4-H Animal Projects Grow Adults

North Dakota county fair season is about to get its jump start. For some reason several counties in the northwest are usually the first to have their fairs. Williams County is one of those.

The fair in Williams County is actually known as the Upper Missouri Valley Fair (UMVF). I can only assume that its early founders speculated the UMV Fair could involve people beyond the boundaries of Williams County. To some extent, that has become a reality as several of the events involve youth from many other counties. Take for example the Western Star Heifer Classic and the North Dakota Junior Beef Expo. Both draw 4-H and FFA members from across North Dakota and eastern Montana. Then there is the Horse Show for which 4-H members in Richland, Roosevelt, Sheridan counties of Montana and Divide, Burke, Mountrail and McKenzie counties are invited to participate.

Despite different lifestyles, new communication technologies, and all the other changes which have occurred over the past 50-75 years, county fairs still excite youth, especially those with animals. Projects like cattle, horses, sheep, swine and even the smaller animals such as rabbits and poultry all require active adult involvement. With animal projects, parents and other adults play a vital support role.

This base of constant adult involvement reminds youth of their responsibility for the absolute necessity of daily feeding and the long term commitment which must be made when the project is selected.

I think kids with animal projects have a greater opportunity to connect with real life. Animals are living organisms which are given birth and death. Frequently, 4-H and FFA members learn the fragility of life. Some are able to watch the birth of a new project and sometimes death of a bloated steer. Over their 10 year membership in these youth organizations, they will develop a pretty good understanding about the birds and the bees without a visit behind the barn with mom and dad.

During my career as a county extension agent I have seen many, many youth graduate from active involvement with 4-H and FFA animal projects. Although there is no common path for their adult lives, most have a sense of personal pride about what they learned and accomplished through their experiences. And about all take the self-discipline learned with their animal projects into successful adult lives.

To see this for yourself I invite you to attend the Upper Missouri Valley Fair on Wednesday, June 20th at 5 PM when the beef, sheep and swine members will put their projects on public display. All eligible blue and red ribbon animals will be offered for sale the following day, Thursday, June 21st at 5 PM.

Tree of the Week

This week I am going to make a daring decision by writing about Russian Olive. Some folks think this tree should be put on the State’s noxious weed list because it is found growing on many sites where trees are not wanted. However, Russian Olive has some features that make it worthy of consideration on some sites.

Let’s start with its strong resistance to drought, toleration to a wide range in soil pH and adaptation to a wide variety of soils. Some people may argue that Russian Olive is more of a large shrub than a tree. This may be true in plantings left to grow wildly but it can be trained to look like a tree with some pruning.

For those of us who wish our trees would retain leaves longer into the fall, then Russian Olive warrants consideration. The silvery leaves remain attached very late into the fall. Most Russian Olive trees are found in field shelterbelts. However, I can site several growing very well in landscapes. The silver leaf color makes for a nice color accent.

Russian Olive is an excellent tree for wildlife. The fruits can be used for food either fresh or processed as soup seasoning, jellies or sherberts. I have no experience with using the fruits as food but my forestry advisors say the fruits are best after a frost.

When grown in the wild or field shelterbelts, the thorns provide wildlife protection from predators.

Please understand I have not fallen from a bar stool, however, a few Russian Olives growing in landscapes will add some color diversity in a community. Yes, I do have one growing in our backyard.