Janaury 2006

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Supplementing Beef Cow Diets By Chip Poland, Area Extension Livestock Specialist, Dickinson Research Extension Center, North Dakota State University Any nutritional program involves estimating dietary requirements, concentrations of required nutrients available in common feedstuffs and dry matter intake. When the supply of nutrients to an animal fails to satisfy requirements, supplements are often provided. Providing supplements help correct nutrient deficiency, increase pasture carrying capacity or stretch forage supplies, and provide a carrier for some type of feed additive. Potential deficiencies can encompass energy, protein, vitamins and minerals. Although vitamin and mineral deficiencies can occur and result in an expensive loss of production, ensuring an adequate supply of these nutrients typically represents a small percentage of the overall costs of maintaining the cowherd. Performance of cattle consuming lower quality forages is often increased with supplemental energy and protein. An increase in digestible dry matter intake (DDMI) can explain most of the enhancement in animal performance. How this increase in DDMI occurs depends on the composition of the supplement, the quality of the basal forage, and the amount of the supplement consumed. Most protein and energy supplements contain similar energy concentrations, so classification of supplements is typically based on their protein concentration. Given a similar protein need, supplements with a relatively high protein concentration require less feed than supplements with a lower protein concentration. Since energy concentrations are similar and protein concentrations are lower, energy supplements (low protein) require more feed, and thus supply more energy, than protein supplements when supplied on an equivalent protein basis. Providing small amounts of protein supplement to cattle consuming a low protein forage has been shown to increase DDMI from forage. Explanations for this include an increased rate and/or extent of forage digestion, increased gut fill, increased rate of passage, and increased efficiency of nutrient use. Cattle have two distinct requirements for protein. In addition to a physiological demand for protein by the animal, the microbial population in the rumen have specific requirements for protein. Providing supplemental protein to optimize rumen fermentation of forage tends to enhance forage digestibility and intake. The protein requirement of a cow is met by two types of protein. The first type is microbial protein synthesized in the cow's rumen. The second type is dietary protein that has escaped ruminal degradation but is still available to the animal. The portion of feed protein that escapes the rumen (UIP) is commonly referred to as undegradable or bypass protein. The portion that is degraded in the rumen (DIP) is used to facilitate microbial fermentation and growth. It is this microbial action that allows cattle to effectively utilize large quantities of forage to meet their nutrient requirements. In situations where the protein requirement of a cow is not being met, one must first determine whether the microbial needs in the rumen are being met. Rumen microorganisms must have an adequate supply of DIP to effectively grow and digest dietary fiber. One rule of thumb is that DIP should be supplied at roughly 13% of dietary TDN. If this level of DIP is not being supplied, then a protein supplement high in DIP should be used to meet this requirement. Once the DIP requirement has been satisfied, and if the supply of microbial protein will not meet the cow's physiological protein requirement, supplemental UIP should be considered. Since supplying DIP tends to be cheaper than UIP, forage-based feeding programs should focus on optimizing microbial activity in the rumen. This approach to protein supplementation should reduce cattle feeding costs, while providing the essential nutrients necessary to ensure future productivity. Since supplement cost and protein concentration are typically positively related, lower protein supplements and feed grains are used when the energy intake is severely deficient. An imbalance between energy demand and supply can occur due to excessive energy demands, poor forage quality, or a lack of forage availability. Despite the negative effects on forage digestion and intake that can result, energy supplementation of forage diets can increase animal performance due to an increase in DDMI, an increase in the efficiency of nutrient use or an increase in the flow of undigested feed and microbial protein out of the rumen. Supplementation studies where various amounts of a supplement are included in a forage-based diet indicate that if protein and energy requirements can be met with a low level of supplementation, forage utilization is generally improved. As the amount of supplement offered increases above this low level, forage intake and digestibility begin to decline. It has been suggested that forage fiber digestion decreases when ruminal pH falls below 6.7. Thus if supplement (or starch) intake depressed ruminal pH, this could help explain reductions in forage fiber digestibility associated with energy supplementation. Energy supplementation with a readily degradable fiber source has been suggested as an option for maintaining ruminal stability in regard to fiber digestion, ruminal pH and minimizing intake reductions associated with energy supplementation. Although data do exist to support the use of higher fiber over higher starch (e.g. feed grains) energy supplements, other data suggest that the livestock responses are inconsistent. It appears that when supplements, regardless of source, are fed to correct a severe deficiency in energy intake, a reduction in ruminal pH and forage intake can be expected. It is at more moderate levels of supplementation, where protein supply is adequate, that supplement composition may differentially affect forage intake and digestibility. The effect a supplement will have on a base forage depends on the level of supplemental intake, composition of supplement and the quality of the forage. In situations where forage is in short supply or quality is low compared to animal requirements, it may be more economical to discount the energy value of the base forage and use traditional energy supplements (e.g. feed grains) to provide the additional energy required. This assumes that the protein needs of both the rumen microbes and the animal proper are being met. Using traditional methods to calculate energy supply, and not correcting for interactive effects between forages and supplements by adjusting energy value and intake of the forage, may result in over- or under-estimation of energy supply. Either consequence will reduce the economic efficiency of feeding the beef cowherd. Whitewash Tree Trunks To Prevent Winter Sun-Scald By Carol Savonen, Oregon State University Whitewashing tree trunks is an old-fashioned, but effective method to prevent sun-scald of tree bark from bright winter sunshine. Cold weather during the past two out of three winters has caused bark damage on fruit trees and landscape trees, both in eastern and western Oregon. "Sun-scald of tree bark occurs when tree bark is exposed to warm daytime temperatures and sunlight during cool weather," explained Ross Penhallegon, horticulturist with the Oregon State University Extension Service. The warmth coaxes the light-exposed tissues out of dormancy, causing them to need enough moisture to support active growth. At the same time, the cold temperatures around the shady sections of the tree, including the roots, remain too cold for those parts of the tree to break dormancy. These cooler, dormant tissues are unable to take up the moisture needed by the active tissues. "As a result, the warmed tissues of the tree dehydrate and die, causing the tree to be dead on its south side by the time spring arrives," said Penhallegon. In western Oregon, during mostly cloudy winters, home orchardists sometimes whitewash their trunks purely for aesthetic reasons. "Rows of whitewashed trees make an orchard look clean, neat and attractive," he said. To whitewash a tree trunk or two in your home landscape or orchard, Penhallegon recommends the following mixture for whitewash: Dissolve three pounds of table salt in 12 quarts of water. Then, slowly add and stir in 10 pounds of hydrated lime. Or an alternate whitewash mixture can be made with 50 percent exterior white latex paint and 50 percent water, he said. For painting rough bark, make the first coat a little thinner than the recipes above, by using more water in the mixture. The second coat can be of the consistency of the above recommended mixtures. Let the first coat dry before applying the second. Stir the mixture frequently as you paint. Another alternative is to wrap the trunks with paper, plastic or cloth. These materials will help to protect the bark. Managing Weak Calves By Dr. Charles L. Stoltenow, North Dakota State University Extension Veterinarian Weak born calves can be caused by a number of different infectious and non-infectious conditions. This spring the most probable cause of weak calves will be related to physical condition of the cow. The thinner the cow or heifer, the more likely the occurrence of weak calves. That's only the first hurdle. The second will be the immune status of the calf during the early days of its life. Neonatal calves depend on the cow for all physical and mental development prior to calving. All muscle tissue, nerve fibers, and energy reserves present in the calf are dependent on the nutritional status of the cow. Cold weather and snow have significantly increased the protein and energy requirements of the cow. The best cure for weak calves is prevention. Cows and heifers in good condition (body condition score of 5 or 6) have stronger calves than cows and heifers in thin condition (body condition score of 3 or 4). These calves stand quicker and nurse sooner. Cows and heifers in good condition also produce more colostrum than cows and heifers in thin condition. For adequate production of muscle, nervous tissue, and energy reserves in the calves, cows and heifers need adequate protein and energy in their diet. Whether or not a calf is born weak, all calves require colostrum soon after calving to have a fighting chance of survival. Colostrum, the first milk from the dam, is high in immunoglobulins or antibodies. Calves are born with a limited immune system and are dependant on their mothers to supply antibodies needed during the first six weeks of life. A calf needs to consume about 5-6% of its body weight within the first six hours of life and again before 12 hours of life. For an 80 pound calf this is approximately 2 quarts of colostrum per feeding. Why is this important? Because the calf's digestive tract undergoes "intestinal closure". Specialized absorptive cells in the calf's gut are sloughed and the transport of antibodies from inside the gut to the circulatory system inside the calf is no longer possible. Since the calf cannot produce its own antibodies until about four to six weeks of age, it is totally dependant on antibodies derived from the colostrum for protection in its early life. What do you do if there is no source of colostrum for the calf, such as the cow or heifer dies, or the colostrum leaked out of the udder before the calf was born? Cow-calf producers should have a source of colostrum identified before going into the calving season. Colostrum can be stored by freezing. Colostrum can be obtained from late-term cows or heifers which have a stillborn calf, from heavy producing cows (but make sure its calf receives adequate colostrum before taking any), from some dairy farms, and colostrum supplements which can provide substantial doses of antibodies to newborn calves are available from veterinarians and veterinary outlets. Whatever the colostrum source, the same time constraints are in effect. The colostrum should be consumed within the first 6-12 hours of life of the calf. The key to assuring adequate colostrum for your calf crop is being prepared. Children Pay The Price Of "Free Trade" By Susan Allen, Food Forethought There is a poignant scene in the new movie "Walk the Line" where Johnny Cash's adolescent brother is tragically killed working with a saw. The theater was silent, as dramatic tension built. I cannot begin to tell you how abhorrent it was to watch a young child work a power saw toward the inevitable consequence. I wanted to spring from my seat and scream, "NO, he is not old enough to operate it, please stop him!" Yet, I remained quiet with clenched fists knowing this was only a movie depicting a time many years ago when our country lacked adequate labor laws to protect our children. Today, I vow to no longer repress my scream, it will be loud and long and terrible, until those in high places hear. I have learned that what I viewed on film is in fact a terrible reality. It is unconceivable that as 2005 comes to a close, child labor is increasing throughout the world and young children are still being sent to work using dangerous tools. Don't let them fool you, there is nothing "free" about a free trade agreement that turns a blind eye to the plight of children, often as young as five who ought to be in school, yet labor long hours harvesting crops such as sugar canes using dangerous machetes and knives, inevitability mutilating themselves. The most appalling component of this equation is that enough sugar to satisfy America's massive sugar fix could easily be grown in a country that has not used manual labor in sugarcane cultivation since the early 1960's, OURS! Some trade agreements, such as CAFTA in this illustration, not only have sold out our American sugar farmers, but the trade agreement was sealed with the blood of hundreds of children maimed each year harvesting sugar canes. CAFTA is a prime example of a trade negotiation that is regarded as a hole in the dyke for some segments of agriculture, and a tsunami by others like American sugar cane and citrus farmers. In the case of our sugar farmers while CAFTA only provides access to a small group of Central American countries; Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica (who share a combined GDP that is the size of New Haven, Connecticut), the pact has primed other major sugar exporters in South America (who produce three times more than we consume in the US) to lobby for similar restraints on tariff. As world population and economies grow so will demand, thus, more foreign acres under cultivation equates to more children being exploited. The only nation with the clout and muscle to establish fair labor practices in Central and South America is the United States. We start by making trade negotiations accountable to what we require from American producers, instead of permitting countries to merely enforce their own paltry labor standards. In El Salvador alone, the International Labor Organization reported that in 2003 at least 5000 children worked the sugar cane harvest. Human Rights Watch has said that number is closer to 25,000; sadly, no one really knows….or cares. Researchers for this group reported scars, fresh cuts, bandages or missing limbs on nearly all the children they interviewed. Thankfully, there are compassionate groups that voice opposition to child agricultural labor. The Presbyterian Church has passed a resolution opposing CAFTA in its current form, citing their position is due to its "Failure to protect workers rights, human rights, food security, and environmental standards." The only thing that separates our children, who bask in affluence, with children laboring desperately to provide it, is fate, the simple origin of birth. I believe we have a moral responsibility to become educated regarding the ramifications of the effects of our purchases beyond self-gratification. Support free trade only when it is truly free, with a level playing field. Let this Holiday season with it is abundance of delectable sweets serve as a constant reminder to nurture a climate of compassion in 2006 that will reach beyond our nation and allow us the opportunity to effect change. In our new global economy, let us not be so quick to sell-out our American farmers whom we uphold to the highest standards, for the simple luxury of cheap imports that will ultimately cost us dearly, both environmentally and ethically. Of course, we need trade negotiations for commerce, but children should never be "Traded" away in the process. Voice opposition to these unjust practices to those involved in the negotiations, state legislators, US senators and representatives. If they will not listen, then let us all vow to shout louder. How To Help Older Family Members Handle Finances From University of Idaho's HomeWise Many older people need help with financial matters. Some just need help with reading the fine print on bills and financial forms or preparing checks for signature. Others need assistance in carrying out their directives. A few may need someone to manage their finances entirely. A newly revised Pacific Northwest Extension Publication called "Helping Older Family Members Handle Finances" is full of sensitively written suggestions for talking with elders about their financial concerns. Authors Vicki Schmall, Tim Nay and Sally Bowman describe how to approach a family member with thoughtfulness, caring and determination. They include a detailed list of discussion points and describe how to: • be clear about your reason for talking • look for natural opportunities to talk • find a low-stress time and location • acknowledge your family member's feelings • express positive intentions • anticipate the response • respect your family member's right to make choices They also explain such financial and legal tools as automatic bill payment, joint bank accounts, power of attorney and living trusts&emdash;any of which can make it easier for an older person to pay bills, conduct personal business and plan for possible future incapacity. For situations where family members have already become incapacitated, the authors present two more complex and intrusive legal tools: representative payee and conservatorship. "Many families don't discuss finances until a crisis occurs&emdash;and then it may be too late," the authors write. "If you suspect a time may come when either you or a family member may not be able to manage personal finances, make plans now." For a copy, download the publication from the publishing catalog of the University of Idaho College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, www.info.ag.uidaho.edu. Alternatively, order a copy by visiting the Web site, calling (208) 885-7982 or writing calspubs@uidaho.edu. Cost for one copy is $2.50 plus shipping and handling.

Two New UI Publications Help Homeowners Manage Fruit Trees From University of Idaho HomeWise If one of your 2006 gardening resolutions is to subdue the recurring pest problems in your home fruit trees, arm yourself with two freshly revised publications from University of Idaho Extension. "Insect Control for Apples and Pears in the Home Garden" and "Insect Control for Stone Fruits in the Home Orchard" can be downloaded for free from the Educational Communications Web site: (www.info.ag.uidaho.edu) or purchased for $1.00 each (plus shipping, handling and sales tax) by calling (208) 885-7982 or sending e-mail to calspubs@uidaho.edu. The publications discuss the abundant insect pests that can plague your fruit trees and offer detailed recommendations for overcoming them. They describe control of aphids, caterpillars, cherry fruit flies, codling moths, European earwigs, leafhoppers, leafrollers, mites, peach twig borers, pear psyllas, pear slugs, Oriental fruit moths and scale. In addition to conventional chemicals, you can read about the potential usefulness of such alternatives as insecticidal soap, neem oil, Bacillus thuringiensis, Beaveria bassiana, spinosad, kaolin clay, adhesives and barriers. You can also learn how pheromone traps can help you time insect sprays. Detailed guides in the back of each publication outline which conventional and alternative insecticides to use against which pests and when to apply them. Because fruit tree management is an unusually intensive task for the casual gardener, the authors caution homeowners against planting more trees than they can care for. "Neglected or undermanaged fruit trees become a source of pest insects and a problem for neighbors," they note. Some Plants Make Natural Antifreeze To Cope With Winter's Wrath By Carol Savonen, Oregon State University The formation of ice within a plant cell is lethal and is the most common way plants are injured in the winter. But many plants in cold climate zones have evolved strategies for surviving sub-freezing temperatures. They cope by either tolerating or avoiding freezing, according to retired Oregon State University plant physiologist Les Fuchigami. Some plants can tolerate freezing by forming ice outside the plant or outside the plant cell walls, in a process called extracellular freezing, said Fuchigami, who has been studying dormancy and cold hardiness of nursery and fruit crops for more than 30 years in OSU's Department of Horticulture. "When ice forms outside a plant's cell walls, it is generally not lethal," said Fuchigami. Freeze-tolerant cells have ways of preventing ice from forming in the cell. Instead, water outside the cell freezes, thereby causing water from inside the cell to move outside the cell to form more ice, he explained. The water moving out of the cell reduces the amount of freezable water within the cell. Inside plant cells, sugars and other things then become more concentrated, forming natural antifreeze. Another way plants avoid freezing is by deep super cooling, staying in a liquid form below the melting point of water, zero degrees C. Many species of plants fluctuate seasonally in their cold hardiness. "Changes in hardiness occur in response to the changing day-length and temperature," Fuchigami said. "From spring to summer, many plants are in a non-hardy state, where they will succumb soon after the first freezing event. "The hardiness of plants increases in the fall and early winter in response to shortening day-length and/or low or freezing temperatures," he added. "The development of hardiness in the fall and early winter is a slow, gradual process. The loss of hardiness in late winter and early spring is dependent on temperature. Plants lose hardiness faster with warmer temperatures. Once growth begins in the spring, plants lose their ability to acclimate and become susceptible to freezing temperatures." Roots are less hardy than stem or above ground tissues because they are exposed to less cold under the soil, Fuchigami said. And in general, tissues or organs that are actively growing are the least hardy. So avoid fertilizing until risk of freeze is over. Where Does All Of That Rain Water Go? By Kathy Barnard, Washington State University Where is all of the rain water of the past several weeks ending up, and more importantly to WSU Extension educator Curtis Hinman, how is it getting to its final destination? How development of once open, plant-covered spaces changes stormwater movement over and through the landscape is one of the greatest threats to water quality, supply and aquatic habitat in the Puget Sound area, according to Hinman, who works at the WSU Pierce County Extension office at Tacoma. One of five Extension faculty working on water issues in the Puget Sound Basin, he researches, designs and monitors low impact development strategies for that region. "Both resources and attention are turning to stormwater management throughout western Washington," said Hinman. "We have started to realize that even a small amount of urbanization can dramatically affect the watershed." The major challenge of stormwater management is its complexity, he added. "There are literally thousands - maybe even millions - of individual actions that contribute to the issue." For example, the transition from meadow to shopping mall increases impervious surfaces such as roads, parking lots, sidewalks, rooftops and compacted soils. Native plants and the upper soil layers that filter, store or allow rainwater to return to the atmosphere are typically removed, creating a "double whammy" with water quality and movement. "Water quality is impaired as stormwater flowing from impervious surfaces collects oil, grease, heavy metals and other pollutants and is discharged to streams, lakes, wetlands and the Sound," Hinman explained. Those same surfaces also cause stormwater to move out of a specific landscape more quickly, altering stream channel form and degrading aquatic habitat and the ability of fish, insects and other stream life to survive. Properly managing stormwater "comes down to good watershed planning, effective design at the project site and to individual residents," Hinman said. "It is much more based on the actions of individual property owners; it brings the individual into the ecology of the watershed." Low impact development can be a solution, he added. It is a land- use development strategy that emphasizes protection and use of features already on a building site as well as small scale, engineered controls on individual lots and at the subdivision level to manage stormwater. Specific strategies include minimizing building footprints and road widths to reduce impervious surfaces; using permeable paving wherever possible; creating small "bioretention" areas with appropriate soils and plants to filter and store stormwater; and managing stormwater as close to its origin as possible. Winter Weather Takes Toll On Home Landscape Plants By Carol Savonen, Oregon State University Those sad-looking landscape plants you are seeing in your yard are a direct result of recent cold weather. Cold can damage outdoor plants by causing burst cells and ruptured bark or by scorching or burning leaves. Plant cell fluids freeze and rupture the cell wall, or tender bark is repeatedly frozen and thawed. Tree or shrub bark may eventually split, usually occurring when extreme drops in temperature hit a plant when it is completely dormant. Large temperature fluctuations between warm and cold cause more damage than a long period of consistent cold, explained Ross Penhallegon, horticulturist with the Oregon State University Extension Service. For instance, a night of extreme cold followed by warming during the day on the south and west sides of the plant can cause bark to split and foliage to become scorched, or frost-burned. If the plant is actively growing, sub-freezing weather will damage the non-dormant growth. But, if the plants are dormant and the temperature remains cold during the day, there will likely be very little damage from cold. Here are some tasks to help prevent further cold injury to your fruit trees, berry bushes and landscape plants, before the next cold snap: Mulch all perennials with three to six inches of organic material such as shredded leaves, compost or bark chips, coarse enough to drain well. But be aware that there's a risk that the mulch will attract voles. These rodents can girdle woody trunks, so protect mulched trunks with hardware cloth if you have vole populations in your area. You may also mulch outdoor potted plants to prevent their roots from freezing. Better yet, move them into a protected area near a south-facing wall or into a garage. Drape the plant with burlap or shade the plant in some way during the day to prevent the alternate freezing and thawing that causes ruptured bark. Or paint the tree or shrub bark with white exterior latex paint to help avoid splitting. Mix the paint one to one with water. Check the plants in a few weeks to see if there is bark damage. Once plants get cold, keep them cold rather than allow them to thaw during the day and freeze at night. It is the freeze-thaw action that does the damage. Avoid pruning plants with cold-scorched leaf tips and margins. Plants such as rhododendrons and azaleas may take on a droopy look. Dry cold winds are often the cause. "The injured leaves will eventually drop," said Penhallegon. "In most cases, the plant will recover in the spring, so don't prune the plants now." Variable-Rate Nitrogen Applications Good For Potato Profits By Marlene Fritz, University of Idaho Basing nitrogen applications on the varying fertility needs of different portions of potato fields can boost profits to growers while benefiting the environment. A three-year University of Idaho study has found that eastern Idaho potato growers who combined aerial imagery of their fields with soil testing and variable-rate nitrogen applications increased their yields by an average 29 hundredweight per acre and their percentage of U.S. No. 1 grade potatoes by 4 percent. After subtracting the costs of the variable-rate technology, they netted an additional $214 an acre over traditional one-rate-fits-all approaches to nitrogen application. The study was conducted by UI soil scientists Bryan Hopkins and Jason Ellsworth on 15 fields-five a year-belonging to five different ValleyWide Coop growers. "These results leave no doubt that growers who have fields with substantial variability should be variably managing their nitrogen," says Hopkins. "The return on investment was about 10-fold in many fields." Variable management of nitrogen works because growers apply more nitrogen on portions of their fields with higher potential to bring in higher yields and less nitrogen on portions with lower potential. In Idaho, that potential is closely correlated with soil color: the darker the color shown on the aerial image, the more productive the soil-unless walking the site, called "ground-truthing," reveals yield-compromising factors not visible by air. When nitrogen applications match yield potential, growers maximize their income, Hopkins says. They also minimize the leaching of unneeded, overapplied nitrogen into groundwater. Reducing nitrogen pollution is a priority of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and an important motivation for the UI research team. The ability to accurately implement a variable-rate approach to nitrogen application represents a "significant technology jump" for Idaho potato growers, Hopkins says. That accuracy requires several steps: capturing a high-quality bare-soil image by airplane or satellite, using GIS software to identify three to five zones based on soil color, sampling and soil-testing each zone and "ground-truthing" zones for such yield-limiting factors as soil texture, tilth, rooting depth, slope, aspect and irrigation-system constraints. Over the course of the study, carryover nitrogen from previous crops-measured by soil nutrient tests-wasn't as variable within the 15 fields as Hopkins anticipated. Instead, the technology's benefits overwhelmingly accrued from identifying and managing differences in yield potential that were apparent to the naked eye-from the air or on the ground-rather than differences in nutrient levels revealed in the laboratory. Hopkins estimates that 10 to 20 percent of Idaho potato growers are using aerial imaging to predict nitrogen needs, but he recommends it to all producers with at least moderately variable fields. Not surprisingly, the recommended practices are more likely to pay off in fields that are more, rather than less, variable, he says. New UI Publications Help Homeowners Manage Fruit Trees From University of Idaho's HomeWise If one of your 2006 gardening resolutions is to subdue the recurring pest problems in your home fruit trees, arm yourself with two freshly revised publications from University of Idaho Extension. "Insect Control for Apples and Pears in the Home Garden" and "Insect Control for Stone Fruits in the Home Orchard" can be downloaded for free from the Educational Communications Web site (www.info.ag.uidaho.edu) or purchased for $1.00 each (plus shipping, handling and sales tax) by calling (208)885-7982 or sending e-mail to calspubs@uidaho.edu. The publications discuss the abundant insect pests that can plague your fruit trees and offer detailed recommendations for overcoming them. They describe control of aphids, caterpillars, cherry fruit flies, codling moths, European earwigs, leafhoppers, leafrollers, mites, peach twig borers, pear psyllas, pear slugs, Oriental fruit moths and scale. In addition to conventional chemicals, you can read about the potential usefulness of such alternatives as insecticidal soap, neem oil, Bacillus thuringiensis, Beaveria bassiana, spinosad, kaolin clay, adhesives and barriers. You can also learn how pheromone traps can help you time insect sprays. Detailed guides in the back of each publication outline which conventional and alternative insecticides to use against which pests and when to apply them. Because fruit tree management is an unusually intensive task for the casual gardener, the authors caution homeowners against planting more trees than they can care for. "Neglected or undermanaged fruit trees become a source of pest insects and a problem for neighbors," they note. 100 Years Ago Only fourteen percent of U.S. homes had a bathtub. More than 95 percent of all births in the U.S. took place at home. Most women washed their hair once a month and used borax or egg yolk for shampoo. Eighteen percent of households in the U.S. had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.

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