Agriculture and Natural Resources s3

Nov. 20, 2014

Agriculture and Natural Resources Marketing Christmas trees

Family and Consumer Sciences Get ready for winter

4-H Youth Development Help clean up your watershed

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Marketing Christmas trees

Source: Doug McLaren, extension forestry specialist

If you’ve been patient and waited the five to seven years it takes to grow and maintain

Christmas trees to get them ready for sale, you’re might be wondering how to best market them to customers.

Marketing real Christmas trees has some unique pros and cons. You’ll have a guaranteed annual market, and since fresh Christmas trees only have a two to four week life expectancy after cutting, customers must replace them every year. The appeal of having a fresh Christmas tree each year is enticing to many people, usually part of family and cultural traditions.

An obvious downside is the popularity of artificial trees, but they don’t have that fresh conifer smell. Emphasize the memory-making potential to your clients and talk about how good quality, locally grown trees will not readily drop needles and will retain their fragrance throughout the holiday season.

One of the most common ways to sell Kentucky Christmas trees, usually grown on small- scale plantations of 10 acres or fewer, is to offer clients the ability to choose and cut their own tree. This method is ideal if your tree stand is easily accessible by highways and you have the ability to use a tractor and wagon on your plantation. Steep slopes don’t usually work for this type of marketing, because the soil is often saturated with rain or covered in snow and ice between Thanksgiving and Christmas. As a grower, you’ll have to be committed to working with the public, be able to set appealing dates and times for your clients and have good liability insurance.

Some ways to get your name out there include providing a tree to the local mayor or county judge executive’s office for a holiday display; hire local labor from area high schools, design and print simple brochures with all the basics of your tree sale and use social media to get your message out. You can also join regional Christmas tree growers’ associations and advertise in their directories.

Try to offer special services to your clients such as baling the trees with plastic netting or using a shaking machine to remove dead needles from the tree. Some farms also offer a whole experience to their clients by providing hot coffee or cider, which can be a strong selling point on a cold day. If you’re even more ambitious, you could also offer wreaths, roping and other green conifer decorations, ornaments and specially baked goods for sale. Let your imagination guide you as to other services and products you can offer.

The most important aspect of marketing your Christmas trees is planning ahead. Know your options and use the media to your advantage.

For information on growing and selling Christmas trees, contact the (COUNTY NAME)

Cooperative Extension Service.

Educational programs of the Cooperative Extension Service serve all people regardless of race, color, age, sex, religion, disability or national origin.

Get ready for winter

Source: Connee Wheeler and Beverly Miller, UK senior extension associates

Winter snuck in early this year. You can take steps now to get yourself ready for the winter yet to come and any winter weather-related emergencies. Here are some tips:

 Have snow removal items such as shovels and ice melting products on hand.  Keep warm clothes and blankets handy.

 If you have a wood burning stove or fireplace, stock up on dry, seasoned wood to

use as an alternative heat source in the event of a power outage. Hire a

professional to clean and inspect your chimney every year.

 Monitor your propane tank throughout the winter to make sure you have enough

fuel. Schedule a refill with your dealer when the level hits 25 percent to assure you

don’t run out.

 Bring pets inside during winter weather.

 The University of Kentucky Ag Weather Center meteorologists issue wind chill

advisories for livestock owners when bitter cold weather is imminent. Make sure

livestock have shelter and fresh drinking water during that time. You can follow

these advisories on the UKAg Weather Center at http://weather.uky.edu/index.php.

 Seal leaks and insulate walls, attics and pipes to keep in heat.

 Install storm windows or cover the existing ones with plastic from the inside to keep

cold air out.

 Never use a generator, grill, camp stove or any other gasoline, propane, natural gas

or charcoal burning equipment in any enclosed or partially enclosed areas for

warmth or cooking. This includes homes, garages, basements and crawl spaces.

Burning these alternative fuel sources in these areas could result in carbon

monoxide poisoning, fire or electric shock.

 Install carbon monoxide alarms in your house. More information on weather preparedness is available at the (COUNTY NAME) office of the UK Cooperative Extension Service.

Educational programs of the Cooperative Extension Service serve all people regardless of race, color, sex, religion, disability or national origin.

Help clean up your watershed

Contact: Ashley Osborne, senior extension associate for the Environmental and Natural

Resource Issues Task Force

Water is one of our most important natural resources, and many people take it for granted.

Our actions on land can greatly impact aquatic life miles away. Knowing and understanding where your water comes from can help you take measures to provide a cleaner environment for all.

Kentucky has more miles of navigable water than all other states except Alaska and is divided into seven major watersheds. Watersheds are areas of land that drain into a single body of water. No matter where you are, you are always in a watershed. You can find the watershed you live in by entering your zip code on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Surf Your

Watershed website at http://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/locate/index.cfm.

We impact our water sources and watersheds every day by how we use the land. When precipitation occurs, water either soaks into the ground or runs off into adjoining bodies of water.

Sometimes on the way to a water source, runoff precipitation picks up and carries pollutants like oil, fertilizers, sediment and trash. These are examples of nonpoint source pollution. Nonpoint source pollution is not traceable to a single starting place and is the biggest water quality problem in the United States. Making small changes to your habits can reduce nonpoint source pollution and improve the quality of the streams, rivers, and lakes in your area. These changes include:

 Do not litter.

 Pick up after your pet and dispose of waste in the trash or toilet.

 Repair vehicle leaks.

 Use permeable surfaces like wood, brick or gravel for decks, patios and walkways.

These surfaces help prevent surface runoff and allow the water to filter through the

ground.

 Cover bare earth with straw or mulch to prevent erosion.

For more information on water quality and other 4-H environmental topics, contact the

(COUNTY NAME) Cooperative Extension Service.

Educational programs of the Cooperative Extension Service serve all people regardless of race, color, sex, religion, disability or national origin.