FOR RELEASE THE WEEK OF JUNE 28, 1999:
We’ve got a trailing lawn weed that looks a lot like clover but spreads a foot or more and has little yellow flowers. What is it and what can we do about it?
It could be black medic, also commonly called Japanese or Chinese clover, says Don Morishita, University of Idaho extension weed scientist.
Here’s how to tell: Black medic, a member of the pea family, has three oval-shaped leaflets that are finely toothed and have prominent veins. Its small, bright-yellow flowers are about one-eighth inch long and borne in clusters about one-half to three-quarters inch long. The flowers produce hairy, thick-walled, kidney-shaped pods that contain one seed apiece.
By the time you see black medic flowering, it’s extremely difficult to control chemically, Morishita says. You can do that next May or early June while the weed is still small. For now, locate the taproot in the center of the weed’s spread and pull or dig it out. While black medic has already begun dropping its seeds for next year, at least your turf won’t be crowded out by it for the rest of the growing season.
Feeling lucky? If you’ve got black medic, you’ve got the species recognized in Ireland as the true shamrock, Morishita says.
My doctor told me that my total and LDL cholesterol levels were too high. She said I should decrease my intake of saturated and trans fats and increase my intake of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat. I’m very confused. I thought all fat was bad.
Some fat is necessary in the diet, says Martha Raidl, University of Idaho extension nutrition specialist. "Fat is used by the body to give you energy when you’re exercising or at rest and it helps you absorb fat-soluble vitamins like A, D, E and K," she says. "However, the type and amount of fat that you eat may either raise or lower your cholesterol level."
You can actually decrease your cholesterol levels by eating more monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Good sources of monounsaturated fats include olive oil, canola oil and peanut oil. Other vegetable oils–corn, sunflower, safflower and soybean--are rich in polyunsaturated fats.
If your total and LDL cholesterol levels are elevated, you’ll want to limit intake of cholesterol-raising saturated fats. Keep your meat consumption at or below 4 ounces of cooked meat daily. Buy low-fat dairy products and use soft-tub--not stick--margarine in place of butter. And, avoid the coconut, palm and palm kernel oils so often used in crackers and cookies.
Trans fats are found mainly in processed foods like cakes, cookies, crackers and stick margarine. If the words "hydrogenated" or "partially hydrogenated" fat appear on the ingredient list, that’s your tip-off to limit consumption.
Is it a good idea to buy "credit-card protection" insurance?
It’s costly and it doesn’t really provide protection, says Sandra Cann, assistant coordinator of extension family economics for the University of Idaho. If you immediately report your credit cards as lost or stolen and if your cards weren’t used in the interim, your liability will be zero. If someone used your credit card before you called the issuer, your maximum liability under Truth in Lending is $50 a card–with or without "credit-card protection."
If you make a photocopy of all the cards you carry in your purse or wallet, adding to it all the phone numbers needed to report missing cards, you can promptly and easily provide your own "credit-card protection" for free, Cann says. "This is the same information you would have to provide the company offering credit-card protection insurance. Save yourself some money and keep track of it yourself."
What should I do during the growing season to keep my irrigated grass pasture healthy and productive?
"If you follow some basic guidelines for fertilization, weed control, irrigation and harvest management, you should have a successful experience," says University of Idaho extension educator Kathy Roy.
Pasture grass responds well to up to 150 pounds of nitrogen per acre per year, she says. Apply 50-60 pounds of nitrogen after each cutting or grazing cycle. By contrast, grasses generally have low-to-medium phosphorus and potassium requirements; you can meet them as you’re putting in new seedbeds and fertilizing established stands in the fall.
Healthy grass stands can outcompete weeds, Roy says. But if your stand is infested with weeds, control them by keeping it mowed or grazed down and by not allowing annual weeds to go to seed. Applications of appropriate chemical herbicides are very effective against a wide range of broadleaf weeds, including dandelions, plantain and mustard.
Grass, whose roots extend to about a 2-foot depth, should receive an even supply of moisture. To prevent crown damage from soil compaction, avoid irrigating immediately before mechanical harvesting or grazing.
"Harvest management is also very important so that the forage does not get too mature," says Roy. "By promoting new growth, cutting or grazing keeps the stand vigorous and healthy."
If you’re not planning to mechanically harvest and store the feed for winter use, try grazing in a rotation, she says. "Divide the area up into small units and rotate the animals on a regular basis. This promotes more uniform grazing and prevents overgrazing."