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Drought Stress and Trees

Hello Mid-Ohio Valley gardeners and farmers! Dry conditions continue as we get a short, yet sweet taste of cool fall weather. After a record low temperature of 46 degrees F Wednesday night, we are looking at seven days in a row of 90 degree heat. Since 1900, West Virginia has experienced several noteworthy droughts, including 1904, 1930–31, 1941, 1954, 1966, and 1988. During the drought of 1930–31, nearly 100% of the Mountain State experienced what currently would be referred to as D4, or “exceptional drought,” for eight months. More than 60% of West Virginia is currently in ...

Paw paws, America’s first fruit

There it was, laying next to the grass trimmer I was about to start: a paw paw, the first fruit of the season. Suzanne had found it doing yard work. It was ripe, and I took a bite. Fantastic! Paw paw has an Appalachian ring to it, sounding like a dog extremity or ma’s husband. A paw paw is ...

So, what happens if I don’t vote?

“It doesn’t matter anyway”, “What’s one Vote?”. These comments are often heard from people who choose not to vote. The idea that one vote can’t possibly have an effect is a common misconception. In fact, throughout our history, there have been very close votes that made the difference in the direction taken by America. In 1876, Rutherford B. Hayes lost the popular vote, but won the electoral college by a single vote. In 1960, JFK won the popular vote by less than 120,000 out of 68.8 million votes cast. In 2000, the Al Gore and George Bush race was determined an even race ...

Racers are already a step ahead of you

If you are reading this late Saturday morning, your friends, family and neighbors may already be one step ahead of you. Many of them are as much as 30,000 steps ahead of you because they have already competed in and completed the News and Sentinel Half Marathon or Two-Mile race. The newspaper has been the lead sponsor of the race since 2002. We took a two-year break during COVID, which means that this was the 21st race that I have worked on. That’s more than 300 miles of racing. That’s a lot of miles, and a lot of people, running and walking thousands of miles. Hundreds of ...

Friendships are worth time and effort

Mother Theresa called loneliness “the most terrible disease.” Theologian G. K. Chesterton claimed that he learned more from watching children than from any philosophy book. Chesterton noted that when young children go to bed without their favorite stuffed animal, they not only miss the toy, they also believe their toy misses them. For Chesterton, that “missing” was proof that God created us to be in relationship with others; we need friends. God himself validates those thoughts. At the time of Creation, all was perfect and right until God created Adam. Then, for the first ...

Sedum: Beautiful, low-maintenance plant for the home landscape

Hello, Mid-Ohio Valley farmers and gardeners! The dry weather continues here in the Valley. I hope we receive the rain which is in the forecast for the weekend. Water needs for our field crops, gardens and landscape plants are always a big topic during a dry spell. Backyard gardeners may look into selecting more drought-resistant plants for the home landscape. Drought-tolerant plants have built-in features to minimize water loss and maximize water uptake. Plants may have reduced leaf areas and bear small leaves or needles. Others have large leaves with deep indentations (sinuses) ...