Phelps County Extension Center

Phelps County Extension Council Election

Phelps County University of Missouri Extension Council elections will be held Monday, February 13 to Friday, February 17, 2012. Polling places will be set up at several public places throughout the county to enable local residents to vote in this public election. The elected members of the Extension Council will guide and direct extension work within the county. Below are a slate of candidates and their profiles and the official ballot.

2012 Slate of Candidates & Profile (PDF)

2012 Offical Ballot (PDF)

In Touch With Extension

The latest issue of In Touch with Extension, the Phelps County extension newsletter, is available. This issue covers strategies for food preservation, homework, food alternatives, small business week, growing your own food, and budgeting. Oct-Dec 2011 (PDF)

Goodbye and welcome!

As we say goodbye to Mick Gilliam, retiring business development specialist. We welcome Tony Bratsch, our new horticulture specialist and Ray Walden, our new part time business development specialist. Please stop by or call to welcome Tony and Ray to the office.

Soil testing

Don’t guess. Soil tests save time and money.

Soil testing is the best guide to the wise and efficient use of fertilizer and soil amendments, said Manjula Nathan, director of the University of Missouri Extension Soil Testing and Plant Diagnostic Services.

Whether you grow acres of row crops or have a vegetable patch in the backyard, a soil test will provide you with an analysis of nutrients and a set of recommendations for any improvements.

“We frequently get questions from customers like, ‘I apply fertilizer every year. How come my plants are not doing well?’” Nathan said.

“Most of the time the problem is they never have done a soil test, but have been guessing on fertilizer requirements,” she said. “They do not realize that by guessing they are wasting money by over- or underapplication, and the excess fertilizer can end up in streams, ponds and underground water, polluting the environment.”

Soil testing can be done through the extension office. The cost is $14 per sample and mailed to the lab every Friday with a turn around time of about two weeks. Soil testing publications