The Anderson County Extension has been bombared with questions about the American Burnweed. American Burnweed, better known as Fireweed, is a particularly obnoxious weed in the early spring. It usually appears in April, seemingly out of the blue, and can look like its literally taking over your yard. It has big fat leaves that really stick out like a sore thumb in your in-the-process-of-greening-up lawn.

Fireweed comes from seeds blowing around in the spring storms. Fireweed produces small white or greenish flowers that go to seed like dandelion puffs, and then they go everywhere. The seeds float down and root in the thatch layer of your lawn. (This is little pieces of dead grass, leaves, and other lawn detritus thats on the dirt at the base of your grass.)

Since its not rooted into the soil, it pulls up very easily, and when the weather heats up, and you start mowing regularly, it will dry up and die. Until then, we can treat it with a good post-emergent broadleaf herbicide in April and May.

Post Emergence Control:

A three-way herbicide may be used on Bermuda grass, Zoysia grass, Centipede grass, St. Augustine grass and tall fescue. The active ingredients of a three-way herbicide often include the following broadleaf weed killers: 2,4-D, Dicamba, and Mecoprop (MCPP). Examples of a three-way herbicide are Ferti-lome Weed-Out Lawn Weed Killer with Trimec, Bayer Advanced Southern Weed Killer for Lawns, Spectracide Weed Stop Weed Killer for Lawns, Southern Ag Lawn Weed Killer with Trimec, and Lilly Miller Lawn Weed Killer Concentrate.

Note: Herbicides containing 2,4-D should be applied at a reduced rate on St. Augustine grass and centipede grass to prevent damage to these lawns. If a second application is needed, apply the herbicide in spot treatments. Repeated applications of a three-way herbicide should be spaced according to label directions.

In addition to three-way herbicides, Metsulfuron (such as in Manor and Blade) can be used for Fireweed control in Bermuda grass, Centipede grass, St. Augustine grass, and Zoysia grass. Metsulfuron is packaged for landscape professionals.

Due to the cost and application rate of this selective herbicide, it may be more practical to hire a landscape professional to apply the treatment. A non-ionic surfactant (such as Southern Ag Surfactant for Herbicides) is required at 2 teaspoons per gallon of spray mix for best control. Do not apply Metsulfuron to lawn if over-seeded with annual ryegrass or over-seed for 8 weeks after application. Do not plant woody ornamentals in treated areas for one year after application of Metsulfuron.

Do not apply Metsulfuron herbicides within two times the width of the drip line of desirable hardwood trees. Do not apply Metsulfuron to Fescue Lawns.

There is no pre-emergent for Fireweed, because it doesnt root in the soil in the first place.

The rest is here:
Anderson County Extension answers lawn questions about American Burnweed

Despite five-and-a-half million newborn and stillborn baby deaths each year, investment in newborn health remains very low. Thats one of the findings in a series of papers published in the medical journal The Lancet. The research also shows the vast majority of those deaths could be prevented. Listen to De Capua report on preventing newborn deaths Lead researcher Joy Lawn said the research is the most accurate estimate yet on the number of deaths of newborns and stillbirths. Every year there are two-point-nine-million babies who die in the first month of life -- and most shockingly a million who die on their birthday, the first day. And there are two-point-six-million stillbirths -- most shockingly, one-point-two-million who die while the woman is in labor. So together this is five-and-a-half-million babies, she said. Most of the deaths are in low and middle income countries. But rich nations, she said, are not immune. There are about 500,000 pre-term births in the United States every year. The three leading causes around the world are pre-term births, birth complications -- so where women dont get the right care during labor. And babies that are full-term can have damage and even die because of lack of care during labor and then, thirdly, infections, she said. Lawn is a professor and Director of the March Center at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and an advisor to Save the Children UK. She said many babies and their mothers could be saved for just a few dollars worth of medical care. In this series we show very clearly that 71-percent of newborn deaths can be prevented with solutions that we have already. And that together, three-million women, babies counting newborns and stillbirths could be saved every year with investments at the time of birth. So thats a triple return on investment with care at the time of birth, she said. That care includes simple things like keeping the baby warm; helping it learn to breastfeed and making sure it has skin to skin contact with its mother. Also, Lawn said there are injections that can greatly improve the odds of a babys survival. One injection prevents tetanus infections, a nearly always fatal condition for babies. Another contains corticosteroids and is given to women in pre-term labor. Corticosteroids affect stress and immune response and inflammation. They help premature babies improve their breathing. This is standard treatment in rich nations, but not in developing countries. It costs less than one dollar. Lawn said that its been known for many years that a large number of newborns die. Yet, funding to prevent the problem remains low. Of the billions of dollars that are given for child survival, only four-percent of that donor funding even mentions the word newborn. And yet 44-percent of under-five deaths are among newborns. So theres a major mismatch in what the funding is going to compared to where the deaths are now, she said. Much of the funding goes towards preventing deaths of mothers and children up to age five. In recent years, its become more common in the U.S. to issue birth certificates for stillborn babies. Lawn said it means a lot to parents to know that their child has been recognized. However, what the papers in The Lancet also show is that in many developing countries no record is kept. Lawn said, A women who loses a newborn death or a stillbirth in many of the places Ive worked in Africa there will be no piece of paper. The baby may not be named. Its very unlikely there will be any funeral or public recognition. And those things arent just sad for the woman, but they hide the whole problem. The fact that in this day and age you can have five-and-a-half million babies entering and leaving the planet without official record but also mostly without funerals or recognition actually stops us [from] acting. More than 50 experts from 28 institutions in 17 countries took part in The Lancet series. In June, a new international initiative is set to be launched called Every Newborn Action Plan. Its described as an evidence-based roadmap toward care for every women and a healthy start for every newborn baby.

Read the original post:
Millions of Newborn Deaths Reported

MIAMI Carlos Ruiz de Quevedo worked nearly two years to design and build a "green" home in a gentrifying section of the Little Gables, a labor of love for the architect and Realtor, with energy-saving features like energy-efficient impact windows, a solar-ready electrical system, and highly insulated walls and roof.

The two-story house has environmentally friendly details like cisterns that collect rainwater and air-conditioner runoff for watering the lawn, and it's wired for an electric car charger.

So when Ruiz de Quevedo listed the three-bedroom, three-bath house at $625,000, aiming to tap into the peak spring/summer house-hunting season, he hired a home staging company to furnish the place.

"They even put in a make-believe family to live in the place," said Ruiz, who bought the property in June 2012 with a run-down coral rock cottage that was beyond saving.

"There is a lot of competition, so you want your house to stand out," said Marisa Salas, who owns the South Florida franchise of Showhomes. "We stage all the rooms so people can envision how spaces are meant to be utilized."

In the current strong housing market, Salas said, her company is seeing growing demand for staging services. She furnishes the homes, places art on the walls and adds homey touches.

When Salas started out in the business during the downturn, "there were a lot of vacant properties," which made home-management services particularly appealing to owners. Besides staying on top of maintenance, the property manager helps ensure that squatters don't move in.

Staged homes fetch 5 percent to 15 percent more than those left vacant, according to Salas. The staged homes also sell faster than those that aren't, she added.

"We create the emotional aspect of a house. When people walk into a vacant house, they don't really appreciate anything," she said.

Home sellers tap "stagers" primarily for higher-end homes, in "the $1 million to $3 million range," Salas said. Fees typically run $3,000 to $10,000, depending on the home.

Follow this link:
'Green' spec home in Florida gets staging treatment

Photo: UNICEF/Olivier Asselin

An infant receives a dose of oral polio vaccine during a routine immunization session, at the Henriette Konan Bedie Community Hospital, Abidjan, Cte dIvoire.

Cape Town A series of papers published on Tuesday is laying the ground for concerted international action to reduce deaths among newborn babies - which reach their highest levels in sub-Saharan African countries.

Nine of the 10 riskiest countries in the world for a baby to be born are in Africa , the authors note.

"There has been a fatalistic acceptance from both communities and governments", Professor Joy Lawn, a Ugandan-born pediatrician at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told AllAfrica in a telephone interview.

A lead author of the series, Lawn says it is not inevitable that an African baby has the worst chance of survival . "Some of the poorest African countries have made the most progress in reducing newborn deaths, by picking simple things to do and doing them well."

She says over 70 percent of newborn deaths are preventable with currently available techniques. And in addition to saving the lives of newborns, applying the proven strategies will save the lives of mothers and improve the prospects for babies that would have survived but will also benefit from the interventions.

In 2012, the world's worst death rate for newborns was in Sierra Leone, with 49.5 deaths for every 1,000 live births. In Somalia and Guinea-Bissau, it was 45.7 deaths for every 1,000 live births, and only marginally better in the other African countries in the group: Angola, 45.4; Lesotho, 45.3; the Democratic Republic of Congo, 43.5; Mali, 41.5; the Central African Republic, 40.9; and Cote d'Ivoire, 39.9. Pakistan was the only non-African country in the world's worst 10.

"If current trends continue," a press release accompanying the studies says, "it will be over a century before a baby born in Africa has the same chances of survival as a baby born in North America or Europe."

The studies also show that Nigeria is one of three countries in the world - with India and Pakistan - which, with the highest number of births, also have the highest overall numbers of newborn deaths, and which have made slowest progress in reducing the death rate. Newborn deaths in Nigeria total 267,000 a year; for India the figure is 779,000 and Pakistan 202,400. The Democratic Republic of Congo is in the top five countries for newborn deaths, with 118,000 babies dying a year.

Excerpt from:
Africa: 'No Excuse' for Newborn Death Rate

Man rushed to hospital after becoming trapped in gate

3:58pm Saturday 17th May 2014 in News By Lee Irving

A MAN was rushed to hospital after a five-bar metal gate lodged onto his foot.

Dorset Fire and Rescue Service was called to the incident at 1:45pm in Tolpuddle after the gate got stuck on the mans foot when he became trapped between the gate and a ride-on lawn mower.

Two crews from Bere Regis and Wimborne attended the scene and stabilised the man so he could receive treatment from paramedics.

They then removed the gate from his foot and transported him to a nearby ambulance before he was taken to hospital.

A spokesman for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service said: At approximately 1.45pm the service was called to a person trapped between a ride-on lawn mower and a metal gate. On arrival, one male was located trapped between a five-bar gate and the mower. Crews assisted ambulance personnel in stabilising the injury while pain treatment was given by paramedics.

Crew removed the gate from the casualty's foot using small gear and assisted with transportation of casualty from field to Ambulance.

Read the rest here:
Man rushed to hospital after becoming trapped in gate

The Hanley's David Lownds and exhibitor Diane Hackney, from Muffin Tops, at last year's event.

People looking to sell, move, improve or extend a property inside or out are being urged to attend the second Sentinel Home and Gardens Show being staged this Sunday.

The free family day out is being held once again at The Moat House hotel on Festival Park between 11am and 4pm and has attracted dozens of firms offering a variety of goods and services in the property sector.

The range of exhibitors covers everything from estate agents and finance experts to talk about mortgages, to DIY suppliers such as B&Q, double glazing manufacturers, interior designers and furnishing specialists, security firms who can advise on the latest home protection systems, lawn treatment experts and many others.

The event was run for the first time last year and was declared a resounding success by exhibitors, many of whom signed up on the day to attend this Sunday's event and which once again is being sponsored by the Hanley Economic Building Society.

David Lownds, The Hanley's head of operations (senior manager), said: "I'm delighted that The Hanley is partnering The Sentinel in the 2014 Staffordshire Homes Show. We are keen to build on the success of the first show last year which saw more than 30 businesses and 1,200 visitors attend the event.

"The Hanley will be on hand to talk to visitors who are looking to get on the local property ladder and to those people who are looking to remortgage to save money. As a big supporter of the local business community it's really good to be able to support an event that brings together a wide range of local businesses.

"I can say after last year's event it is a great day out for all of the family and it really is a one stop shop event for everything to do with homes and gardens."

Original post:
Sentinel home and garden show exhibits for improving your property this weekend

MIAMI Carlos Ruiz de Quevedo worked nearly two years to design and build a "green" home in a gentrifying section of the Little Gables, a labor of love for the architect and Realtor, with energy-saving features like energy-efficient impact windows, a solar-ready electrical system, and highly insulated walls and roof.

The two-story house has environmentally friendly details like cisterns that collect rainwater and air-conditioner runoff for watering the lawn, and it's wired for an electric car charger.

So when Ruiz de Quevedo listed the three-bedroom, three-bath house at $625,000, aiming to tap into the peak spring/summer house-hunting season, he hired a home staging company to furnish the place.

"They even put in a make-believe family to live in the place," said Ruiz, who bought the property in June 2012 with a run-down coral rock cottage that was beyond saving.

"There is a lot of competition, so you want your house to stand out," said Marisa Salas, who owns the South Florida franchise of Showhomes. "We stage all the rooms so people can envision how spaces are meant to be utilized."

In the current strong housing market, Salas said, her company is seeing growing demand for staging services. She furnishes the homes, places art on the walls and adds homey touches.

When Salas started out in the business during the downturn, "there were a lot of vacant properties," which made home-management services particularly appealing to owners. Besides staying on top of maintenance, the property manager helps ensure that squatters don't move in.

Staged homes fetch 5 percent to 15 percent more than those left vacant, according to Salas. The staged homes also sell faster than those that aren't, she added.

"We create the emotional aspect of a house. When people walk into a vacant house, they don't really appreciate anything," she said.

Home sellers tap "stagers" primarily for higher-end homes, in "the $1 million to $3 million range," Salas said. Fees typically run $3,000 to $10,000, depending on the home.

See the rest here:
'Green' spec home in Fla. gets staging treatment

The Hanley's David Lownds and exhibitor Diane Hackney, from Muffin Tops, at last year's event.

People looking to sell, move, improve or extend a property inside or out are being urged to attend the second Sentinel Home and Gardens Show being staged this Sunday.

The free family day out is being held once again at The Moat House hotel on Festival Park between 11am and 4pm and has attracted dozens of firms offering a variety of goods and services in the property sector.

The range of exhibitors covers everything from estate agents and finance experts to talk about mortgages, to DIY suppliers such as B&Q, double glazing manufacturers, interior designers and furnishing specialists, security firms who can advise on the latest home protection systems, lawn treatment experts and many others.

The event was run for the first time last year and was declared a resounding success by exhibitors, many of whom signed up on the day to attend this Sunday's event and which once again is being sponsored by the Hanley Economic Building Society.

David Lownds, The Hanley's head of operations (senior manager), said: "I'm delighted that The Hanley is partnering The Sentinel in the 2014 Staffordshire Homes Show. We are keen to build on the success of the first show last year which saw more than 30 businesses and 1,200 visitors attend the event.

"The Hanley will be on hand to talk to visitors who are looking to get on the local property ladder and to those people who are looking to remortgage to save money. As a big supporter of the local business community it's really good to be able to support an event that brings together a wide range of local businesses.

"I can say after last year's event it is a great day out for all of the family and it really is a one stop shop event for everything to do with homes and gardens."

Here is the original post:
Home and garden show exhibits for improving your property inside and out

Dear Neil: I have access to a lot of shredded paper. We normally send it to recycling, but I've wondered if I could use it in the compost?

A: I send ours to recycling. It is organic matter, so, yes it could be put into the compost. However, normal life byproducts like shredded tree leaves, grass clippings, animal manure, finely chipped wood and others are better things to put into the compost. If you do use the paper, most authorities will suggest that you not use pages with colored ink, partly because of odor and partly because the vegetable dyes may attract insects you wouldn't normally have. Paper breaks down very quickly, but you'll need to wait on the other types of organic matter to decay before you can use the compost.

Dear Neil: Can I root cuttings of my boxwood plants in water?

A: Yes, probably so, but that's not the best way. Roots that develop in water are accustomed to having limited oxygen, and when they're transplanted into potting soil, they often wilt away. It's better to use a mix of equal amounts of sphagnum peat moss and horticultural perlite. Water it thoroughly before you start sticking the fresh cuttings. The cuttings should be 3 to 4 inches long. Strip off the bottom leaves, and dust the stems in rooting hormone powder. Use a small stick to make each insertion hole so you don't wipe off the powder. Water thoroughly, then cover lightly with a sheet of dry cleaner's plastic (not air-tight). Put in a bright spot, but out of direct late morning and afternoon sun. For what it's worth, if there is a lot of brand new, succulent growth on the tips of the twigs, pinch it off. It will draw water out of the cuttings before they have time to form roots.

Dear Neil: Our son lives near Dallas, and he says his pomegranate hasn't sent out any new leaves this year. What would have caused that? Was this winter that bad?

A: It was for some plants in some places. Many specimens of several varieties of crape myrtles, including three popular ones (Natchez, Muskogee and Tuscarora) died back to the ground. They'll have to be retrained, starting with trimming off all the dead stems. Pomegranates would need the same treatment. They do often come back after freeze injury, as do figs and oleanders. Gardenias will not. It wasn't so much how cold it got this past winter, but more the fact that the first freeze in early December was significant, and for many parts of Texas, it was accompanied by ice. Adding to it, the last freeze/frost that happened just a few weeks ago. It was not a good winter to be a tender plant in Texas. Your son needs to see if there are any new shoots coming up from the ground. If so, he needs to nurture those back into being a shrub.

Dear Neil: If I apply sphagnum peat moss for Take All Root Rot, how do I keep from mowing it up right away? I do bag my clippings. Also, how often will I need to repeat the treatment?

A: First, be certain that your lawn actually does have Take All Root Rot. It causes the grass to be lethargic and slow to green up in the spring. It will show up in sweeps and patches, not uniformly over the entire lawn. The peat moss makes an acidic layer on top of the soil, and that discourages development of the fungus. You would need to repeat the treatment no more often than each spring, and sometimes you can go two or three years and never see the disease. Perhaps you should begin by trying a small bale of peat over an affected area. Put a 1-inch layer down and water it in. If TARR is involved, you should see a big improvement in the look of the grass within two weeks. At that point, you could treat all of the affected area. The peat is normally not sucked up by the mower once it has been watered onto the soil surface.

Dear Neil: Can I move one of my mother's Texas mountain laurel shrubs now? She is moving and wants to take it with her.

A: It probably would not survive the move. At this point in late spring, trees and shrubs have expended all of their energy putting out new spring growth. Hot summer weather is soon to follow, and if you were to dig and cut a major portion of the plant's root system, it would just be too much trauma. See if you can arrange to go back in the winter and move it for her. That would allow you to "root-prune" it by severing lateral roots all summer and fall, encouraging new roots to form inside the soil ball.

Read more:
Shredded paper not ideal for compost

Lompoc resident Charlotte Garrett has battled mental illness, beat substance abuse and overcome homelessness on her journey to recovery. But her work isnt done.

Today, she and more than a thousand Californians are fighting the stigma and fear tied to mental illness at the inaugural Mental Health Matters Day on the south lawn of the state Capitol in Sacramento. Pioneers of the mental health movement will speak, and attendees will watch videos, submitted by student groups across the state, dealing with suicide prevention and ending the stigma of mental illness.

Garrett hopes to make the road to recovery a little easier for others by erasing misconceptions about mental illness and making treatment more accessible.

If we have mental illness and let it define who we are, were really nobody, Garrett said.

Today, Garrett is dressed in the official color for the statewide mental health movement, with her lime green nails, eye shadow and a big lime green hat in tow.

About four years ago, Garrett arrived at the Lompoc Recovery Learning Center after being diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and completing substance abuse treatment. She didnt know much about her condition or about treatment options before she sought help. She had been isolating herself from others and had turned to drugs to drown her symptoms.

But when she got to the Lompoc center, her own ideas about herself and her illness changed.

I had a phobia of being around other people. I was so used to being alone, Garrett said. But they just greeted me.

Now, Garrett embraces her role as a peer support leader, running dual-diagnosis and wellness groups every week at the peer-run center. The role also has helped her reach out to others and see the

importance of dispelling the fears that surround mental illness.

Original post:
Area residents step up to support those with mental illness