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Phone: 336-846-7164 • Fax: 336-846-7165 • Email: wjpeditorial@civitasmedia.com

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Cliff ClarkGeneral Manager/Editorcclark@civitasmedia.com

A proposed revision to the Ashe County School’s student attendance policy was shelved after one Ashe County Board of Education member raised questions about the message it might send to students.

“That’s the one I don’t agree with,” said Dr. Lee Beckworth in reference to a proposed change by district ad-ministration to modify the student attendance policy, during the board’s summer meeting on June 28, at the

district’s administrative annex.“If you’re in elementary school, you

can miss 18 days, if you’re in middle school, you can miss 15 days and if you’re in high school, you can miss 10 days…this eliminates all that and it turns it from an objective system into a subjective system and the person in charge of the subjectivity is in charge of the system…and I’m a little uncomfort-able with that,” said Beckworth about the proposed rule change.

He said he didn’t “like the idea of lowering the standards” to graduate.

“This is just another step in that direction the way I see it,” said Beck-

worth.“So my question is, why would we

need such a drastic change in class at-tendance,” asked Beckworth.

After some confusion about the wording of the policy, Beckworth read the current policy.

“Basically, the way our policy is now, if you miss 18 days, there are some things you have to do to make them up. Middle School if you miss 15 days..high school if you miss five per semes-ter, 10 days…basically, this one (policy proposal) eliminates all that,” said

BOE shelves proposed attendance changes

Cliff Clark | Jefferson PostThe Ashe County Board of Education listens to a presenta-tion during its June meeting. The board members (from right to left) are: Terry Williams, C.B. Jones, Charles King, Dr. Lee Beckworth and Polly Jones.

Submitted photo | Jefferson PostNancy Edwards (left) and Melba Jones (center) checked out the book offered by Jason English during the June Ashe County Arts Council Gallery Crawl. More “books” in the Human Library collection can be found as the Ashe County Public Library and will be available for check out during the gallery crawls in August and September.

Cliff ClarkGeneral Manager/Editorcclark@civitasmedia.com

Prior to what is generally con-sidered the first book ever written (or discovered so far), “The Epic of Gilgamesh,” which was chis-eled into a clay tablet nearly 3,000 years ago, knowledge was passed from generation to generation us-ing the oral tradition.

That oral tradition of mov-ing information and knowledge forward continues today with a new program offered by the Ashe

County Public Library called “The Human Library.”

“It gives people a chance to visit with someone they may not usually talk too,” said ACPL Li-brarian Suzanne Moore when de-scribing the new program.

Essentially, the program works like this. Anyone can “check out a book” that is an individual who has a particular area of expertise or story to tell. The “books” are available for “check out” from 1-3 p.m. during select days in the cof-fee bar in the library.

She said the concept of the Human Library was developed in Europe and Canada with the goal of promoting tolerance and acceptance of other cultures and lifestyles.

Moore added that she also saw a correlation between the Human

Library and science fiction writer Ray Bradbury’s novel “Fahrenheit 451,” in which common people memorized books (carried them in their heads) and provided the information in them after the fic-tionalized government banned, and burned, all books in an effort to suppress dissenting ideas.

The pilot program for the Hu-man Library was held during Na-tional Library Week in April, said Moore.

The first of two “books” avail-able for check out as the pilot program began was Lissa Brown, who wrote a book called “The Other “F” Word.” Brown was available for check out to discuss the negative impacts of bullying and efforts to stop bullying in our

Check out a ‘book’ from the ‘Human Library’Library is looking to add to its collection

After a 43 year tradi-tion, the Rotary Club of the Jeffersons will host its last Bluegrass and Old Time Fiddlers Convention on Aug. 2-3, 2013 at Ashe County Park.

Centered on honoring the Old Time and Blue-g r a s s m u s i c of the m o u n -t a i n s a n d the mu-s i c i a n s who make it, the Fid-dlers Convention has served to raise money for the multitude of schol-arships awarded to Ashe County High School Se-niors.

A lot has changed in 43 years, but the heart of the music remains in the musi-cians. That is why the Ro-tary Club of the Jeffersons is offering the opportunity for another group or orga-nization to take over the convention and continue the tradition after 2013.

“When the time came to look at our priorities for supporting these scholar-ships and our area youth, the club felt that more at-

tention should be paid to other ventures that could potentially increase the amount we contribute,” said Cameron Keziah, Ro-tary Club of the Jeffersons

President.O f f e r i n g c a m p i n g ,

f o o d c o o k e d

on site, compe -t i t i o n in both y o u t h a n d

a d u l t categories

with some great music

and prizes, the Ashe County Fiddlers

Convention has a reputa-tion of being a true fam-ily event. Any group could easily host this event and keep the convention alive to support any cause.

Rotary Club of the Jeffer-sons members say that the musicians are what truly make the event special.

“Seeing the same great families and individuals each year coming to per-form is really unique,” said Keziah. “We have watched some of the youth grow up as they attended the con-vention, and many return

Fiddlers Convention is in its final year

You might say that the new pastors appointed to serve the United Method-ist Churches in Jefferson and West Jefferson know one another.

They have been married for 33 years.

On July 8, Perry Miller became the pastor at West Jefferson United Method-ist and Karen Miller is the pastor at Jefferson United Methodist. They are mov-ing from Statesville, where they have been serving as pastors for three years.

Perry was raised in the Charlotte area, graduated from North Mecklenburg High School and received a Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Divinity de-gree from Duke University.

Karen was raised in Tul-sa, Ok., and received the Bachelor of Science degree from Southern Method-ist University in Dallas, Texas, and the Master of Divinity degree from Duke

Divinity School.They met during their

seminary training, and married in Duke Chapel in 1980. They have served

in ministry in Tennessee, Kentucky, and North Caro-lina.

While in Tennessee, Perry received the Doctor

of Ministry degree from Vanderbilt University. Dur-ing their pastoral ministry in Asheville, Karen was ap-pointed to serve as a Dis-trict Superintendent for six years, with supervisory responsibility for other clergy.

In the United Methodist denomination, pastors are appointed by the Bishop and other pastoral leaders rather than called or hired by a congregation. That is how the Millers were ap-pointed to serve in an area that they had never visited prior to this time. They are looking forward to this new adventure.

The Millers have one adult daughter who lives in Alexandria, Va.

As in the case for all United Methodist clergy, they are appointed to serve not only the church to which they are sent, but

JUMC, WJUMC welcome new pastors

Photo submitted | Jefferson PostPerry and Karen Miller are the new ministers Ashe County’s United Methodist churches.

Staff report

Ashe County’s jobless rate held steady at 11.0 percent in May, unchanged from April and up 0.1 over May 2012, according to the latest county figures from the N.C. Divi-sion of Employment Security (DES).

Ashe’s unemployment rate fell to 11 percent in April, down 1.1 percent over March.

Of the county’s May labor force of 12,108, 1,331 were looking for work. Ashe ranked 81st among the 100 coun-ties for employment in May, unchanged from April.

May 2013 was the 54th consecutive month of double-digit unemployment in Ashe County.

Three neighboring counties saw jobless rate increases in May. Alleghany increased 0.1 percent to 9.5 percent, down 0.6 percent over the year (OTY), Watauga in-creased 0.2 to 8.1 percent, with no OTY change, and Wil-kes increased 0.5 to 10.2 percent, down 0.6 percent OTY.

Avery County experienced an 0.8 percent decrease to

Ashe unemployment rate holds steady at 11 percent

See PASTORS | 3 See RATE | 3

See LIBRARY | 4

See FIDDLER | 4

See BOE | 4

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An exciting new raffle is being presented by the Mu-seum of Ashe County His-tory. It is your opportunity to own the pictured very special commemorative shotgun. The shotgun, a double-barreled .410 gauge with the Norfolk and West-ern “N&W” emblem on the engraved action, is number “8” of only 50 made by E.R. Armantino of Brazil. It is in like-new condition and has apparently never been fired.

What also makes it special are the two Ste-phen Shoemaker “Virginia Creeper” railroad scenes and the Shoemaker laser-engraved signature in the walnut stock. The shotgun comes with a certificate of authenticity and a fitted gentleman’s traveling case.

Raffle tickets are $10 each and can be purchased at the Museum Gift Shop and from Museum Board Members. Throughout the summer the tickets and will also be available in various retail outlets. The drawing will be held on

Oct. 26, 2013, and ticket holders do not have to be present to win. Federal Firearms transfer require-

ments will apply.You don’t want to miss

this opportunity to own a truly special firearm.

Museum of Ashe County History offers exciting new opportunity

Submitted photo | Jefferson PostStephen Shoemaker is holding the special firearm being raf-fled off by the museum.

At a time when hospitals are releasing patients earlier, the elderly are living lon-ger with many chronic illnesses and the traditional family unit is ever changing, more family members are faced with pro-viding care for their loved ones.

In an effort to acknowledge, assist, inform and show our appreciation for Ashe County family and kinship caregiv-ers, the High Country Caregiver Founda-tion will be hosting two events in Ashe County. An appreciation luncheon will be held at Ashe Services for Aging 11-1 p.m. July 31, and a barbecue will be held at the Riverview Community Center 10 a.m.-2 p.m. July 18.

All too often, people find themselves having to perform new and unfamiliar tasks. Regardless of how one becomes a family caregiver, they take on new roles for which they may not feel prepared.

It is normal to feel nervous or over-whelmed about what is expected of you. You may experience a number of mixed emotions including anxiety, anger, and sadness. At the same time, you will prob-ably feel the desire to care for your loved one the best way you can.

Most family caregivers find themselves having to take care of their loved one without any type of pay or compensation. This can lead to financial stress for the two-thirds of caregivers in the U.S. who have other jobs.

Depending on the level of care required, caregiving can be rather time-consuming and can require a lot of hard work. All too often, caregivers sometimes end up taking care of everyone else, while they neglect themselves.

This can negatively impact the care-giver’s emotional and physical health. Communication also can be difficult in caregiving, which can lead to moments of stress and frustration, especially when dealing with people suffering from ill-nesses like Alzheimer’s disease.

Loved ones in need of care often in-clude those suffering from a physical or mental illness, disability, substance abuse or misuse, or other conditions that prevent a person from being able to care

for themselves or their children.Are you a family caregiver?If one or more of the statements below

apply to you, you are a family caregiver. Do you…

• Provide direct care to someone, such as feeding, bathing, dressing, supervising or other type of assistance?

• Provide supportive care such as de-livering meals, giving rides, calling or stopping in to check on someone?

• Coordinate medical appointments and medication management?

• Assist with household chores or fi-nancial oversight?

• Provide some other type of assis-tance to a loved one that enables them to have the best quality of life as is possible?

• Provide daily care and supervision for a minor, related to you by blood or marriage, which is not your biological child?

Although caregiving can be a stressful, overwhelming job, it also can be a very re-warding experience. Caregivers not only help people who are desperately in need of it, but they also provide much-needed companionship and friendship that care-receivers truly appreciate. Helping others is always commendable, because every one of us may need caregiving assistance at some point in our own lives as well.

For more information or if you are interested in sponsoring or attending these worthwhile events, please contact: Brenda Reece at (828) 265-5434 ext. 128 or toll-free at (866) 219-3643 or email breece@regiond.org.

High Country Caregiver Foundation honors Ashe family

More than 120,000 North Carolinians will turn 65 this year. Turning 65 is a lot like turning 16. When you turned 16, you didn’t automatically get your driver’s license; in-stead you had to take an exam and prove that you were a safe driver.

There was a specific or-der and procedure for get-ting your driver’s license, and the same is true for enrolling in Medicare for the first time when you turn 65.

Much like you antici-pated turning 16 and get-ting a driver’s license, an upcoming senior must anticipate and plan for be-coming a Medicare ben-eficiary.

A beneficiary should not wait until they turn 65 to start thinking about Medicare choices.

SHIIP, a division of the North Carolina De-partment of Insurance, provides free, unbiased information about Medi-care and other insurance-related issues. There are SHIIP sites in all 100 counties in North Caro-lina.

It is recommended that an upcoming senior contact SHIIP to review Medicare options before needing to enroll in order to prevent any hurried de-cisions at the last minute. A beneficiaries Medicare choices will depend on several factors, including:

1. Are you retired, or will you or your spouse continue to work?

2. Will you have ac-cess to medical and/or prescription drug cover-age through an Employer Group Health Plan?

3. How does your Em-ployer Group Health Plan compare with Medicare supplement plans and Medicare Advantage plans?

Of course, there are other things to consider

when determining Medi-care options. SHIIP has created a handout to help navigate the Medicare system and initial enroll-ment process.

The handout, “The Road to Medicare,” out-lines the decisions a bene-ficiary needs to make and what options are available through the Medicare sys-tem. To obtain a free copy of “The Road to Medi-care,” call SHIIP at 1-800-443-9354 or visit SHIIP’s website at www.ncshiip.com.

Also, certified SHIIP volunteer counselors are available to discuss Medi-care options. To arrange an appointment with a SHIIP volunteer counsel-or, call the Senior Center at 336-246-4347 or call SHIIP at 1-800-443-9354 or visit www.ncshiip.com.

A beneficiary shouldn’t wait to make Medicare decisions. A person can and should start the pro-cess before turning 65. Let SHIIP help you un-derstand your options and get you on the road to Medicare.

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The Jefferson Post Shopper, Tuesday, July 16, 2013 — Page 3

SOLUTIONS ON PAGE 4 |

From Page 1

From Page 1

Pastors

Rate

also the community. Both Karen and Perry and in-terested in exploring how they can serve the Ashe County area.

In the past, they have been involved in organiz-ing and participating in the CROP Walk for Hunger, various community agen-cies that deal with hunger and other human needs, and have specialized train-ing many different areas of church leadership.

Karen has been an ad-vocate for children’s rights and has organized support groups for parents. She is the co-author of a book entitled, “Brief Dramas for Worship,” a collection of dramatic monologues and worship services.

Perry has been involved in competitive tennis, and golf. He is eager to spend time on the golf courses in our area.

Karen is a beginning quilter and enjoys hiking,

cooking, scrapbooking and reading. She has a particu-lar interest in the intersec-tion of creative arts and

spirituality, and is looking forward to getting to know artists in the area.

Perry and Karen are

coming to strong church-es that have a long his-tory of ministry in Ashe County, partnership with

many different helping agencies, and people from a wide variety of back-grounds.

10.3 percent in May, down 1.0 percent OTY.

May’s not-seasonally-adjusted jobless rates de-creased in 87 counties, and decreased in 12, with only Ashe County unchanged. All 14 of the N.C. metro areas saw rate decreases in May.

Scotland County had the highest unemploy-ment rate in May at 16.1 percent, while Currituck County had the lowest at 5.7 percent. Among the Metro areas, Rocky Mount saw the highest rate at 12.8 percent, while Durham-Chapel Hill had the lowest at at 6.8 percent.

The statewide season-ally-adjusted unemployed rate in May was 8.8 per-cent, up 0.3 percent from April.

North Carolina ranked

fifth in the nation for un-employment in May, with Nevada at number one with 9.5 percent according to the Bureau of Labor Sta-tistics.

Nationwide, the season-ally-adjusted unemploy-ment rate held at 7.6 per-cent May through June, according to the BLS.

As of July 1, approxi-mately 240 Ashe Countians saw their federal Emergen-cy Unemployment Com-pensation cut, according to DES spokesman Larry Parker.

With an average $73,000 in weekly ben-efits paid in Ashe County over the last six months, the end of the EUC pro-gram in N.C. represents a loss of approximately 1.8 million for the local econ-omy over the remainder of 2013.

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Page 4 — The Jefferson Post Shopper, Tuesday, July 16, 2013

From Page 1

From Page 1

From Page 1

Library

Fiddler

BOE

schools and society in gen-eral.

The other “book” avail-able was Kilby Spencer, who is not only the li-brary’s regional technol-ogy coordinator, but also a well-known fiddler and a member of the Crooked Road Ramblers, a blue-grass music group.

Spencer’s “Music is in the blood” book was a talk on how old time music is passed from one genera-tion to another.

After the success of the pilot project in the library, said Moore, the Human Library was opened for check outs during the Ashe County Arts Coun-cil’s first Gallery Crawl of the summer in June.

Eighty-two books were checked out during the June crawl.

Available for check out during the crawl were Kelly Halsey, who played the role of “Annie” in the Ashe Little Theatre pro-duction of “Annie.” Her book was about child act-ing.

Melissa Caudill, a mar-athoner and cancer survi-vor, offered a book about her passion for running and what she learned bat-tling cancer.

Jason English, dis-cussed his book, the “New Face of Church Leader-ship” and the “Free People Free People” effort, which is a nonprofit organization that operates under the as-sumption that people who are free have an obligation to rescue others from slav-ery and oppression.

And, Michael Goss, a published writer and tournament poker player, offered a book on the his-tory of poker.

Other books already available for checkout cover topics on aviation and woodworking, the greenhouse effect and cli-mate change, solar energy, genealogy, the art of yo-yoing, and bee keeping.

But, Moore said, more books are needed and becoming a book is as simple as contacting the library.

“Let us catalogue you and maybe you’ll become a best seller,” said Moore.

For more information about the upcoming dates or making your “book” available for “check out” from the Human Library, visit www.ashelibrary.com or call 336-846-2041.

with a newly learned in-strument each year.”

With its continued service through other programs such as community food boxes, support of Imagina-tion Ashe and its growing wreath project, designed to

raise funds while support-ing local tree and wreath production, the Rotary Club of the Jeffersons has anoth-er bright year ahead.

Although saddened to lose its participation in the Fiddlers Convention, the club will gladly pass the

honor along to another in-terested group.

The 44th year promises to be a great one and the hope that another group can keep the heritage and tradition alive for years to come remains.

If anyone is interested in

participating or for further information about the 2013 Ashe County Fiddlers Con-vention, you may contact Cameron Keziah at jeffer-sonsrotary@gmail.com or search for the Rotary Club of the Jeffersons on Face-book.

Beckworth.He said the proposed pol-

icy would become a subjec-tive decision of the principal.

Beckworth then read from the proposed student atten-dance policy revision.

“Class attendance may be taken into account is assess-ing academic achievement…that makes no sense to me,” said Beckworth

Again, reading from the proposed revision, Beck-worth said, “the principal shall consider whether the student’s grade should be re-duced because of absences…the way I read that…if I’m really smart and I can pass those test, I don’t ever have to go to school.”

Beckworth then asked, given the proposed policy, could it be possible that stu-dents could miss “30 days or 50 days” and still pass?

Interim Superintendent Donnie Johnson responded.

“I don’t think you’d see that, but I understand the gist of what you’re saying,” said Johnson to Beckworth.

“We’re seeing 30 days (ab-sent) now,” said Beckworth.

Johnson said the objectiv-ity of proposed policy would be based on what the teach-er sees on what actually oc-curred in the classroom.

At that point, Beckworth asked, “Do you think there’s ever been a teacher that’s been pressured to pass a child that did not pass the class.”

Board member Polly Jones answered, “Yes.”

At that point, Jones sug-gested withdrawing the policy revision. “You might want to pull this one.”

The board also discussed the use by faculty and staff of electronic devices and passed a policy that would prohibit instructional per-sonnel from using the de-vices during class time.

Beckworth asked if the policy was extended to dis-trict employees who were not instructional personnel and whether or not the dis-trict could monitor the web traffic on devices provided to staff by the district.

Specifically, Beckworth asked if the administration could find out whether or not an employee was shop-ping on a website while at work.

ACS Director of Technol-ogy Amy Walker said it was possible for the district to know what websites person-nel using district devices were visiting.

The board also briefly dis-cussed a proposed revision of gun laws by the N.C. Gen-eral Assembly that would allow firearms on school campuses.

Currently, the district has policy that strictly prohibits weapons, including fire-arms, on any campus.

However, the district can make no policy that super-sedes a state statute.

It was decided to continue discussing the policy, if and when the new gun laws, are adopted by the legislature.

In other action taken by the board:

• It accepted the person-nel recommendations by the administration for re-tirements and new employ-ees. It was noted by board member Terry Williams that several pre-K teachers had applied for open kindergar-ten teaching positions. That observation was acknowl-edged and it was primarily because of uncertainty of the continuing of funding for the pre-kindergarten program at the state level.

• The board awarded a contract of $145,722, to North Wilkesboro’s As-sociated Heating and Air Conditioning to install air conditioning in the kitch-ens at Ashe Middle School, Blue Ridge Elementary and Mountain View Elementary.

• The board awarded a contract of $28,800 to West Jefferson’s B&G Plumbing and Electric to update the electrical service in the CTE Department at the high school.

• The board set the stu-dent fees for the upcoming school year, which included a waiver for fees to students’ families that have a financial hardship.

At the board meeting were: board members C.B. Jones, Polly Jones, Terry Williams, Dr. Beckworth, and chairman Charles King. Interim Superintendent Donnie Jones attended his last meeting as the head of the district school system. Incoming Superintendent Dr. Terry Holden was also in attendance.

Imagination Ashe, the local affiliate of the Dolly Parton Imagination Li-brary, announced recently that this spring the pro-gram had an active enroll-ment of 700 children, a goal set by the executive board a year ago.

Each preschool child enrolled in the program re-ceives an age-appropriate book each month mailed directly to them through the generosity of local resi-dents and visitors to the High Country.

According to Kathy Che-fas, the Imagination Ashe Board President, the goal over the past 18 months has been to enroll at least half of all the 1,500 Ashe County children between the ages of birth to five years.

“We’ve been very suc-cessful in nearing that goal and continue to enroll children each month,” said Chefas. “Learning how to properly hold a book, how to turn the pages in a book along with early parental involvement in a child’s reading life sets a sound educational foundation for that child’s life and aca-demic career.”

Imagination Ashe’s data clerk, Laurel Wilson, gets the chance to hear from par-ents of enrolled little ones and the excitement these children have when their books arrive each month.

“Sometimes families have to move for a vari-ety of reasons. We work to make sure books are delivered in a timely man-ner with only a short inter-

ruption of service due to address changes,” Wilson said. “When a parent con-tacts me with their new address, they often tell me how excited their children are when the post office delivers a book to their house. These kids don’t want to miss a book.”

Wilson also said that enrollment in the program here, as with every affili-ate, varies from month to month.

“We have children who ‘age out’ when they reach their fifth birthday. We also have a number of children who enroll for the first time at two or three years of age. Newborns are regis-tered as soon as they come home from the hospital.

“Each month our num-bers vary a small amount but this variability still keeps our average enroll-ment currently around 680 to 690 registered chil-dren,” Wilson said.

“However, this spring during one month’s book cycle, we actually had 701 children enrolled from Ashe County under the age of five. That is a huge milestone and one of which we’re very proud,” she said.

Imagination Ashe is a preschool reading program that has been in existence since January 2007, when the first book was deliv-ered to Ashe County chil-dren. Our first book order had 225 children enrolled.

Imagination Ashe is a 501(c)3 nonprofit orga-nization funded solely by donations from the local

community and its friends. The board consists of nine volunteers from the county who advocate and fund-raise to get books in the hands of all enrolled chil-dren of the county.

To sponsor a child for one year is $30; two chil-dren for one year is $60. A donation of $150 provides books for one child for five years. There are two quali-fications for enrollment:

the child must live in Ashe County and be under five years old.

Visit their booth at Christmas in July and be-come a “fan” of Imagina-tion Ashe.

For more information on how to register a child or to make a donation, contact Imagination Ashe at 336-384-4255, kandr@skybest.com, or visit and “like” us on Facebook.

Imagination Ashe reaches 700

Submitted photo | Jefferson PostGetting books in childrens’ hands before they begin kinder-garten is the focus of Imagination Ashe.

Dylan LightfootStaff Writerdlightfoot@civitasmedia.com

The Ashe County N.C. State Cooperative Exten-sion held its Small Fruit Production Field Day on June 26, at Upper Moun-tain Research Station, where over a dozen lo-cal growers came to hear N.C. State specialists speak on horticultural methods for strawber-ries, raspberries and blueberries in mountain regions.

Featured speakers at the event were N.C. State Assistant Professor and strawberry breeder Dr. Jeremy Pattison, small fruit specialist Dr. Gina Fernandez, blueberry specialist Dr. Bill Cline, and Assistant Professor and entomology special-ist Dr. Hannah Burrack.

Due to soil and climate conditions, small fruit growers in Western N.C. face special challenges producing compared to growers in the southeast-

ern portion of the state. Cooler temperatures and short, often wet, grow-ing seasons make many varieties of small fruit that grow successfully “down the mountain” unfeasible in the High Country, and varieties that do thrive here re-quire judicious manage-ment to be profitable.

The strawberry crop in the mid-South — which includes N.C., S.C. and Virginia — has an estimated value of $48 million per year. To maximize production, an “annual plasticulture system,” in which a new crop is planted each year in flat, raised beds cov-ered with a plastic film mulch, was adopted in the 1990s, and is now the predominant pro-duction method in ther region.

In the mountains, the Chandler variety grows best, Pattison said. Growers who use annual plasticulture, and set up mesh row covers to re-

tain heat around plants from mid-October and to early April can produce 15,000 pounds of Chan-dlers per acre.

But strawberries re-quire labor management, Pattison said, requiring some hand-weeding, and trimming of first flush blossoms to promote growth of roots and fo-liage. At least a week of removing and replacing row covers to manage spring frost is par for the course, as a typical 20-degree April day will kill half the crop.

Raspberries, black raspberries and black-berries — now called “cane berries,” rather than “brambles” — also gain favorable econom-ics from covered cul-tivation, according to Fernandez. Tunnel cul-tivation has been shown to double yield by con-trolling temperature and keeping rain off ripening fruit, with the added bo-nus that harvest is made easier by keeping pickers

out of the sun and rain.In a three-year trial

from 2010-2012, Nan-tahala red raspberries, a good fit for the local growing system, yielded an average 47 percent more fruit when grown under tunnels.

Blueberries that grow well in the mountains are highbush varieties, according to Cline. Rab-biteye blueberries, which do well in the Piedmont and Coastal areas, will not survive here.

Blueberries require more acidic soil than most small fruit. Cline recommends additions of wettable sulfur prior to planting to adjust soil pH to 4.8-5.0.

Birds love to eat blu-berries can put a dent in yield if not controlled, accroding to Cline. The only pracical method for controlling birds is to drape plants with one-inch by one-inch bird mesh suppoerted by a light framework.

Local growers attend field day