Extension's Gardening Portal at NC State University provides access to a wealth of information, events and resources for gardeners in North Carolina. Managed by the State Urban Horticulture Specialist and Cooperative Extension Horticulture Agents throughout the state, it is your doorway to guidance about successfully growing vegetables, herbs, fruits, flowers and ornamentals in your landscape.
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Extension's Gardening Portal at NC State University provides access to a wealth of information, events and resources for gardeners in North Carolina. Managed by the State Urban Horticulture Specialist and Cooperative Extension Horticulture Agents throughout the state, it is your doorway to guidance about successfully growing vegetables, herbs, fruits, flowers and ornamentals in your landscape.
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Do you look forward to reading this column each week to learn something new about gardening? Do you want to learn even more about gardening, and use your knowledge to not only improve your own garden but to better the community? The Extension Master Gardener program is a training program offered by North Carolina Cooperative Extension that educates the participants on a variety of gardening topics including proper pruning, fertilizing, care of trees and shrubs, how and when to plant, growing fruits and vegetables, composting, plant identification, disease and insect control, and much more. Participants use this knowledge to become better gardeners, and also pass their knowledge and expertise along to others by participating in volunteer projects throughout the county. The next training session will begin on September 12th, 2013. The class will run for 11 weeks, meeting every Thursday from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM at the Halifax County Agricultural Center in Halifax. The class will include lecture, demonstration, video, guest speakers and field trips. Participants will receive a total of 40 hours of training and will be expected to contribute at least 40 hours of volunteer service for the Halifax County Cooperative Extension horticulture program through Master Gardener community service projects. Halifax County offers this training once each year and is currently accepting applicants for the upcoming class. Gardeners with all levels of experience and knowledge are welcome to apply for the class and will be accepted as space permits. The most important qualification for acceptance into the Master Gardener program is a love of gardening and the willingness to share what you have learned with others. The cost of the training is $100, which includes the cost of the Master Gardener training manual and other materials used for the class, as well as the cost of field trips taken by the class. For more information or an application for the Master Gardener class, please contact Matthew Stevens at 583-5161 or matt_stevens@ncsu.edu. The deadline for application will be September 3rd, 2013. Many Master Gardeners who have completed the class and the initial volunteer requirement choose to remain active volunteers and continue to contribute to volunteer projects and training of new Master Gardeners. These active members attend monthly meetings that consist of both a business meeting and an educational program, so the learning process of Master Gardeners continues well past the 40-hour training period. Ongoing Master Gardener projects include a youth educational programs with schools and youth groups across Halifax County, maintaining a memorial garden on the grounds of the Halifax County Agricultural Center, Arbor Day celebrations, contributions to the landscaping of the Sylvan Heights Waterfowl Center and Eco-Park in Scotland Neck, and much more. While we hope that all Master Gardeners will stay active in the program for many years, only the initial 40 hours of volunteer service are a requirement of the program. Matthew Stevens is the horticulture extension agent for Halifax County Cooperative Extension. If you have any questions about this article or other aspects of your home gardening, please contact Matthew at 583-5161 or matt_stevens@ncsu.edu.
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Plant sciences initiative could spark NC economic growth, study finds A new economic study, released Jan. 12, shows that North Carolina has an opportunity to be the global hub for advanced plant sciences research and for the application of that research to expanding agricultural productivity. One page summary of the Initiative View the Report
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NC food processing and manufacturing initiative feasiblity study released The agricultural resources, industrial capacity and research innovation assets present in North Carolina create opportunities to catalyze development of value-added food processing and manufacturing businesses, according to a joint NC State-NCDA&CS economic feasibity study released Jan. 12. One page summary of the Initiative View the Full Report
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Our partners at the State Climate Office of North Carolina provide the most accurate climate information to the citizens of our state. Their website includes recent news from their Twitter feed, featured products, quick links, and a map of data from their ECONet weather stations. You can also view data from more than 1,000 Southeastern weather stations on their full CRONOS map or follow their blog.
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I had several questions related to problems with maples last week. In the process I noticed damage from maple spider mite, hopper burn (potato leaf hopper), maple shoot borer, anthracnose, and canker diseases. MORE » – from 
Wilson County Center
Follow this link for our 2016 Summer Livestock MORE »
May 18, 2016 While visiting eastern NC nurseries last week an insect called the azalea leafminer, Caloptilia azaleella, was mentioned. The next day I receive an email from a county agent requesting a nursery MORE » – from Wilson County Center
in Halifax County, we have eight youth who have conquered that fear and become stellar examples of presenters and public speakers. The twenty-two counties in the Northeast District hold a competition every MORE »
The 4-H Horse Program offers LOTS of ways youth can become involved in 4-H with their horses or just have kids who love horses involved in 4-H as well. Below is a list MORE »
Every year, 4-Hers in Halifax County participate in the 4-H Livestock Program. 4-Hers learn to how to raise, show, and sell a market animal. They learn business and marketing skills, responsibility, and financial MORE »
4-H is devoted to developing leadership and workforce development skills in youth through innovative programming. We strongly encourage 4-Hers to start this process through public speaking and presentations. We know this can be MORE »
Halifax County 4-Hers Audrey and Aurora Myers have taken presentations to a whole new level! Please take a look at the link below to read about their awesome success and their experience MORE »
Agri-Pride Simulator
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