May 2008

David Sugar, a horticulturalist at Oregon State University, has found that by briefly storing Comice pears at cool temperatures and applying ethylene gas to them, they could land in the supermarket by early September instead of the usual early October. With an even simpler version of that ripening treatment, Bosc pears could also be in shoppers’ carts in early September instead of two weeks later, he said.

Survey results show doctors and nurses want to learn more about the health consequences of hunger, according to Anne Hoisington, a nutrition education specialist with Oregon State University Extension Service, who designed and conducted the survey. The Childhood Hunger Initiative of Oregon released the results in conjunction with Gov. Ted Kulongoski's proclamation of Oregon Hunger Awareness Week, May 26-30.

Steve Dodrill, a video producer who has created educational media for the Oregon State University Extension Service for the past 17 years, has accepted a position to head its office in Lane County. Dodrill, who is the multimedia specialist in OSU's Department of Extension and Experiment Station Communications, will become the staff chair on June 1. He plans to work with Extension faculty, staff, and clients to refine local goals and priorities in light of an uncertain budget.

This is the third year that ranch families and students from Sunnyside Environmental School and other Portland inner-city middle schools have participated in the award-winning OSU Extension 4-H Urban-Rural exchange program.

To help home gardeners and landscape designers make sound ecological choices about what to plant in their gardens, the Oregon State University Extension Service has published a 52-page color booklet called GardenSmart Oregon (EC 1620), in cooperation with several other public and private organizations. This 4-color photo-illustrated publication, discusses and photo-illustrates 25 of the most commonly invasive plants in Oregon and provides non-invasive alternatives. Available online or in print, the 52-page booklet offers gardeners, landscape pond owners and landscape designers many choices of non-invasive plants for Oregon’s growing conditions, while protecting the health and beauty of Oregon’s natural lands and waters.