March 2024 Outlook
Note from Jodie
Spring is in the air, not just in our wonderful state, but also all over our institute. Programs are ramping up, seeds are starting to sprout (literally and figuratively) and energy and new ideas are flowing.
Last week, agriculture and horticulture faculty member Casey Matney launched a statewide, online gardening series delivered remotely via Zoom. I hear his first talk was well received and hosted more than 200 people. Our Expanded Food and Nutrition impact statement was featured in a national USDA publication showing nutrition program successes.
This week, OneTree, and Cooperative Extension Service will be featured through 黑料黑历史鈥檚 Day of Giving campaign. I encourage you to learn more about , sign up to be a champion or donate to your favorite 黑料黑历史 program. We鈥檙e excited to help draw attention to OneTree Alaska this year with an updated website and as a participant in this important 黑料黑历史 initiative. If you are on social media, or on campus, I hope you can help us raise awareness of OneTree by sharing the fun facts and graphics that will be pushed out over the 49 hours. Did you know that every gallon of OneTree birch syrup makes 90 pounds of caramel? In 2023 OneTree turned 10 gallons of syrup into 900 pounds of caramel. That鈥檚 the equivalent of a grizzly bear-size caramel!
All of these amazing things happening in our unit are helping lift all of us up 鈥 as a team and as an Institute. I鈥檝e spent time the last few weeks meeting with faculty, and it鈥檚 been inspiring to hear people excited about new research opportunities (see Jakir鈥檚 big win below!), looking forward to programming ideas, and designing new ways to reach Alaskans.
Be well,
Jodie
Barley harvest shows promise for summer trials
Interior Alaska is still under its winter blanket of snow, but inside the Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station greenhouses on the University of Alaska Fairbanks Troth Yeddha鈥 campus, it鈥檚 harvest time.
Jakir Hasan, a research assistant professor for small grain crops breeding, gathered barley seeds from around the world 鈥 Canada, Russia, Egypt, Libya, Finland and France, among many others. He also included seeds from Sunshine barley, a hulless variety developed at AFES and released commercially in 2009. From these, he created about 5,000 new strains of barley, which he planted in the greenhouse in mid-December.
Iditarod an opportunity for reindeer-related outreach in Nome
The Bering Strait region Cooperative Extension outreach office offered 92 people who were in town for the finish of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, as well as locals, an opportunity to learn about circumpolar reindeer husbandry on March 11-12 in Nome.
The program was held in collaboration with the 黑料黑历史 Northwest Campus High Latitude Range Management Program.
Kaspari honored with conservation award
Phil Kaspari has been an integral part of the Delta Junction agricultural community for more than 30 years, both as a board member of the Salcha-Delta Soil and Water Conservation District and as a 黑料黑历史 Cooperative Extension Service agent.
During the 2024 Farm Forum in Delta Junction in March, Kaspari was honored for his service with the Hugh Hammond Bennett Conservation Award, which named Kaspari as the 2023 Conservation Planner of the Year for the Pacific Region.
Pete Fix invited to speak at national BLM symposium
In March, Pete Fix was invited to give presentations at the first-of-its-kind BLM National Recreation Training Symposium.
Fix was invited to give two training sessions on the research program he developed with the BLM and Hatch funding, and which many graduate and undergraduate students played a key role.
鈥淲hat was really cool about it was the director of the BLM gave the opening plenary talk,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 was asked by the symposium organizers to provide some bullet points summarizing key findings from my research program. Sometimes those things don't go anywhere... Not this time; the director actually used all the bullets I provided; it was pretty cool to see her being live-streamed from the Department of Interior headquarters in D.C. using the info I provided."
Food Bank thanks
The Fairbanks Community Food Bank posted this photo of AFES greenhouse research pro Eric Cook on its in March.
"Woohoo! They did it again! 106 pounds of fresh bell peppers marching into spring! Thank you to the gardeners at the 黑料黑历史 Agriculture & Forestry Experiment Station Greenhouse for this amazing donation!"
GBG receives award to support Alaska Harvest Collaborative program
The Georgeson Botanical Garden Friends was awarded funding from the U.S. Botanic Garden and American Public Gardens Association as part of the Urban Agriculture Resilience Program. This funding will bolster the Alaska Harvest Collaborative at the Georgeson Botanical Garden.
The AHC represents a coalition of Fairbanks-based organizations united by a vision of fostering food resilience in Alaska. Their shared objectives include enhancing access to nutritious food and expanding the community of local food cultivators. The AHC is a hub for experiential learning and serves as an educational site for collaborating organizations and their participants.
Come grow with us!
Georgeson Botanical Garden is hiring summer crew members. The GBG is a nationally recognized botanical garden with acres of herbs, ornamental trees, vegetables and just about every flower that can be grown within 100 miles of the Arctic Circle, including peonies!
The garden is a popular site for families and visitors in the summer.
Duties may include preparing seedbeds, planting, maintaining and harvesting research plots, as well as maintaining pathways and other garden duties.
We are also looking for an outgoing and motivated individual to join our team as a seasonal temporary program assistant for the Alaska Harvest Collaborative (AHC) program based at the Georgeson Botanical Garden. The ideal candidate will be passionate about community engagement, urban agriculture education, and program development.
Pay is dependent on experience. For more details, see the (for these and other related jobs)
Permafrost Grown team meets with hay producers
Members of the Permafrost Grown research project, which includes Glenna Gannon from
IANRE, Melissa Ward Jones (principal investigator) from the Institute of Northern
Engineering, and Toby Schowerer from the International Arctic Research Center conducted
two focus groups with Interior Alaska hay producers in February 2024.
The first was held in Delta Junction and included a catered lunch by the Delta High School Culinary Club. The second was held in Fairbanks at the 黑料黑历史 Troth Yeddha鈥 campus.
The focus groups were conducted to help the research team better understand hay operations
in Interior Alaska and how these are affected by environmental and economic changes.
The research team's goal is to continue to work with producers to build an economic
model that will allow the team to quantify climate, environmental (including permafrost
thaw) and market impacts on hay production in Interior Alaska.
SNAP-Ed team attends D.C. conference
The SNAP-Ed Team traveled to Washington, D.C., for the Association of SNAP Nutrition Education Administrators Conference. It was the first time bringing along nutrition educators.
Reina Hasting, principal investigator; Danielle Craven, Bethel nutrition educator; Dana Davis, program assistant; Alda Norris, evaluation specialist; Adair Harman, Mat-Su nutrition educator; and Patricia Kohart-Massey, Anchorage nutrition educator, attended.
It was a great opportunity to learn more about SNAP-Ed and meet folks from USDA Food and Nutrition Service SNAP-Ed, State of Alaska Family Nutrition ProgramSNAP-ED/CSFP and other SNAP-Ed implementing agencies across the country.
Job openings
Staff Benefited Positions:
Temporary & Student Positions:
Faculty Positions:
Upcoming classes and workshops
Statewide gardening webinars
Grow your gardening knowledge. University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service agent Casey Matney has begun teaching a series of gardening webinars to help you get your garden ready for the upcoming growing season.
The free classes will be held online via Zoom at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesdays. The next one is March 26 and they run through May 28. from March 19 to May 28. Topics include seed starting, soil testing, using raised beds, planting potatoes, hardening off and transplanting seedlings, and composting.
Click on each Zoom link to register for that class.
- March 26 鈥
- April 2 鈥
- April 9 鈥
- April 16 鈥
- April 23 鈥
- April 30 鈥
- May 7 鈥
- May 14 鈥
- May 21 鈥
- May 28 鈥
Can鈥檛 make the class when it鈥檚 live? Preregister and you will be sent a link to watch the video later. For more information, visit /ces/garden/webinars/index.php or contact Matney at camatney@alaska.edu or 907-262-3443.
Palmer-based workshops
Classes at Matanuska Experiment Farm and Extension Center, 1509 S Georgeson Drive, Palmer. Most are in-person. See details below. Call 907-745-3360 for more information and to register for the free classes.
- March 25, 6-7 p.m.: Soil sampling and fertilizers. Free.
- March 28, 12-1 p.m.: Grow a giant cabbage. Free.
- April 11, 1-5 p.m.: Canning meat and vegetables. $20. For more information, call 907-745-3360.
- April 16, 12-1 p.m. Backyard pollinators. Free. Class held via Zoom.
- April 24, 6-7 p.m.: Alaska Gardening. Free.
- April 25, 1-5 p.m.: Making Pickles & Sauerkraut. $20. Register:
- April 30, 6-7 p.m.: Backyard chickens. Free
- May 24, 6-7 p.m.: Lawn care. Free.
Canning meat and vegetables
In these in-person classes, instructor Julie Cascio will teach participants how to safely preserve meat, poultry, and vegetables in jars.
- Glennallen, Saturday, April 13, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at Prince William Sound College: Copper Basin CRSD District Office Building, 1976 Aurora Drive, Glennallen. The cost is $20. Register at .
- Soldotna, Friday, April 19, 3:30-7:30 p.m. at the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank, 33955 Community College Drive, Soldotna. The cost is $20. Register at .
- Homer, Saturday, April 20, noon-4 p.m. at The Classic Cook, 378 East Pioneer Ave., Homer. The cost is $25. Register at .
April CFPM training
Julie Cascio will teach a certified food protection manager training on Tuesday, April 23, with proctors for testing available in 16 communities. The class will be 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. via Zoom or in person at the Matanuska Experiment Farm and Extension Center. The computer-based certification exam is included. More information is .
April 23-24 PSEP training
Participating in this PSEP training will help prepare you to become a certified pesticide applicator in Alaska. The training will be offered over Zoom and includes all necessary study materials. .
Save the date
The 2024 Arctic Research Open House on 黑料黑历史's West Ridge will be from 4-7 p.m., Thursday, May 16.
In the News
- Marla Lowder's March 24 column in the News-Miner:
- Leslie Shallcross' March 10 column in the News-Miner:
(Note, if you don't subscribe to the News-Miner, you can read Extension columns on the )
Events
Check out the rolling calendar on the for the most up-to-date schedule of events.