Managing Tough Times

I confess. I live in an old house and my windows leak. Replacing them with new energy efficient windows isn’t an option right now. But I know I need to do something to keep my heating dollars from heading “out the window” this winter.

So I’ve picked up a copy of Home Tightening, Insulation and Ventilation. It’s part of the Iowa Energy Center’s Home Series. (You can order a free hard copy from ISU Extension’s Online Store or download a pdf file from the Iowa Energy Center). It has information on sealing air leaks around windows as well as door frames and ductwork, filling cracks and holes in basements and attics, and other things you can do to save energy and money heating your home this winter. It includes lots of tips that aren’t that hard to do and don’t cost that much. And that’s good, because I can be lazy  — and cheap.

Get yourself a copy of Home Tightening, Insulation and Ventilation. And while you’re at it, also check out Home Heating and Cooling, Water Heating and Major Home Appliances.

- Laura Sternweis, ISU Extension communications specialist

Tips, Uncategorized energy, energy efficiency, housing, saving money, Tips

The Extension Dairy Team is holding meetings around the state this month to help dairy producers understand some of the financial and legal options they have as they face incredibly difficult economic times.  A full schedule of the meetings are found at http://www.extension.iastate.edu/allamakee/news/dairy+financial.htm. 

A Kansas writer attended the meeting in Nashua Tuesday night and wrote the following editorial http://www.dairyherd.com/news_editorial.asp?pgid=675&ed_id=9173&ts=nl2, selecting to focus on Donna Andrusyk’s portion of the meeting. Her advise is worth repeating. It talks to all families, not just dairy producers. Read it. We all know people dealing with employment issues or in financial crisis. Her points are worth remembering.

Willy Klein, Extension Communications and External Relations

families, farming

Rolling hills of corn, soybean and grass growing freely blowing and bending to the winds of change is contrasted with tall buildings and shiny metallic windows overlooking gray concrete streets filled with people frantically trying to make that change happen. Like the differences in the physical landscape so is the way urban and rural communities deal with the economic landscape in tough times.

Even though suicide occurs for both farmers and non-farmers, the reasons differ widely. Many farmers feel ruin all the way back to past generations and forward to the future ones.

“To farmers there is a real kinship with the land and livestock.” Quoted in a recent article, Dr. Mike Rosmann, executive director of AgriWellness, explained. “Ownership of a family farm — sometimes a farm that has been in the family for generations — is the triumphant result of a multitude of struggles. Losing the farm or the livestock is viewed as an ultimate loss, one that brings shame to the generation that has let down its forebearers and has dashed the hopes of successors.” Read the full article.

Suicide is not the solution
As a farmer your nearest neighbor may be miles away. You can often feel as if your problems are isolated ones. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Hard times are not a new concept to us and our nation has faced economic struggles in the past. One of the strengths we have as a people is resiliency. We have been able to bounce back time and again as long as we realize we can’t do it alone—that we’re not alone.

If you’re the one having thoughts about suicide, please seek help. A family member or close friend is a great place to start. There are also professional resources available:

Extension Hotlines
Agriwellness Helplines

Intervention can help save lives
As that family member or close friend to someone dealing with stressful times, please be aware of the signs. According to our Take Charge in Changing Times publication the following are signs of a potential problem:

• An abrupt change in personality
• Obsession with death
• Talk about suicide
• Mood swings
• A suicide plan
• Self destructive behavior
• Feelings of hopelessness and helplessness
• Alcohol or drug abuse
• A previous suicide attempt

Tips, Uncategorized, families, farming farmers, help, helplines, hotlines, ISU Extension, suicide

Did you plant a garden this summer to save money on fruits and vegetables at the grocery store? And did you maybe get a little carried away planting rows and rows of carrots and green beans and peas and peppers and those six tomato plants? As you anticipate a more-than-you-can-eat bumper crop, what are you going to do with it all?

All I know about food preservation — canning and freezing — is that you better do it safely or you’ll be having a date with food poisoning when you try to eat the stuff!

That’s where ISU Extension’s Answer Line can help. Answer Line’s professional family and consumer scientists have years of experience answering consumers’ home and family questions.

Call Answer Line toll-free Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. - noon and 1 - 4 p.m.: (800) 262-3804 in Iowa, (800) 854-1678 in Minnesota. Or use the online database to find answers to questions about canning methods and the best ways to freeze everything from asparagus to zucchini.

– Laura Sternweis, ISU Extension communications specialist

Tips, families canning, food safety, freezing, fruits, gardening, vegetables

Surprising what you learn while researching a news article. Writing about the Federal tax credit for home energy efficiencies led me to the Energy Star Web site and tons of good information.

I found out that as much as half the energy I use in my home goes to heating and cooling. And there are some pretty simple things I can do to cut energy expenses.

Things like changing my air filter regularly. I thought I already knew that, and I thought once a year was regular – Nope. It should be checked every month during heavy use months and when it looks dirty – it needs to be changed. We already have a programmable thermostat, but after reading the proper use guidelines, I’m going home and check out our settings!

Interested in knowing more? How about conducting your own home energy audit, or why there’s so much dust in your house? There is even a do-it-yourself guide to sealing air leaks and adding attic insulation!

And all this information that will help you save money is FREE.

–Willy Klein, Extension Communications

families efficiency, energy, tax credit

There’s been a lot of talk about the tax credit for first-time homebuyers that is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act – also known as the economic stimulus package. The tax credit is worth talking about, because it could mean up to $8,000 in your pocket if you buy a house before Dec. 1, 2009.

But who qualifies as a first-time homebuyer? Well first, someone who hasn’t owned a home before. However, you also may qualify if you used to own a home but haven’t owned one for the past three years.

See the IRS Web site for detailed descriptions of situations in which people are — and are not — considered to be first-time homebuyers. The IRS also has posted answers to quite a few questions about different aspects of the tax credit.

But whether or not you’re a first-time homebuyer for tax credit purposes, you are eligible for “A Place of Your Own,” ISU Extension’s online homebuyers course. The course will help you prepare for becoming a homeowner and learn about looking for a home that fits your needs and budget. (If you’re a new borrower, your lender may require you to complete a homebuyer education course before you can get a home loan.)

- Laura Sternweis, ISU Extension communications specialist

Tips, families buying a home, first-time homebuyers, homebuyers, tax credit

My niece didn’t think so. At age 23 and two years after graduating from ISU, she successfully purchased a home in March. Despite her young age, she was well prepared to buy her first home.

• She had a good employment record. Lenders look favorably on people who hold a steady job with steady income.
• She was a good saver. Starting with her first paycheck out of college, she conscientiously set aside 10-15 percent of her earnings to put in savings.
• She bargained for a good price. When she started looking a year ago, only a few homes were in her price range. But prices have declined considerably in most communities. With many homes now on the market, she found a seller who was willing to reduce the asking price.
• She found a low-interest loan. Not all lenders offer the same rates. She found it was well-worthwhile to shop around for the best interest rates.
• She took advantage of tax-credits for first-time homebuyers. She is using the tax credit on her federal income tax return to pay for home improvements that will make her home more energy-efficient—thus saving money in the long-run.

If you’d like more information about buying a home, enroll in ISU’s online course, “A Place of Your Own”. Those who successfully complete the five lessons and pass the online quiz will receive a Certificate of Completion. Be aware that some lenders now require new borrowers to complete a homebuyer education course before they are eligible to receive a loan.

-contributed by Mary Yearns, professor in Human Development and Family Studies

Tips, families buying a home, first-time homebuyers, homebuyers, young

No matter where you live in Iowa, the average last frost date has passed and that means it’s high time to get your warm season vegetable crops in the ground.  Lima beans, pole beans, okra, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, squash, and melons can get started in your garden with very low risk of damage from frost.

Seeding and Spacing

Maximizing production from a small garden space will require you to use space efficiently.  If you are starting plants from seed, like most beans, squash, and melons, plant nearly double the number of seeds than plants with which you would like to end up.  It’s easier to thin seedlings to the appropriate spacing than to try to fill in empty spaces later.  Vining crops like pole beans, winter squash, and watermelons are particularly space intensive.  Consider growing them up simple support structures like strings, nets, or trellises so they are occupying vertical space rather than crowding and shading the other plants in your garden.

Transplants and Hardening Off

If you are starting plants from transplants, like most tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant, be sure to allow the transplants to acclimate to the outdoors slowly.  A week or so before you intend to put them in the garden, put your transplants outdoors in an area protected from the elements; then gradually expose them to greater and greater periods of sun while watering with less and less frequency.  This process is known as hardening off, and will give your transplants a better chance of survival once they go into the garden.

Mulch to Reduce Weeding

Finally, with all that space between these warm season vegetables, there may be a substantial amount of bare soil where weeds can invade until the vegetable plants form a canopy.  Try to reduce the weeding required by putting mulch down between the vegetable plants.  Mulch will help even out soil temperature and moisture during periods of extreme heat and/or drought.  A thick layer of organic material like straw, newspaper, or wood chips will make very effective mulch, and can often be obtained at little or no cost.

Andy Larson, ISU Extension - Small Farm Sustainability

Need help with plant spacing?
 “Planting a home vegetable garden”

Want to make the most of a small garden?
“Small plot vegetable gardening”

Can’t decide which varieties to plant?
“Suggested vegetable varieties for the home garden”

Tips, farming gardening

Do your teenagers need something to do this summer that’s fun, educational and cheap? Then send them to the Iowa 4-H Youth Conference, June 30 to July 2 at Iowa State University. (The theme is “Voyage to Greatness.”) If you register by May 30, it only costs $125. After May 30, the registration goes up to $145.

But that’s still not bad for three days of workshops, a picnic, two dances and a formal banquet, all while trying out campus life at Iowa State. Campus academic departments lead most of the workshops, so teens can explore different majors and studies for their future. They’ll also participate in community service projects in Ames and the surrounding area.

And they’ll do all that while meeting students from throughout the state – about 1,000 teens, all told.

Iowa teens who have completed eighth through 12th grades are eligible to attend. Contact your ISU Extension county office or go to the conference Web site for registration information.

- Laura Sternweis, ISU Extension communications specialist

Tips, Uncategorized, families summer fun, teens, workshops

“This year, it seems like everybody wants to plant a vegetable garden. It’s fun, it’s rewarding, and it might even save you some money on your grocery bill if you do it right. Read a previous post on this.

However, it does require two things to which not everyone has easy access: 1) gardening expertise and 2) a little bit of land. Let’s address the latter concern first. Anyone who lives in an apartment complex, or simply on a very small or shaded lot, may not have a good location to plant a garden. In such cases, renting a community garden plot may be the answer. A community garden is a central place in the community where gardeners who need access to land can rent a patch of ground for a nominal fee. Often, this also affords new gardeners the opportunity to share tools and expertise with other plotters who use the garden. Here’s a short video about how to raise a vegetable garden and why a community garden may be a good option for you.”

–Contributed by Andy Larson

Tips, farming