WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The 2009 Pork Industry Handbook will soon be on sale through Purdue Extension — The Education Store.

The handbook, in its third edition, is a cooperative effort of the Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service, Pork Checkoff and the U.S. Pork Center for Excellence. It has new content, including industry statistics and historical data, and new information on human resources, swine welfare, genetics, environmental stewardship and worker health.

“The Pork Industry Handbook covers all aspects of pork production — from conception to products — and it includes the most current and up-to-date information available,” said Alan Sutton, Purdue Extension swine specialist.

Also new for 2009 is a DVD version of the handbook that includes all of the information contained in the print version and color versions of all photos and graphics contained in the handbook. It also includes more than 30 how-to videos and more than 20 interactive swine management worksheets producers can use on their own farms.

“What makes the Pork Industry Handbook unique is that it gives producers a resource where they can find information on all aspects of production in one place,” Sutton said. “It gives them the information they need to make key decisions about their operations.

“The handbook also serves as a great resource for training on-farm employees or as a textbook for vocational agriculture classes.”

The 2009 Pork Industry Handbook can be purchased for $100, plus $15 shipping, and the DVD may be purchased for $45, plus $6.50 shipping. The handbook and DVD can be purchased together at a discount rate of $130, plus $15 shipping.

For more information on the handbook, bulk orders and discount rates, contact The Education Store at 888-398-4636, or by e-mail at media.order@purdue.edu. More information is available http://www.extension.purdue.edu/store/2009_PIH_order_form.pdf

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Indiana floods in 2008 and 2009 have left many victims and volunteers wondering how to deal with mold issues.

A Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service IP video event at 2 p.m. May 5 will answer those questions. Experts from Purdue and the Indiana State Department of Health will teach both victims and volunteers helping with flood cleanup how to fight mold and how to stay safe and healthy while removing it.

“We have talked with the case managers of the long-term recovery committees active in Indiana, and mold issues still remain from 2008 and new mold issues are arising in houses flooded in 2009,” said Steve Cain, Purdue Extension specialist and president of the Indiana Voluntary Organization Active in Disaster. “There are many reasons why mold problems persist. Some houses have mold growing in the crawl space, some houses were not cleaned properly and other houses were repaired before they were allowed to properly dry out.”

Scheduled topics include:

• “Drying Out the House,” Karen Zotz, Purdue Extension program leader for consumer and family sciences
• “Personal Safety in Moldy Homes,” Ron Clark, industrial hygienist with the Indiana State Department of Health
• “Cleaning and Removing Mold,” Denise Schroeder, educator, Purdue Extension White County
• “Removing Mold from the House,” Schroeder

Also included will be a question-and-answer session for participants, information on how to contact the mold team for local presentations, and a list of educational materials available to help victims and volunteers deal with mold.

The event is free and will be offered at several Purdue Extension offices throughout the state. For more information about the program and host sites, contact Purdue Extension at 888-EXT-INFO (398-4636). Additional resources on mold can be found online at http://www.extension.purdue.edu/eden. Click on “Floods & Storms” and scroll down to the word “Molds.”

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The 2009 edition of the “Corn & Soybean Field Guide,” a pocket reference that covers corn and soybean production issues, is now available for sale.

The guide, created and distributed by Purdue University’s Crop Diagnostic Training and Research Center, is a handy resource for determining stages of plant development and identifying weeds, insects and plant diseases, as well as plant injury and deficiency symptoms. Center director Corey Gerber said pictures in the guide have been especially helpful to its users.

“The photos help identify types of pests, plant deficiencies and injuries, either related to herbicides or weather,” Gerber said. “The guide is small enough that people can take it to the field and use it as a source on the spot.”

The 2009 guide includes a few new items, including updated nitrogen recommendations and photos of early stage lesions for plant diseases on corn. Gerber said these photos would aid crop advisers, scouts and farmers in diagnosing issues early, allowing ample time to manage problems.

The guide is $6 and can be purchased online or by phone. To purchase online, go to http://www.extension.purdue.edu/store and search for product code ID-179. To order by phone, call (888) EXT-INFO (398-4636).

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Vegetable growers and master gardeners can tour plots by wagon and compare different varieties of pumpkins and sweet corn at the Sept. 9 twilight meeting in Wanatah, Ind., at the Pinney-Purdue Agricultural Center.

The Pumpkin and Sweet Corn Twilight Meeting will begin with registration at 6 p.m. EDT (5 p.m. CDT). Participants will have an opportunity to look at synergistic and supersweet sweet corn varieties, powdery mildew resistant pumpkin varieties and the cucurbit downy mildew sentinel plot.

“We have done some different things with our plots this year,” said Liz Maynard, Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service vegetable crops specialist. “This is the first year we have sprayed for powdery mildew in only half the pumpkin plots, so growers can see a difference.”

During the wagon tours, Rick Foster, Purdue Extension vegetable and fruit crops pest management specialist, will discuss insect management in sweet corn and give an update on corn earworm. Dan Egel, Purdue Extension plant pathologist, will point out various diseases in the fields, and participants will have the chance to see symptoms and ask questions. Maynard will highlight the different varieties in plots and discuss production methods and weed management strategies.

Registration is due by Sept. 2 and costs $5, which can be paid at the door and includes dinner. If the weather permits and the sweet corn is ready for harvest, participants will be able to taste some of the different varieties from the plots at dinner. Those interested can register by contacting Maynard at (219) 785-5674, emaynard@purdue.edu. Registration for those wanting to receive private pesticide applicator recertification credit (PARP) is $15.

Pinney-Purdue Agricultural Center is located at 11402 S. County Line Road. More information is available online at http://www.hort.purdue.edu/fruitveg/events/PumpkinTwiliteTour08.pdf. For additional questions, contact Maynard.

The meeting is sponsored by Purdue Extension and the Northwest Indiana Commercial Horticulture Program, a part of Purdue’s Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Land use and economic development planning takes time and money – two things few cities and counties have in abundance. Thanks to a free online resource developed by Purdue University and the Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant, money no longer needs to be a limiting factor.

The Local Decision Maker (LDM) is a comprehensive planning tool that provides almost instant data for producing a socioeconomic and environmental community snapshot, as well as a portrait of how that community might someday appear.

There is no charge to use the LDM, located at http://ldm.agriculture.purdue.edu/.

The Web-based resource allows government officials to get more bang out of taxpayers’ bucks, said Richard Farnsworth, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant associate director for Extension in Purdue’s Department of Forestry and Natural Resources and a LDM project leader.

“Every comprehensive planning process begins with a community inventory and analysis phase,” Farnsworth said. “Inventory and analysis is also expensive, although much of the data is available from public sources. We have discovered that rural communities and counties spend between 60 percent and 80 percent of their limited budgets on inventory and analysis, thus leaving very little for the actual plan.”

Consultants often are hired by cities and counties to collect and analyze the data for comprehensive plans, said Christine Nolan, chair of the Purdue Extension Land Use Team and a LDM team member.

“A comprehensive plan for a small or midsize city or county can cost $45,000 to $65,000,” Nolan said. “Plans for big metro areas and specialized economic development plans, which require very detailed data, can be into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

The LDM contains government- and geographic information systems-based data in the areas of population, environment and natural resources; land use and land cover; education; and economy and labor markets.

“The two available geographies are counties and school districts,” said Indraneel Kumar, a regional planner at the Purdue Center for Regional Development (PCRD). “GIS-based data for municipalities and townships are works in progress, as are other elements of comprehensive plans, such as transportation, housing, health and human services, and governance.”

By choosing the appropriate data, the online program leads the user through a four-step community audit (”Inventory/Analysis”), a community goal (”Vision/Objectives”), plan development (”Alternative Strategies”) and plan implementation.

“Planners and government officials will be able to use the Local Decision Maker throughout the entire planning process, from beginning to end,” Nolan said.

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