The UConn Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN) website is live. Check it out and discover the resources available for families, communities, workplaces and agriculture.
Climate Adaptation & Resiliency
Advancing Adaptation and Resilience in a Changing Climate
Is Mold Causing You Health Problems?
Does your home have a mold problem? Visit the Healthy Homes Partnership for more information on keeping your home safe.
Don’t Spread Lead
Are you a home improvement do-it-yourselfer? If your home was built before 1978, watch this informative video before starting any projects.
Energy Efficient Homes are Green
Energy efficient homes are green? Visit the Healthy Homes Partnership for more information on making your home energy efficient.
Highlights of Extension
Learn how UConn Extension is tying research to real life in your community through our 2015 Highlights of Extension.
Obscure Mealybug Confirmed in CT Nursery
By: Joan Allen UConn Plant Diagnostic Lab The obscure mealybug (Pseudococcus viburni) has been confirmed for the first time in Connecticut. High populations were present on numerous host plants in a Connecticut nursery in the fall of 2015. Samples were submitted to the UConn Plant Diagnostic Lab for identification by Donna Ellis, UConn Nursery […]
Carbon Monoxide: The Silent Killer
Carbon monoxide is a silent killer? Visit the Healthy Homes Partnership for more information on keeping your home safe.
Asthma and Allergies
Are asthma and allergies a problem in your home? Visit the Healthy Homes Partnership for more information on keeping your home safe.
Is Your Home Well Ventilated?
Is your home well ventilated? Visit the Healthy Homes Partnership for more information on keeping your home safe.
2016 Turfgrass Field Day
The 2016 Turfgrass Field Day at the University of Connecticut offers exciting educational opportunities for turfgrass professionals of all levels. The date of the Field Day has been selected in order to provide the best opportunity to view the research plots when they are under the greatest summer stress. Cutting edge research in the areas […]
Poop Happens
By Diane Wright Hirsch, UConn Extension Educator Farm animals poop. Why should that matter to me…a frequent farm visitor? We all poop. Dogs poop, cats poop, cows and even goats poop. It is a natural process that rids our bodies of indigestible food and waste products. Unfortunately, it is also a way to carry […]
Did You Know: Mapping the Industry
Shellfish aquaculture is a large and growing part of Connecticut’s agriculture sector, but site selection is a major challenge. Farmers cultivate oysters, clams and scallops in designated areas of Long Island Sound. Those sites are considered public property and are leased from the state. Farmers need to identify growing areas that are biologically productive […]
Did You Know: Drones at Work
Mapping Great Gull Island with an Unmanned Aircraft Assistant Extension Educator Joel Stocker spends a lot of his work and personal time documenting changes to the shoreline. In 2010 he contacted Helen Hays, asking if he could capture photographs over Great Gull Island with his homemade drone. She agreed. While on the island, Helen told […]
Did You Know: Climate Adaptation
One Size Fits All Won’t Work When the subject of climate change comes up, the first thing that comes to mind for many people is the impact of sea level rise on coastal communities. While the impacts of Tropical Storm Irene and Superstorm Sandy grab the headlines, with dramatic pictures of flooding, collapsed houses and […]
Spirit & Sense of Place in Relation to the Naugatuck River Greenway
Posted on September 25, 2015 on Extension Community & Economic Development By John McDonald, Extension Intern The Romans advanced the concept of the genius loci, or protective spirit dwelling in a certain place. The same idea, minus the superstitious trappings of polytheism, is today reflected in the notions of spirit and sense of place. Spirit of […]
Did You Know: Lily Leaf Beetle
A Sustainable and Viable Non-Pesticide Alternative Release and monitoring of two distinct biological control agents (the parasitoid wasps Tetrastichus setifer and Diaparsis jucunda) for biological control of lily leaf beetle began in Connecticut in 2012 under the direction of Extension Educator Donna Ellis. These beneficial insects have also been released in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, […]
Let’s Talk Trails
Originally Posted on October 23, 2015 By John McDonald, Extension Intern The Let’s Talk Trails event held in October at Torrington City Hall was arguably a gathering of the most important people involved in trail development, construction and maintenance in the state of Connecticut. Bruce Donald, Chairman of the Connecticut Greenways Council and President of […]
This is Nuts!
By Tom Worthley, Associate Extension Professor, Forestry, UConn Extension Wow, there were tons of acorns this past fall…literally tons. At least it seemed so, in my yard alone! There really were lots of acorns in many areas, and this phenomenon does occur every now and then, why is that? Why the great abundance of acorns […]
Ricard Honored by American Foresters
UConn Extension is pleased to announce that Dr. Bob Ricard, Senior Extension Educator, was presented the 2015 Technology Transfer Award from the Society of American Foresters (SAF). The national awards were presented at SAF National Convention held in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, November 3-7, 2015, with the award presented during the November 5, Plenary Session. A […]
Warm December Weather May Spell Trouble for Plants
By Dawn Pettinelli, UConn Home & Garden Education Center Usually this time of year the UConn Home & Garden Education Center is flooded with calls about the care of holiday plants. Not so this year. Instead many of the calls have been about the unusual plant behavior Connecticut residents are noticing in their gardens […]
Casey’s Clean Air Week
As part of an outreach and education effort, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), along with UConn Extension’s Healthy Environments for Children Initiative, has developed a children’s book on air quality, titled Casey’s Clean Air Week (flipbook, pdf). The purpose of this book is to teach young children (approximately 4 to 7 years old) about […]
The Role of Greenways and Multi-Use Trails in Connecticut
Posted on September 20, 2015 on Extension Community & Economic Development By John McDonald, Extension Intern The concept of a network of trails in the state of Connecticut dates back to 1929, when the Connecticut Forest and Park Association established the blue-blazed hiking trail system (CFPA, 2006). In many cases, these trails follow steep ridge lines in […]
Cross Pollination Adventure for Hartford County 4-H
By Stacey Stearns Hartford County 4-H members will have the unique opportunity to participate in a Cross Pollination Adventure this summer. They will partner with a Costa Rican outdoor education center as part of a Cooperative International Learning Experience. UConn Extension has partnered with CIRENAS (Centro de Investigación de Recursos Naturales y Sociales) in Costa […]
Study Underway to Assess the Economic Impact of the Naugatuck River Greenway Trail
The Naugatuck River Greenway (NRG) Steering Committee has initiated a 2015-2016 study to catalog the economic and quality of life impacts that will result from the construction of the Naugatuck River Greenway trail, a planned multi-use trail along the Naugatuck River. The study is designed to assist each of the 11 greenway municipalities and local […]
Ricard Receives Provost Award in Public Engagement
UConn Extension is pleased to announce that Dr. Robert M. Ricard, Senior Extension Educator; has been selected by UConn for the Provost’s Award for Excellence in Public Engagement in the Non-Tenure Track Faculty category. Bob has acquired a distinguished state, regional, and national reputation for his scholarship, teaching (formal and informal), and service. All three […]
CT Envirothon
Several UConn Extension educators worked at the Envirothon Event on May 21st. It’s a great event and well worth all the effort that goes into it. UConn Extension’s Donna Ellis made a presentation at the teacher’s workshop (as the technical expert) during the event on invasive species which is next year’s current issue challenge. This year’s current […]
Highlights of Extension
The Highlights of Extension showcase our program achievements from the past year. Learn more about our various programs and how they tie research to real life.
First Place in Storytelling with Maps
Last week at the Esri International User Conference in San Diego, UConn Center for Land Use Education and Research‘s Emily Wilson and Chet Arnold received the First Place Award in the Science/Technology/Education category of the Esri Storytelling with Maps Contest. There were over 400 submissions to the contest and only 5 first place winners. Over 16,000 […]
Different Perspective
This photo mosaic was taken by #UConnExtension’s Joel Stocker with his quadricopter of the field burn conducted in early May at the Middlesex County Extension Center. Burns like this are conducted periodically as a training exercise for Junior Firefighters and as a management/maintenance practice to sustain the population of native warm-season grasses we encourage as […]
Living Shoreline Workshop
Connecticut Sea Grant and Extension’s CLEAR hosted the second Living Shoreline Workshop in June as part of the Climate Adaptation Academy. This workshop brought over 100 participants together to hear experts from Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan and other states including Connecticut talk about different aspects of living shorelines including on the ground examples and what has […]
Sugaring Manure
Connecticut has more manure nutrients than we need for our crops. UConn Extension Educator Rich Meinert and two summer interns spent Friday “sugaring” manure. Just like maple growers sugar sap by boiling away the water we will be sugaring liquid dairy manure from a screw press separator to remove the water so that we […]
UConn Extension Interns Tie Research to Real Life
Each year, UConn students apply and compete for paid internship opportunities with UConn Extension, whose mission is to connect the power of UConn research to local issues by creating practical, science-based answers to complex problems. This summer, 13 students are tying research to real life in our UConn Extension offices across the state. Santiago Palaez […]
IPM at Bishop’s Orchards in Guilford
Through its offices located throughout Connecticut, UConn Extension connects the power of UConn research to local issues by creating practical, science-based answers to complex problems. Extension provides scientific knowledge and expertise to the public in areas such as: economic viability, business and industry, community development, agriculture and natural resources. This post, written by Mary Concklin […]
Common Blue Violet: Wildflower or Weed?
Photo and article by Joan Allen for UConn Extension The common blue violet (Viola sororia), also known as common meadow violet, purple violet, woolly blue violet, or wood violet, is a native perennial plant found throughout eastern North America. Some references give woolly blue violet (a variety with fuzzy leaves) its own species name but […]
National Adaptation Forum
By Juliana Barrett Connecticut Sea Grant and UConn Extension In early May, over 700 people gathered in St Louis, MO for the second National Adaptation Forum (NAF). The purpose of the NAF is to promote and share climate adaptation research, issues, tools and strategies. Participants gathered from across the United States and Canada including federal, […]
Build a Rain Garden
Want to build a beautiful garden that also helps to protect local waterways? Let the NEMO Rain Garden App show you how. Spring means the urge to create gardens. Spring also means rain and polluted runoff flowing into the street, down the storm drain, and into the local brook or wetland. Why not solve both […]
Using Water Wisely
By Faye Griffiths-Smith UConn Extension Educator Family Economics and Resource Management With the recent water restrictions in California, we all need to consider our water use, and what steps can be taken to reduce our consumption. Did you know that the average person in the U.S. uses 100 gallons of water every day? Drinking, […]
NOAA Website Uses CLEAR Technologies
The NOAA Office for Coastal Management has come out with a new web-mapping site, How to Use Land Cover Data as A Water Quality Indicator, that was constructed based on a project that UConn Extension’s Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR) did for them in 2013. It uses metrics and analyses recommended by CLEAR, and in […]
My Connecticut Woods
Middlesex County Extension Center Announces a Year-long Series of Twelve Workshops for Woodland Owners and Nature Lovers called My Connecticut Woods. Workshop #1: Field Trip to a Local Vernal Pool Come join us as the UConn Extension Forestry Team and guest lecturers explore a variety of topics about Connecticut’s natural resources. Each class will begin […]
Tree Warden Banquet
The Tree Warden’s Association of CT held their 23rd Annual Meeting and Dinner on March 26, 2015. The speaker was Colleen Murphy-Dunning who is Program Director at the Hixon Center for Urban Ecology at Yale (Partnerships for Improved Urban Forest management Presentation). Roy Cavanaugh, Watertown Public Works Director, received an award for his work with […]