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v~ Seek Master Gardeners (Town and Country Tips by Dave Plocher) S e n i o r - c i t i z e n s , housewives, or anyone with the interest and time can become master gardeners. Individuals with an interest in gardening and the desire to learn and share their knowledge qualify. Six to ten people will be chosen to participate in 30 hours of training during March of 1980. We then ask for the master gardeners to spend 60 hours of their time during the next year or two as volunteer University of Illinois master, gardeners. - Past master gardeners assisted " in answering spring, summer, and fall garden and horticulture calls that came in to the Extension service. Some had special skills in speaking to groups, others helped with s p e c i a l , e d u c a t i o n a l programs. Even with personal schedules, being very busy, 60 hours spread over one or two summers passes quickly. p. For more details or an application, give me a call or write me a note. Homeowiier Horticulture Workshops--Design a landscape for your new or existing home - learn pruning and growing tree fruit techniques familiarize yourself with growing annuals and houseplants -- do all of this at our 1980 Cooperative Ex­ tension service homeowner horticulture wor^hops and seminars this winter. Programs will fit the needs of the townspeople, rural dweller, and farm family. You can enroll in one session or as many as you desire. The programs will all be on Monday, beginning Feb. 11. If you receive mailings regularly from our office, expect information to reach you soon after the new year. If you are not on our mailing lists, give us a call or jot a note to 338-3737, P.O. Box 431, Woodstock, 111., 60098 Corn and Soybean Exports-- Demand factors will play the dominant role in setting prices for corn and soybeans that the harvest is ands export land is becoming a larger and larger part of the demand for U.S. grain. Here is the latest export situation. The USDA projects 1979-80 com exports at 2.5 billion bushels, 17.2 percent more than last year. That means 48.1 million bushels per week must leave the U.S. The first seven weeks of the corn marketing year have averaged 47.6 million bushels. Weather conditions favor greater export rates in the fall than during the winter. Spring and summer conditions will have to be very good. While export flow could be better, the sales rate is good. As of Nov. 11, outstanding sales to all buyers plus accumulated exports totaled almost 1.3 billion bushels compared to only 680 million a year ago. Soybean exports are project at 825 million bushels; up 9.6 percent over last year. Achieving this export projection calls for weekly soybean exports of 15.8 million bushels. The average for the first 12 weeks of the 79-80 soybean marketing year has been 17.1 million bushels The large exports today account for the small crop in the southern hemisphere last spring. We are still waiting to see how that crop is coming along. Are Fluid Limes More Ef­ fective Than Dry Limes?-- During the past year interest has developed in the use of fluid lime. Fluid lime is a suspension of limestone particles in a liquid, generally water. To suspend these particles, limestone must be ground to a fineness of about 200 mesh or finer (40,000 particles per square inch). Also, a clay material is used to help keep the limestone particles in suspension. Just how effective are fluid limes and what are the advantages and disad­ vantages of its use? The effectiveness of any limestone in neutralizing soil acidity is controlled by its purity and fineness. Purity is determined by the carbonate content. The greater the content, the more acids the limestone will neutralize. Fineness controls the speed of reaction. Limestones coarser than 20 mesh are very slow to react and have limited agricultural value. Limestones finer than 100 mesh react within several weeks after application. Thus, fluid limes react very - quickly upon ap­ plication. But dry limestones of the same fineness will react at the same rate. How much fluid limestone is needed? The same amount as of dry limestone of equal purity. Generally a fluid limestone mix will contain about 50 to 55 percent limestone. So 2,000 pounds of fluid lime contain about 1,000 pounds of dry limestone. Therefore, a ton of fluid limestone would be equal to about 1,000 pounds of dry limestone. Fluid limestone has two advantages over the use of dry limestone. It can be spread more evenly and there is no dust loss problem. The biggest disadvantage is the volume of material handled. For example, to satisfy a 2,000 limestone requirement will require about 4,000 pounds of fluid lime. Remember, in evaluating any limestone, consider both its carbonate content and fineness. This is the measure of its effectiveness. Few Farmers Hedge--A 1976 survey by the USDA's - ESCS showed that only 5.6 percent of farmers with annual gross commodity sales of over $10,000 traded in the futures market - one form of hedging. However, 13.1 percent of farmers with sales over $100,000 did participate. Commodity sales by this group of far­ mers accounted for 60 percent of the U.S. farm sales. 10,000 farmers representative of U.S. Pregnant, NEED HELP? Call BIRTHRIGHT OFFICE OPEN 9 To 11 A M AND FROM 7 to 9 PM MON thru FRI , 24 HOUR ANSWERING SERVICi 15-385-299' agriculture were surveyed. With the great risk in farming today, farmers could use hedging to offset the risk they take. But the complexity of the financing required seems to be one factor that is slowing the use of futures Jtccording to the survey. While few farmers use the future market to reduce risk nearly one-third of the sampled farmers in the USDA survey, kept tract of the futures market. Other forms of hedging do exist. One commonly used is forward contracting. Price outlook and sales management are important topics to be familiar with if you are a top farmer. Twenty farmers will have the opportunity to par­ ticipate in a special workshop on these topics in late February. If you wish to have more information on these, give me a call or write: 338-3737, P.O. Box 431, Woodstock, 111., 60098. 1980 Farmer's Tax Guides Available--Need to know the dates and filing requirements for filling out your 1979 Federal Income Tax return? Need help in deciding how the tax laws apply to your farming situation? Copies of the 1980 edition of the Farmer's Tax guide are available at McHenry County Cooperative Ex­ tension service office, 789 McHenry avenue, Wood­ stock, 111., 60098, phone - 815- 338-3737 or 4747 and most banks in the county. The guides provide current in­ formation for use in preparing your 1979 return. The guides were prepared by a National Extension Task Force on which C. Allen Bock, University of I l l i n o i s E x t e n s i o n agricultural law specialist, served. Reseed Alfalfa-Increase Yields--Younger alfalfa stands produced higher yields in studies by North Dakota State University researcher Dwain Meyer. Precipitation naturally affects yield. So one, two, and three year old stands were compared in the same year. The results put the one, year old crop out ahead. The^ two year old produced .79 tons of dry matter less per acre. The three year old crop 1.19 tons less. Meyer reasons that the deep rooted alfalfa plant depletes the sub-soil moisture over time. New stands in new fields or in a field left fallow for a season finds the sub-soil moisture built up. Recommendations are to rotate alfalfa stands every 3- 4 years. If higher water tables exist, then reestablish when the number of alfalafa plants per square foot is less than 2-4. Past 65 It Is Never Too Late To Go Back To College. SEAMLESS GUTTERS offered by R ft I ENTERPRISES Aluminum Facia, Soffiting & Siding FOR FREE ESTIMATE CALL: 815-385-7784 We specialize in homemade goodness: French Fries and Mashed Potatoes made from real potatoes...homemade dinner rolls, baked minutes before they're served...a diverse breakfast menu, featuring homemade sweet rolls and real hash browns. Try our luncheon Blue Plate Special or Cocktails anytime during the day. All served in an elegant decor of the nostalgic 1930s and 1940s. Wednesday Nite - Family Style Chicken *3.45 J (all you can ear) frlday Nlte - Family Style Fish( a l l . ' 3 . 5 0 Saturday Nlte - Prime .Rib We are as simple as a Little Sister Burger or as sophisticated as Veal Oscar...try our Qeviche! NOW OPEN Tuesday thru Saturday 7 a.m. - fO p.m. Sunday 7 a.m. - 6 p.m.; Closed Mondays Gift Certificates Available. The INN of the b 248 n. throop street free parking woorlstock. Illinois across the strjeet 815/338-7922 > ' ~ by Carl Eiblet Jr. InterOcean Press Syndicate Lots of people past 65 have happy recollections of the days of their youth when they could sketch with a pencil, and even paint a picture that bore a fair likeness to the subject. Then, for 40 or SO years the demands of making a living and raising a family stopped any effort to become an artist. In the days of retirement they sometimes itch to try it again. Cecilia B. is a widow of 67 who wants to study art. She writes: "I'm restless with nothing to do. My son and his nice wife think I should go back tfecollege. I quit college in my sophomore year 47 years ago. If I go back to study painting I'm afraid the students will make fun of MAA 9 9 me. A. -- Cecilia's fear is not well grounded. Many elderly ladies and gentlemen go back to college to study all sorts of things - nursing, bookkeeping, philosophy, law and art. The young students at the university in my town have demonstrated that they like to have elderly students in their midst who think young and want to produce. If Cecilia goes to art school she may be surprised at how well she can do..If she can hold a pencil and a brush, she is not too old to learn again to paint and, who knows, profit by it, as the widow of a retired army colonel experienced when she went to art school at 70 and, to her happy surprise, later sold some of her best work. ' Q. - '*In 1977 I had eye surgery. Last April I had surgery on the other eye. I haven't been able to work ever since because my vision is 20-100. I am 55 and a widow. Now I find that I cannot get employment due both to my age and my condition. Am I eligible for Social Security disability payments? If not, can you tell me what kind of em­ ployment I could apply for?" - Bette U. A. - Bette isn't as bad off for a job as she may think. She is close by to a wonderful organization. Her telephone directory lists the state Commission for the Blind. If she will telephone that of­ fice, which is funded under the federal Vocational Rehabilitation act, a case worker will visit her at home. Bette Arill be interviewed and then arrangements will be made to give her a vision test, a medical exam, vocational evaluation, and job motivation analysis. The tests are free, provided by the commission's strict obligation to give help to the blind and those who .have poor vision. The organization ean purchase training for her, sending her to a trade school or even to college. Every state in the union has such a com­ mission, a good friend for the sightless and the sight- impaired. Help is im­ mediate. The commission can supply accurate and helpful answers to almost any question Bette has, including Social Security information. < Q. - "I will be 65 next April. My birth date was April 1,1915. When I enlisted in the U.S. Army, my birth date was listed, as April, 1919. What can I do to find my correct age?" - George P. A. - If George knows his birth place, he should have no trouble getting a birth certificate attesting to his birth in 1915, instead of 1919. All he has to do is write to the county administration of that birth place, and ask for a birth certificate. There was a time in the U.S. when people might have difficulty proving birth. For example, my father was born in New Caledonia, 111. The cour­ thouse was destroyed by fire and all the records lost. In 1930, when he needed a birth certificate, at first he couldn't even prove he had been born. He eventually obtained a substitute cer­ tificate, but with great difficulty. Q. - "We who need oxygeri at times, cannot travel by air even though jet aircr&ft have built-in oxygen systems. Oxygen is available foir those who need it at all major terminals but not on the aircraft. Why not? I am not referring to the emergency oxygen systems that come out of the ceilings of planes in pressure emergencies." - Charles P. A. -v Charles is misin­ formed, at least in the general sense. Most of the large airlines will have oxygen on hand for those who are ill and need it while flying. American Airlines, for example, will supply oxygen service to any passenger needing it at a nominal charge if the passenger will hotify the airline of his need before flight. ' Write to Carl Riblet, Jr. at Box 40757, Tucson, Ariz., ,85717 for information and advice on questions you may have as a senior citizen, with self-addressed, stamped envelope. All questions will be answered. Cheer^Uff If you can look happy when you aren't, you'll get along all right. -Current, Carlsbad, N.M. Bureaucratic Shell Game- Governor James R. Thompson last week ap­ pealed to the White House to stop a new Department of Health, Education and Welfare polciy that will cost Illinois more than $40 million in federal aid beginning next July 1. "The HEW plan would achieve a one-time federal savings through the bureaucratic shell game device of delaying payments to the states long enough to roll $400 million-plus over into another fiscal year," said Thompson. The loss to the state could only be made up at state taxpayer expense or through cuts in essential services, according to the governor. SPEEDUP . . . The* de­ vices being constructed at a San Diego, California plant are computerized gate* which allow transit system passen­ gers to insert credit-card-rire tickets and dip through turn­ stiles in one motion. BHttf BRttFS j And there can\e a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him. St. Luke 9:35 Unlike the disciples, we shall receive no messages directly from God. We shall witness no miracles. Is this really true? God speaks to us in many ways. The problem is tfifaft we are so concerned with keeping up. with getting ahead, that we do not see or hear. •y The word of God is found in the Bible, in the church. We should seek it out and riot go along our busy ways hoping for a voice from the clouds. Observed One of the hardest secrets for a man to keep is his opinion of himself. -Courier, Bristol, Va. all our fine Home Furnishings go on SALE this month during Donahue!s wniT Starting Wednesday, December 26 Save 10% to 30% Donahue's Sale of distinctive home furnishings starts tomorrow. We welcome you to our most beautiful living rooms, dining rooms. bedrooms, and an outstanding,selection of occasional furniture. It's all attractively priced for the Sale, well worth your undivided atten­ tion. Set aside an hour or two and join us! > plus save 20% on Furnishings ordered 1 especially for you. . . luxurious upholstered pieces in your choice of fabric or leather from Henredon, Drexel, North Hickory, Sher- rill, Conover and other famous makers. Our Reputation is your Guarantee DONAHUE FURNITURE FURNITURE SHOWPLACE OF THE MID-WEST 815-338-1086