1st Annual Roots to Shoots Tree Program Registration

If you're having trouble registering try this more direct link: https://pinellas.obsres.com/botanical/Info.aspx?EventID=3001 Then scroll down to the class.

Or when you get to the on-line program registration page (from the main Extension page), select the "Commercial (pesticide/FNGLA/ISA) CEUs folder" (blue-colored). Scroll down to the class and select "register now"

Or, you can call 727-582-2100 #2 for help.

1st Annual Roots to Shoots Tree Program

1st Annual “Roots to Shoots” Tree Program

Friday, January 28, 2011
Pinellas County Extension Service
12520 Ulmerton Rd., Largo, FL 33774

Check-in opens 9 AM

9: 50 – 10 AM Welcome and Introductions

10 – 11 AM Safety Comes First
Jane Morse, UF/IFAS Extension Agent,
Pinellas County

11 – Noon Mature Tree Pruning
Theresa Badurek, UF/IFAS Extension Agent, Pinellas County

Noon – 1 PM Lunch – On your own

1 – 2 PM Assessing Trees After Storms
Bob Albanese, Extension Specialist,
Pinellas County

2 - 3 PM Restoring Trees After Storms
Andy Wilson, Sr. Extension Specialist,
Pinellas County

3 – 4 PM Tree Removal and Chain Saw Safety
Jane Morse, UF/IFAS Extension Agent,
Pinellas County

4 - ? CEU paperwork

Cost: $50 if pre-registered
$100 at the door if seats are available.

ISA CEUs Available; FDACS CEUs requested & pending

Pre-Register online at http://pinellascountyextension.org

Need help registering online?
Call 727-582-2100 #2

Protecting Plants From Freeze Damage

Protecting Plants From Freeze Damage
by Jane Morse, University of Florida/IFAS Pinellas County Extension Agent

The cold weather season is here and freezes are possible. Here are some things you can do to help your plants survive cold temperatures:

Proper plant selection and placement are the most important steps toward having a healthy landscape. Cold-sensitive plants should be placed in the warmest sites on your property. Usually a south-facing area protected by walls, fences or evergreen plantings will provide some plant protection. Plant in higher areas since cold air will settle in low areas. Also, poorly-drained sites result in weak, shallow-rooted plants which are more likely to suffer from cold damage. Best choice -- choose plants that will easily tolerate the temperatures you are likely to receive. We are in hardiness zone 9b, so choose plants suited to zone 9b.

Fertilize (if needed) at the right time. Plants in south central Florida can be fertilized up to 4 times per year. Apply 1.6 pounds of 6-0-6, or 1.2 pounds of 8-0-8, or 0.8 pounds of 12-0-8, or 0.6 pounds of 16-0-8 per 100 square feet (an example would be a 10’ x 10’ area for 100 sq. ft.). In the fall decrease the amount of fertilizer to half the standard rate because plants are not actively growing and use less water and plant nutrients. Always use slow-release fertilizers because they provide nutrients over a longer period of time and decrease the likelihood of nitrogen getting into our water supply. Fertilizers should only be applied when you are looking for a particular plant response such as growth, more blooms, or to correct a nutritional deficiency. If plants are looking healthy you can hold off on fertilizing.

Provide tree shade or cover. Plants in shady areas go dormant earlier and remain dormant later in the spring. Tree canopies also provide protection from “radiation” freezes. This type of freeze occurs on cold, clear, still nights because heat “radiates” from objects into the air. Providing a tree canopy over tender plants will help hold the heat they radiate and keep it from escaping into the night sky. Mulches help to protect the roots (always keep mulch at least an inch away from the trunk or stem of plants). Coverings such as cloth or plastic protect more from frost than from extreme cold. Covers need to be raised above the plant and go all the way to the ground. Plastic covers need to be removed on sunny days so the plants don’t burn. Cardboard boxes large enough to cover the entire plant work great. Use windbreaks. Fences, buildings, a row of hardy evergreen plants and temporary covers can protect plants from cold winds. The height, thickness and location of windbreaks will determine how much the wind speed is reduced.

Watering. Watering landscape plants before a freeze can help protect plants, but avoid having the soil saturated for a prolonged time.

Maintenance practices. Avoid pruning in the late summer or early fall. Healthy plants withstand cold better than sick plants. Choose plants wisely and put them in the right place for their needs. Some plants such as gardenia, azalea and ixora develop nutrient deficiencies when placed in an alkaline (high pH) soil, and soil fertilizers will not correct the problem no matter how much is applied. Our coastal soils tend to be alkaline. Remember that tropical plants and summer annuals cannot take temperatures below freezing and many are injured by temperatures below 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

For more information on caring for your Florida plants, call your local University of Florida/IFAS Extension Service in Pinellas County at (727-582-2100). The Lawn and Garden Help Desk phone line is available Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 9 AM to Noon, and 1 PM to 4 PM. Walk-in service is available M-F, from 8 AM to 5 PM. We are located at 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo, FL (just south of Animal Services and EMS).

FREE CEUs

If you are in Florida and need CEUs in the categories below, consider attending this FREE workshop. BUT you must register by 9 am Tuesday on the site's web site (see below).
CEU credits are awarded for the Southwest Florida Invasive Species Workshop on Wednesday, December 1 at FGCU!

Two (2) CEUs are offered in one of the following categories for either the Exotics 101-102 class or the Afternoon Presentation Series (attend one or the other):

* Private Applicator Ag
* Aquatic Pest Control
* Natural Areas Weed Management
* Right of Way

The Workshop is provided free of charge. Registration ends at 9am tomorrow morning (11/30/10). For full agenda and registration visit:
www.floridainvasives.org/Southwest
For questions about CEUs for this Workshop:
Roy Beckford, UF/IFAS Lee County Extension
239-533-7512 or fbeck@ufl.edu

Tree College Date Change

Our first annual Tree College for ISA & FNGLA CEUs will be on January 28 instead of January 21, 2011.

Please comment on the length of program you would prefer:

2, 4, 6 or 8 hours?

Morning or afternoon?

CEU Classes at Extension

Pinellas County Extension Service is located at 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo, FL

For information about classes, times, dates and to register use our on-line registration located here: https://pinellas.obsres.com/botanical/Info.aspx?EventID=3001 or Phone: 727-582-2100 press #2

Mark your calendar and register on-line, or register with our receptionist today! (Registration closes 24 hours before class)

CEU Update – October 27th
ROW/Natural Areas 10 AM - noon
Core 1 – 3 PM
Lawn, Turf, Ornamental & Pvt. Ag. categories 3 – 5 PM

CEU Update – November 3rd
Fumigation 8 – 10 AM
Core 10-Noon
GHP – 1 – 3 PM
Termites 3 - 5 PM

1st Annual Arbor Day Tree College – January 21, 2011
Topics and times to be determined. ISA CEUs.

Green Industry Best Management Practices (GI-BMPs) –
9AM to 4PM. 4 CEUs (2 Core, 2 lawn/turf/ornamental categories). Monthly classes. SPANISH-speaking class on September 16, 2010

Landscape Maintenance Workers BMPs
Offered every other month.

“Roundup” License training, or Lmt. Lawn & Orn. Review
8 AM to 4:30, testing follows class. Not for CEUs.
Offered every other month.

New Citrus Disease Discovered in Immokalee

Citrus black spot just dicovered. To learn more see this link: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/newsroom/content/2010/04/fla_citrus_disease.shtml

Public Hearings on Water Quality Standards

Pre-registration is now open for the public hearings on EPA’s proposed water quality standards for Florida's lakes and flowing waters. EPA strongly encourages you to pre-register for a hearing, as we expect a large number of participants. Everyone who attends will have the opportunity to speak, however those who have preregistered will be able to speak first. Preregistration will close on April 8, 2010.

To register for the hearings, please go to: http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/standards/rules/florida/information/ and click on "Preregister for a hearing".

If you or someone you know cannot register online, preregistration is available by phone at 202-431-2282.

April 13, 2010: Fort Myers
Harborside Event Center
1375 Monroe Street, Fort Myers, Fla. 33901
12 p.m. to 4 p.m.
6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

April 14, 2010: Tampa
Hilton Tampa Airport
2225 North Lois Avenue, Tampa, Fla. 33607
12 p.m. to 4 p.m.
6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

April 15, 2010: Jacksonville
Clarion Hotel Airport Conference Center
2101 Dixie Clipper Drive, Jacksonville, Fla. 32218
1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

If you need additional information about the proposed rule or on how to provide written comment, please see EPA’s Web site:
http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/standards/rules/florida/.

The Case of the Stinking Invader

By Andy Wilson, Extension Specialist

The client was concerned. “What is this thing?” she asked, presenting a tightly capped jar with an orange-colored mass inside at the Lawn and Garden Help Desk. She had observed this orange “thing” slowly emerge from an egg-shaped structure that protruded from the soil. And now this….well, sickening odor filled the air.

The orange “thing” was a columnar stinkhorn, one of several types of stinkhorns sometimes encountered in area landscapes. Stinkhorns are types of saprophytic fungi, that is, they feed on decaying organic matter, not living plants. Stinkhorns are appropriately named. They produce a foul odor that is so intense that one may begin trying to remember just how long it’s been since the quiet neighbor next door was last seen. The odor is convincing enough to trick flies into believing that the orange mass is a dead animal. When the flies land on the stinkhorn to feed, they inadvertently pick up the spores of the fungus in a sticky goo that ensures that the flies will carry some of the spores away and deposit them in another area, spreading the fungus.

What good could possibly be produced by something so vile smelling? Well, like other saprophytic fungi, stinkhorns help to break down organic matter so that the nutrients contained in it are released, allowing plants and other organisms to use them. Still, it’s difficult to see any benefit when you happen to have a stinkhorn appear in an inconvenient spot, such as near your front door or patio, greeting your guests with their distinctive odor.

What to do? There is little that can be done other than scooping out the offending stinkhorns and disposing of them in the garbage. Fungicides are generally not effective against them.

County Wants to Hear From You

How to cut $60 million from this year's Pinellas County Budget?

Public Budget Meetings (with your County Commissioners):

Thursday, March 11, 5:30 to 7:30 PM, Osceola High School, 9751 98th St. N., Seminole

Thursday, March 18, 5:30 to 7:30 PM, Gibbs High School, 850 34th Street S., St. Petersburg

eTownHall (with your County Commissioners):

Monday, March 15, 6:30 to 8 PM

Live onlilne meeting to answer your questions from the blog. Blog opens for questions at 9 AM Sunday, March 14. Go to http://www.pinellascounty.org/ and click on eTownHall. You can also watch on PCC-TV.

Best Management Practices - New Website

New website with BMP information...

You can see the list of those that are BMP certified - good way to promote your business and services (if you are on the list).

You can also request training records or certificates. Learn about criteria for becoming a certified instructor. View the state-wide training schedule (especially if you are looking for classes in Spanish).

Here is the site: http://fyn.ifas.ufl.edu/professionals/BMP_contacts.htm

IFAS CEU Day

Up to 6 CEUs offered: Ag. row crop; Ag tree crop; Aquatic, Forest, Natural Areas, O & T, Pri. Appl. Ag., Right-of-Way, Comm. L & O, LCLM and LLO. There are six separate classes. You can sign up for all six classes, or choose to take individual classes. Each class is good for 1 CEU in any of the above categories.

March 30th

For more information and to register follow this link: https://pinellas.obsres.com/botanical/Info.aspx?EventID=%203001

Round-up and Limited Lawn and Ornamental Training and Testing

For those needing a pesticide license in the Limited Commercial Landscape Maintenance (Roundup) category or the Limited Lawn and Ornamental category this training is for you.

This class is offered every other month. March 24th training available.

For more information and to register please follow this link: https://pinellas.obsres.com/botanical/Info.aspx?EventID=%203001

Natural Areas and Right-of-Way

CEUs offered: 4 FDACS in Natural Areas; Right-of-Way

Register on-line here: https://pinellas.obsres.com/botanical/Info.aspx?EventID=%203001

March 18th
Agenda:

8:20 – 8:30 Welcome and Introductions

8:30 – 9:20 Invasive Exotic Plants Common to Natural Areas and Rights of Way

9:20 – 10:10 Natural Areas and Rights of Way – Invasive Species, Geomorphological Processes and Differences between Wetland and Upland

10:20 – 11:20 New Worries – Invasive Species Coming to an Area Near You Soon

11:20 – 12:10 Pest Identification and Using Herbicides – A Review

Integrated Pest Management Update

CEUs offered for: ISA - 2.75; FNGLA 4; CCA 3.5; FDACS 4 in these categories: O & T, Priv. Appl. Ag., Comm L & O, LLO and LCLM.

Date: March 9th
Register on line here: https://pinellas.obsres.com/botanical/Info.aspx?EventID=%203001

Class agenda:
1:00 – 2:00 pm Vendor Presentations
2:00 - 2:30 pm James Price, Insecticide Modes of Action
2:30 - 2:45 Leo Sansoucy and Serena Stornaiuolo, Quarantines, Import/Export Update
2:45 – 3:00 pm Awinash Bhaktar, Texas Quarantines, Import/Export Update
3:15 – 3:45 pm Robert Stamps, Weed Control Update
3:45 – 4:30 pm Lance Osborne, Banker Plants, Chilli Thrips and Biocontrol
4:30 – 5 pm Kathy Oliver, Scouting in the Nursery

Bee College in St. Augustine

On March 12-13th, the UF Honey Bee Research and Extension lab will be offering the 3rd annual Bee College at UF Whitney Marine labs in St. Augustine, FL. The Bee College is Florida’s largest educational honey bee event.

We have over 20 speakers from around the country, several hands-on workshops, and of course our annual honey show. A complete schedule, speaker bios, general info, and honey show rules can be found at http://www.ufhoneybee.com/ (click Bee College on the left).

In addition, we will be offering a restricted use pesticide certification class, African bee training for First Responders and Pest Control Operators, and USDA-ID/FABIS African bee identification training, with anticipated CEU credits offered.
For a complete brochure, please see http://www.ufhoneybee.com/!

Mosquito Control Workshop

The Seventh Arbovirus Surveillance & Mosquito Control Workshop Sponsored by American Mosquito Control Association, USDA/CMAVE, and Florida Mosquito Control Association is scheduled for St. Augustine, Florida, on March 23-25, 2010. State, regional, national and international speakers will present the latest information on disease and vector control. CEUs are provided.

Link to the schedule and registration information are available on the UF/IFAS Pest Alert site.

The UF/IFAS Pest Alert WWW site is available at http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/pestalert/ .
Instructions for subscribing and unsubscribing to the UF/IFAS Pest Alert listserv are available on site.

Tree and Landscape Shortcourse

Are you interested in finding out...
Just what is Florida Friendly Landscaping and how does it apply to groundcovers?
Why is there a new law about Florida Friendly and Homeowners' Associations?
What's the deal with bleeding oaks?
Where does Roundup go after it's applied?
How should a spreader be calibrated?
How can irrigation efficiency be increased?
What's the deal with reclaimed water?
And much more!!

Online registration for the 2010 Tree and Landscape Short Course is OPEN!!! Check it out here http://2010tlsc.eventbrite.com/

Treating Cold-Damaged Palms

With the unusually cold weather and freezes in the area many palms can be damaged or even killed by these cold temperatures.

Some popular palms such as Adonidia merrillii (Christmas palm), Roystonia regina (royal palm), Ptychosperma elegans (Alexander palm), Hyophorbe lagenicaulis (bottle palm), Hyophorbe verschaffeltii (spindle palm), and Cocos nucifera (coconut palm) can be damaged and some even killed by cold temperatures.

Treating cold-damaged palms may be necessary to keep them from getting bud rot. To learn more see this UF/IFAS publication: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/mg318

Reduce Bahia Mowing Costs by 50%

Do you have large tracts of Bahia to mow? Learn how you can cut your mowing costs 25 to 50%.

The University of Florida/IFAS has a proven method for reducing Bahia mowing costs. This successful method has been used in Hillsborough County and throughout the Southeast. To learn more about how you can institute this program please attend a presentation by Dr. Jay Ferrell, Assistant Professor, Weed Science.

The date is February 17th from 9 AM to 11 AM. Location is the UF/IFAS Pinellas County Extension Service, 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo. This is a free class, but registration is required. You can register at this link: https://pinellas.obsres.com/botanical/Info.aspx?EventID= 3011

Please feel free to distribute this information to anyone you know who would be interested.

We are looking forward to seeing you.