Water News Archive

PFAS are forever chemicals. Old landfills, industrial sites, firefighting foam, and wastewater treatment discharge are just some of the ways PFAS can contaminate the environment. It then ends up in our groundwater and surface water resources and soils which impacts the water we drink, and the fish and grown food that we eat. It is important to understand how PFAS chemicals move through the environment in order to address the problem of PFAS pollution. Image credit: Minnesota Pollution Control Agency 

Caring for a lawn and landscape is a lot of work! Mowing, fertilization, seeding and weed control in a lawn, along with planting, pruning and pest management in trees and landscape areas requires more time than many homeowners have available or the equipment to accomplish. Plus, the identification of weeds and pests often needs a professional’s knowledge. If you would rather not perform any or all of these tasks, you have the option to hire a professional to do the work for you. How can you evaluate services offered by professionals or hire a good professional to work in your landscape? Below are two important aspects of professionalism to be aware of when hiring a landscape professional.

Just over a year ago, I joined Dr. Amy Schmidt, the Manure Lady’s, team as a content developer to help spread the word about manure (and her other area of interest, antimicrobial resistance). Luckily, UNL’s Manure team is full of friendly, inviting people who are really good at teaching about manure. Feeling more confident in my manure knowledge, and with my interest peaked for all things manure, I attended my first manure Land Application Training (LAT). LAT events, led by members of UNL’s Manure Team, are offered each spring at venues all across the state. Participants can attend for a full day if they are newbies like me, or a half day if they just need a refresher.

Fungi can be very problematic for our plants, and there are a lot of different fungi. In plants, there is a disease triangle that leads to plant diseases. For disease to develop, you must first have a pathogen, a susceptible host, and a favorable environment. Pathogens are common in the environment and just waiting for the right weather to occur and a susceptible host to infect. The environment can sometimes be altered by our plant management practices, such as overwatering or underwatering and improper irrigation practices can lead to more disease problems. That’s why it's so important, whenever possible, to choose disease resistant plants for our landscapes – both turf, fruits, vegetables and ornamentals.