Adam Thomas

Germany

Freelance Contributor at Freelance

Strategic coach, fiction writer, ambient musician, aspiring marathon runner, tired-but-happy parent. Founder: Evenly Distributed

Articles

Deadhead for longer bloom times

2 weeks ago | pmg-ky2.com | Adam Thomas

In the garden, the practice of deadheading your plants can promote more blooms. Plants live to reproduce, and the way they do that is through their flowers. When you remove dead blooms from a plant, you also remove their ovaries. Many plants then take the energy it would have used to produce seeds and put it into producing more flowers, hoping the next time you’ll leave it alone to do its job. Of course, if you want continuous bloom in the garden, you won’t.
Preventing spontaneous hay fires

2 weeks ago | pmg-ky2.com | Adam Thomas

Spontaneous combustion hay fires have caused loss of life and valuable nutrition for livestock, but you can prevent them if you keep a watchful eye and know the signs of a problem. Baling hay at appropriate moistures and monitoring the temperature of recently baled hay are your best tools. Generally, hay will go through a heating phase within one to two weeks after baling.
Ways to protect yourself from the sun

1 month ago | pmg-ky2.com | Adam Thomas

The sun is important for farmers’ careers and livelihoods, but the sun’s powerful rays do not always shine to your benefit. Since you spend most of your time outdoors, you are at increased risk of not only getting suntans but also sunburns and skin cancers compared to other segments of the population. While they may seem like a harmless part of your occupation, suntans are your bodies’ defense mechanism against too much sun and can cause your skin to prematurely age.
Foot Rot in Grazing Cattle on Wet Pastures

1 month ago | pmg-ky2.com | Adam Thomas

The rainfall received across the state the last few weeks has led to delays in planting, hay harvesting, and pretty much hampers any progress with most spring related processes. However, with the large amounts received many pastures are muddy, soggy, and standing in water. These conditions are conducive to the development of “foot rot” in grazing livestock. Foot rot is most often caused by the bacterium Fusobacterium necrophorum.
Striving for perfection

1 month ago | udel.edu | Amy Wolf |Adam Thomas |Nya Wynn

Not even Olympic rowers can row perfectly, but that doesn’t stop Cornelia Meiss from trying. It’s what the University of Delaware senior, a member of the Blue Hen rowing team, loves about the sport — how it’s both calming and relentless, how there’s always room to improve. “It’s just an amazing sport,” said Meiss, an international student from Germany. “It’s very calming, because it’s the same movement over and over again.
Late-season management tips for winter wheat

1 month ago | pmg-ky2.com | Adam Thomas

May is the prime time to scout and take action for wheat for diseases, insects and weeds. While approxi-kAm>2E6=J `_[___ 24C6D @7 H962E E92E H6C6 F?56C\k^AmkAmH2E6C 7@C D6G6C2= 52JD :? pAC:= 2C6 =@DE[ >@DE 72C>6CD 24C@DD z6?EF4<J 92G6 C6A@CE65 @?=J 2 D>2== A@CE:@? @7 E96:C H962E 7:6=5D H6C6 :>A24E65] uFCE96C 8@@5 ?6HD :D E92E E96 4@?5:E:@? @7 z6?EF4<J’D DFCG:G:?8 H962E 4C@A 92D :>AC@G65[ 244@C5:?8 E@ E96 |2J d &$sp\}p$$ rC@A !C@8C6DD 2?5 r@?5:E:@?
Container Gardening

1 month ago | pmg-ky2.com | Adam Thomas

Container gardening turns even the smallest balcony or stoop into a pocket-sized farm. If you rent an apartment, battle heavy clay soil, or just prefer vegetables closer to the kitchen door, planting in pots lets you sidestep many headaches that come with traditional plots. The method also works for those with limited mobility as containers can sit on a sturdy table or a rolling platform, bringing those veggies up where bending and kneeling are not required.
Invasive Species of KY Woodlands

1 month ago | pmg-ky2.com | Adam Thomas

The University of Kentucky Department of Forestry and Natural Resources has released a Field Guide to Kentucky’s Invasive Plants, a comprehensive resource aimed at helping landowners, conservationists and forestry professionals identify and manage invasive plant species across the state. This guide provides detailed profiles of the most prevalent invasive trees, shrubs, vines, grasses and herbaceous plants that threaten Kentucky’s ecosystems.
Transplanting tips for vibrant gardens

2 months ago | pmg-ky2.com | Adam Thomas

When the chance of frost has passed, it’s time to think about transplanting your young plants to the garden. About two weeks before you do that, you should harden (tough- en) them off to help them with- stand the outside environment. To do so, begin reducing water and fertilizer (but don’t let them dry out) and expose them to lower temperatures by taking your plants outside. Bring them in at night if the temperature is expected to drop into the 40s.
Using summer annuals to reclaim hay feeding areas

2 months ago | pmg-ky2.com | Adam Thomas

Wet conditions this winter resulted in almost complete disturbance in and around hay feeding areas. Even well-designed feeding pads could have significant damage where animals enter and leave. These highly disturbed areas create perfect growing conditions for summer annual weeds like spiny pigweed and cockle bur. While these areas may look rough now, you can improve them.