Jay Clothes Closet Open Saturday
March 6, 2010
The Community Clothes Closet will be open today from 9 until 11 a.m. at the Jay Community Center.
Everything is free and everyone is welcome. For more information, contact Wendy at (850) 686-6124.
Don’t Be In A Hurry To Fertilize Your Lawn
March 6, 2010
Warmer weather is arriving, but don’t be in a hurry to fertilize your lawn — that’s the word from the University of Florida IFAS Extension office.
Even though it is still winter, now is the time of year that local garden centers begin major advertising campaigns to sell lawn fertilizers. It is too early to fertilize your lawn.
Fertilize when the lawn is actively growing
Warm-season lawns, including St. Augustinegrass, zoysiagrass, and centipedegrass go dormant in winter in Northwest Florida. Fertilizing now would be a waste of time and money. Why shouldn’t you fertilize warm-season grasses when they are dormant? First, when grasses are dormant, their roots are not able to absorb or use the nutrients from fertilizers. By the time the grass does begin actively growing, most of the nitrogen you applied will have been lost from the soil. A safe time to apply your first lawn fertilizer is around April 15th.
Don’t feed the weeds
Fertilizing while the grass is dormant actually encourages more winter weeds, because you are fertilizing the weeds instead of the lawn. Without competition from the lawn, these weeds will grow faster and become more prolific as a result of dormant fertilizer applications.
Lastly, fertilizing lawns during their transition into dormancy in the fall or out of dormancy in the spring may encourage lawn growth that is more likely to be injured from winter kill. Bare spots and thinning of the lawn as well as delay in spring green-up may occur when lawns are forced to grow when they should be dormant.
Combo products not the answer
Many of the products available are convenient “weed and feed” products that combine a pre-emergent herbicide and fertilizer in one application. Unfortunately, the ideal time to apply a pre-emergent herbicide is very different than the ideal time to apply fertilizer for warm-season lawns.
In northwest Florida, the recommended application window to maximize the effectiveness of preemergent herbicides is typically between February 15 and March 5.
The application timing for these products is critical since they must be applied before summer annual weeds germinate in spring. It’s always better to apply preemergent herbicides a little earlier rather than too late. And don’t forget to activate them by watering them into the lawn.
For St. Augustine grass, centipede grass, and other warm-season grasses, buy fertilizer that is separate from the pre-emergent herbicide. Apply each at their recommended times.
Finding a separate pre-emergent herbicide, not in weed-n-feed form, may be difficult. Some ones to look for include: benefin (Sta-green Crabgrass Preventer, Hi-Yield Crabgrass Preventer), pendimethalin (Pre-M, Pendulum, Turf Weedgrass Control, Halts Crabgrass Preventer), and bensulide (Green Light Betasan Crabgrass Preventer).
Start with a soil test
A soil test is always a good starting point before investing in fertilizer or lime. Your local University of Florida County Extension office can help you get started.
Theresa Friday is the Residential Horticulture Extension Agent for Santa Rosa County.
Great Weekend Weather
March 6, 2010
We are in for a sunny weekend, with comfortable daytime temps and cool overnights.
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
- Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 65. Wind chill values between 20 and 30 early. Northeast wind between 5 and 10 mph.
- Saturday Night: Clear, with a low around 26. North wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
- Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 66. Calm wind becoming northeast around 5 mph.
- Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 36. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph.
- Monday: Sunny, with a high near 67. North wind between 5 and 10 mph.
- Monday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 45. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
- Tuesday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 68. Southeast wind between 5 and 10 mph.
- Tuesday Night: Scattered showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 54. South wind between 5 and 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%.
- Wednesday: Scattered showers and thunderstorms. Cloudy, with a high near 70. Chance of precipitation is 40%.
- Wednesday Night: Scattered showers and thunderstorms. Cloudy, with a low around 56. Chance of precipitation is 40%.
- Thursday: Scattered showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 75. Chance of precipitation is 50%.
- Thursday Night: Isolated showers. Partly cloudy, with a low around 46. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Harry Fowler
March 5, 2010
Harry Fowler, age 83, of Cantonment, Florida passed away Thursday, February 25 surrounded by his loving family. He was born on August 18, 1926 in Munson, Florida. He retired from Monsanto. He served the Lord faithfully for 71 years and was a member of the Assembly of God Church.
He is preceded in death by his parents; Rev. Riley and Virgie Fowler, son, Clyde, his sister Hazel and his brother James.
Survivors include his wife of 64 years; Geraldine, sons; Donald (Donna) and Glenn, daughter; Regina (Ronnie) Golloher, grandchildren; Riley, Jeremy and Brannon Fowler, Krista Spears, Jonathan and Nicholas Golloher, 9 great grandchildren and brothers; David, Sidney, Lloyd and Jack Fowler.
Funeral services will be held at 11:00 am on Monday, March 1, 2010 at First Assembly of God Church with Rev. Larry McKeehan and Rev. Avon Fowler officiating. Interment will follow at Pensacola Memorial Gardens.
Serving, as pallbearers will be his grandsons and great grandsons.
The family will receive friends at Faith Chapel North-Cantonment on Sunday, February 28, 2010 from 3:00 pm until 5:00 pm.
Faith Chapel Funeral Home North-Cantonment is in charge of arrangements.
NHS Lady Chiefs A Pefect 7-0
March 5, 2010
The Northview Lady Chiefs improved their record to a perfect 7-0 with a big win over Pensacola High School Thursday night.
Northview beat PHS 16-1. Emily Vickery had a three run homerun. Ashley Digmon +was 3-3 with four runs scored. Northview will play in the T. R. Miller Tournament Friday night and Saturday as they look to continue their perfect season.
Molino Man Dies When Truck Flips Into Jacks Branch
March 5, 2010
A Molino man was killed early this morning when he crashed his pickup truck through a guardrail and flipped into Jacks Branch near Cantonment.
The Florida Highway Patrol says William P. Merritt, 30, died in the accident about 3:05 a.m. Friday.
The accident happened on the bridge over Jacks Branch on Jacks Branch Road, just north of River Annex Road. The FHP says Merritt was northbound on Jacks Branch Road when he cross over the center line, ran off the road, struck a guardrail and flipped into the branch, about 25 feet below the bridge.
The vehicle landed upside down in the water with tires barely visible when the first rescuers arrived. Firefighters dove into the cold waters of the branch in order to reach Merritt who was trapped in the truck. They used a come-a-long and chains attached to a tree to flip the vehicle onto its side near the shore of the branch to reach him.
Merritt was pronounced dead at the scene. Emergency workers were unable to find anyone else in or near the vehicle.
On February 22, a female driver crashed through the guardrail on the same bridge and plummeted into the water below. She was rescued with minor injuries. [Read more...]
The Cantonment, Molino and Beulah stations of Escambia Fire Rescue, Escambia County EMS, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, LifeFlight and the Florida Highway Patrol all responded to Friday morning’s accident.
Click here for a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery from the scene.
For Mr. Merritt’s obituary, click here.
Pictured above and below: William P. Merritt of Molino died when this pickup truck flipped into Jacks Branch at 3:05 a.m. Friday. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Century Convenience Store Robbed At Gunpoint, Suspect On The Loose
March 5, 2010
A two and a half hour manhunt Thursday night in Century failed to locate an armed robbery suspect.
An armed robbery was reported about 7 p.m. at Moyes State Line Food Mart on North Century Boulevard. The store clerk told deputies that a black male entered the front door of the store, came up to the side of the counter, pointed a handgun at her and a customer, and demanded that she empty the register. The suspect also took money and lottery tickets from the customer, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office report.
The suspect was described as a black male, about six feet tall wearing a black hoodie jacket with a scarf over his mouth.
K-9 units from the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and Century Correctional Institution joined Escambia County deputies and Flomaton Police Department officers in a lengthy manhunt for the suspect. The manhunt was centered in an area bounded by Highway 29, Old Flomaton Road, Highway 4 and the Alabama state line.
About 8:40 p.m., a resident just south of the convenience store called 911 to report that a black male wearing a dark colored hoodie jackets was standing at her door, covered in mud. The resident also described the man as having lips that were light in color and appeared to be burned.
“‘Don’t you know me? Don’t you remember me? The police are after me’,” the suspect told the woman, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The man reportedly asked the female if he could entire the house, but she refused and called for help. A black jacket was recovered by an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office crime scene technician from behind the woman’s residence.
The search was called off just before 10 p.m. with no arrests. Deputies are continuing to look for the suspect.
The convenience store clerk was not injured in the robbery. It was not immediately known how much, if any, cash the suspect was able to take from the store.
Anyone with information on the suspect is asked to call the sheriff’s office at (850) 436-9620.
Pictured top: A Century Correctional Institution K-9 unit searches for a suspect after a Thursday night armed robbery in Century. Pictured inset: An Escambia Sheriff’s Office crime scene technician processes fingerprints on the front door of the business. Pictured below: Deputies on scene of an armed robbery Thursday night in Century. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Ernest Ward To Get Electrical Academy, First Such Program In The Nation
March 5, 2010
Ernest Ward Middle School will be home to a new IBEW Electrical Academy next school year, the first such program in the nation at the middle school level.
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers will work with the school district to create the Electrical Academy. Middle school career academies are small, personalized learning communities within a school in which select students and teachers participate during a two or three-year span. A career academy involves teachers from different subjects working together as an interdisciplinary team.
“The career academy is an exciting thing for Ernest Ward,” Escambia Superintendent of Education Malcom Thomas said. “It will engage students in a relevant way, while preparing them for the workforce and their future.”
In the EWMS Electrical Academy, the students will be introduced to electrical systems, learn the theories of electricity and gain valuable hands-on experience in various projects, according to Carl Leiterman, director of Workforce Education for the Escambia County School District. While students will work with AC (household type) electrical systems, most projects will use DC (battery type) voltage for safety reasons.
“They will take the theory and expand it to the application,” Leiterman said.
One focus of the program will be “green” power — wind and solar generation systems. “It’s one of the fastest growing and most in demand career fields right now,” he said. “The future is in green technology. These kids at Ernest Ward are going to have a tremendous opportunity to get a head start on a very well-paying career.”
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers curriculum will be adapted to meet Florida standards. The program, which will begin with the 2010-2011 school year, will be open to students from across Escambia County in grades seven and eight with at least a 2.0 GPA and few discipline referrals.
By 2012, the current Construction Academy at Northview High School is expected to be expanded to include an Electrical Academy, Leiterman said. After high school, students could transition into the workforce with certifications offered by the George Stone Technical Center or into college program including electrical engineering.
“It is an excellent opportunity for our communities and Ernest Ward,” Principal Nancy Gindl-Perry said. “With it being the first program like this in the nation, it will make Ernest Ward an even better opportunity for our students that we already are.”
There is one final hurdle before the IBEW Electrical Academy will be official — it must be approved by the Escambia County School Board at their April meeting. Thomas said he fully expects the board to grant approval.
Jay Softball Teams Pulls Out Of Brewton Tournament Following Weekend Shooting
March 5, 2010
Jay High School’s softball team has pulled out of a Brewton softball tournament following the weekend shooting of a Brewton teen near Jay.
The Lady Royals were scheduled to play in the tournament this weekend at T.R. Miller High School in Brewton, but the team will no longer take part out of what school officials called “an abundance of caution”.
Robert Franklin Floyd, 21, of Jay, is charged with an open count of murder for the shooting death of Getyron Lopez Benjamin, 18. Floyd is also facing three counts of attempted murder after he allegedly fired a rifle into a vehicle occupied by Benjamin and four other people that were leaving a party in Jay last Saturday morning.
There were allegations that the shooting could have been racially motivated, but many residents of Jay and Brewton say that race is not an issue in their town.
“This insanity has to stop,” one Jay High supporter wrote in an email to NorthEscambia.com “A lot of innocent people are being affected by people who are not and should not be involved in this situation.”
Federal Agents Raid Tax Service Business In Atmore, Other Cities; Search Owner’s House
March 5, 2010
(Updated) Federal agents raided an Atmore tax and check cashing business Thursday morning as well as locations of the business in two other Alabama cities. They also searched the home of the business’ owner.
Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service served a federal search warrant at the Preyear’s Tax & Check Cashing, LLC on Ridgely Street in Atmore about 9 a.m. Locations of the business in Monroeville and Thomasville, Alabama, were also included in the search warrant, as was the Monroeville home of Alice Preyear Mobley. According to the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office, Mobley is the owner of the business.
FBI and IRS agents on scene in Atmore were unable to comment about their investigation. They were observed removing items from the business and searching at least one vehicle in the parking lot next to the business. Atmore Police Department officers and the federal agents were seen questioning at least one person from the business.
“I can confirm that we were there on official business,” said Patty Bergstom, an IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent and spokesperson in Atlanta. “I can’t confirm or deny that we are involved in any investigation there.” Bergston confirmed that IRS agents also were also at locations of Preyear’s Tax & Check Cashing, LLC in Monroeville and Thomasville.
“We were there executing search warrants,” Angela Tobon, a spokesperson in the FBI’s Mobile Division said. She would not confirm any other details due to an ongoing investigation.
No one was arrested during Thursday morning’s operation.
Pictured above: A federal agent enters Preyear’s Tax & Check Cashing, LLC in Atmore Thursday morning. Pictured inset: Agents search a vehicle at the business. Pictured below: A federal agent and Atmore Police officer talk to an employee of the business during the raid. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
