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| This Week's Titles: |
| Teaching
Students The Rewards Of Cultural Arts |
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Digital Equipment Now In
Honduras |
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| Improving
The Taste Of Tomatoes |
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| Helping
Urban Areas Address Greenspace Issues |
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| Helping
Central Georgia Vegetable Growers And Consumers |
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| Teaching
Students The Rewards Of Cultural Arts |
1:27 |
A Southeast Georgia county
is helping at-risk students learn about the rewards cultural
arts can provide. |
Many at risk and low income
children, and their families in Candler County have limited
access to community cultural arts. Several years ago, an After-School
Enrichment Program began to help at-risk students learn about
cultural arts, and discover their own abilities. Mary White,
a county extension agent in Candler County says cultural arts
is more than drawing pictures. "In this case cultural arts is
fine arts, music, dance, drama. It could be literature. It's
anything to improve the cultural awareness and the cultural
skills of a population." Mary White with the University of Georgia's
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, who adds
students did take part in a segment that involved drawing pictures.
Some pictures were drawn on canvases, and depicted a characteristic
of strong families. The artwork drawn on the canvases had such
excellent detail, they will be permanently displayed at the
Metter Middle/Intermediate School. John Harrell, University
of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences,
reporting from Tifton. |
Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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| Digital
Equipment Now In Honduras |
1:27 |
Modern digital technology is
now working in Central America to keep buggy problems out of
the United States. |
Since the late nineties,
local county extension agents have used digital equipment to
speed up the process of solving insect and disease problems.
Recently, scientists with the University of Georgia's College
of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences installed digital
diagnostic equipment in Honduras, to protect American farmers
and consumers. Jean Walter, a county extension agent in Jasper
County says the technology will help alert the proper authorities,
so potentially destructive insect pests won't have a chance
to find a home in the United States. "Rapid diagnosis and identification
of especially insects, mosquitoes and certain species of mosquitoes
for example or ticks that might come in, or fruit flies for
example that might come in with your fruits or anything else,
or even the livestock that's being imported.' Jean Walter with
the University of Georgia's College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences. The United States benefits from the digital diagnostic
technology in two ways. The nation is further protected from
plant diseases and insects entering its borders, and Americans
get fresher imported fruits and vegetables from Honduras. John
Harrell, University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences, reporting from Tifton. |
Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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| Improving
The Taste Of Tomatoes |
1:23 |
Those tomatoes you put on sandwiches
and sink your teeth into may soon taste better, thanks to college
research. |
Most research on tomato
quality has been to help producers. Increased crop yields, uniform
ripening and fruit size, and built in pest resistance has done
wonders to help farmers improve production. But little attention
was paid to flavor quality, and other consumer concerns. Scientists
with the University of Georgia's College of Agricultural and
Environmental Sciences recently conducted a study with two heirloom
tomato varieties, to learn what consumers liked and disliked
about these heirloom varieties. "The true potential here maybe
that if we can get some of the gene pool with this flavor and
breed them into lines that will ship better, there's some real
opportunities there. I think we have some opportunities to improve
the quality of supermarket fruit." That was Rob Shewfelt with
the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, who
adds heirloom tomato varieties would do well in specialty tomato
markets, and farmers markets. Results from the research combined
with the history of an heirloom tomato may help commercial tomato
growers produce tomatoes with improved flavor, that will please
consumers. John Harrell, University of Georgia College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences, reporting from Tifton. |
Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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| Helping
Urban Areas Address Greenspace |
1:33 |
College scientists are working
to help urban areas meet the challenges of decreasing trees
and greenspace. |
Urban and suburban counties
across Georgia are rapidly growing, causing several challenging
issues. These include urban sprawl, urban tree and water quality
management. Scientists with the University of Georgia's College
of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences recently developed
a training session, to help Master Gardeners and others learn
about urban tree management, and the latest techniques to locate
problems. This training is not restricted to the larger cities
in the state. "We even train some agents even in some of the
smaller metropolitan areas like Valdosta, and Douglas and Coffee
County and things like that because these issues still transcend
down to the smaller communities because they still have issues
on preserving greenspace with construction areas and things
like that." That was Sheldon Hammond with the College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences. Currently, fourteen counties have
used the training, or have scheduled training to address urban
forestry issues. Master Gardeners have conducted more than two-hundred
site visits, performed more than 650 hours of volunteer service,
and taught multiple classes and workshops across the state.
John Harrell, University of Georgia College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences, reporting from Tifton. |
Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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| Helping
Central Georgia Vegetable Growers And Consumers |
1:28 |
Consumers in a Central Georgia
county are sinking their teeth into home grown vegetables, and
putting more money in the pockets of commercial vegetable farmers. |
Small vegetable producers
in Hancock County have had a tough time reaping a profit from
their fields. Several years ago, a Community Supported Agriculture
Program was started in Hancock County, to prevent commercial
vegetable growers in the county from drowning in red ink. Farmers
bring their produce to a location in downtown Sparta, and sell
it to local consumers. Greg Glover, a county extension agent
in Hancock County says Sparta-Hancock Produce Cooperative the
program also helps consumers purchase healthier vegetables.
"One of the things that they commented on, the quality was better
and also the taste was better then a lot of the processed stuff,
and even from a health standpoint a lot of the consumers look
at the fact that a lot of these farmers employ a lot of the
organic practices so the inputs of pesticides are at a minimum."
Greg Glover with the University of Georgia's College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences. Around thirty-five growers took
part in the Community Supported Agriculture Program in Hancock
County in 2005, and the number is expected to increase up to
around seventy-five in 2006. The program also plans to expand
beyond summer, and include winter vegetables. John Harrell,
University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences, reporting from Tifton. |
Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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