Newspapers / The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, … / July 2, 1987, edition 1 / Page 8
Part of The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
trilling news Farmer's market festival set RALEIGH? The State Farmers' Market in Raleigh will be the site of a three-day gala celebration July 6, 7 and 8. The first annual Farmers' Market Festival will be held over the three days, highlighting the avail ably of local fruits and vegetables. Festival hours on Monday and Tuesday will be 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Hours for the Wednesday evening celebration will be 4 p.m. The Mon day fete will highlight canning and freezing fresh produce, with home economists on hand to answer ques tiins on canning and freezing. Door prizes of local produce including sweet corn, tomatoes, blueberries and peaches along with canning and freezing supplies will be given away based on trafffiq counts. Tuesday's festivities will spotlight Goodness Growers in North Carolina a marketing program sponsored by the NCOA. Door prizes of fresh pro duce and foodstuffs donated by Good ness Grows participants will be given out based on traffic counts during the hours of the festival. The Wednesday evening cele bration, called Family Night at the Market, will feature entertainment for the entire family. Farmers and retailers will be on hand with ample supplies of fruit and vegetables and the Farmers' Market will have free watermelon slices, helium balloons, free fethered rides on two hot air bal loons and more. Door prizes of pro duce, country hams and the grand prize of a champagne hot-air balloon flight donated by Captain Jim Kirk of the Airship Enterprise will be given away that evening. "The purpose of having three days of festivities is to show the many hours of operation of the market, and the availability of produce at any hour conveient to the shopper," said N.C. Commissioner of Agriculture Jim Graham. "Whether you're a housewife or working consumer out side the home, we have produce wait ing for your shopping needs all sum mer at the State Farmers' Market," he said. The market will be operating on the 24-hour open summer schedule according to market manager Charles Edwards. "During this festi val, we'll be highlighting the best looking retail and farmer displays, offering assistance with canning and freezing and providing fun and edu cation for the whole family," said Edwards. Questions answered about imports A question often asked by consum ers as well as farmers is, "Why do we import agricultural products when we have surpluses?" The U.S. Department of Agricul ture offers this explanation: Of the $19 billionworth of agricultu ral products imported in 1985, 30 per cent did not compete directly with do mestic farm products. These foods include coffee, bananas, cocoa, tea, spices and some tropical fruits. The USDA report shows that the re maining 70 percent that add to or compete with U.S. products are im ported because domestic demand for the food exceeds the domestic supply or because the imports are produced more efficiently elsewhere. It should be also pointed out that the administration encourages com peting ag imports from developing nations to help their economies and these are added to the ag import to tal. Most other countries have main tained or increased their exports as ours have fallen. Unfortunately, through 1985-86 the total value of U.S. farm exports dropped by 39 percent since the record year of 1980-81, and last year our total trade deficit grew to around $170 billion. There is some good news on the ho rizon, however. Compared with 1986, U.S. agricultural export volume in 1987 is expected to climb 16 percent with a 5 percent increase in value. The value of agricultural imports by the U.S. is also expected to decline from $20.9 billion to $20 billion. Information on purple cone flowers Describing plants by common names is confusing, say experts at the N.C. Botanical Garden at the Uni versity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Two distinct plants blooming now, called cone flowers, illustrate the confusion. The common name is ap propriate because both plants have a distinctive cone in the center of the flower head surrounded by ray flow ers. Many books list only the yellow-pe taled plants, commonly called black eyed Susans, as cone flowers. These flowers are members of the aster family. The other cone flower, echinacea purpurea, also is in the aster family, but is in a different genus. The purple cone flower is from the Greek word for hedgehog, referring to the sharp bristles, or bracts, at the base of the cone. The 2-to 4-inch flower head con sists of lavendar-pink petals sur rounding the cone. The cone consists os many small disk flowers that usually are a purple color or sometimes have a coppery tone. Each tiny disk flower is a tiny seed receptacle. Once the petals fade and fall off, they need four weeks for the seed, or nutlet, to mature. During this time the corns expand. In collecting seeds for propagation. bend the corn and shake it. If the seeds fall out, they are ready. If not, give them another week or two. The mature seeds are only an eighth of an inch long, so shaking them into a peper bag is the safest way to catch them. Purple cone flowers add to a peren nial bed. The color is good, the plants stay upright and they tolerate partial shade. The flowers need good drain age. They rot in soggy areas. These cone flowers usually grow 2 to 3 feet tall and are showy when planted in groups of two or tljree. Some garden ers like to plant them in a dry sunny spot along a roadbank because they are tolerant of not sun and wind. Weeding hoe is tool of the month Keep the weeding hoe sharp and the garden hose handy. They are likely to be the most needed tools in keeping flowers and vegetable gar dens clean and healthy in July. While it is a month to begin fully enjoying the fruits of your gardening labors, July brings heavy weed pres sure and often a need for irrigation. Here are some additional July gar dening suggestions from North Caro lina State University agricultural ex tension specialist: Early morning is the ideal time to harvest vegetables. The quality of what you pick will be better, and the work won't be as uncomfortable if done in the relative cool of the morn ing. Harvest Irish potatoes when vines start to die, and store the potatoes in a cook dark place. Water the garden regularly if there is insufficient rain. Also, sidedress vegetables with a little fertilizer to keep them producing and continue disease and insect control measures. You can continue to plant warm season vegetables, and seed leafy greens for fall transplants. Prepare for your second garden, most of which is planted in August. Fall tomatoes should be trans planted by the middle of July. Vou can start tomato plants from seeds or from suckers on mature plants al ready in the garden. To start new plants, pinch off the suckers when they are three to four inches long and stick them in moist sand in a shady spot. Rooting will begin fairly quickly, and they should be ready to transplant in a couple of weeks or so. If you want to supplement what you grow for canning or freezing check supplies of vegetables at local farm ers' markets. Supplies should be plentiful and prices reasonable. Additional July chores include trimming wisteria to encourage blooming next year and to keep the fast growing vine from getting out of hand. Powdery mildew can be especially bad on crepe myrtle, phlox, rose and zinnia. The fungus can be controlled by spraying with an approved fun gicide, such as Beniate. Many crepe myrtles still show sighs of the heavy cold damage of two winters ago Prune out any re maining dead wood. If you have night-blooming cereus, watch carefully for budding. The blooms of this ungainly cactus last only a night and are too special to miss. Cut flowers for arrangements early in the morning. This is when the moisture content is highest and the flowers are more turid. Generally , annuals such as zinnias, snapdragons, petunias, salvia and marigolds produce more flowers when seed pods and old flowers are removed at least once a week. While the house plants are outside enjoying the warm weather is a good time to ddivide or repot any that need it. Finally, if you have a surplus of vegetables, fruits or flowers, share them with friends, neighbors or even strangers. Many elderly people were once avid gardeners. They would en joy the surplus from your garden and probably enjoy even more a conver sation about how you grew what you share with them. Girls attend girls' state YuVonka Reid, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. H. L. Reid, and Terri Baker, daughter of Mrs. Naomi Baker of Hertford attended Girls State from June 6-12th at the Univer sity of Greensboro, North Carolina. The two seniors at the Perquimans High School were recommended by the Guidance Counselor, Mr. James Midgett. They were sponsored by the Ameiican Legion Unit 362 of Hert ford. Congratulations ladies! Insurance *??? For Farm Ivrm Members Lewis B. Evans AGENCY MANAGER PatWard Jeff L Smith AGENT AGENT 426-5636 426-7401 ChurchsStreet Ext. Hertford, N.C. Call Us For All Your Catering Needs ? Class Reunidns ? Family Reunions ? Gatherings No Group Too Small Or Too LARGE Jimmy's Hertford photo courtesy of Daily Advancc ' Pictured above members of the Hertford Fire Department are seen doing a program on fire safety as part of the SOAR into Summer Fun program which is being offered by the Perqui mans County Extension Office, the Perquimans County Library, and the Perquimans County' Recreation Department this summer. Tips on decorating with sheets By PAIGE UNDERWOOD Home Economics Ext. Agent Ready to decorate with sheets? You might consider using sheets for your new window treatment or deco rating idea. You've been living with sheets all your life but may have never thought of them for anything other than making the bed. No more! There are many uses for sheets, es pecialy with so many colors, pat terns, and coordinates to choose. Many sheets, have a main design onthe flat sheet, ant* an adaptation of that design on the fitted sheet which makes mixing and matching possible and fun. There are also solid colors to match each pattern? often several, and some patterns even have their own trimmings which can be de tached from one edge and added else where. Think of all the fabric you get from one sheet. The following yardage equipvalents give you helpful infor mation: a twin flat sheet (finished size with self hem) measures 66 by 96 inches ad is euqivalent to 4 yards of 36 inch wide fabric. A full flat sheet, 81 by 96 inches, equals 6 yards of 36 inch wide fabric. Queen, 90 by 102 inches, seven yards, king, 108 by 102 inches, 8 yards. A standard pillow case measures 20 by 30 inches and yields 34 yard of fabrics, a king pil lowcase, 20 by 40 inches, one yard. Before you go out and buy sheets,' ' ^ measure carefully and buy all your sheets at one time because dyelots may vary. It's better to be caught with too much fabric (that you may be able to find creative uses for) than ? . too little. Using sheets can give you a head start on your decorating and save, . you time and money when making a change or starting from scratch. ?>, ? For idera or more information call 4 your Home Economics Extension Agent. Make decorating easier. Plan ahead! For qualified applicants financing a General Elec tric major appliance on a GECC Revolving Charge Plan. After this period, 18% Annual Percentage Rate Finance Charge accrues with $0 Minimum Finance Charge.
The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
July 2, 1987, edition 1
8
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75