Stella’s on squash duty
Master Gardener volunteers of Renville County helped children learn science concepts and taste a delicious snack at the Children’s Garden in Residence in Bird Island.
With tiny clippers in hand, Stella thinned out patty pan squash seedlings. Instead of pulling them up, she clipped the extras. Guided by Master Gardener volunteers, children like Stella explore horticulture, science and nutrition through the Children’s Garden in Residence program, which originated at the U of M Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.
During weekly sessions, youth plant and care for their own garden plots. This living laboratory for kids to garden has reached more than 40 garden sites and involved more than 300 Master Gardener volunteers.
Highlights
- When Olivia’s mayor — a voice for rural communities and U of M Regent Mary Page died in 2013 — Jim Page and their children (Marcia, Mark and Dave) launched the Mary J. Page Community-University Partnerships Fund. This Extension RSDP fund has made an impact across the state. Currently, funds support Joseph Aguilar (Ph.D. candidate, applied economics), who is conducting a project in Olivia.
- Since sugar beet fields are some of the last harvested and heavily tilled, they are especially vulnerable to winter wind erosion. An Extension study on a Renville County farm focused on understanding how much erosion occurs after beets are harvested with and without cover crops.
- Clover Adventures and 4-H Robolab are free 4-H Afterschool programs that provide hands-on learning with STEAM concepts in several school districts throughout the county.
- U of M Farm Family of the Year: Kurth Family
- Extension’s agricultural business management team delivered a farm rent workshop in Olivia. Farmland rental rates are among the largest input costs for farmers. Landlords, farmers, and agribusiness professionals attended.
- SuperShelf: Renville County Food Shelf
- The Climate Adaptation Partnership is helping characterize future flood and drought extremes in the High Island Creek watershed, equipping natural resource managers, farmers and communities with education and resources to inform resilience strategies.
Renville County office
Extension has 14 regional offices supporting all 87 counties in Minnesota.
Renville County partners with Extension to deliver practical education and research you can use at home, at work and in your community. More about Extension in our county.
About the Minnesota 87 project
Spend time in any Minnesota county, and you will almost certainly encounter University of Minnesota Extension. Our faculty and staff, volunteers, participants, alumni and partners are woven into the fabric of rural, urban and suburban Minnesota life. This project showcases Extension in action through photos, stories and a sampling of the many ways Extension has touched the lives of people in every county.