Extension Service

CORVALLIS, Ore. — Building on nearly two decades of success, Oregon is planting the seeds for a healthier, more resilient future. 

The Oregon Farm to School Network, which includes the Oregon State University Extension Service, has released Oregon Harvest for Schools: 10-Year Strategic Vision for Oregon Farm to School (2025–2035) — a transformative roadmap to ensure every child has access to delicious, nutritious local food while supporting Oregon’s farmers, food makers, educators and communities.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – As canning season gets underway, the food safety and preservation helpline from Oregon State University Extension Service will start taking calls July 7.

The toll-free helpline, 800-354-7319, is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. The helpline will be staffed by certified Master Food Preserver volunteers in several Oregon counties until Oct. 10. After this date, the helpline will remain open and will be checked weekly for voice messages. In 2024, the volunteers fielded 723 calls.

CORVALLIS, Ore. — Planting native plants is a popular way to help support pollinators like bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects.

But when shopping for native plants, people often come across something called a “cultivar.” This is a special version of a native plant that have been selected or bred to have certain traits, like different flower colors or shapes. These cultivated plants can look and behave a bit differently from the wild versions.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – When botanist John Bartram first identified a hydrangea native to the U.S. in the 1730s, little did he know it would become a mainstay of the garden with its iconic flowers implying romance with their blustery beauty.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Anticipation of ripe pears and apples peaks in fall as fruits hang heavily from branches and begin their gravity-aided trip to the ground.

But how do you know when it’s prime picking time?

According to Steve Castagnoli, a retired horticulturist with Oregon State University’s Extension Service, the signs are different for apples and pears.

“It’s much easier to recognize ripeness in apples,” he said. “Pears typically won’t ripen to eating quality on the tree so you can’t go out and taste one.”

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Fruits and vegetables in the garden that have been showered with ash from wildfires should be safe to consume, according to Oregon State University Extension Service experts.

Rinsing the produce outside and then again in the kitchen sink will help remove ash and the particulates that accompany it, according to Brooke Edmunds, associate professor and Extension community horticulturist in the OSU College of Agricultural Sciences.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Halloween is still a faint dot on the calendar, but it’s not too early to plan a strategy for harvesting and storing pumpkins and winter squash.

First frost won’t hit for several more weeks, so there’s no hurry to harvest. But it’s good to have a plan once below 50-degree temperatures arrive. Tried-and-true storing techniques can keep some winter squash for several months.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – It appears overnight and looks like a horror-show blob that’s slithered its way into your garden.

The gross-looking substance known as slime mold shows up on mulch and lawns, but is harmless to plants. Instead it feeds on decaying matter, fungi or bacteria, according to Neil Bell, a horticulturist for Oregon State University Extension Service.

“It’s called slime mold and is not harming the grass or plants in the mulch,” he said. “It appears really suddenly, seemingly overnight. It occurs after rainfall in summer, which we had in June.”

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Fragile, beautiful and fascinating, butterflies flutter their way into our gardens and seem to just as quickly wing their way out.

It isn’t because they necessarily want to leave, said Heather Stoven, an entomologist with the Oregon State University Extension Service. Rather they don’t find what they need to park themselves permanently.