NC Strawberry Association Scholarship Opportunity

The NC Strawberry Association is offering two $1000 scholarships. The intent of this scholarship is to promote future leadership in the strawberry industry. The scholarship is open to:

• **high school seniors or current college students
• **applying, accepted to, or currently enrolled in  a land grant university.
• **interested in or having declared a major in a program of study directly related to the strawberry industry (For example, small fruit production, marketing, food science, nutrition, entomology, agronomy, etc).

Two Scholarship Awards of $1000 each are offered for 2013. The number of awards will be determined based on applications received. This award is not limited to North Carolina. Family members of NC Strawberry Association members are encouraged to apply. Previous award winners may reapply for a second year's award.

The deadline for 2013 applications is May 1, 2013. 

Click here to visit the Strawberry Association's website that has essential information and the application form.

County Activity Day

REMINDER ~ County Activity Day is next Wednesday (Feb. 20th) from 3pm to 6pm.  If you plan on presenting, you must call the office & schedule your time.

This competition is open to any youth ages 5 - 19 and your presentation can be on ANY topic you like.  If you would like a complete list of the presentation categories and descriptions visit the NC 4-H webpage.

Don't forget that you if you want to go to Congress in Raleigh, you MUST present at both County Activity Day AND District Activity Day in March!

If you have any questions or need any additional information, call the office at 336-372-5597.

2013 4-H Plant Sale

We are currently taking orders for the 2013 Annual 4-H Plant Sale.

The following types of plants are available to purchase:

• Blueberries
• Blackberries
• Grapes
• Herbs
• Horseradish
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
• Vegetables
• Rhubarb
• Asparagus
• Ferns

All orders are due by Friday, March 15, 2013 and payment is due at the time the orders are placed.  The tentative pick-up date (for all plants EXCEPT ferns) is Tuesday & Wednesday, April 2 & 3, 2013 from 9am to 5pm at Alleghany County Office Building.

Click here to print your plant description / order form.  For more information, contact the Extension Office at 336-372-5597.

ALL proceeds will help send kids to summer camp and other summer fun opportunities.

Summer Camp 2013

Time is running out to reserve your space for camp this summer.  We will be camping at Millstone 4-H Camp on July 14-19.  Camp is open to youth ages 8-14; spots for ages 13 & 14 are very limited.

If you are interested in attending you need to let us know by February 1st and your $50 deposit is due by February 15th.  Once your spot is reserved, you are committed to attending camp.

For more information about Millstone, visit their website.

2013 Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Program (WHEP) Contest

The 2013 Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Program (WHEP) Contest will be held on May 11, 2013 at Howell Woods, in Johnston County.   For the informational memo about this year's contest, the registration form, as well as other extremely helpful information, visit the Extension Forestry webpage. 

Please contact our office for more information.

2013 Beekeeping Essay Contest

The topic for the 2013 4-H Beekeeping Essay Contest is "Reducing the Usage of Bee-Killing Pesticides in my Community".  The deadline for all entries to be submitted is February 1, 2013.  ALL essays need to be submitted electronically to Liz Driscoll at liz_driscoll@ncsu.edu. 

For the complete description of the topic, click here. If you are interested in participating in this great opportunity, please click here for the official rules for the contest.  These rules will apply even if the date says 2012.  There is also a source with hints to help you with your essay available here.

Please contact us if you have any questions.

Helping Hands 4-H Club Report - January 2013

The Helping Hands 4H Club had their first meeting of 2013 on Friday, January 4.
During the meeting we discussed the yearly calendar and had officer elections.
The officers are:

President- Franklin Joyce
Vice President- Gretchen Huysman
Treasurer- Luke Joyce
Secretary-Eli Henry Joyce
Reporter-Colleen Cassell
Historian- Courtney Wiles
Chaplain- Day Lindberg
Meeting Helpers- Benjamin Joyce, Kara Hartt, Alaina Hartt, Charity Osborne, & Hogan Dillard

Our program was about rabbits. The Joyce family brought their domestic rabbits.  We learned about rabbit features, culture, skills, and instinct. We then played Jeopardy about rabbits to see how much we had learned.
After the meeting most families went to the Sparta bowling alley and had fun bowling and playing arcade games.

Submitted by:  Colleen Cassell

4-H Skiing & Snowboarding Trip

Are you 12 years old or older and want to learn how or enjoy skiing or snowboarding?  Alleghany 4-H will be taking a trip to French-Swiss Ski College at Appalachian Ski Mountain in Blowing Rock on Friday, February 8th. Cost will be $25 for skiing and $30 for snowboarding. Cost includes transportation, lift ticket, equipment, skiing/snowboarding lesson and snack. You will need to bring money for dinner. We will be leaving the County Office Building at 4:00 pm and will return around 1 am. Space is limited so contact the office to register or for more information (336) 372-5597 - Ask for Amy or Michele.

You must register by January 30th.

Dairy Quiz Bowl

This year's Dairy Quiz Bowl will be March 9 and we are getting ready to start our practices.  If you are interested in participating, be sure to let us know! Anyone 9 (as of Jan 1) and up can participate and you don't have to be an expert.  Contact the office for more information - ask for Amy or Michele.

Happy New Year!!

Just wanted to take a moment and wish everyone a Happy New Year.  The Alleghany Extension Office wishes you the very best in the year to come and we look forward to seeing you in 2013.  Lots of great programming in the year to come so check back often.