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| This Week's Titles: |
| Mean
Looking Wasps Don't Want To Sting Humans |
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To Save Money, Find Out
Where That Money Goes |
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| Growing
Another Summer Garden In Georgia |
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| Preserving
Food At Home Not For Everyone |
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| Hammering
Away At Black Carpenter Ants |
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| Mean
Looking Wasps Don't Want To Sting Humans |
1:38 |
Some large, mean looking wasps
flying low to the ground are not looking for humans to attack. |
Many people have reported
seeing large wasps around two-and-a-half inches long hovering
in lawns or flowerbeds. When these wasps are sighted, they think
their home and family will soon get bombed by these large wasps.
But an entomologists with the University of Georgia's College
of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences says the wasps called
cicada killers are not the least bit interested in stinging
humans. They are on the lookout for only one thing, and that
is cicadas, which is where they get their identity. He adds
humans will have to be extremely aggressive to cicada killers
to get stung. "Definitely, the females, if you somehow provoked
them badly enough they would sting. If you grabbed one in your
hand for instance, or if you tried to block her way to get back
to her burrow with a cicada that she had caught. But that's
pretty much what it's going to take, just walking past them,
even trying to hit them won't provoke them into stinging you."
That was Will Hudson with the College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences. Summer is the cicada season, the time the insects
start to hatch. So the large wasps go a hunting, looking for
food to put on the dinner table. Even though these large wasps
look mean and vicious, they are really part of Georgia's wildlife,
and only a threat to cicadas. 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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| To Save
Money, Find Out Where That Money Goes |
1:31 |
Many people need to put their
checkbook under a magnifying glass, so they will know where
their money goes. |
Food and fuel prices have
soared this year. But many people notice hardly any changes
when they get their paychecks. Michael Rupured, a financial
management specialist with the University of Georgia's College
of Family and Consumer Sciences says Georgian's can increase
the amount of money they have to spend each month by twenty
percent. But it will take some work, and they will have to pay
close attention to the way that money is spent. "You can keep
track of all your spending and at the end of a month or so you
can evaluate your spending and make some decisions then, and
another way that I've heard about more recently, just pretend
that your income has been cut in half and see where you would
cut back and what you could do and to do that for a month and
then the benefit of that is at the end of the month you have
potentially half of your income that you have saved." Michael
Rupured with the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, who
adds it is important to decide immediately what will be done
with the money your family saves by reducing spending. Family
members will be more committed to the challenge if they know
what the reward will be and how the savings will be used. Make
sure some of the money is set aside for family emergencies or
family goals. 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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| Growing
Another Summer Garden In Georgia |
1:45 |
If you are enjoying filling
your pate with vegetables from your summer garden, there's time
for more. |
As the summer heats up,
home gardeners reap good, fresh vegetables from their spring
and summer garden. Most gardens, especially in South Georgia
are peaking out with their vegetable production. But a horticulturist
with the University of Georgia's College of Agricultural and
Environmental Sciences says if you love sinking your teeth into
snap beans, peppers, sweet corn, and southern peas, go for two.
He adds Georgia's climate provides plenty of warm weather that
allows home gardeners to grow two summer gardens. "We've got
a long growing season. For instance in the middle of the Coastal
Plain area we go from last spring frost of about March 15-20
to the first fall frost of about November 20." That was Terry
Kelley with hte College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences,
who adds gardeners in North Georgia should start thinking about
cool season crops like cabbage, turnips, and cale, since their
growing season is shorter. It's also important to keep a second
summer garden watered, to reduce heat and drought stress caused
by the late summer sun. 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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| Preserving
Food At Home Not For Everyone |
1:34 |
Canning and preserving food
at home may not be a good choice for everyone. |
Many people are trying to
beat high food prices by growing and preserving food at home.
But a food safety specialist with the University of Georgia's
College of Family and Consumer Sciences says food preservation
may reduce food budgets for some, but not everyone. She adds
home canning equipment can be quite expensive, especially for
those starting out for the first time. "If you're just starting
to preserve food, you could have to put out a bit of money to
buy the equipment that's needed, for example if you're buying
canners and jars and lids for canning, or if you are thinking
of investing in a food dehydrator, or perhaps even a special
freezer just to store your frozen foods." That was Elizabeth
Andress with the College of Family and Consumer Sciences. Canning
can be a less expensive way of storing food than freezing, but
more time and energy must be spent to prepare and process the
foods. Canning some foods can be difficult for beginners, and
it requires preserving foods by using methods that keep the
food safe when stored at room temperatures. There are different
preservation methods for many foods. Consumers should choose
one that works best for their family, and produces the form
of food they like. 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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| Hammering
Away At Black Carpenter Ants |
1:31 |
College scientists are hammering
away at an ant that causes a lot of problems in homes. |
Most people assume the number
one ant pest is the painful fire ant. But scientists with the
University of Georgia's College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences say black carpenter ants are the most costly. They
cost homeowners millions of dollars nationwide. They live in
trees, but they will move inside a home and other structures,
and cause a lot of problems. "They don't cause the type of damage
that termites do but they can still be a structural pest and
they're also a nuisance, they're a big, big black ant that's
nocturnal in it's behavior, it comes out mostly at nighttime,
very active during the summer. So it can be a major nuisance
when you have this big black ant crawling across your kitchen
floor, you want to do something to get rid of them." That was
Dan Suiter with the College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences. Since black carpenter ants love the nightlife, a lot
of the research has to be conducted in the dark. Several gel
bait products are currently on the market that do a good job
controlling these ants. Studies are also being conducted on
genetic techniques to monitor ant population structures. The
knowledge of colony structure will lead to better management
strategies, and more understanding of these expensive pests.
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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