The beverage we call tea has long been consumed by humans. Did you know that tea is the second-most-consumed beverage in the world? That’s right: The only beverage consumed more than tea is water. Before briefly explaining the history of tea, it is important to define what tea is. There are many types of herbal teas native to cultures and societies around the world, but this article focuses on true teas. Green, yellow, white, oolong, dark and black teas are made from the Camellia sinensis plant.

The Union County Extension Office invites the community to kick off the holiday season with a festive, hands-on Christmas Wreath Making Workshop at Chuck Swan State Forest in Sharps Chapel.

The workshop will take place on Thursday, November 21 at 10 a.m. at 3500 Sharps Chapel Road, Sharps Chapel, TN 37866. The cost to attend is $20, and space is limited.

Attention Beef Cattle Farmers: UT Extension Union County is excited to announce that we will be hosting the Tennessee Master Beef Producer Program this October and November. This comprehensive educational initiative is designed to help Tennessee cattle producers enhance the profitability of their cow-calf operations.

It was 1972 and Bill Nickle was walking the steep mountainside of Hogskin Valley when he realized that his dream was becoming reality.
A dream born in the late 1960’s was starting to come to fruition as his vision of Narrow Ridge was laying before his eyes.

Commitment, complexity, flexibility and sternness are all features you will find in a beef cattle farmer. American cattle farmers are working harder today than ever to be successful in their industry, and it does not come easy. The devotion is met with long hours, rain when you don’t need it and drought when do. Broken fences, leaky barn roofs, breech calves, and flat tractor tires are nails found in the road of cattle farming.

Tobacco once was a way of life and a tradition. It is where people came from and how they grew up. A lot of hard work and pride went into the crop, but over the years it has become a dying tradition for many reasons, with little remaining in East Tennessee.

Enthusiasts from around the world traveled to spectate the picturesque landscapes of unique blooms at the Twentieth Annual Oakes Daylily Bloom Festival on Friday and Saturday June 28 and 29. The weather was usual for East Tennessee’s late June days, very hot and muggy, but the temperatures did not slow down the masses of guests attending.

An outdoor farmers market, like the Union County Farmers Market at Wilson Park, is a wonderful place for a family outing. It should be fun for everyone and a fabulous learning experience for your children. The variety of sights, sounds and smells at the market automatically engage your child’s senses and are a fun way to foster curiosity, teach important skills and encourage them to think about where their food comes from. A few ideas to help you get started on a family outing to the market follow.

Agriculture partners joined forces in a pleasurable and educational event for Paulette Elementary School students on May 15. This was the 25th Annual Farm Day hosted in Union County. The event is hosted at one of the county’s five elementary schools each year, in rotation, so that every student in the county gets at least one attendance.

The May board meeting for Union County Farm Bureau was packed with excitement. Three scholarships were awarded as well as a presentation by State 4-H Council members and Tennessee 4-H Congress attendees.