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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 24, 2016)
Polk County Living 12A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • February 24, 2016 Grow fruit trees with confidence People tend to have a love-hate relationship with their fruit trees. The fruit they love; the work they hate. The spraying regimen turns off home gardeners, said Steve Renquist, horti- culturist with Oregon State University’s Extension Serv- ice. But times have changed. Research has resulted in easier methods of dealing with pests and diseases, from resistant trees to low- toxicity products. For years, Renquist and the rest of OSU’s Extension horticultur- ists have been advocating for integrated pest manage- ment or IPM, an approach using the most effective, least-toxic methods first. When Renquist teaches classes in what he calls low- input gardening, he starts by recommending that home gardeners choose the most disease- and pest-resistant varieties. The Extension master gardeners can rec- ommend relevant trees, as can nurseries with expertise in fruit trees. “If you start from that point, you’ve got a much better chance of having a low-input orchard,” he said. “You don’t have to be con- stantly spraying for some- thing.” Apples and pears are the Smith K YM P OKORNY Levi Daniel Smith was born to Dan and Julianna Smith, of Dallas, at 3 p.m. on Feb. 11 at Salem Hospital Family Birth Center. He weighed 7 pounds, 15 ounces, and was 20 inches long. Levi is the couple’s first child. Grandparents are Randy and Jeani Bath, of Bonanza, and Dan Smith, of Dallas. Your Garden two most common fruit trees grown in Oregon be- cause they can be grown throughout most of the state. But everyone seems to want to grow cherries, even though they’re not the easi- est choice. “Everybody has the desire to grow cherries,” Renquist said, “but after you try to grow them and keep the birds away, you realize you’re putting a lot of effort into feeding the birds. And they get a number of dis- eases, too, which com- pounds it. One of the real tortures of homes gardeners is wanting to grow cherries.” So he advises sticking to apples, pears and, if you’re in the right areas, stone fruits such as peaches, plums and prunes. If you’re partial to figs and persim- mons, by all means plant them; those fruits are almost entirely carefree. After choosing an appro- priate variety, the next step is to be vigilant about moni- toring for pest insects with pheromone traps, which COMMUNITY CALENDAR PHOTO BY LYNN KETCHUM Pheromone traps are an efective strategy for control- ling insects on fruit trees, including coddling moths on apples and pears. can be purchased from farm stores or online. The tent- shaped traps have bases smeared with a sticky sub- stance. On the trap bottom, place a lure with pheromones that waft a scent to attract certain in- sects. Starting in late spring, hang the traps in the trees and check each week. If there are more than the tar- get level of insects caught in the trap in one week, spray- ing with the least toxic spray is recommended. If not, knock off the ones trapped and start counting again in the new week. On top of that, the recom- mendations for sprays are for low-impact sprays, many of them organic, though Renquist points out that even some organic products have risks. A good reference for disease and pest control is Extension’s Managing Dis- eases and Insects in Home Orchards, which has a list of cultural practices and least toxic products for various pests and diseases. For in- formation on specific prod- ucts on the list contact your local master gardeners. MI TOWN What a treat to read of Western Oregon University reaching No. 1 ranking in NCAA Division II basketball. Congratulations to all the players, coaches and every- one who has worked so hard to achieve this exceptional goal. Our Wolves were No. 1 in the Great Northern Ath- letic Conference last year for the first time, and team members have built upon that success. — The Monmouth Senior Center celebrates February birthdays this Friday with ice cream and cake and fun games beginning at 1 p.m. This is a great oppor- tunity for folks to get to- gether for conversation and socializing, and to dis- cover all the things the center has to offer for sen- iors. If you’re new to the area, or haven’t been to the center in quite a while, this BIRTHS P ATTY T AYLOR D UTCHER Columnist is a good time to visit and make new friends. — Burgerville’s recent family literacy event was a great adventure for kids and adults and everyone who participated in the fun. Thanks to collaboration be- tween Burgerville, the Mon- mouth Public Library and Goodwill, kids and their families were able to receive free books, coloring pages, discounts on meals and free ice cream cones. Thanks to Burgerville team manager, Colleen Spencer and Chil- dren’s Librarian, Carrie Kasperick for the first of what promises to be a monthly event. Burgerville general manager Robert Henry continues to be sup- portive of community fundraising events. — Along with my other ac- tivities, I’m a wedding offi- ciant and often help brides and grooms with flowers, wedding cakes and even rings. It’s been such a pleas- ure to be able to recom- mend Petals and Vines, Ovenbird Baker y and Sandy’s Jewelry – where I’ve been privileged to know Maggie, Katie and Sandy. I’ve officiated at weddings in Main Street Park, and it’s fun to say that MI Town has everything for brides and grooms without breaking the budget. — Monmouth residents Carol Infranca and Lee Schlenker are celebrating their silky terrier, Flash’s, win in the breed competition at the recent Westminster Ken- nel Club’s annual dog show at Madison Square Garden in New York. Flash’s sister, Allie (who is owned by two other people), went one bet- ter with the Best in Breed trophy at the same event. Flash is now off to other dog shows in California, but will soon return to MI Town where he will enjoy being a family pet. — Whether or not you ob- serve the Lenten Season, it’s a good time to clear away those things that you don’t need. Every day of the 40 days (counting back to Ash Wednesday), put an item in a container or big plastic bag. By Easter, you can do- nate those items to an or- ganization that helps others — and have more space in your home. Continued from page 11A — WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2 (CONTINUED) • Yarning for Others — 3 to 5 p.m., St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 1486 SW Levens St., Dallas. Knitters and crocheters gather to make clothing and accessories for those in need on the irst Wednesday of every month. 503-689-7222. • Lenten series — 5:30 to 8 p.m., St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 1486 SW Levens St., Dallas. Free. Worship service at 5:30; soup supper at 6; video lecture series on Old Testament followed by discussion from 7 to 8. OBITUARIES Continued from Page 11A Earla Mae Cooley Feb. 24, 1933 – Feb. 14, 2016 Earla Mae Cooley, 82, of Dallas died Feb. 14 in Dal- las. S h e was born in Scott C o u n t y, Mo. , t o Cecil and Lela Vir- g i n i a Christian Watkins. She lived in and around the Dallas area for many years. She had been mar- ried to Loren Cooley for the past 38 years. They married in Reno, Nev. Mae worked at the Coo- ley Furniture Store until she retired in 2011. She was a longtime Avon representa- tive carrying a double route for all of the years she worked with the cosmetic company. She earned many Pre s i d e n t i a l Aw a rd s through the years. Mae enjoyed going out to Spirit Mountain and playing bingo or wherever she could find a game. She was an optimistic woman that could laugh through most situations in life. Survivors include her husband, Loren; sons, Larr y Watkins, Lannie Wa t k i n s , a n d L o n n i e Watkins; stepsons, Steve Cooley and David Cooley; 13 grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild. Private family gathering will be held. Bollman Funeral Home handled arrangements. To send an online trib- ute: www.dallastribute. com. Furniture Upholstery All types: for homes, offices, equip- ment. Also, repairs, RV cushions, slipcovers, High Quality since 1966 Stephen Winters Sewing 503-838-4999 or 503-375-9266 Emmy Joseph 440 E. St • Independence, OR 97351 www.winterssewing.com Serving Polk County 16yrs PEDEE NEWS Allen and Tammy Shifley’s daughter Amy is a junior at George Fox University in Newberg and was on the dean’s list last term. She is studying in Spain, working on her graphic design de- gree. She speaks Spanish and is getting better all the time. — Paul and Diane Telfer just returned from three weeks in Costa Rica, where they stayed at a friend’s rental. They spent most of their time hiking (10 miles a day!) and birdwatching. Diane al- ways wanted to see a toucan in the wild, and she did. They also loved seeing the capuchin monkeys in the trees — very cute but very aggressive. Temperatures A RLENE K OVASH Columnist were nice, but it was very humid, so they were happy to get home. — Jacob North did it again. He won Polk County Women for Agriculture’s Constitu- tional essay contest by writ- ing on five things he learned when reading the Constitu- tion. His prize was $300. The women sponsor the contest for Polk County high school students every year to en- courage them to read and understand our Constitu- tion. — The Pedee Women’s Club just learned that Connie Ames’ daughter Renee Ames-Dukes, got engaged to Douglas Pierce on Thanks- giving. They will be getting married in the park in Dallas in June. On Monday, mem- bers will have a sewing day to make the next raffle quilt to support the soldier fund, and all are invited. If you can’t sew, they’ll set you up at the ironing board to press seams as others sew. Or you can keep the sewers compa- ny as they work. — I came home from an “Ag First” meeting last week, ex- cited about the Mid-Valley Winter Ag Fest that will be held this weekend at the Polk County Fairgrounds. It is being held in conjunction with the home show and will have a wide variety of fun events for kids and adults, all to give attendees a sense of what agriculture is like in Polk County. I think it will be fun and in- teresting to go to, especially for the kids. I’m all for everyone understanding where their food come from and how county farmers are a part of that. Ag First is a coalition of Polk County agriculture groups working to promote and educate about ag. 2016 Relay For Life Of Polk County — June 4-5 is back at Riverview Park in Independence ....and with it comes the opportunity to be a part of the largest worldwide fight against cancer! It’s no coincidence that since the first Relay For Life over 30 years ago, the survivor rate has risen from 45% to nearly 70%. In Oregon alone, millions of dollars are being invested in prevention and espe- cially treatments that are more personalized and thus more effective. Sitting on the sidelines in Polk County is no longer an option. We can hope ~ or we can help through our support of Relay For Life as a sponsor, a team member, or simply as a guest of the event. The following sponsors are already on board for 2016. Now it’s your turn! The deadline for submitting a sponsorship is April 15. Please join me in thanking these sponsors for joining the Relay For Life fight vs cancer: West Valley Hospital West Valley Physicians & Surgeons Clinic/Dr. John Hadley City of Independence The Majestic/Ray Stratton Polk County Itemizer-Observer MINET Eola Hills Wine Cellars Statewide Rent-A-Fence Dutch Bros. Dallas Retirement Village Dr. Michelle Hasbrook. DDS Polk County Association of Realtors Brandt Sanitary Service West Valley Surgical Specialty Clinic/Dr. Alison Smith Monmouth Medical Center/Dr. Charles Essex Bookey Strong Dallas Aquatic Center Les Schwab Tire Centers of Dallas, Independence, and West Salem NW Natural Partnerships In Community Living, Inc Royal Flush/Tony Teal Central Lions Club Western Days Limeberry Frozen Yogurt Salem Sand Club Relay For Life of Polk County will take place at Riverview Park in Independence June 4~5. If you or someone you know is interested in sponsorship, contact Lyla Bruce at 503-508-9277, or online at aquarius1251@yahoo.com, or visit our website at www.relayforlife.org/polk countyor R E C Y C L E T H I S N E W S PA P E R ! We’re on a hunt for local Easter Egg Hunt events! Send us an email with information about the event to: ionews@polkio.com by noon on Friday, March 18th. 147 SE Court St., Dallas 503-623-2373 • www.polkio.com Visit our website, www.polkio.com ...for local news, sports and community events. Follow us on
