Deputy Offers Look At Law Enforcement To Kids At Carver Park
July 27, 2017
From blue lights to badges, Escambia County Sheriff’s Deputy Neil Tipton took the time to explain law enforcement to a group of children at Carver Park in Cantonment. A summer feeding program is available weekdays at Carver Park on Webb Street for children under 18. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Thursday Is Aggie Day; Orientation, Schedule Pickup Set
July 26, 2017
Tate students and parents — mark your calendars. Here are some upcoming important dates for Aggie Day, Orientation, and schedule pickup for Tate High School.
Thursday, July 27 – AGGIE DAY
Aggie Day is a Welcome to Tate workshop led by Tate’s leadership students. Incoming 9th graders and new students are invited to take a few hours to learn about Tate High School. At 9 a.m., students will be split into groups in the Fryman Gym. Our leadership students will lead their group in a series of workshops to learn about activities, sports, clubs, and what makes Tate a great place to attend. Schedules will not be handed out at this event, and guidance counselors and administrators will not be present. This is a for-students, by-students event.
Drop Off: New Gym, 9:00 am
Pick Up: New Gym, 12:00 pm
Friday, August 4 – Freshmen/New Student Orientation, 9:00 am-10:30 am
Our more formal, assembly-style orientation will be at 9:00 am in the Fryman Gym. You will meet our administrators, deans, and 9th grade guidance counselor, Chuck Stanhope. Also, coaches and club sponsors will be available to answer any questions. At 10:30 am, 9th grade schedules will be available (in the gym). Tate leadership students will be present to assist in learning where classes are located. At 11:00, any schedules not picked up will return to the front office.
Friday, August 4 – Upperclassmen Schedule Pickup
10th-12th Schedules will be available for pick up from 1:00-3:00 in the Cafeteria.
Summer Reading Wrap-Up Parties This Week At The Library
July 25, 2017
Summer Reading wrap up parties will be held this week at West Florida Library branches across Escambia County:
- Tuesday, July 25, 11 a.m. – Southwest Branch Library*
- Tuesday, July 25, 3 p.m. – Westside Branch Library
- Wednesday, July 26, 11 a.m. – Century Branch Library
- Wednesday, July 26, 3 p.m. – Pensacola Library
- Thursday, July 27, 11 a.m. – Molino Branch Library
- Thursday, July 27, 3 p.m. – Tryon Branch Library
Come blow off some Summer STEAM with tons of bubbles and wrap up your summer adventures with highly active volcanoes. Celebrate reaching your summer reading goal at the library’s wrap-up party.
Weekend Gardening: Distinctly Southern Hydrangeas
July 23, 2017
by Santa Rosa County Extension
Nothing defines a southern landscape more than hydrangeas.
These beautiful, large flowering shrubs fill gardens with their green, leafy foliage and incredible blooms during the warm months.
In order to ensure consistent and reliable blooms, these shrubs must be cared for correctly. In addition to proper site location, fertilizer and moisture conditions, hydrangeas may require pruning. Proper pruning includes correct timing.
Hydrangea aficionados are constantly debating pruning techniques. There are many different types of hydrangeas and pruning differs according to the type. It is a big genus of plants and so it’s important to know what type of hydrangeas you may have and on what type of wood they bloom on.
Blooms on old wood, prune after flowering
The bigleaf hydrangeas, known scientifically as Hydrangea macrophylla, are what most people think of when you mention hydrangeas. Most gardeners will know these as mopheads (also called hortensias) and lacecaps. Many of these blooms will be blue or pink although other colors now are available.
Many large colonies of bigleaf hydrangeas have existed around old homes for decades, surviving and blooming in spite of neglect. This tells us that it is not necessary to prune bigleaf hydrangeas.
However, if you want to keep these shrubs within a defined boundary, control their height or rejuvenate old shrubs, it will be necessary to prune them.
Bigleaf hydrangeas can be reduced in size immediately after flowering. A general rule of thumb is that you may remove up to a third of the shrub’s height. Be sure to complete your pruning before August. This is critical because next year flower blooms start to form in August. Pruning after August will remove next year’s blooms.
There now is a small group of bigleaf hydrangeas that are everblooming or remontant. Endless Summer® is one well-known brand. According to the developers of these reblooming hydrangeas, remove spent flowers to encourage rebloom. They are quite forgiving and will not suffer if left unpruned or pruned at the wrong time because these cultivars bloom on both old and new growth.
Our native oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia) is a large, deciduous shrub that can grow up to six feet tall. It has deeply lobed, oak-like leaves which turn bronze in the fall. This plant does not usually need pruning. If reshaping or size-reduction is necessary, prune after blooms begin to fade.
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Lacecap hydrangea
Blooms on new wood, prune in early spring
Smooth hydrangea (H. arborescens) is the other U.S. native. The most common cultivar, ‘Annabelle’, produces rounded inflorescences that may reach up to a foot in diameter.
The panicle hydrangea (H. paniculata) is more of an upright type. It is typically a 10 to 15-foot large shrub or low-branched tree.
Panicle and smooth hydrangeas flower on current year’s growth and can be pruned anytime from late summer until early spring. If pruning these two species in the spring, try to prune before leaves appear.
Winter pruning
Established bigleaf, panicle, oakleaf and smooth hydrangea plants can often benefit from rejuvenation pruning. Remove about one-third of the oldest stems each year. The result is a fuller, healthier plant. This type of pruning is easiest to do in winter, since the absence of leaves makes it easier to see and reach inside plants.
Hydrangeas offer a wide variety of plants which can make the timing of pruning difficult to remember. Just keep in mind, if in doubt, either don’t prune at all or prune after flowering.
Molino Church Holds Community Fun Day
July 23, 2017
Aldersgate United Methodist Church held a Community Fun Day Saturday in Molino.
The event included outdoor games and competitions. There was also be an art display, a wood carving demonstration and lessons on how to make bows for gift packages. Lunch was provided.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Bethany Reynolds, click to enlarge.
Tate Students, Parents: Upcoming Important Dates
July 19, 2017
Tate students and parents — mark your calendars. Here are some upcoming important dates for Aggie Day, Orientation, and schedule pickup for Tate High School.
Thursday, July 27 – AGGIE DAY
Aggie Day is a Welcome to Tate workshop led by Tate’s leadership students. Incoming 9th graders and new students are invited to take a few hours to learn about Tate High School. At 9 a.m., students will be split into groups in the Fryman Gym. Our leadership students will lead their group in a series of workshops to learn about activities, sports, clubs, and what makes Tate a great place to attend. Schedules will not be handed out at this event, and guidance counselors and administrators will not be present. This is a for-students, by-students event.
Drop Off: New Gym, 9:00 am
Pick Up: New Gym, 12:00 pm
Friday, August 4 – Freshmen/New Student Orientation, 9:00 am-10:30 am
Our more formal, assembly-style orientation will be at 9:00 am in the Fryman Gym. You will meet our administrators, deans, and 9th grade guidance counselor, Chuck Stanhope. Also, coaches and club sponsors will be available to answer any questions. At 10:30 am, 9th grade schedules will be available (in the gym). Tate leadership students will be present to assist in learning where classes are located. At 11:00, any schedules not picked up will return to the front office.
Friday, August 4 – Upperclassmen Schedule Pickup
10th-12th Schedules will be available for pick up from 1:00-3:00 in the Cafeteria.
Ask MyEscambia App Now Available for Residents
July 18, 2017
Escambia County has launched Ask MyEscambia, a mobile and web application making it easier than ever for residents to connect with county services 24 hours a day.
With Ask MyEscambia, residents can request non-emergency services for road issues, code enforcement, stray animals, stormwater maintenance and much more. The app also provides a convenient way for citizens to request public records from Escambia County.
Making a request through Ask MyEscambia is very easy. Simply find the request type that best fits the problem you are encountering, then enter the information promoted by your specific request – which may include information like the address, a photo and detailed description of your issue or question – and click the submit button. There is no need to wait for a return call, you have the ability to receive notifications, monitor the status and communicate with staff at your convenience via the Ask MyEscambia app.
Ask MyEscambia can be accessed on a desktop computer at MyEscambia.com/ask, or residents can download the mobile app for free by searching “Ask MyEscambia” in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store or searching “PublicStuff” in the Windows Store or BlackBerry App World.
Guy Harvey Mentors Ernest Ward Student, Aspiring Marine Artist
July 17, 2017
Nolin Godwin, an incoming sixth grader at Ernest Ward Middle School, recently spent time painting a mural at Sea World in Orlando with world renowned conservationist and artist Guy Harvey
Nolin, now 12, has been obsessed with the ocean, sharks and saving the environment since he was about two years old. The aspiring artist started drawing sharks at a very young ago. Four years ago, the Godwin family vacationed on Grand Cayman, the largest of the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean.
Harvey has a home and an art gallery on Grand Cayman. Nolin met Harvey and showed him some of his paintings. Harvey invited Nolan to draw with him in his gallery, inspiring Nolan to continue his love for the ocean, drawing and learning to paint. The family has continued yearly summer vacations back to Grand Cayman to see Harvey. They spend two to three weeks at a time to allow Nolin time in Harvey’s gallery.
He has also participated directly with Harvey multiple years in a Sting Ray City project, tagging and researching the ocean creatures.
When Nolin broke his arm at age 8, his Aunt Ruth Harrell bought him paint and canvases. Nolin sold his paintings, raising enough to donate $1,000 of to the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation. With the money, Harvey tagged a Mako shark and named it Nolin.
Nolin was invited recently to help Harvey with the mako shark mural at Sea Wold. Nolin signed the painting, with Harvey signing below wince he helped with touch-ups.
Nolin is the son of Gordon and JoLynn Godwin.
For more photos of Nolin and Guy Harvey painting, click here for a gallery.
Pictured: Guy Harvey paints with Nolin Godwin, incoming Ernest Ward sixth grade student. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
July Gardening Tips
July 15, 2017
The heat, humidity and frequent rains of July are great for tropical plants. Gardeners, however, take a bit of a beating. Remember to keep the sunscreen, insect repellant and iced tea handy as you venture out into your garden to perform some needed summer maintenance.
A midsummer application of fertilizer is usually required, especially on annual flowers, lawns, shrub beds and vegetable gardens. This is a supplemental application, so don’t overdo it. A 15-0-15 slow-release fertilizer is a good general purpose landscape fertilizer for most plants.
Major pruning jobs should have been done earlier, but there is still some maintenance pruning that should be done. Deadhead, or clip old flowers, from summer flowering shrubs as soon as they fade to help insure an extended season of bloom. Crape myrtles, hibiscus, hydrangeas and althea are examples of shrubs that will bloom repeatedly if light, selective pruning is done.
Flowering annuals also respond well to deadheading. Snip off old flowers and flower spikes before they have an opportunity to form seed. Allowing annual flowers to set seed can shorten their blooming season considerably.
Inspect your lawn and shrub plantings frequently in order to identify pest problems as early as possible. The most severe damage from pest insects normally begins in July. Be on the lookout for chinch bugs in St. Augustine grass; spittlebugs in centipede grass; sod webworm in all lawns-especially new ones; lacebug and caterpillars on azaleas; whiteflies on gardenia and spider mites on lots of different types of shrubs.
Sod webworms often attack lawns in the summer. They eat the grass blades producing areas that look as if they have been mowed too short. Close inspection will reveal that the blades have not been cleanly cut as with a mower blade but have been chewed along their edges and tips. These caterpillars feed at night and rest during the day down among the runners and in the thatch.
Once an insect pest is found, evaluate the damage and determine if control is necessary. If it is, choose the least toxic option. If only a few caterpillars are found, hand picking might be the choice. Aphids and spider mites can often be controlled by spraying with an insecticidal soap solution. Chemical insecticides are sometimes required. Before choosing one be sure that the insect pest has been properly identified and that the insecticide is labeled for that purpose For vegetable gardeners that have problems with nematodes, soil borne diseases and extensive weed problems, July is a great time to try soil solarization.
Prepare the soil as you normally would for a vegetable garden including adding organic matter. Moisten the area and cover with clear plastic, not black plastic. Clear plastic will produce the highest temperatures. Be sure to weigh down the edges of the plastic so that it doesn’t blow up. Allow the soil to bake in the sun for four to six weeks. The sun will raise the soil temperature high enough to kill many soil borne problems.
Tip of the Week: The nice thing about tomatoes is that you have the option of harvesting when the fruit is green if needed. Tomatoes will ripen indoors at room temperature. To ensure even ripening, place the tomato with the stem up. The ideal time to harvest tomatoes is when they are fully colored but still firm.
In general, it is best to harvest vegetables early in the mornings while the moisture content is higher. The overall quality will quickly diminish as vegetables are exposed to hotter temperatures later in the day.
Barrineau Park 4-H Raises Hogs For Local Food Banks
July 12, 2017
The Barrineau Park 4-H Club raised two hogs and donated the fresh pork to two local food banks. Over 300 pounds of fresh pork was delivered to the food banks at Aldersgate United Methodist Church and Molino Outreach. The fresh pork was distributed in their food boxes. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.