Gage County Extension

Did you set health related goals for 2026? Check out the tips below to set goals that stick!

Remember to Recycle your Christmas Tree after the holidays. Christmas trees can be chipped up to be used as mulch in your landscapes. This mulch can be made now and stored for use next spring. Christmas trees can also be placed in designated areas at local lakes and ponds to provide new fish habitat in the spring when the ice melts and the trees fall into the water. Christmas trees can also be made into bird habitat by placing it outdoors with oranges, berries, popcorn, and bird seed hung on them like decoration. Finally, the trees can be pruned up and used as a trellis for vertical gardening. If you prune off the needles and make a trellis out of the branches, the tree can last a lot longer in your garden next spring. This trellis can be used for vining perennials or vegetables, cucumbers can be grown on a trellis system including one made from your old Christmas tree. Read More...

The holiday season is a great time to be with friends and family. Christmas Cactus is a great holiday plant that can be easily shared and enjoyed by friends and family. They are easy to care for and easy to propagate new plants. Continue Reading...

Did you miss the window for seeding your lawn this fall? You can do a dormant seeding now through March to renovate a sparse or bare lawn. Dormant seeding is done when it is cold enough that germination will not occur until after soils begin to warm in spring, typically mid-December through Valentine’s Day or Spring Break. For dormant seeding to be successful, the seedbed should be prepared similar to preparations done in fall or spring seeding. If seedbed preparation has been done, dormant seeding can be done. The risk of dormant seeding is that warm winter and early spring temperatures may cause seed to germinate and then a cold period kills the seedlings, but if done in the correct time with good preparation, that is minimal. When using dormant seeding, monitor seeded areas in mid spring for the need to do over-seeding. Read More...

Adults interested in serving as a county or state fair judge in 2026 are invited to submit their interest via the online registration process. The process captures interest and asks interested individuals to agree to the indirect volunteer application process. For more information, visit: https://4h.unl.edu/resources/judges/

Starting Monday, January 5th the Nebraska 4-H Volunteer Orientation will be implemented through 4-H Online. This will be similar to how Sterling Volunteer Background Screenings are implemented where 4-H Online will keep track of their results and only allow their Volunteer Enrollment Application to be fully approved once it registers the orientation is completed.

• Volunteers will be able to do the training in 6 separate sections (each being 10 minutes or less) at their own pace rather than in one sitting.
• The Volunteer Orientation will be easier to access and locate at the time of enrollment.
• Volunteers will be required to the Orientation training by themselves through 4-H Online. They may be able to do it simultaneously on separate devices with their spouse/partner/another volunteer if they wish, however each individual volunteer will need to do the Orientation training associated with their respective member profile. There will be no workaround permitted at this time.
• Volunteer Orientation will now be required every 3 years. This is a change from it being required only during a volunteer’s rescreening year. This will allow us to update the Orientation trainings more frequently if the need arises.
• All volunteers that enroll starting on or after January 5th, 2026, will be required to do the Volunteer Orientation training in 4-H Online regardless of if they have completed it previously already. The current program year will become the start of their 3-year rotation period for the orientation.
• Any volunteer that enrolls in 4-H Online prior to January 5th, 2026, or has already enrolled for the current program year will not be required to redo the orientation if they have already done it the current way. They will however have to do the Orientation training at the start of the 2026-2027 program year because 4-H Online will flag them as incomplete training then. These volunteers’ Orientation training 3-year rotation period will start on 2026-2027 program year.
• This will not affect the screening timetable. Background screenings will continue on the current 5-year rescreening basis.

How to contact us

For Horticulture & Entomology questions:

• E-mail Nicole Stoner at nstoner2@unl.edu

For Food & Nutrition questions:

• Email Carly Applegarth at chillburn2@unl.edu

For 4-H & Youth Development questions:

• Email Jacie Milius at jacie.milius@unl.edu

For Water & Cropping Systems questions:

• Email Matheus Pires de Mello Ribeiro at mribeiro2@unl.edu

For Agriculture Profitability questions:

• Email Anastasia Meyer at ameyer71@unl.edu

For Early Childhood questions:

• Email Ingrid Lindal at ilindalchavarria2@unl.edu

For Livestock Systems questions:

• Email Barry Weber at s-bweber12@unl.edu

Email: gage-county@unl.edu

Website: https://extension.unl.edu/statewide/gage/

Location: 1115 West Scott Street, Beatrice, NE, USA

Phone: 402-223-1384

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UNLExtensionGageCo/