July 2016

County Extension Agent for

Agriculture and Natural Resources

Table of Contents

Page 2—Cattle

Page 3— Cereal Aphid

Page 4– Borden Cattle

Page 5-- FFA State Convention

Page 6— Hackers & Farm Data

Page 7— Salmonella Outbreak

Page 8— County Fair—Dairy Show

Page 9— County Fair—Beef Show

Page 10– Farm To Food Banks

Page 11– SARE Grants

Page 12– Third Thursday—KSU

Page 13– Young Farmers Golf

Page 14–15 —Fragipan Research

Page 16 – Hemp Harvester

Page 17— Mosquito Protection

Page 18— GAP

Page 19— Ticks

Page 20-21– KACAA—Pikeville, KY

Page 22-23 –Heel Publication

Remember

All That It

Means

Cooperative Extension Service Bullitt County 384 Halls Lane Shepherdsville, KY 40165-6263 (502)543-2257 Fax: (502)543-6940 extension.ca.uky.edu

2

Cattle

Review Weekly

Kentucky Department of Agriculture

Grain and Marketing Reports.

Record average price for class and weight

important to your operation.

Spring Calving Herd

Breeding season is almost over

Continue pasture rotation and avoid high

endophyte fescue during this month for

best rebreeding performance.

Remove bulls from the cow herd by the

end of the month to eliminate summer-

born calves and help prevent young heifer

calves from becoming pregnant.

Mid-summer working opportunity (when

the herd is gathered to remove bulls)

Work cattle early in the morning to

avoid heat stress

Deworm cows and calves (mid-July is

optimum), especially if not dewormed

in spring

Reimplant steer calves

Vaccinate calves for clostridial diseases

(blackleg) even if not done previously

Spray for flies while cattle are gathered

(if not using other control methods)

Fall Calving Herd

Dry period

Fall-calving cows should be dry and

pregnant. Their nutrient needs are minimal

and they can be maintained on lower

quality pasture to avoid over fattening.

Keep a good free-choice mineral mix

available at all times.

Get ready for fall calving and plan to have

good pasture available for fall calving.

Replacement heifers should gain at an

adequate rate to reach their “target”

breeding weight (65% of mature size) by

Nov. 1.

Mid-summer working opportunity:

Deworm cows.

Considerations for all Cattle

Continue to watch for pinkeye and treat if

necessary. Minimize problems by clipping

pastures, controlling face flies and

providing shade.

Check pastures for downed wild cherry

trees after storms (wild cherry leaves can

be toxic to cattle).

Be sure that clean water is always

available, especially in hot weather.

Environment

Monitor ponds, streams, and riparian areas

throughout grazing season to access cattle

impact.

Ensure access to shade for very hot and

humid days. Consider installing portable

shades if natural shade is not available.

Ensure access to clean/cool water, limit

access to streams/ponds, and consider

portable or permanent water system.

Forages

Identify fescue pastures for accumulation

of fall growth (stockpiling).

Attend county, regional and state field

days for timely information.

Clip pastures as needed.

Assess need for weed control in alfalfa.

Soil test fields to be seeded in fall to

determine pasture fertilization needs.

Determine species and varieties to be

seeded in fall.

3

New Cereal Aphid (Sipha maydis)

Expands Range

By Raul Villanueava, Extension Entomologist

Recent information has called attention to

the geographic expansion of an invasive pest

affecting grasses and cereals. This new pest

is the old world aphid Sipha maydis

(Hemiptera: Aphididea). The first report on

Sipha maydis came from John Sorensen

(California Department of Food and

Agriculture), who confirmed the presence of

this aphid in nursery samples of giant wild

rice, in 2007. Later, this aphid was reported

on wheat in a greenhouse in Georgia, in

2012: and in fall of 2014. Dr. Tessa

Grasswitz found the aphids in Colorado

feeding on oats used as cover crop. In

February and March of 2015, S. maydis was

reported on annual grasses and wheatgrass

in Colorado, and later in wheat in Alabama.

The latest finding of S. maydis was on rye

cover crop and wheat in April 2016 in South

Carolina.

The species is reported throughout the

Mediterranean region, into Central and

South Asia, and South Africa. In addition, it

has been intercepted on several occasions on

imported plants in Florida and California, a

clear indication that increased international

trade contributes to the introduction of

invasive species. In the New World, this

aphid has caused great economic losses on

wheat in Argentina since 2002.

Although this aphid species is apparently

having a slow pace of geographical

dispersion, it is important to pay attention to

the possible colonization of new areas.

Extension agents, growers, consultants, and

researchers should become aware of the

presence of this insect, so preventive

measures to control this invasive species can

become more efficacious as soon as the

target insect is identified.

Sipha maydis is recognized easily by its

black color and completely sclerotized

(hardened) dorsal part (upper side or back),

and spinous body setae.

It feeds on a

range of

grass hosts,

including

wheat, oats,

barley,

johnsongrass, sorghum, and corn, and it is

recorded on more than 30 grasses or cereal

species.

Sipha maydis feeding causes damage to

leaves. It feeds on the upper surfaces of leaf

blades near the bases, and sometimes on

stems and inflorescences, where it may be

ant-attended. Heavily infested leaves may

become yellowed, rolled into tubes, and

desiccated. Sipha maydis is also a vector that

can transmit cucumovirus (cucumber

mosaic) and luteovirus (barley yellow

dwarf).

Sipha maydis colony

4

June 2

Dr. Beth Johnson working

cattle on the Borden Farm

5

June 9

State FFA

Convention

6

Are You Helping Hackers Steal Your

Valuable Farm Data?

Brad Haire

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and

USDA say farmers’ increased use of precision

agriculture technology puts farmers at greater

risk for cyber targeting by hackers who want

to steal farm-level data in bulk.

Earlier this year, the FBI issued a “Private

Industry Notification”, something the agency

does when information obtained during

investigations warrants a warning to potential

victims. In this case, criminal hackers could

aggregate stolen data or steal analyzed data to

exploit U.S. agriculture resources and market

trends, which is something farmers have

already expressed concern about.

A 2014 American Farm Bureau Federation

survey of 3,400 farmers found more than half

of the respondents intended to invest in

precision agriculture over the next two years.

Three-quarters of respondents were worried

unauthorized individuals could use their data

for commodity market speculation. Only 5

percent of respondents were aware whether or

not the companies holding their farm data had

a security breach response plan.

To hinder hackers from getting to farm-

level data, the FBI recommends farmers:

Inquire how data management companies

use and protect their data and to be mindful of

the cybersecurity features implemented in

precision agriculture technology.

Monitor employee logins that occur

outside of normal business hours.

Use two-factor authentication for

employee logins, especially remote logins.

Create a centralized Information

Technology e-mail account for employees to

report suspicious e-mails.

Provide regular training to remind and

inform employees about current social

engineering threats.

Monitor unusual traffic, especially over

non-standard ports.

Monitor outgoing data and be willing to

block unknown IP addresses.

Close unused ports.

Use a Virtual Private Network

(VPN) for remote login capability.

7

UK Poultry Specialists Urge Caution in

Midst of Salmonella Outbreak

June 8,2016 By Aimee Nelson

With at least 21 Kentuckians recently

contracting salmonella, University of

Kentucky poultry specialists are urging those

with small flocks to be proactive about

preventing the bacteria.

“The old quote ‘the best defense is a

strong offense’ really holds true when keeping

poultry,” said Jacqueline Jacob, UK poultry

extension project manager for the College of

Agriculture, Food and Environment. “Many

of the cases in the current outbreak are linked

to backyard flocks, so we want to remind

folks of simple things they can do to protect

themselves.”

Currently, the Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention is reporting seven separate

outbreaks in 35 states with more than 300

people infected. Jacob said it’s important to

remember any chicken can carry salmonella,

regardless of where poultry owners purchase

them. They can carry the bacteria even if they

look clean and healthy.

Poultry owners should always wash hands

thoroughly with soap and water immediately

after touching live birds or anything in the

area where they live. They should not bring

live poultry into the house or let young

children handle chicks, ducklings or other live

poultry without supervision. In the current

outbreaks, 88 of the ones infected are children

younger than 5 years of age.

“Any contact with live poultry puts you at

risk for salmonella infection,” Jacob said.

“Salmonella germs can be in the birds’

droppings and on their bodies and also on

their cages, coops, hay, plants and the soil

where they live and roam.”

Jacob said poultry handlers should keep the

birds away from their noses, mouth and eyes.

Shows and fairs with birds and chicks on

display should have a way for people to wash

their hands or provide sanitizer with 99

percent or higher bacteria kill rate.

“It’s also a good practice to be careful

when you wash equipment or eggs in the

kitchen sink,” she said. “You don’t want to

cross contaminate food. Always use a good

disinfectant to clean up in the kitchen when

you’re finished.”

For more information about the current

outbreak visit the CDC website at http://

www.cdc.gov/salmonella/live-poultry-05-16/

index.html. For more general information

about raising small poultry flocks, visit the

UK Poultry Extension

website at http://

www2.ca.uky.edu/

smallflocks/Health.html.

Poultry and Eggs are the #1 Agricultural

Commodity in Kentucky, #7 in the nation in

terms of broiler production (NASS 2014, with

308 million boilers)

1.2 Billion eggs were produced in Kentucky

(2014 USDA.gov)

The broiler- breeder industry in Kentucky

employees approximately 6,300 people across

the state and generate an additional 20,444

jobs in both the supply and ancillary

industries.

Egg producers contribute approximately

$214.7 million dollars to Kentucky’s

economy, while creating 1769 total jobs for

Kentuckians

8

June 14

BCHS FFA assisting at

the Bullitt County Fair

on Dairy Cattle night

9

June 16

BEHS FFA assisting at

the Bullitt County Fair

during Beef Cattle show

10

Farms to Food Banks Program

Receives State Funds, Seeks Recipients

Thanks in part to funding from the state,

Kentucky farmers will have an opportunity to

recover losses for their unmarketable produce

this growing season while helping their

neighbors in need.

Included in the 2016-2017 biennial budget,

signed into law in April by Governor Matt

Bevin, is $600,000 per year for the Farms to

Food Banks program.

Through the Farm to Food Banks program,

the Kentucky Association of Food Banks

reimburses farmers for the cost of picking,

packaging, and transporting their Number 2-

grade produce to the nearest major food bank.

“Number 2-grade produce is typically

rejected by retailers because of cosmetic

imperfections,” said Sarah Vaughn, KAFB

program assistant. “It is nutritious and

delicious food that might otherwise go to

waste because of a lack of market for it.”

The produce is distributed to low-income

Kentuckians across the state through the food

bank network. The association connects

farmers with either a regional food bank

distribution center or a local food pantry,

depending on the amount of produce available.

The need for food assistance remains high

in Kentucky: 1 in 6 Kentuckians is food

insecure, which means they lack consistent

access to enough nutritious food for an active,

healthy life, according to data from Feeding

America, the nation’s largest hunger-relief

organization.

“When we have excess vegetables, it’s

tough to see them turn into compost,” said

participating farmer Mary Courtney of Shelby

County, who was recently named the winner

of Monsanto’s 2016 America’s Farmers Mom

of the Year Contest. “Farms to Food Banks

provides an outlet for the ‘ugly’ vegetables —

the same ones that I take home to feed our

four children — that have no place in the

marketplace. This program not only helps fill a

void from a moral standpoint of watching

good food rot on the vine, but it decreases

income loss when a factor out of your hands

impacts your ability to sell.”

In 2015, the Farms to Food Banks program

benefited struggling families in all 120

Kentucky counties. Seven regional food banks

and 533 of their member agencies, such as

local soup kitchens and food pantries,

distributed enough produce to fill half a plate

full of fruits and vegetables for over 4 million

meals. The produce came from 302 Kentucky

farmers in 58 counties. Participating farmers

received an average payment of $1,570 to

cover the cost of picking, packing and

transporting produce to a food bank. Ten

Kentucky farmers received over $10,000 in

2015.

Kentucky taxpayers also supported the

Farms to Food Banks program through

donations made via their income tax return; in

2015 the amount donated was $30,255. Other

funders of the program include Farm Credit

Mid-America, Lift a Life Foundation, and the

Yum! Brands Foundation.

Participation is open to any Kentucky

farmer. For more information visit kafb.org/

farmstofoodbanks or call (859) 986-7422.

11

USDA SARE Grants Program:

Farmer Grant Opportunities and Resources

University of Kentucky

College of Agriculture, Food and Environment

LEXINGTON, Ky. - The USDA has a

program devoted to providing sustainable

practices for “all of agriculture.” It’s called the

SARE program – Sustainable Agriculture

Research and Education. This program, which

primarily funds a whole range of grants, is

administered on a regional basis. Kentucky is

in the Southern Region. All of the decisions

regarding grant approval are made at the

regional level by a committee of farmers,

university representatives, and organization

and government representatives. This

Administrative Council gets help from

technical experts in the region for evaluating

proposals.

SARE’s mission is to help U.S. agriculture

innovate in ways that improve sustainability.

That is, agriculture which satisfies human

food and fiber needs in sustainability’s three

dimensions – improving profitability,

protecting the environmental and enhancing

quality of life. SARE does this by investing

with grants in research and education.

Because SARE has been funding practical

research for more than 25 years, it has great

resources available. Check out the website:

www.sare.org and search on whatever topic

you need help with. For example, a search on

“cattle grazing” generates a list of 213

resources. One can get project reports and

even books. Some are at modest charges, but

almost all of them are available for free if you

want to use an electronic version.

If you want to learn about SARE grants, go

to the regional webpage –

www.southernsare.org. SARE’s total budget is

about $20 million, small by comparison to

other programs, but still effective. Southern

SARE provides larger grants for research and

professional education, but also smaller grants

targeted to farmers. Two of these programs are

the “Producer” and “On-Farm Research”

grants opportunities.

The Producer Grants are up to $10,000 for

an individual farmer, with $15,000 limit for a

group of farmers who want to do a research or

educational project on their farm which will

enhance sustainability. Many of the successful

proposals are projects designed to refine a

practice developed at a research farm or in

another area. The On-Farm Research Grants

are targeted toward partnerships of farmers

and professionals (like extension agents/

specialists and NRCS staff) who are doing

similar types of research. The On-Farm Grants

max out at $15,000. While the official call for

proposals will be issued in September with a

November deadline, you can start working on

your ideas and plans now. The SARE council

usually approves about 15-20% of these grant

proposals.

SARE also helps farmers with state

educational funds. There are two SARE

coordinators in Kentucky, Marion Simon at

Kentucky State University and Paul Vincelli at

the University of Kentucky. Brett Wolff is the

SARE program assistant and the best initial

contact. An advisory committee (if you are

interested in helping, contact Brett Wolff)

makes suggestions on how the training funds

will be used. Currently, the Professional

Development Program (PDP) funds are being

used for training related to cover crops, foods

safety, GMO education and organic practices.

This article was written by Lee Meyer, Brett

Wolff, and Paul Vincelli, agriculture economists at the

University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food

and Environment. The article first appeared in the

May 27 edition of

Economic and Policy

Update.

12

June 16

Third Thursday at Kentucky

State University

13

June 17

Young Farmers’

Golf Scramble

14

Researchers Believe Fragipan

Breakthrough is on Horizon By Kate Pratt

Soil scientists in the University of

Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and

Environment are getting promising results

from several treatments that appear to be

breaking down the fragipan, a cement-like

layer common in many soils in Western and

Central Kentucky.

Soil fragipans exist in 2.7 million acres in

Kentucky and in 50 million acres in the

United States. In Kentucky, the average depth

of the fragipan layer in the soil is about 20 to

24 inches. This results in a shallow soil that

limits crops’ yield potential due to low water-

holding capacity. This is especially true

during dry growing seasons or droughts.

These same soils are easily saturated with

water in the winter, which limits yields on

cool-season crops such as wheat.

Breaking down the fragipan would

increase the soil depth and should

significantly boost grain yields in the state,

similar to the boost farmers received from

implementing no-till production.

“Earlier work done by UK soil scientists

found that soil erosion caused a loss of 3 to 6

percent of yield potential for every inch of

lost topsoil,” said John Grove, UK soil

scientist. “Additional subsoil rooting depth

has a similar potential to increase yields, but it

will depend on seasonal rainfall.”

Four years into the research project, Grove

and fellow UK soil scientists Lloyd Murdock,

Tasios Karathanasis and Chris Matocha have

found that annual ryegrass and some chemical

combinations appear to break down the

fragipan.

“Annual ryegrass looks promising in the

lab and in the greenhouse at breaking down

the fragipan. It is beginning to show promise

in the field,” Murdock said.

The idea to try ryegrass came from

previous research conducted in southern

Illinois by a former University of Illinois

scientist.

“Mike Plumer thought he saw annual

ryegrass doing something to fragipan soils in

his cover crop research that would increase

yields,” Murdock said.

In the lab, Karathanasis submersed chunks

of fragipan in several different solutions, one

of which was a ryegrass extract.

“Within two to four weeks we began to see

the ryegrass extract break down the fragipan,”

he said. “Not only does ryegrass have a deep

root system that can penetrate the pan, but it

also releases a chemical or chemicals that can

help break it.”

UK soil scientists have planted annual

ryegrass as a cover crop in grain fields

followed by either corn or soybeans for the

past three growing seasons with the fourth

round now in the ground. The first year when

annual ryegrass was followed by corn, there

was no yield difference. The second year

when it was followed by soybeans, there was

a 25 percent yield increase in the soybeans.

The third year, the researchers followed the

ryegrass with soybeans again and there was a

slight, but not significant, yield increase.

Continued on next page …..

Top photo: Beginning of experiment. Bottom: Fragipan clods begin to

break after one month in contact with ryegrass solution.

15

…..continued from previous page

UK researchers traveled to Hamilton

County, Illinois, to take soil samples from a

field that had been planted in a ryegrass cover

crop since 2000 and followed every year with

no-till corn. Plumer had used a part of this

field in some of his earlier cover crop studies.

They found the fragipan layer to be much

deeper in the soil profile in the fields with

ryegrass. More encouraging news came when

the farmer told them about his yields.

“When the study started in 2000, the

farmer’s yields were 15 bushels an acre below

the county average. His fields are now

averaging 30 bushels more per acre than the

county average,” Murdock said. “We really do

not know how well this field represents our

situation in Kentucky, but this gives us

significant encouragement that we are

beginning to prove that annual ryegrass is

effective and will give significant results with

accumulative years of a ryegrass cover crop.”

As a result, UK researchers have

established field trials this year on cooperating

producers’ farms to document any changes

this practice will make on a farm basis. Since

it is expected that the effectiveness of the

remediation is related to the number of years

ryegrass is used, Kentucky farmers may want

to begin to try a ryegrass cover crop on some

or parts of their fragipan fields this fall.

“Ryegrass is our best shot based on what

we know right now, but it’s going to take

several years for farmers to get where they

want to be,” Murdock said.

Researchers have also found that the

chemicals potassium chloride, potassium

sulfate, sodium fluoride and sodium nitrate

may individually break down the fragipan, but

are having difficulty getting the chemicals

deep enough into the soil to be effective. The

team continues to search for other effective

and practical ways of remediating the

fragipan.

Their early findings have been published in

a paper in The Scientific World Journal, and it

is available online at http://www.hindawi.com/

journals/tswj/2014/276892/.

UK’s research project is funded by the

Kentucky Small Grain Growers Association,

Kentucky Soybean Board and the Kentucky

Corn Growers Association

16

UKAg Hemp Harvester

Design Shows Promise

By Aimee Nielson

Until 2014, Kentucky farmers hadn’t

grown industrial hemp in more than 50 years.

Since then, University of Kentucky College of

Agriculture, Food and Environment

researchers have taken on many projects with

the crop. With research for pharmaceutical use

of hemp components coming into focus,

farmers are realizing a real challenge—

harvesting the giant plants.

“The part of the plant the pharmaceutical

industry believes has the most potential is the

flower at the top,” said Tim Stombaugh, UK

extension agricultural engineer. “That flower

is the part where they can extract the most

cannabinoids. If the crop were shorter, we

could use traditional hay harvesting

equipment, but most varieties are currently

just way too tall for that at 10 to 12 feet.”

Most recently the process for growing and

harvesting hemp for cannabinoid extraction

has been through intensive management of

individual plants in a greenhouse

environment. The scientist grows the plant,

harvests the parts they want, hangs it upside to

dry and then individually processes each plant.

Stombaugh said they thought about trying to

harvest the flowers by hand, but with 30 acres,

it just wasn’t feasible.

In the summer of 2015, a participant in the

Kentucky hemp pilot program approached the

UK Department of Biosystems and

Agricultural Engineering and offered to fund a

project to design a harvester.

“They contacted us last July and asked if

we could have a prototype by Sept. 1,”

Stombaugh said. “It was a tight deadline, but

our engineers got busy, and we had it ready to

use.”

UKAg engineers borrowed from current

technology. They used the grain head from a

combine and selected several useable parts.

The new harvester can connect to any tractor

with a front-end loader with a standardized

connection. They used electricity to power the

harvester.

“Most implements use hydraulic power,

but that would have made it harder to move

from tractor to tractor,” Stombaugh said. “We

put a generator on the back of the tractor to

create power for the harvester. All of the

equipment can fit on the back of a gooseneck

trailer, so it’s very easy to move from one

machine to another.”

While farmers are still in the investigative

stages of hemp production, the harvester

shows potential to help cut down on labor and

reduce time in the field.

“If hemp is going to be a potential crop for

Kentucky, and we can do some things to help

farmers harvest it, it’s going to be valuable for

everyone down the road,” Stombaugh said.

“There’s still so much we are learning about

hemp, but we did the best we could, and it

worked. Helping farmers do their jobs in a

way that saves them money, labor and time is

always something we are interested in doing.”

The hemp harvester spent the winter on the

UK campus but will likely be out in the field

later in 2016. Tim Stombaugh, 859-218-4351

news.ca.uky.edu

17

Time for Kentuckians

to Take Mosquito Protection Measures

By Katie Pratt

University of Kentucky entomologists have

captured Asian tiger mosquitoes in the Central

Kentucky area during the past few days and

are encouraging Kentuckians to take measures

to prevent mosquito bites.

“The Asian tiger mosquito is the most

common mosquito in Kentucky. We are seeing

it earlier than normal this year,” said Grayson

Brown, entomologist with the UK College of

Agriculture, Food and Environment. “What’s

different this year is this mosquito is

implicated as a possible carrier for Zika.

Kentuckians who are concerned about Zika

should start taking precautions.”

The Asian tiger mosquito normally begins

to appear in Central Kentucky in mid-June and

populations begin to climb throughout the

summer, peaking in late July, early August.

The mosquitoes tend to arrive in Western

Kentucky a little earlier and appear in Eastern

Kentucky a little later than Central Kentucky.

The mosquito is the primary carrier of canine

heartworm.

“The Asian tiger mosquito is an

opportunistic feeder and will feed on other

things besides humans,” said Lee Townsend,

UK extension entomologist. “It tends to bite

humans around the ankles, an area that is often

overlooked when applying repellents.”

The Asian tiger mosquito was found to

transmit Zika in Mexico, but so far, no locally

acquired Zika cases have been reported in the

United States. Kentucky has six Zika cases,

and all have been individuals who acquired

Zika while traveling to other countries. The

Aedes aegypti, or the yellow fever mosquito,

is the mosquito that has been the known

carrier of Zika in most of the cases in South

America. Kentucky is on the northern edge of

the Aedes aegyti range, and they typically

appear much later in the summer.

Kentuckians can take the following

measures to minimize their chances of getting

bitten this summer:

Use Environmental Protection Agency-

registered insect repellents. When used as

directed, these repellents are proven safe

and effective for pregnant and

breastfeeding women.

Drain any standing water as it creates

potential mosquito breeding sites. This

includes bird baths, bottles and any other

items with water-holding capacity like old

tires or trash.

Fill in holes, depressions and puddles in

yards.

Keep gutters in proper working order.

Make sure door and window screens are in

good repair.

Stay indoors between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.

when mosquitoes are most active.

Wear long-sleeve shirts and pants when

outdoors.

Individuals wanting additional information

about mosquitoes in Kentucky should visit

UK’s Zika website at http://pest.ca.uky.edu/

EXT/ZIKA/1kyzika.html. Additional

information for women concerned about zika

during pregnancy is available at http://

www.cdc.gov/zika/pregnancy/protect-

yourself.html.

The most common mosquito in Kentucky, the Asian tiger mosquito Photo by: Matt Barton, UK Agricultural Communications

18

Good Agricultural Practices (GAP)

In recent years, several types of fresh

produce have been implicated in illnesses.

Ultimately some of these outbreaks were

caused by cross contamination and are the

result of how the produce was handled by the

end user. Troubling however for the farming

community is the fact that some of the

outbreaks have been traced back to the farm

where the produce commodity was grown. In

light of this, consumers are looking more

critically at their food source and wanting

reassurance that they are being provided with

safe fresh fruit and vegetables.

There have been no food illness outbreaks

traced back to Kentucky grown produce and

the Kentucky Department of Agriculture, and

producers alike, want to continue this trend.

Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) is a set of

production guidelines designed to reduce the

likelihood of microbial or other contamination

of fresh fruits and vegetables. It focuses on

utilizing safe techniques and inputs on all

levels of the farm to fork food chain. When a

farmer utilizes GAP principles in their

production it means they are proactively

taking steps to reduce the possibility of

producing unsafe produce and meat products.

The Partners: The Kentucky

Department of Agriculture, University of

Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service, and

the Kentucky Department for Public Health

have joined together to ensure that Kentucky

producers have the tools and information they

need to reduce the risk of contamination from

troubling pathogens.

Kentucky's Program: The fir st par t of

Kentucky's GAP Training Program is

education. A curriculum has been developed

that has been given to county Cooperative

Extension Agents to present to local

producers. During this class, producers learn

the best practices that will reduce the risk of

their product becoming contaminated. Upon

completion of this class, the farmer receives a

certificate issued by the KDA, a GAP Training

Certificate. The certificate is a component of

the requirements to allow raw product samples

at Kentucky Farmers' Markets and Kentucky

Farm Bureau Certified Roadside Markets.

The second step is the completion of a self-

audit utilizing workbooks received during the

GAP training class. This process allows the

producer to go over his or her operation step-

by-step to identify possible deficiencies in

their production practices and make the

necessary adjustments to ensure GAP

guidelines are being followed. Using the self-

audit materials allows for a record of the steps

taken which better allows the farmer to

address future concerns.

GAP Certification and Third Party

Audits: A third level to GAP is Third-Party

Audit Certification. Much like the process of

organic certification, an inspector visits a farm

and walks through the production, harvest and

transport system with the producer and

verifies that GAP is being used. This level is

usually only required for producers selling to

large buyers. For producers choosing to seek

this certification, the Kentucky Department of

Agriculture has resources to assist you. A

Kentucky Horticulture Council Third Party

GAP Audit Cost-Share Grant is available for

2016. The Kentucky Horticulture Council

Cost-Share grants are funded through

Kentucky Agriculture Development Funds.

19

Tick Season Runs from mid-March

Through August in Kentucky By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News

Ticks hang out in tall grass, woods, low-

hanging tree limbs and weeds just waiting to

attach themselves to you or your pets.

The most prevalent tick-borne disease in

Kentucky is and has been for a long time

Rocky Mountain spotted fever,” or RMSF,

Grayson Brown, director of the University of

Kentucky Public Health Entomology

Laboratory, told Kentucky Health News. “We

get somewhere between 10 and 30 cases of

that a year.”

RMSF is transmitted by the American dog

tick, which is about the size of a pencil eraser.

It is the second most common tick in the state,

according to Kentucky Pest News. The greatest

risk of getting RMSF in Kentucky is in the

western part of the state, near the Land

Between the Lakes, said Brown.

Kentucky’s most common tick is an

aggressive biter called the lone star tick, which

is also about the size of a pencil eraser. The

saliva from this tick can produces painful,

itchy areas that can become infected from

scratching. It can transmit Erlichiosis, a Lyme-

like disease that can cause fever, headache,

chills, muscle pain and in some cases a rash.

These symptoms usually show up one to two

weeks after being bitten by an infected tick. It

can also transmit RMSF.

And though it is not very common,

Kentucky is also home to the blacklegged tick,

which is known to transmit Lyme disease. This

tick is much smaller than the other two more

common ones. “The number of Lyme disease

cases is increasing quite rapidly, with 13 or so

last year that were reported,” Brown said. “The

blacklegged tick is found most commonly

around rivers.”

The best way to avoid being bitten by

ticks is to use “common sense precautions,”

Brown said. Here are some tips:

Keep grass and shrubs trimmed, and clear

away any overgrown vegetation.

Don’t walk through uncut fields, brush and

overgrown areas.

Walk in the center of hiking trails.

Wear light-colored clothing, which make it

easier to spot ticks.

Wear long pants tucked into boots or socks

and tuck your shirt into your pants.

Place a band of duct tape, sticky side out,

around your lower legs to trap ticks.

Use tick repellent that has DEET or

picaridin in it or use permethrin-based

clothing sprays.

Do a body and clothing check at the end of

each day.

Take a warm soapy shower after potential

exposure.

Check your pets.

It is also important to promptly and

properly remove ticks by grasping them as

close to the skin as possible with tweezers and

then pulling straight out with gentle, even

pressure. Once removed, wash the bite area,

apply antiseptic and cover with a Band-Aid.

Brown said May is the month when you

are most likely to encounter “pathogen-bearing

ticks,” but you can still get infected at other

times. Tick season generally runs through

August.

20

June 28—30

KACAA

Pikeville, KY

21

June 28—30

KACAA

Pikeville, KY

22

23

24

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