career Choice for UConn Student
The UConn Climate Corps is an undergraduate classroom and service learning opportunity. The program consists of a 3 credit course (Fall semester) on the local impacts of climate change, followed by a 3 credit independent study (Spring semester) during which students work with Extension faculty to assist Connecticut communities in adapting to climate change. In […]
Ornamentals and Turf Short Course
This Short Course is an in-depth review of the information necessary for studying and fulfilling the requirements of the Ornamental and Turf/Golf Course Superintendents State of Connecticut Supervisory Pesticide Applicator Certification exam. A student attending lectures and studying materials independently should be able to successfully pass the examination, both written and oral. Students are expected […]
Garret Basiel: From 4-H Project to College Essay
Garret Basiel was a 4-H member in Middlesex County and is a freshman at UConn this fall in the Department of Natural Resources and the Environment. This is the college essay he submitted with his application. My fingers felt raw, but I once again pulled back the bowstring and aimed down range at the target. […]
CT Seeks Better Information & Understanding of Produce Growers
Connecticut seeks better information and understanding of produce growers in the state The University of Connecticut Extension is collaborating with the Connecticut Department of Agriculture (DoAg) to support Connecticut produce growers covered by the FDA’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Produce Safety Rule. In order to do that, we need to have more and better […]
New Group of Students Trained in Seafood Safety
Before a bowl of clam chowder or a freshly grilled swordfish steak ends up on a restaurant diner’s plate, specially trained seafood handlers will have been working to eliminate any risk of contamination or hazards that could cause illness. Many of those handlers will have learned their skills in training offered by Connecticut Sea Grant, including a three-day course held in […]
National 4-H Common Measures
UConn 4-H is one of 10 states selected for a pilot program to implement Common Measures program evaluation. The evaluation instruments Common Measures 1.0 and Common Measures 2.0 were created by National 4-H to help 4-H staff with planning and assessing local, state, and regional programs. Common Measures are designed to measure the impacts of 4-H programs in science, healthy living, citizenship, college/ career readiness, and […]
Enroll in the Master Composter Program
Enroll Now in the UConn 2018 Master Composter Program Almost 25% of household waste can be recycled through composting. The purpose of the UConn Master Composter program is to educate and train residents about the basics of small scale composting and in exchange for the training, volunteers will pass on their knowledge to others through […]
Building Community Through a Garden
Dozens of bright yellow Goldfinches flew alongside as I made my way up the winding driveway past their meadows and into the heart of the 4-H Education Center at Auerfarm in Bloomfield. The high, wiry whistle of the birds sounded the alarm at my arrival. I parked behind the barn, and climbed the hill to […]
The Slow Storm: Tree Mortality in CT from Invasive Insect Pests
By Thomas E. Worthley, UConn Associate Extension Professor, Forestry During the early summer of 2018 it became apparent that numerous trees throughout eastern and southern Connecticut did not produce leaves this spring, having died sometime during the winter. While it is not unusual to lose a tree or two to natural causes here and there […]
Fall Semester of Lifelong Learning Classes Begins Sept. 7th
Exercise your mind with good friends. UConn Extension‘s Center for Learning in Retirement (CLIR) provides meaningful and serious intellectual activities for retirees and other adults from all walks of life, conducted in an informal and relaxed atmosphere. There are no academic requirements. CLIR classes are offered in two formats: single classes and courses. A single […]
Service is a Family Tradition
The University of Connecticut People Empowering People (UConn PEP) received a generous gift from the estate of the Reverend John Evans, a lifelong Episcopal priest. The donor was Cherry Czuba, retired Extension Educator from Haddam, and niece of John Evans. He was a charismatic and fascinating uncle who endeared himself to many people. Throughout his […]
Apply to Become a UConn Extension Master Gardener
Do you love gardening? Are you interested in expanding your knowledge and sharing that knowledge with others? Applications are now available for the 2019 Master Gardener Program through UConn Extension. Participants receive horticultural training from UConn, and then share that knowledge with the public through community volunteering and educational outreach efforts. Enrollment in the UConn […]
Telling Stories With Maps
Cary Chadwick, UConn CLEAR, used the research results on black bears in Connecticut to create a companion “story map,” an application created by GIS industry leader Esri that enables the seamless combination of online maps with other types of information such as images, videos, graphs and graphics. Story maps are designed to communicate complicated information, data, and analysis to the public in a user-friendly, interactive […]
Fairholm Farm: CT Green Pasture’s Dairy Farm of the Year
The Green Pastures Award judging team has chosen Fairholm Farm as the Connecticut Dairy Farm of the Year, 2018. The annual award will be presented at the Big E Green Pasture’s banquet where each New England state presents their winning farm. The farms present a slide show of their management strategies and innovative goals that […]
Food Safety for Produce Buyers
On July 17, UConn Extension and the Connecticut Department of Agriculture hosted a meeting in Storrs for operations (distributors, schools, institutions, restaurants, grocery stores, and foodservice operations) that buy fresh produce from farms in southern New England. A team of regulators and produce safety educators from Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island conceived and developed the […]
Remembering Grace Hanlon
Grace Hanlon began her experience at the New London County 4-H Camp at the age of 7. The camp, situated on 24 ½ acres in Franklin, CT, provides both day and over-night camping experiences to over 2,100 youth annually. 4-H is the youth development program of UConn Extension. As part of the University of Connecticut, 4-H […]
Helping Connecticut Farmers Succeed: A Collaborative Journey
“Educating farmers in sustainable, profitable and environmentally-sound food production practices benefits every man, woman and child in the country directly, on a daily basis, by helping to maintain a safe and secure food source. Knowledge of effective IPM practices helps prevent excess application of pesticides by otherwise frustrated growers,” Jude Boucher says. The name Jude […]
40 Gallon Challenge
Connecticut residents are invited to join the 40 Gallon Challenge and take on new practices to increase water conservation. The 40 Gallon Challenge is a national call for residents and businesses to reduce water use on average by 40 gallons per person, per day. As a participant in the challenge, one commits to taking on […]
Quantifying Water Use
“New York City is surrounded by water,” Angie Harris says, “I realized it was a great source of beauty, transportation, and recreation. But it was also contaminated and deeply problematic.” Angie grew up in Queens, New York. She realized water was a crucial resource of concern while an undergraduate at New York University studying environmental […]
Emily Alger: Changing Lives Through 4-H
UConn 4-H is a statewide program with educators in all eight counties. Each of our 4-H educators brings unique skills and life experiences to the program. If there is one experience that has opened Emily Alger’s eyes to how special the 4-H program is, it would be asking the high school field hockey team that she coaches to participate in the […]
Award Winning Cheese
The UConn Creamery, part of the Department of Animal Science, has once again taken home awards from the annual American Cheese Society Judging and Competition. Our Chipotle Queso Blanco and our Green Chile Queso Blanco were recognized for excellence amongst 1966 products from over 200 entering companies. Both cheeses were awarded third place in their […]
Angie Tovar: 4-H Alumni Spotlight
Angie Tovar of Danbury was a teen mentor in our CT FANs IM 4-H program. She is entering her junior year of college at Western Connecticut State University where she majors in Elementary Education. Angie currently works as a translator for St. Peter Church in Danbury and Student Worker for Pre-Collegiate and Access Programs in […]
Hartford County Extension Center Moving
Our Hartford County Extension Center is moving. As of Friday, August 3rd, please use the following address and new phone numbers: Exchange Building – Suite 262 270 Farmington Ave Farmington, CT, 06032 (860) 409-9050 Fax (860) 409-9080 hartford@uconn.edu Please be patient with our faculty and staff over the next week as it may take a […]
Granby 4-Hers Experiments Flew into Space on a NASA Rocket
Eight youth from Granby 4-H along with one leader, Rachael Manzer successfully launched three experiments into space on a NASA rocket. The three experiments included “Bees in Space” where honeycombs were launched, “Rubber Bands in Space”, and “Gallium in Space”, all of which were proposed by the 4-Hers themselves. Cubes in SpaceTM, a global competition […]
Strengthening Connecticut Farms
Over recent years a new cohort of farmers has cropped up in our small state. “New”, “Beginning”, “First-generation”, “Early stage”— these growers have been met by a growing number of training programs to help them get started, improve their production skills, and enhance the viability of their businesses. This is a group of avid learners who are always on the lookout for training […]
Erin Morrell: 4-H Alumni
Hometown: New Haven, CT Involvement: New London County 4-H Alumni Education: Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Connecticut and a Master’s Degree from Fairfield University Current Employment: Associate Dean at Albertus Magnus College What did 4-H teach you? Listen to others and be a better presenter and public speaker, as that is something I use regularly […]
Chris Collins: Making a Difference
By Cathleen Love Chris Collins moved to Meriden, Connecticut four years ago with his girlfriend and her two children. In his professional capacity he serves as a substance abuse counselor at Rushford at Meriden, an organization that offers a variety of outpatient programs and services, including counseling young adults about substance use disorders. A longtime […]
No Place Like Home: Black Bears are Back
Connecticut is bear country. It may sound strange, but western Connecticut is home to a growing population of American black bears. While bears may at times look out of place in the fourth most densely populated state, black bears living around humans is becoming more and more common not only in Connecticut, but across North America. This new reality has instigated new research […]