Strip till unit is being built by Rohrs Manufacturing of McGuffey
By Hardin Soil & Water Conservation District
The Pilot Watershed Project is out of the starting block and running in Shallow Run. Hardin County’s Shallow Run is a watershed encircling Dunkirk and is the focus of a research effort being led by The Ohio State University and several other universities and public and private partners. The research is designed to examine if applying enough conservation practices in this watershed can create a detectable improvement in water quality. More specifically, can conservation practices reduce phosphorus loss from farm fields?
Each year a green slimy algal bloom develops in Ohio’s Lake Erie impacting water quality. Algae use the phosphorus being delivered to the lake as a food source and cover large areas of the lake and can become toxic in certain situations. Boaters, charter captains and many residents in the area don’t like that. Lake Erie, annually, is a billion dollar economic asset for the State of Ohio. Also, the city of Toledo uses water from the lake for its citizens water supply and spends millions of dollars treating water for domestic use. Many look at agriculture as being a major contributor of phosphorus and for the resulting algal bloom.
COLUMBUS__ Ohio hunters checked 19,359 white-tailed deer during the opening day of gun hunting season on Monday, Nov. 27, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. Ohio’s seven-day gun season is open until Sunday, Dec. 3, and a two-day gun season is open on Dec. 16-17.
Notice to all Hardin County dog owners: every dog three months of age and older must have a dog license. The fee for a 2024 tag is $20.00 and the fee for a kennel license is $100.00.
Dog tags may be purchased from the following Ada businesses between December 1 and January 3:
Ada Animal Hospital
Middlefield Banking Co.
If such application for registration is not filed and said fee paid on or before January 31, 2024, the County Auditor shall assess a penalty of $20.00 on a dog license and $100.00 on a kennel license. Anyone found harboring an unlicensed dog after the 31st of January shall be cited into court.
By Mark Badertscher
Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension Educator
HARDIN COUNTY__ With the help of 15 volunteer rainfall reporters, the Hardin County Extension office has collected unofficial township rainfall data for the past 31 consecutive years. The 2023 growing season began with some early planting in April; however wet soil prevented much field work from occurring until late in May. Frequent rains combined with cool temperatures in early May slowed evaporation and kept field conditions wet. Farmers were able to finish planting crops in June that they didn’t get planted in May. June continued with cooler temperatures and dry weather which slowed early season growth.
Low amounts of rainfall across parts of the county occurred in July after a dry month in June. Rains were spread out throughout the month of July, which resulted in lower disease pressure in crops. Both corn and soybean crops grew slowly until the rains started in early July. August brought more needed rain for county crops after a dry start to the growing season. Farmers were counting on rain to complete ear fill and to produce soybean pods.
So far in 2023, Crime Victim Services has helped 66 people who had credit accounts opened in their names, or credit cards stolen or misused. With identity thefts growing by the day, it’s important to monitor your credit report.
Driving by on State Route 235, the new Liberty Oaks venue for weddings and other events somewhat resembles the business formerly at this location, New Leaf Garden Center. Upon closer inspection, you can see that only the greenhouse is still there. The rest of the facility has been built from scratch as a much larger space for hosting events with catering and bar service, as well as outdoor weddings.
