On-Demand Resources from Penn State Extension
View short videos and recorded webinars
Penn State Extension is a modern educational organization dedicated to delivering science-based information to people, businesses, and communities. Click on any of the resources below to view a recorded webinar or video provided by our expert educators.
Pollination
Learn about how honey bees and Spotted Lanternflies interact during this on-demand webinar!
This webinar is all about Pennslvania bees and open to gardeners, farmers, and bee-enthusiasts.
Join us to learn what flowers bees prefer when they collect nectar for pollination.
Gardeners, farmers, and bee-enthusiasts are invited to join us for this informative webinar.
Learn what to plant in your garden to bring the pollinators to your yard in this live webinar!
Learn what you can do to help our honey bees thrive all year.
Learn about each step of the bee's life cycle during this informative live webinar.
This webinar will introduce you to the mason bee life cycle, and provide instruction on where, when, and how to manage them sustainably and responsibly.
Join us for this live webinar to learn all about queen bee rearing!
Home Gardening
Not sure where to begin? In this session, experts discuss site selection, soil, mulch, starting plants, and vegetable families. Even experienced gardeners may pick up some valuable tips.
Learn how to construct a raised bed and expand production in the vegetable garden. Experts also discuss how to fertilize, irrigate (water), and manage insects and weeds.
Find out more about growing onions, carrots, beets, and several types of greens.
Peas, beans, and potatoes are on the menu of this how-to-grow webinar session!
Join us for the Extension at Home webinar series to prepare and protect your outdoor sanctuary.
Expert Master Gardeners and Extension Educators from across the state answer a selection of your spring garden questions during this webinar!
Home Food Preservation
Fruits have varying levels of acidity. The higher the acid level the better the gelling process, low acid fruits require additional acid to obtain a good gel.
Learn about the Four Core Principles of Food Safety to prevent foodborne illness.
Far too often, good food goes bad before we get the chance to eat it. This video highlights simple methods to reduce food waste and lower your grocery bill.
Ripeness and type of fruit determine a fruit's pectin content, both critical ingredients to making jam and jelly with a firm, tender texture, and excellent flavor.
Low methoxyl pectin, if correctly used, will create a gel in the absence of sugar and acid for those desiring jams and jelly containing less sugar.
Commercial products are available that create a gel without sugar. Low and no sugar jam and jelly will have different characteristics than regular jam or jelly.
Following proper procedure is critical to prevent jam or jelly from becoming grainy. This video describes causes as well as tips to prevent crystal formation.
This video describes the possible causes of jam and jelly not gelling or setting, as well as tips to prevent this from happening.
Raw meat can contain harmful bacteria that can lead to food-borne illness when not handled and prepared properly. Follow these practices to ensure that you, your friends, and family enjoy a safe meal.
Youth
Animals and Livestock
Drag line manure application is attracting farmers attention in Pennsylvania. Numerous advantages can be found when compared to hauling manure in tankers.
This webinar, presented by The Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law, provides a focus on the dairy industry and related legal developments stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.
In recent years, the use of beef semen to breed dairy cows has increased at a dramatic rate. This video will explore a research program designed to investigate the outcomes of those crossbred matings, the calves.
This webinar recording covers employer and employee workplace legal responsibilities and recommendations, to protect businesses, business owners, and employees during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many dairy farms are experiencing economic hardships with COVID-19, facing difficult decisions including ending operation in the dairy industry. Join this live webinar for money saving tips.
Learn how manure incorporation and injection can change the way we manage our crops and nutrients.
Make the most of your pasture acreage using rotational grazing!
Ticks carry diseases that can greatly affect the health of your pets. Learn how to protect your pets from tick-borne diseases during this informative webinar.
Learn how to treat horses and their environments to prevent ticks with this live webinar!
Learn how to control ticks in your herd with this webinar.
Forests and Wildlife
This video presents the importance of adults helping young children enjoy and appreciate nature. Three tips are presented on how to guide the process of connecting kids to nature and the outdoors.
Lichens are often thought to be a pest or disease to trees and shrubs.
Guidelines for selecting woody plants such as trees, shrubs, and vines and designing your landscape with the goal of providing wildlife habitat.
By replacing all or part of your lawn with native vegetation that provides food and cover, you can create a refuge to attract variety of wildlife.
Using a mixture of the herbicides glyphosate plus triclopyr provides a broadly effective and low-risk treatment for invasive plant species
Learn about sharpening chainsaws during this webinar.
Trees have many enemies. Insects, diseases, wildlife, and fungi are among the cast of characters that harm them throughout their lives. Trees also face climatic challenges.
A behind the scenes and "inside the box" view of the secret and busy life of a nesting bluebird.
A common form of timber cutting in Pennsylvania and many other states is known as high-grading. This practice is sometimes called "select", or "selective" cutting as it removes only the most valuable timber and leaves the rest in the woods.
Three key things people should know about timber harvesting are managing competing and invasive plants, decreasing deer impacts, and getting light to the forest floor.
This publication is intended to help landowners understand some of the complex decisions around timber harvesting, and ensure a successful timber sale.
Learn the distinguishing characteristics of the invasive tree-of-heaven that you can use to accurately identify it.
Tree-of-heaven is especially difficult to eliminate. Learn when and how to apply control measures, including herbicides, to eradicate this prolific tree.
A look at how moisture in the air affects the moisture content of lumber.
Forest "Regeneration" is an important word to know. It has two meanings that are related but different. It is a process observed by looking down in the woods, and it is the future forest.
As part of their ownership goals, woodland owners may want or need to harvest trees from their woods. Understanding the value of those trees is generally the first step in the process.
After lumber is sawn from the log it must be dried before it can be put into use. The forest products industry spends a lot of time and money to dry lumber and this video explains the reasons why.
Learn how to identify types of spruce trees, symptoms of two common fungal diseases, and what if any treatments are available.
Agronomic Crops
Industrial hemp is reported to have hundreds, if not thousands of uses. Penn State Extension educators spend some time with growers on their farms looking at hemp growing for CBD extraction.
Join us to learn how to reduce risk to your hemp business in these changing times.
Learn how to identify poison hemlock, a toxic weed, growing in Pennsylvania.
Avoid costly docking at the mill and grain fumigation expenses by taking the steps necessary to prevent a stored grain pest infestation.
Health and Wellness
Learn about the DASH eating plan and how to follow this heart healthy way of eating.
Learn about the DASH eating plan food groups, the recommended number of servings needed each day and the serving sizes, based on a 2000 calorie-a-day diet.
This video explains the new nutrition facts panel on food products.
Learn about new research in healthy aging and strategies for aging well.
Lifelong Improvements through Fitness Together (LIFT) is an educational program for older adults to promote balance, flexibility, and strength training to improve functional fitness.
Join this live webinar to learn the signs of distress and how to help those expressing symptoms.
Get through difficult times one step at a time. Learning how to cope during COVID-19 crisis can help you prepare for future challenges.
Join this live webinar to learn strategies to reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Join this live webinar to learn tips and techniques for healthy coping.
In this video, you will learn what protein is, why people take protein supplements, the various protein requirements, the pros and cons of taking protein, and the sources of protein found in protein supplements.
We discuss the impact adequate sleep has on our mental and physical health. Foods which help and hinder sleep are also covered.
Cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage are easy to incorporate into meals. Join us for a live webinar for tips on getting your daily recommended vegetables.
Getting the recommended serving of vegetables per day can be tough. Find creative ways to add nutrient rich vegetables to your diet in this live webinar.
Water Resources
Learn to use FISH online tools for monitoring stream health, stream changes and updates.
Join us for the Extension at Home webinar series to prepare and protect your outdoor sanctuary.
Join us for the Extension at Home webinar series to prepare and protect your outdoor sanctuary.
Learn all about water use, conservation, and testing during this live webinar!
This video will walk you through how to use the Penn State drinking water test kit to successfully analyze the quality of your drinking water.
Learn about harmful algae blooms and their possible toxins during this live webinar.
Manure is a great resource for farms because it contains valuable nutrients that benefit growing crops.
A riparian buffer involves planting or retaining trees, shrubs, or tall grasses along the banks of rivers, streams, lakes, and ponds.
This video discusses various steps homeowners can take to solve or treat bacteria problems in wells, springs and cisterns used for drinking water.
Learn how to manage your property to protect our waterways and how to apply to have your property officially certified!
Vector-borne Diseases
Attend this Live webinar to learn how to protect yourself from ticks and other vector-borne diseases this hunting season!
Tick prevention, treatment, and more will be covered in this Live webinar.
Learn how to prevent tick bites during this live webinar!
Join our informative webinar to learn how to protect you and your family from tick bites while still enjoying your backyard this season!
Learn about the basics of vector-borne diseases in Pennsylvania during this live webinar.
