Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Gerri Makay of the North Dakota Forest Service instructed students in some basic tree ID. Did you know that you can tell the difference between pine and spruce trees just by the needles?
White pine needles are long and grow in clusters.
Norway spruce needles are short and grow individually.
Eddy County NDSU Extension Agent Chandy Howard made a life-size cow to explain cattle grazing and digestion.
On Thursday, Sept. 9, the fifth and sixth graders from New Rockford-Sheyenne school ventured out to Camp Grafton South for the annual Eco Ed event.
Students welcomed the opportunity to get outside and get their hands dirty, and professionals from various environmental fields were happy to help them out.
I apologize for not being able to remember the names of all the professionals who shared their knowledge, but there are two who really stood out in my mind.
Gerri Makay of the North Dakota Forest Service talked about the characteristics of trees and offered a few tricks on how to tell a pine tree from a spruce tree. We also learned grass ID skills from the folks from Soil Conservation. We learned about prairie grasses such as big blue stem and little blue stem.
Eddy County Extension agent Chandy Howard taught us more about grassland health by sharing her knowledge on cattle grazing and digestion. A few of the students were caught off guard when Chandy gave us an up close look at the inside of a cow stomach. Some parts of the stomach are soft and pliable and other parts are extremely textured. We learned that the textured surface of the stomach allows for nutrient absorption. Also grazing actually stimulates the growth of grasses and allows for more open acres.
Other topics over the day included the impact agricultural fertilizers can have on water, animal care, soils and wildlife identification.
Currently, there is no statewide curriculum on environmental sciences in middle school, so Eco Ed really opens the doors to environmental learning - and gives students an opportunity to learn how to best manage the resources of the future.
Editor's Note: Other presenters included Ezra Averly, rangeland; Alex Otto, wetlands and wildlife identification; Jim Collins, watershed; and Jim Gerholdt, reptiles. Jennifer Huso brought chickens and goats.
The day was organized by Eddy County Soil Conservation District and sponsored in part by CenDak Cooperative and NRCS. Gerry Makay and Chandy Howard represented NDSU Extension.
