Nappanee Advance-News, Volume 133, Number 18, Nappanee, Elkhart County, 1 May 2014 — Page 4

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Advance News • Thursday, May 1, 2014

Reports of ticks on the rise this spring

I have received reports of tides showing up in large numbers this week. Reports range from 15—20 ticks on a single dog to several found crawling on people after taking a walk around the property. Most of these ticks have been the American Dog Tick, the most common tick in Indiana. There are about 10—15 different spedes of ticks that live in Indiana. This tick can be identified easily by the light and dark brown color patterns on its body. licks possess harpoon-like barbs along their mouths that are backed up with eight crablike legs along their one-piece, oval bodies. These physical features help to hold them to the host they feed upon. The American dog tick has a complicated life cyde. Specifically, each development stage feeds on a different host. As soon as the eggs hatch, usually in the early spring, the small six-legged larvae attach and feed on small mammals, such as the white-footed mouse and the meadow vole. After less than a week, they dislodge from their host shed their skin, and begin to develop another pair of legs. The second host is another small rodent, which will give the tick enough

As I write this the weather is like true spring - rainy, damp and cold! I know that the rain is needed and it will make a difference in all of the great spring foods. Spring is a wonderful time of the year for many reasons. In the last week I have been looking for and am now watching the dandelion greens and they are growing. The first part of my life I lived in subdivisions but I have a rural background because of all the time I spent with my grandparents on their farm. Spring rurad activities have to do with the fact that the temperature is getting warmer; there is more sun light, which means the grass is greening up; the bulbs, trees and shrubs are flowering and of course the birth of many young animals. Another part of the spring that has to do with everything is spring foods! I know for a fact that when many of you think of spring food you think of grilling and making all that great tasting food that goes with grilled meats, baked beans, three bean salad and of course potato salad. What I am writing about is some of the first foods that we have from our gardens in Michiana. The first food of spring that comes to mind for me is dandelion greens and yes I have seen some that are almost ready.

Spring into the hometown Nappanee Home and Garden Show

i NAPPANEE The theme of the May Second Saturdays is "Spring into the Hometown Nappanee Home and Garden Snow." It will feature the Nappanee Home and Garden Show. May 10 Nappanee residents can check out food vendors, master gardeners and

Continuous Publication Since 1879 ' 'I Advance News Serving Nappanee ft Watanfia Pifclislwd WMkly • (USPS 370-960) Periodical postage paid in Nappanee, IN 46550 PMTMASTII: Please send address corrections to P.O. Box 220, Plymouth, IN 46563 Manga Efltor Lois Tomazewski Etftar Dani Molnar , IpatS Eater James Neil Costello MarkSOai Maapr Cindy Stockton FMSdMT Maapr Greg Hildebrand MvatMp Sales Angi Rodriguez QmPIIP Maapr Mike Siroky Accaatfea Maapr Michele Louderback PlMtldeil Call 1-800-933-0356 Monday bIISSITIBD MS through Frjday 8 a m t 0 5 p m All classifieds must be pre-paid. Deadline: Monday at 11:30 a.m. Advertising Call Angi Rodriguez at 1-800-933-0356 tor rate information or to place an ad. Deadline: Thursday at 5 p.m. Legal Notices Deadline: Wednesday at 5 p.m. (Week prior) Annual subscription price (52 issues) 9BB*eripuwa* j 8 $26 in . state and W 1 out -of-Btate. To renew or start a new subscription, or to solve delivery problems, call the Circulation Department at 1 -800-933-0356. B|HI Email news items and photos to advanceObnin.net, or drop them off at the Bremen office, 126 E. Plymouth St. For possible story ideas, contact Dani Molnar, editor, at the office at 574-546-2941 or cell, 574-209-0704. Deadline: Friday at noon. Publisher reserves the right to reject, edit or cancel any advertising at any time without liability. Publisher's liability for error is limited to the amount paid for advertising.

nourishment to grow to an adult size. The adult ticks mate and then feed on larger mammals, including dogs and humans. Adults are most abundant from mid-April to mid-July. Female ticks are known to lay a lot of eggs. American Dog Ticks prefer overgrown vacant lots, waste farm fields, hiking trails, and other habitats with tall grass and weeds. They wait on these plants for a suitable host to brush against them. At that point they use their barbs and claws to latch on. Once on a suitable host, they crawl upward and take a blood meal. The best way to prevent outdoor tick exposure is to wear protective clothing and repellents. When possible, stay on estab-

This spring, enjoy dandelion greens

The warmer weather has warmed the soil so the greens are growing. My grandparents always called wilted dandelions greens spring tonic. To enjoy a dish of these nutrient dense greens some of you with weed free lawns will have to visit areas where they are growing. Dandelion greens are a spring food that have been eaten for years because they were the first salad like food that grew and people were hungry for something that was fresh and like a salad. When people first started eating them they did not realize how good for them they were. Greens of all kinds are a great source of vitamins and minerals. Spring is the only time to really enjoy fresh dandelions, this is when they are tender and mild flavored, but once they get close to blooming their flavor changes and they develop a strong flavor. Some of you

even pick up hanging or potted plants from Martin's Greenhouse for Mother's Day. At 10 a.m., Kathleen Cripe will do a presentation on gardening. At 1 p.m., Jerry Martin will teach about lawn care, horticulture and rain measurement.

Community

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Extension Tips By Jeffßurbrink

Food and Nutrition By Mary Ann Lienhart Cross

The event will be held at Leadership Park in downtown Nappanee. Businesses wishing to reserve a free spot at the park for the event should contact Liz Mullet at 574-773-3837 or 574-536-0758 for more information or to get an application.

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fished trails, and avoid brushing against vegetation. Wear light-colored clothing, long pants, and long-sleeved shirts so that ticks can be more easily seen. Tuck in your shirt, and pull your socks over the pant cuffs. Insect repellent can be applied to your shoes, socks, and pants. Effective tick repellents are those containing diethyl toluamide or permethrin. Occasionally check yourself and your children for ticks, especially on the head, groin, and underarm area. Showering after coming indoors may help remove ticks that have not yet attached to the skin. Inspect pets after they have been outdoors, and remove ticks found. Ticks are known vectors of diseases and should be removed promptly from humans and pets. If a tick is found attached on your skin, use blunt forceps or tweezers to grasp the tick as close to me skin surface as possible and pull upward with a steady, even pressure. Take care not to squeeze, crush, or puncture the tick. Do not handle the tick with bare hands because infectious agents may enter via mucous membranes or breaks in the skin. After removing the tick, disinfect

will find it hard to believe but nowadays commercial dandelion greens are grown and used in spring salad mixes that you can buy in the grocery store. You have probably enjoyed them in a restaurant salad and not even noticed them. Dandelion greens are also a great way to be living green in regard to the environment. You can dig them and eat them verses spraying to kill them, so it makes sense to eat them. Eating fresh dandelion greens is a great way to stretch your food dollars. Besides, dandelions and other greens are really good for you so you should eat more of them. I really encourage you to enjoy a mess of dandelion greens and I believe you are going to have to dig or cut your own as I have not seen them in local markets. There are a lot of different varieties of leaves to dig and there is a slight difference in their flavor. I suggest you look for dark green long leaves less than 1 inch wide. The leaves become bitter with age and need to be cooked to tame or mellow the flavor. Here are my thoughts from my experiences. My mother taught me by showing me to do what she called "dry cleaning." After Cutting the root off, shake it, and let all the

Nappanee celebrates Arbor Day

NAPPANEE —The City of Nappanee Tree Board celebrated National Arbor Day on Friday, April 25 with Nappanee Elementary third graders. Park Superintendent and Tree Board Member Donny Aleo gave a presentation to the students about what Arbor Day means and the importance of trees. Students also participated in an essay contest. Three

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the bite site and wash hands thoroughly with soap and water. Consult a physician immediately if a rash or flu-like symptonfc develop. Outdoor control is aimed primarily at the American dog tick, lone star tick, and dear tick. Keep overgrown and heavy vegetation cleared and cut in tick-infested area*. Eliminate unnecessary vegetation around yards or property, along wood edges, or along the edges of trails and paths. Residual insecticides such as malathion and stirofos can be applied on infested areas such as along roads, walks, and trails where ticks congregate. Also, treatment can be matte near ground level on grass and under shrubbery and trees, and along edges of wooded areas. Follow all label directions and precautions carefully before using any of these insecticides. When using spray formulations, keep children and pets off treated areas until dry. Some residual insecticides are available for use by professional pest control applicators only. They include bendiocarb, dioxathion, cyfluthrin, deltamethrin, and lambdacyhalothrin.

dead leaves and everything else fall out of it. Pick through it before you begin rinsing the leaves then rinse the greens well in several changes of water. Sort or pick through the stems and discard any of that are woody or thick. My experience of eating dandelion greens is with the greens being wilted. The dressing is made with flour that is browned in bacon grease and then water, a little vinegar and sugar is added to the skillet. The dressing is cooked until it becomes a little thick, then the cleaned greens with as much ol the water drained from them arq cut into the dressing and just heated until they are wilted. The wilted greens are often served on mashed potatoes or with new red potatoes. The greens are garnished with slices ol hard cooked eggs and crumbles of bacon. 1 have also enjoyed dandelion greens with a hot bacon dressing. If you want to store the leaves I have found it best to sort through leaves when dry and store dry in the refrigerator crisper, then rinse several times before preparing! The greens will keep for two or three days.

winners were selected and read their essays to the group. The winners were: first place, Landon Weldy; second place, Elle Roberts; third place, Katie Helmuth. Donny Aleo and Mark Ingle then planted a tulip poplar tree at the school as the children watched and asked questions.

The photo shows First row from left Katie Helmuth, Landon Weldy and Elle Roberts. Second row from left Donny Aleo, parks superintendent; and Mark Ingle, park foreman. (Photo provided)

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