High on the Desert Newsletter
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Newsletter Cochise County Master Gardener High on the Desert Vol. 25, No. 7 July 2014 The University of Arizona and U.S. Department of Agriculture Cooperating The Virtual Gardener—Watching Weather on the Web The monsoon in southern extends from as far west as the Arizona is one of the most Colorado River to as far east as exciting times for weather the Rio Grande. Phoenix and watchers. This month I want to Tucson are labelled and current tell you about a website that not temperatures are shown for only provides a wealth of useful reporting stations throughout and interesting information to the area. Superimposed on the keep you abreast of what’s map will be an animation of happening with the weather, Doppler radar returns. but can also provide you with the ability The radar returns are shown in shades to make short term naïve predictions of green, yellow, and red in order of Inside this issue: about what’s likely to happen at your increasing storm intensity. They usually July Reminders 2 location within the hour—sort of a represent reflections of a radar beam Cuttings “N’ Clippings 2 “heads-up” when violent weather from falling rain or snow but may also Book Review 3 approaches. be reflections off other things in the air, In a Desert Garden 4 This website, the KOLD Channel 13 including virga (rain that evaporates 4 Interactive Radar, provides a lot more before it hits the ground), dust, or even Ask a Master Gardener information than its name implies. It not clouds of flying insects. The green At a Glance Box 5 only provides current Doppler radar shades—especially the lightest shades of Desert Spoon 5 coverage for the entire United States as green—do not necessarily indicate rain Sonoran Desert Conference 6 well as Canada and Mexico, but can also that is hitting the ground. provide you with a snapshot of current A single click with the left mouse weather conditions for cities around the button on any of the temperature world. Let’s take a quick tour of the site readings pops up a callout box with the and see what it has to offer. name of the reporting station and the When you first bring up the site, you latest reported weather data for that are presented with a map of southern location. Depending upon the station, Arizona and northern Mexico that (Continued on Page 2) Cochise County Cooperative Extension www.ag.arizona.edu/cochise/mg/ 1140 N. Colombo, Sierra Vista, AZ 85635 450 S. Haskell, Willcox, AZ 85643 (520) 458-8278, Ext. 2141 (520) 384-3594 P AGE 2 (Continued from page 1) particular display is turned on, you data reported may include sky can see how to interpret the color conditions, wind, humidity, codes by clicking the “Legend” visibility, and barometric pressure button in the upper left corner of the in addition to the temperature. display. Keep the pests under control Buttons in the box allow you to Real time data on lightning strikes You can still plant something look at a five-day general weather is furnished from the World Wide Keep watering! forecast for the location as well as Lightning Location Network and graphs of hourly predicted provides another measure of storm temperatures and other weather intensity. I have not yet found parameters for the next 48 hours. another general weather reporting A standard navigation control website that shows lightning strikes, on the left side of the map allows so this may be a unique feature of Cuttings ‘N’ you to move the view east, west, this site. north, and south and a slider The storm attributes overlay places Clippings control allows you to zoom the icons on the map. By placing your CCMGA elected officers for map in or out. You can actually mouse cursor on the icon you can zoom in to street level to see see what kind of activity is occurring the new year at their June Annual Business Meeting. They are: what’s happening in your specific in a particular storm cell, the location. I have used this feature direction of movement of the cell, Pres. Jody Sharp-Webb V. Pres. Jan Groth to predict exactly when an and a scale indicating the speed of Sec. Olivia Sinks approaching storm will reach my movement. A related option is to location and how intense it will display “Storm Reports.” These Treas. Donna Blackburn CCMGA will not be meeting be. reports by people on the ground— As I have already mentioned, probably National Weather Service in July. The next meeting will be August 7—watch for details on there are many more features Storm Spotters—in the storm area the web site. available for display than Doppler give more detail on what’s happen- radar and general weather infor- ing. Saturday, July 12, Rainwa- mation. If you head over to the Other overlays can give you more ter Harvesting Open Houses. right edge of the map, you will see information about the general Has Sierra Vista been busy har- vesting water? You bet! Come a vertical menu with two items— weather situation. The “Clouds” “Layers” and “Map Type.” overlay shows infrared and visible “ooh and aah” over commercial Clicking on the item labelled satellite imagery. Other displays and residential rainwater systems during open house hours. Guaran- “Layers” will show fifteen show various warnings about displays that you can overlay on impending weather conditions, teed you will be impressed so much that you may just start col- your map, either individually or in hurricanes, and snow conditions combination. Combining several (including conditions at your favorite lecting too! Call for maps and de- of the overlays provides a great ski resort). Clicking on “Current” tails. Location: Sierra Vista (See flier on Page 6 of this newsletter.) view of the current weather will not only toggle the displays of situation. Combining “Rainfall”, temperatures on the map but even For information call (520) 458- 8278, Ext 2141, or contact Joyce “Lightning”, and “Storm Attrib- show weather reports from ships at utes” with the default Doppler sea! at: radar display gives you a very If weather-watching is your thing, [email protected] You can visit Water Wise at: comprehensive picture of a I recommend you bring up the current storm situation. KOLD Interactive Radar site and waterwise.arizona.edu The rainfall overlay can be spend some time exploring all the switched to show 1-hour or 24- things it has to offer. hour accumulations. The 1-hour Until next time, happy surfing! mode shows a color-coded display Cochise County Master Gary Gruenhagen, Master Gardener of total accumulations ranging Gardener Newsletter Editor [email protected] Carolyn Gruenhagen from a trace to 3 inches. When a P AGE 3 Book Review: The Dose Makes the Poison Ever since becoming a gardener it specifically exempted salt from toxic to rats, rabbits, or frog embry- about six years ago, I have been requiring a hazard label. os, will it be toxic to humans? Con- interested (perhaps even obsessed) Mercury, of all things, is not acute- versely, it is possible for a sub- with the “organic” versus “chemi- ly poisonous. A person can swallow stance to be toxic to humans, but cal” controversy. Is “organic” food straight mercury and it will just be not to some other species. For in- more nutritious? Are there “chemi- passed right through the digestive stance, wood alcohol (methanol) is cal” poisons on our food? If there tract with little or no adverse effect. very dangerous for humans to con- are enough residues left on our (I do not recommend this!) On the sume, yet not significantly toxic to produce to render them in some other hand, chronic exposure to mer- most other mammals. Humans can sense toxic, why do government cury is a serious health risk. Mercury take acetaminophen, but it is toxic regulatory agencies permit them? salts are both acutely and chronically to cats. Simply designing a proper Are “organic” pesticides safer than dangerous. test is far more difficult than one “chemical” ones? I’ve read enough Two common household items, might expect. In one example given now to understand that there are no aspirin and Vitamin D, are both in the book (involving the effects of simple or obvious answers to these deadly if consumed in excess. radiation) it was noted that, in order questions. Furthermore, most of Roughly 100 aspirin pills is a fatal to pinpoint the effect of a specified the content in popular magazines dose for humans, yet two or three dose of radiation exposure with a and on the Internet is questionable aspirin tablets pose no significant high degree of confidence (95%), at best and downright often incor- health risks and are quite useful in the necessary testing would have rect. controlling pain and “thinning” required eight billion (yes, with a So, the latest book I’ve read in blood. Vitamin D is essential for “b” again) mice. Factors like this my quest for truth, justice, and the health (400 IU (International Units, often result in setting dose and ex- American Way is The Dose Makes roughly 10 picograms, is the Recom- posure limits far below what would the Poison by Patricia Frank and mended Daily Allowance for adults), be a more realistic, but difficult to M. Alice Ottoboni. It is not a book yet a dose of 400,000 IU, or 10 evaluate, limit just to ensure safety. about agriculture; it is a book about nanograms, is potentially fatal. Fluo- Perhaps the book expresses its poisons, both natural and synthetic.