POMONA The Hardin County Pomona Grange met on June 15 at Greenwood Grange with Jean Osborn presiding.

For the time period of May 1-May 31, 2019, Extension rainfall reporters recorded an average of 5.12 inches of rain in Hardin County. Last year, the average rainfall for the same time period was 3.40 inches. Rainfall for May was 0.89 inches more than the ten-year average rainfall for the month.

Participating in the 2019 U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Lake Erie Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) offers producers cash for conservation. Do you have a ditch or stream running through your farm that needs a filter strip? How about that one area that’s hard to farm because it’s always wet? The Hardin Soil and Water Conservation District is ready to help you evaluate how your bottom line and Lake Erie’s water quality can benefit by signing up for this program.

FOSTORIA — Three farmers have been elected to serve on the board of directors for one of northern Ohio's largest lenders to farmers, agribusinesses and rural home owners. Kevin Flanagan of Findlay, Dusty Sonnenberg of Hamler, and Deborah Johlin-Bach who resides near Elmore, have been elected to serve three-year terms on AgCredit’s board of directors.

Area gardeners and others with an interest in gardening are invited to attend the summer gardening programs being offered at the Friendship Gardens of Hardin County. This summer the Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers are sponsoring three educational demonstration programs in the Friendship Gardens located at 960 W. Kohler Street in Kenton, which is behind Harco Industries. Follow the ‘Friendship Gardens of Hardin County’ signs to a parking area off of West Kohler Street. The events are planned to begin at 9 a.m. on Saturdays and will last about an hour.

Supervisors on the Hardin Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) Board are public officials responsible to the people of the district and state. They employ and guide staff of the district on workload priorities, manage district funds and are a source of feedback from the public on its needs for soil and water assistance.

Do you have a fertilizer certificate that is set to expire May 31 and need a final chance to renew it before it expires? If so, there is a fertilizer recertification class scheduled in Kenton for May 30 at 7 p.m. This one-hour evening class will meet the requirements for the Ohio Department of Agriculture. The class will be held at the Hardin County OSU Extension Office, 1021 W. Lima St., Kenton. Please arrive early to allow time for check-in or registration and bring your Ohio ‘Fertilizer Applicator Certificate’ card.

Farmers balance many activities during the planting season. Besides planting, they need to think about weed control for emerging soybeans. Because many weeds are resistant to herbicides sprayed after planting, they must have good control by planting time.

COLUMBUS, Ohio —Despite rain that has stalled the planting of corn and soybeans across the state, yields might not be reduced, according to two grain specialists at The Ohio State University. That’s because weather later in the growing season can have a bigger impact on yields than the date the seeds go in the ground, said Peter Thomison and Laura Lindsey, both agronomists at Ohio State’s College of Food, Agricultural and Environ-mental Sciences (CFAES).

For the time period of April 15-30, Extension rainfall reporters recorded an average of 4.08 inches of rain in Hardin County. Last year, the average rainfall for the same time period was 1.56 inches. Rainfall for the April 15-30 time period is 1.92 inches more than the ten-year average rainfall during the same dates.