Alexander County Cooperative Extension

10/21/2026

The votes and judge scores are in, and we are thrilled to announce the winners of this year’s Apple Dessert Contest from the Taylorsville Apple Festival!

A massive congratulations to our incredible bakers who wowed us with their delicious creations:

🥇 1st Place: Debbie Ge**er – Autumn Apple Cake
🥈 2nd Place: Madison Brady – Double Crust Apple Pie
🥉 3rd Place: Sherri Wingler – Fresh Apple Pound Cake

A huge thank you to everyone who entered and to our judges for coming out to taste and support our local talent!

Drop a comment below to congratulate our winners!

10/21/2026

A huge THANK YOU to all of the amazing community volunteers who joined us yesterday for the Real Money Real World Simulation at East Alexander Middle School (Falcons)

Our 8th graders got a hands-on taste of adulting—learning how to budget, make smart financial decisions, and balance real-world expenses like housing, transportation, and groceries. This incredible experience wouldn't have been possible without our local business leaders, community members, and parent volunteers who took the time to mentor and guide our students through each station. We are so grateful for a community that consistently invests in the future of our students!

Thank you Taylorsville Savings Bank, First Community Bank First Baptist Church, Taylorsville, NC, Alexander County Partnership for Children Alexander County Head Start Alexander Early Head Start, Alexander County, North Carolina, Alexander County PORT/ Community Paramedic, The Emerald Hill, Hartness Hometown Properties, Inc., Alexander SWCD, and our retired teachers/volunteers for all the help you gave!

10/15/2026

Fall Market starting tonight at the Farmers Market in Bethlehem!! Show your support for vendors between 4-7pm this evening at Mt. Pisgah Lutheran Church off Hwy 127!

Don't forget to stop by the Bethlehem Fall Market tonight from 4-7pm to support your local vendors!

10/13/2026

come see us saturday on the Courthouse lawn !!!

10/13/2026

Don't forget to bring your apple dessert this Saturday to the apple festival!

10/06/2026

Don't forget to order your tickets for this great event. You will not regret spending a wonderful fall evening with us. Great food, entertainment, laughs and a breathtaking venue.

10/04/2026

🥕Community Garden Updates🍅

Our community garden beds have produced over 237lbs of produce that have been donated in our community - and we still need to harvest all of our sweet potatoes!!

Gardeners—now is the time to:
Remove summer crops & weeds
Prep for fall plantings
Contact Cari if you’re not renewing your bed so it can be winterized

⚠️ Heads-up: Root-knot nematodes have been spotted in our beds.

🌱 Nematode Management Quick Tips
Resistant Varieties: Look for "VFN" on tomato & pepper seeds
Cover Crops: Marigolds, cowpeas, winter rye, crimson clover
Crop Rotation: Don’t plant the same family in the same spot yearly
Tool Sanitation: Clean tools with alcohol or 10% bleach between beds
Cultural Practices: Remove roots after harvest, till soil in fall, add compost
Soil Solarization: Use clear plastic in summer to reduce nematodes

💡 Want details + seasonal planting guides? Contact our office for resources!

10/03/2026

Apple Season is in Full Swing Across Alexander County!

Peak harvest is here, and local apple houses are buzzing! Our brushy mountain region (Alexander and Wilkes Counties) proudly ranks second largest for NC for apple production, driven by progressive growers switching to modern high-density orchards as older blocks of apples are taken out. Growers using high density are using a variety of methods to plant more apples per acre, which helps produce higher yields with less chemical use.

Whether you're after crisp new varieties like Honeycrisp, Gala, Fuji, Pink Lady, Cameo, and Crimson Crisp, or classics like Stayman Winesap, Arkansas Black, and Granny Smith, our three premier family-owned orchards have you covered:

Sugarloaf Orchards: (7415 NC-16, Taylorsville, NC 28681/ Phone: (828) 635-7477
Fifth generation orchard and roadside market off NC Hwy 16N,
State-recognized Century Farm, operating the oldest apple house in the county, growing apples, peaches, Asian pears, cherries, and plums across 50+ acres.
Deal Orchards : (7400 NC-16, Taylorsville, NC 28681/ Phone: (828) 632-2304
Third Generation orchard and roadside market off NC Hwy 16N
This 100+ acre orchard participates in our NC Farm to School program, providing apples for our NC school system!
Perry Lowe Orchards: (8741 NC-16, Moravian Falls, NC 28654/ Phone: 336-921-3123
Sixth-generation orchard and roadside market off NC Hwy 16N on the Alexander/Wilkes County line.
This 100 acre orchard also offers U-Pick on the weekends with lots of activities for the kids as well!

Beyond the Apple Tree: Don't forget to stock up on pumpkins, fresh c***r, apple slushies, c***r donuts, local honey, jams, country ham, cheeses, cornmeal, and baking apples for homemade pie season.

Can’t make it this week? Don't worry—thanks to local cold storage facilities, fresh-picked apples will be available well past Christmas. Stop by a local farm stand to support our local families, enjoy unmatched freshness, and snag prices that easily beat the grocery store!

10/02/2026

What pests and fungus should you be looking out for in your gardens and yard in October? Not sure? This link will help you. Should you notice something that doesn't look right reach out to Cari Rosenbalm, County Extension Agent, Hortculture to get the help you need.

Month-by-month lists of common plant diseases, pests, and other problems you may encounter in North Carolina yards and gardens.Back to BOLO list of months. TurfgrassesFairy ring (all…

10/01/2026

Just because fall is here doesn't mean our garden task are over. Check out the link to see what you should be doing to keep you lawn and garden looking superb.

Plants in Flower Fertilizing September: See Lawn Care October: Spring-flowering bulbs at planting time with a balanced fertilizer Planting (September) Set out landscape plants. Shop early to find the…