Michelle Alfini

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Michelle Alfini

Starting this month, you may see a small fan boat near the shoreline of our local lakes. The Catawba-Wateree Water Management Group, through partnerships with the Lake Norman and Wylie Lake Commissions, North Carolina State University and Duke Energy, will spend the next several months working to prevent the growth of Lyngbya along the shore. Communities pitching in to control algae at Lake NormanThe 2025 season marks the second year of treatment aimed at keeping Lyngbya at bay.

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Michelle Alfini

Every morning, when Jim Howie takes his cattle out to pasture, he’s following in family traditions that go back generations. His family’s owned this land just outside of downtown Waxhaw since the 1860s, and Howie says it’s always been used for farming. “If you go back to the 50s and 60s, agriculture was Waxhaw’s main source of income,” he said. “Everybody had some ties to agriculture.”Now, Waxhaw and much of Union County are rapidly changing.

2 weeks ago | wsoctv.com | Michelle Alfini

CHARLOTTE — Weather determines feast or famine on farms like Drew Medlin’s. It takes the right amount of rain at the right time to ensure Medlin’s wheat, along with other crops across Union County, can produce enough good quality grain to make the growing season worthwhile. “We’re really hoping for a bumper crop on this wheat so far,” he said. This year, Medlin said his crops have a lot to make up for after a rollercoaster of extremes in 2024.

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Michelle Alfini

Weather determines feast or famine on farms like Drew Medlin’s. It takes the right amount of rain at the right time to ensure Medlin’s wheat, along with other crops across Union County, can produce enough good quality grain to make the growing season worthwhile. “We’re really hoping for a bumper crop on this wheat so far,” he said. This year, Medlin said his crops have a lot to make up for after a rollercoaster of extremes in 2024.

2 weeks ago | wsoctv.com | Michelle Alfini

CHARLOTTE — Across North Carolina, late March and early April are typically the yellowest time of the year. Tree pollen is peaking and grass pollen season is just getting started, but research shows, across the country, that those seasons get getting longer and more intense. According to the Department of Health and Human services, that’s because rising temperatures are leading to milder winters and more frost-free days which means pollen producing plants can bloom earlier and survive later.