Author: npitts

Newberry County 4-H continues to rebuild its post-pandemic programs using both in-person and virtual methods. Our membership year runs September through August. At the mid-way mark of the 2022-23 4-H year we boast over 900 youth participating in our clubs, school enrichment programs, and independent projects.

4-H clubs are the root of our youth development programs, providing hands-on opportunities for youth ages 5-18 using volunteer leaders. Currently we offer 3 shooting sports clubs in shotgun and air rifle, 3 cooking clubs, 1 sewing club, and 1 virtual travel club. There are 64 youth participants meeting at least monthly, sometimes weekly, led by 17 certified and vetted adults.

School enrichment programs allow us to reach a wider range of youth and introduce them to 4-H opportunities. We are still utilizing virtual method created during COVID to reach 3^rd grade classes with virtual field trips and 5^th grade classes with financial literacy lessons. In addition, we offer monthly in-person healthy lifestyles lessons to 3^rd grade classes as well as monthly in-person financial literacy lessons to 5^th grade classes. In the spring, we will add our widely anticipated chick embryology program for 2^nd grade classes which generally reaches over 500 students.

Independent projects allow youth to participate in 4-H programming on their own, without being tied to a group. Last fall, 5 youth started the Wildlife Food Plot Project which wraps up in January. Additional independent programs will open this spring, including the Small Garden Project, Honey Bee Project, and various livestock projects. While these are long term projects, youth can also choose to participate in shorter events such as our Engineering Challenge on March 1 when over 10 Newberry youth will team up to compete in robotics, rocketry, bridge building, coding, visual arts, and/or a mystery challenge. There are also presentations contests and healthy lifestyles projects available.

In addition to club, school enrichment, and projects we also offer workshops and camps during school breaks. We are currently planning activities for spring break and summer. Stay tuned to the website for those line-ups: https://sites.google.com/view/newberry-county-4-h.

Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to people of all ages, regardless of race, color, gender, religion, national origin, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or family status and is an equal opportunity employer. For more information on Newberry County 4-H contact agent Alana West at awillin@clemson.edu or 803.768.8442.

2022 4-H Summer Re-Cap

Newberry County 4-H recently wrapped up their summer programs for 2022. The goal for this year was to introduce local youth to some vintage skills in hopes that they would enter their creations in a local fair. This would benefit both the fair, with more entries and from a younger audience, and it will allow the youth the opportunity to win ribbons and premium monies.

We started the summer with a 3-day hand quilting class taught by a local artist and with many fabulous donations from a local quilt shop, Quilt Werks. Six girls learned basic hand quilting skills and completed a lap quilt to take home.

Next, our Mixing and Making in the Kitchen camp introduced youth to food processing and preservation. It was a long, tiring day but 9 youth made and canned blueberry jam, processed peanut butter, made butter and butter milk to go in our homemade biscuits, start refrigerator pickles, decorated pie tops and made ice cream in a bag. All in a day’s work!

By July, we were ready for a more laid-back camp. We partnered with Fairfield County 4-H to offer a camp in Jenkinsville, on the county line. Our Pioneer Ways Day Camp introduces youth to life on the frontier: what they wore, how they traveled, what they ate, how they played and more. We did sneak in a little technology with the original ‘Oregon Trail’ computer game, which was a hit. However, the rest of the day we played pioneer games, made butter and hard tack for a snack, built a ‘log’ cabin out of pool noodles, made a journal and quill to write with our freshly produced blueberry ink. It was an eye-opening day.

Our final camp of the summer was a STEM day where youth were introduced to computer coding and robotics. Youth learned about different computer languages and used a program called Scratch to animate their names. However, the big hits of the day were programming different types of robots to do different tasks.

As we close out the summer, we are looking towards the new 4-H year which beings in September. This year we are excited to bring back a few clubs that haven’t meet since before COVID, in addition to clubs that started during the shutdowns. Stay tuned to keep up with all of our opportunities. Fore more information on Newberry County 4-H contact 4-H Agent Alana West at awillin@clemson.edu or 803.768.8442.

Southeast Dairy Youth Retreat

Clemson University Cooperative Extension hosted the 2022 Southeast Dairy Youth Retreat July 10 to 14. The annual youth retreat rotates through five of the Southeastern states including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. The week is full of farm tours, non-farm tours, workshops, and other learning opportunities for youth interested in Dairy. The retreat is open to youth from the ages of 6 to 19 who are interested in learning more about dairy cattle and the dairy industry and meeting youth from across the Southeast with those same interests.

This year’s retreat was headquartered in Clemson, SC at the T Ed Garrison Arena. 75 youth and adults from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia had the opportunity to participate in hands-on dairy foods and meats workshops, tours of the Clemson Blue Cheese and 55 Exchange Ice Cream processing sites, learning sessions, and a skill-a-thon contest to test their knowledge of dairy and animal agriculture.  Also included in the retreat was a variety of farm tours and recreational events.  The group toured the Clemson dairy, beef, and sheep farms, Milky Way Farm, Happy Cow Creamery, and the Roper Mountain Science Center.

South Carolina Dairy Heifer Project

The South Carolina Dairy Heifer Project began in 1974 and is one of the oldest 4-H projects of its kind in the nation. This project was designed to provide youth in South Carolina an opportunity to raise a dairy heifer and experience the dairy industry, and then sell their heifer at the South Carolina Dairy Heifer Project Bred Heifer Sale. Throughout the years, thousands of South Carolina youth have taken part in 4-H dairy work. These 4-H and Dairy Heifer Project alumni can be found in all “walks of life.” Many are outstanding farmers and leaders of the dairy industry, while others are doctors, veterinarians, and teachers. In nearly every case, these people look back on this 4-H dairy experience as an outstanding part of their youth.

As the dairy industry has changed and evolved over the years, so has the South Carolina Dairy Heifer Project. Due to COVID restrictions, the 2020 Bred Heifer Sale was held online for the first time with great success.  Due to that success, the sale has been permanently moved to an online format and the event dates have been adjusted to better suit the needs of the dairy industry. Through all the changes, the South Carolina Dairy Heifer Project has continued to thrive and reach youth across the state. Twenty-seven new heifers were placed in the Summer of 2021, 13 of which went to new project participants. Brown Swiss were also added for the first time in project history in 2021.

The 4-H and FFA dairy project members exhibit their dairy project animals at fairs, shows, and events in nearly every region of the state. Millions of people have seen or learned about 4-H and FFA through these youth dairy exhibits at the many fairs and events in South Carolina. This offers a tremendous opportunity for 4-H, FFA, Clemson Cooperative Extension, and the dairy industry to educate and inform the public about the dairy industry and youth dairy programs.  Many thanks go out to the industry for the support of the program. Heifers for the project come from project alumni and producers across the Southeast who have seen the impact the project has had and is continuing to have on our youth.

This year Newberry County 4-H has focused on developing county level projects for youth to participate in. Last summer, we held our first County Tomato Project. Nine youth participated in growing tomatoes that might be the largest or the ugliest in the county. As we were purchasing the prizes for these winners, things that they could grow in a fall garden, it was suggested that we try a Turnip Project since “turnips grow ugly too!” By September, we had 11 youth and 3 schools growing purple top turnips.

Each project started with a kick-off. This year, those were held virtually and led by Clemson Extension Horticulture Agents. Youth were exposed to the history of the crop and taught the do’s and don’ts of growing them successfully, how to harvest and measure for the project, and even what the tomato or turnip could be used for. For the Tomato Project, youth were given seedlings and for the Turnip Project, we started with seeds. In addition to growing and harvesting the plants, youth were expected to complete a project record book that allowed them to keep track of planting and harvesting dates, precipitation, problems in the garden, and project expenses/profits. At the culmination of the project, youth submitted photos and measurements of their largest fruit and ugliest harvest. We utilized social media for voting, allowing the community to choose the ugliest tomato and ugliest turnip in all the land, well at least in Newberry.

This project has been fun even though things haven’t always gone as expected, dates have had to be extended, and virtual can still be a challenge, but learning has always happened and since “learn by doing” is the motto of 4-H, we’ll call it a success!

The Clemson Spring Dairy Show and Junior Dairy Weekend was held April 22-25, 2021, at the T. Ed Garrison Arena.  The hopes of the show committee composed of local dairymen, Clemson Extension personnel, 4-H Dairy Club leaders, and dairy industry representatives when re-organizing the event was to make this weekend a cornerstone for our dairy youth programs across the state and a standout youth event across the Southeast.  With hard work and dedication from the committee, the event has surpassed all expectations.   The first show in 2018 had a total of 248 head from five different states and 72 youth competing in showmanship alone.  The show has continued to grow, and our 2021 show encompassed 316 head from nine different states and 108 youth competing in showmanship. Our show was seen this year on a larger stage with live feeds from Dairy Agenda Today.  Through this addition, we were able to highlight our show, our youth, and our South Carolina Youth Dairy Heifer Project.

In addition to exceptional dairy breed shows, the showmanship classes provided our South Carolina youth the opportunity to compete with some of the best youth showman in the Southeast.  The focus of the eight showmanship classes was beyond just the placings.  Providing a learning opportunity and enhancing the skills these youth had in the show ring was a priority.  Other learning opportunities for the weekend included our judging and showmanship clinics.  Because of the success of the show, we were able to provide 8 exceptional classes of cattle to be judged by over 30 youth in a dairy judging clinic.  Forty-five youth also participated in our showmanship clinic led by several of the top adult showman in the region.

While the summer of 2021 didn’t look like summers of the past, 4-H was able to offer some in-person programming. Newberry County 4-H stuck with offering life-skills workshops for youth ages 8-14. Due to the COVID situation, workshops were limited in spacing due to social distancing. Some workshops offered more than one session to accommodate those interested. Each participant received their own equipment.

Our Needlework’s Workshop taught youth the basics of hand stitching, including terminology, skills, and equipment, as well as how to replace a button. Ten youth participated and took home a completed sampler demonstrating stitches such as the split stitch, straight stitch, and cross stitch as well as some more difficult skills like French knot and a woven wheel. Each participant was also given a pillowcase and supplies ready for embroidering their name.

Our Journey to Mars Mini Camp was a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) workshop with a Mars Rover theme. Six youth participated in eight modules covering concepts as binary code, algorithms, orbits, propulsion and thrust, stop-motion animation, remote sensing, circuits, and robotics. These youth also had their name added to the list of others whose names will fly into space on the next Mars mission.

Our final summer workshop was the most popular. Nineteen kids registered for our Cake Decorating Workshop. Participants got hands-on with buttercream, learning different icing techniques from a former 4-H Agent and now retail grocery store chain cake decorator. Each participant went home with an 8” single-layer cake decorated to their liking as well as a starter kit for icing cakes.

Over the last year and a half, 4-H has gone the extra mile to make sure we are able to offer opportunities for our youth while keeping them safe at the same time. Moving forward, we make that some promise and will continue to make the best better.

2020 South Carolina Dairy Youth Heifer Project Bred Heifer Sale

The South Carolina Dairy Youth Heifer Project, a Clemson University Youth Livestock program initiative, gives any active 4-H or FFA member, age 5-17, the opportunity to raise and show a registered dairy heifer. During this 18-month project, participants learn how to care for, manage, train, and show their heifer while exploring the world of dairy cattle. The goal of the project is for youth to gain knowledge about the dairy industry and learn how to responsibly care for a dairy animal and, in the end, have a well-grown, bred dairy heifer. The project concludes with the sale of the heifers at the South Carolina State Fair in October each year. Participants show their heifer one last time during the dairy cattle show, and then all heifers are sold in the Bred Heifer Sale.

2020 brought many challenges to the South Carolina Dairy Youth Heifer Project Bred Heifer Sale. With the cancellation of the 2020 South Carolina State Fair and pandemic restrictions the decision was made to move the sale to a virtual format. The Heifer Project committee, volunteers, participants, and supporters took it all in stride and made the 2020 Sale a huge success. With the new sale format, the catalog and pedigree pages were given a new look and youth were encouraged to help promote the sale and their individual heifers. Pedigrees where made available to previous and potential buyers along with pictures and videos of the available heifers.
After weeks of preparation, the sale was held on October 6, 2020 with 24 registered dairy heifers sold at an average of $1,450 each. Over 150 potential buyers, committee members, and participants and their families logged in to view and bid. With the online format, there were 4 first time buyers and over a dozen additional first-time potential buyers. The success of the sale was due to the months of hard work these youth put into raising and caring for these heifers and the dairymen who placed heifers in the project, giving these youth the opportunity to shine. Even with the restrictions this passed year, these youth continued to work with these heifers and, in the end provided an outstanding group of heifers for potential buyers, proving why the SC Dairy Youth Heifer Project is one of the oldest and best of its kind.

Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to people of all ages, regardless of race, color, gender, religion, national origin, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or family status and is an equal opportunity employer.

Agronomic Crop Activities

Row crop producer needs were handled through the summer as usual, mainly through farm visits and one-on-one trainings. Producer trainings for paraquat and dicamba herbicides, which were required by the EPA, were handled mainly in small group in-person formats with some virtual platforms utilized where applicable. In-season farm visits to address crop troubleshooting continued as always. Upcoming trainings and producer meetings are being scheduled primarily through virtual platforms.
Sample submissions to the Agricultural Service Laboratory have continued through the Extension Office utilizing by appointment drop off and on-farm pick up.

NEWBERRY COUNTY 4-H – NEWSLETTER

While restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic put a halt to the general routine of Newberry County 4-H and forced many of our programs towards a new format, we managed to reach 63 local youth through our multi-county virtual summer camps. Virtual goes against the very nature of 4-H, which prides itself on years of hands-on learning with the help of volunteers. But virtual allowed both youth and agents to learn and practice skills using technology rather than face-to-face meetings.

Four summer camps were offered to Newberry County in partnership with Saluda, Aiken, and Edgefield counties. These camps were offered via Google Classroom. Each day during the week of camp, participants were granted access to that day’s activities. These activities included videos, recipes, science lessons, read-alongs, service projects, virtual tours, and trivia. The first camp focused on the Fair, highlighting livestock projects, fair food, rides, and exhibits your might see at the State Fair. The next camp took us camping across America to experience the Statue of Liberty, Washington DC, and ending just in time for July 4th fireworks. Lessons included solar oven smores, coin rubbings, paddlewheel boats, fireworks in a jar, pinwheels, sugar drink alternatives, and straw towers, each related to a stop on our trip. We followed Camp America with a US Road Trip via Hwy 4-H which allowed participants to experience two National Parks each day during the week of camp. Stops included the Dry Tortugas, the Everglades, Mammoth Cave, the Gateway Arch, Yellowstone, Yosemite, the Redwoods, the Grand Canyon, Kenai Fjords, and Hawai’i Volcanoes National Parks. We ended the summer with an International Culinary Tour that took youth across the world, virtually, exposing them to cultures and foods from places they may not otherwise get to go.

While things may have looked different, we feel that virtual opportunities now have a place in what would normally be all hands on and face to face. We are proud to have stepped out of the box to continue to make the best better.