MSU Extension Ottawa County

OTTAWA COUNTY 4-H

Throughout the year, Ottawa County 4-H offers programs to youth through clubs, after school programs and much more. 4-H strives to develop life skills and enhance leadership opportunities for youth. Highlights in Ottawa County 4-H this year include Makyla Nelson of Ottawa County 4-H being selected to serve on the Michigan State 4-H Leadership Council Emily Vis winning youth Best in Show Rabbit at the Michigan State Fair with her Californian Junior Buck in September; and Ottawa County 4-H sending 16 youth to the State 4-H Shoot this past year. Of those 16, six youth placed in the top three for their various divisions including archery, rifle and trap.

4-H and the Boys and Girls Club

4-H Program Coordinator, Susan Fenton, has been hard at work engaging non-traditional youth audiences with our 4-H Program. Susan has created programs in collaboration with the Ottawa County Boys and Girls Clubs. She implements curriculum such as “Problem Solving and Communication” where she teaches team building and character development. She also does STEM related projects such as “messy science” where youth learn how microwaves work and got to make marshmallows puff up, Ivory soap explode, and learn what happens when you put a lightbulb in a microwave. The goal of these programs is to bring structured youth development services to underserved audiences.

YOUNG ADULT SERVICES INITIATIVE

MSU Extension Community Nutrition Educator, Christian Kleinjans, has formed a partnership with Ottawa Area Intermediate School District ‘s (OAISD) Young Adult Services (YAS) program to implement Healthy Eating Adds Up, a curriculum designed for Developmentally Disabled (DD) and Cognitively Impaired (CI) adults. Through this partnership, in 2018, about 200 young adults have received hands on cooking lessons coupled with nutrition education. Due to it’s success, the partnership with MSU Extension for the implementation of this curriculum will be built into the annual curriculum for the YAS program starting in the 2019/2020 school year.

SOLAR IN AGRICULTURE

Bioenergy Educator, Charles Gould, hosted a presentation for Ottawa County Greenhouse growers entitled “Opportunities for Solar PV in a Greenhouse Operation.” Charles covered topics such as why now is a good time for solar, the federal solar tariff impact, as well as solar project financing. There were 28 Ottawa County residents in attendance. Charles’ work in solar has grown and has been recognized statewide for his work developing “Shining a Light on Agriculture Solar Energy Development” which he will bring to Ottawa County in March of 2019.

PICK FOR PANTRIES

MSU Extension Community Food Systems Educator, Garrett Ziegler, worked with Ottawa Food to develop a new program called Ottawa Pick for Pantries. The program includes a collaboration with four U-pick fruit farms in Ottawa County and several community resource centers and pantries. Many pantries lack access to fresh local fruit in their pantry donations and this program helped fill that need. Results included the donation and distribution of hundreds of pounds of local fruit to low-income residents through the Pick for Pantries program. This included strawberries, blueberries and apples from local farmers.

GREENHOUSE WORKER SUPPORT

In 2018, the greenhouse extension team carried out a series of meetings on the new Worker Protection Standards and assisted growers with picking the appropriate respirators and making sure that they fit securely. Nursery and Greenhouse Educator, Heidi Lindberg, organized a meeting held in West Olive, MI on January 9, 2018, which was attended by 58 Ottawa County Residents. Growers reported that information received at the event was worth up to $163,984 on their combined 6,843 acres of greenhouse, nursery, fruit and vegetable production in West Michigan.  

GREAT LAKE ANGLER DIARY

MSU Extension Small Fruit Educator, Carlos Garcia, hosted meetings with local growers, Farm Bureau representatives, beekeepers and local stakeholders to discuss priorities for protecting pollinators in the region. The goals of the meeting were to 1) Survey attendees about their interest and engagement in pollinator conservation; 2) Update attendees about ongoing research related to this project; 3) Solicit input on stakeholder priorities, and how we can incorporate their priorities into our research focus. Approximately 50 Ottawa County residents attended.

D.J. ANGUS VOYAGE

Joined by members of the MSU Extension Advisory Council, Erin Moore, District 7 Director, led a small group  of local legislators on the 4th Annual DJ Angus Voyage. The voyage focuses on water quality, invasive species, and the connection between watersheds, rivers, and the Great Lakes. This 45-foot research vessel is owned and operated by Grand Valley State University and serves as a “floating classroom” offering educational programs on the Grand River, Spring Lake, and Lake Michigan. Dr. Dan O’Keefe, MSU Extension Sea Grant educator, housed in Ottawa County, leads the educational programs that day.

POLLINATOR MEETINGS

MSU Extension Small Fruit Educator, Carlos Garcia, hosted meetings with local growers, Farm Bureau representatives, beekeepers and local stakeholders to discuss priorities for protecting pollinators in the region. The goals of the meeting were to 1) Survey attendees about their interest and engagement in pollinator conservation; 2) Update attendees about ongoing research related to this project; 3) Solicit input on stakeholder priorities, and how we can incorporate their priorities into our research focus. Approximately 50 Ottawa County residents attended.

BEEF QUALITY ASSURANCE (BQA) TRAINING

Cargill and Tyson are requiring BQA certification from producers they will be purchasing fed cattle from starting January 1, 2019. Producers selling cattle at local auction yards need to be certified if they want buyers from these two companies to be able to bid on their cattle. Concepts of the national BQA program were presented at various locations across Lower Michigan and participants were administered a test to pass for certification. 57 Ottawa County residents were trained in 2018.

OTTAWA DAIRY PRODUCTION

Ottawa ranks 4th in Michigan in number of grade A herds, averaging 283 cows per herd. Data shows that the cost of production is the highest for farms between 200-500 cows. MSU Extension is providing programs to improve the economic situation of Ottawa county farms. Management practices to mitigate heat stress were evaluated to provide solutions to the decreased animal performance during the hot season. A feed management project aims at identifying the financial burden of farms when feed adjustments are not performed. Finally, MSU Extension is working closely with farms in Ottawa to develop LEAN Management strategies for Dairy farms.

SWD MANAGEMENT

On June 15, 2018, blueberry growers received training to manage the spotted wing Drosophila (SWD) under a System Approach to Pest Management. The SWD is causing tremendous damage to the economy of small blueberry growers in Ottawa County and all major Michigan small fruit producing counties. Training consisted of a one-day classroom and hands-on session. This is an advanced Integrated Pest Management program that provides knowledge and skills to manage the spotted wing Drosophila at levels that allow the sustainability of blueberry production and employment in small blueberry farms. In addition to the training, MSU Extension conducted 40 farm visits with blueberry growers.