It’s been a rough start to the growing season but hopefully all of the home gardeners have gotten through the frost and are busy maintaining their gardens in anticipation of the harvest.

With all of the effort that goes into planting and maintaining a home vegetable garden, it’s important the bounty of the harvest be safely preserved to enjoy throughout the winter months.

Penn State Extension will offer a workshop on the basics of home food preservation. The workshop will provide hands-on exposure to water bath canning and canning under pressure. Participants will learn how to apply each process and understand the proper steps to ensure the safety of their canned food products.

Two sessions will be offered, the first on June 25 and the second on July 17. Both sessions will be held at the Butler County Extension office from 5 to 8 p.m.

There is a registration fee of $30 per person. Registration is required and seating is limited to 10 people per session.

Reservations may be made by contacting the Butler County Extension office at 724-287-4761, Ext. 222.

Tractor safety program

Every year, farm and utility tractors designed for agricultural or residential tasks head out to the woods to provide transportation needs and power for jobs in the forest. All too often, they or their operator fail to return in the same condition.

Job safety depends on a number of variables: having the right tool for the job, training and experience, good judgment and weather conditions, just to name a few.

If you or someone you know is occasionally involved in woodland activities involving the use of a tractor, we urge you to take a few hours of your time familiarizing yourself with the basics of tractor safety.

A good place to start is the operator’s manual for your tractor, which contains a wealth of important information, safety tips and warnings. Even better, attend a tractor safety program designed to address the dangers of operating a tractor in the woodland environment.

Agricultural health and rural safety is one of Penn State Extension’s program priority initiatives and our renewable natural resources Extension educators have teamed with our DCNR Bureau of Forestry counterparts to bring you a free four-hour tractor safety program addressing the dangers faced by those who venture into the woods.

“Tractors in the Woods — Things You Need to Know” will be offered on Saturday from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the state Bureau of Forestry District 8 Office, 158 S. Second Ave., Clarion.

Our lead instructor will be William Harshman, research assistant for the Penn State Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department’s ag safety and health program.

Harshman has a long history of teaching tractor and machinery safety and is certain to challenge some of your understanding of safe operating procedures.

The first half of the program will be classroom presentations and will be followed by an opportunity to participate in hands-on safety activities and demonstrations including the Penn State power take off reaction time simulator and the tractor stability simulator. The simulator is a full size mock-up that will allow you to climb into the cab and test your ability to estimate different slopes and the dangers they represent to the operator.

Registration is requested no later than Tuesday to allow for adequate materials, and you can register by calling Penn State Extension — Mercer County at 724-662-3141, Ext. 304.

June shale programs

As part of its continuing education program, the Penn State Extension Marcellus Education Team will offer the following programs:

• Seismic Testing, Pipeline Agreements, and Shale Gas Development Updates — Where is the Industry Headed.

This program will be offered on June 19 at the Indiana County Extension office, 827 Water St., Indiana, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Registration is required by calling 724-465-3880. The registration fee of $10 per person or $15 per couple is payable at the door.

• Utica Shale — What We Know Now That We Didn’t Know Then.

The program will be offered June 25 at the Mercer County Extension Office, 463 N. Perry Highway, Mercer, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Registration is required by calling 724-662-3141. The registration fee of $10 per person is payable at the door.

• A webinar based program on petrochemical business development will be held June 20 from 1 to 2 p.m. Registration is not necessary and all are welcome to participate by logging in to https://meeting.psu.edu/pscems.

This material is submitted by Donna Zang, Extension director, and the staff of the Penn State Extension office at the Sunnyview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center complex.