VEGETABLE GARDENS DISCUSSED DURING RECENT SENIOR-WISE

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(Casper, WY) -- Planting a vegetable garden in Wyoming presents some challenges not faced in most parts of our country but be a successful effort by understanding local weather and soil conditions and following some basic rules. That was the word from Donna Hoffman, Natrona County Horticulture Specialist (pictured above) during her recent visit to the Senior-Wise program at the Casper Senior Center.

She said local gardeners have to do a lot more to maintain their gardens and get them growing. "It's not like the Midwest where you can just drop seeds into the ground," she said. "There, they have 5-10% organic matter in the soil while we have about 1% organic matter in our soils. In addition, the soil must be loose enough for new roots to grown down so you should always add organic matter when you till. In fact, that's your reason to till -- to add organic matter into the soil." She advised tilling as deep as you can get it, as most roto-tillers go 6-8 inches deep while an agriculture plow will go down 12-18 inches.

She also spoke of the importance of creating windbreaks. Because our winds usually come from the southwest, creating a windbreak for that direction will also provide afternoon shade during some of the hottest summer sun. Also, most vegetable garden plants need at least six and preferable eight hours of sunlight per day.

Several vegetable varieties do well locally, she said, both cool season and warm season crops. Warm season crops are tomatoes, watermelons, cucumbers, squash, and peppers. "For these, we need to wait to plant," she cautioned, "because the soil temperatures are too cool in the early spring." She also said when you plant your garden it's best to start with cool season crops like cabbage, peas, lettuce, radishes, carrots, cauliflower and broccoli since all those are easy to get started in the early spring. "You can start these several weeks prior to our last expected frost of the year," she noted, "and typically our first frost free day of the year is May 22." She said many old timers have said never to plant your garden until the snow is off the face of Casper mountain. 

She concluded by relating that our average annual rainfall is about 13 inches and that's typically not enough for most vegetable garden plants. She said cool weather vegetables may not need additional water until May while warm weather garden items need about an inch of water per week.

Senior-Wise is held Tuesdays at 12:30 at the Casper Senior Center, 1831 East 4th Street in Casper.

WY HOUSE BILL 119 DISCUSSED DURING SENIOR-WISE

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(Casper, WY) -- House Bill 119 -- the so-called "Death with Dignity" bill -- was introduced in the Wyoming State Legislature this session and it was the topic of discussion during a recent edition of Senior-Wise at the Casper Senior Center. The presentation was made by Casper resident Alicia Loveland (pictured above), who addressed the House committee in support of the bill. "I'm not with any organization," she began her presentation. "I'm just an individual citizen and Iwant to present what the bill is about." She said the Wyoming bill is somewhat similar to a bill that was approved in Oregon. "I have strong feelings on the subject," she said.

She said HB 119 includes several required steps. First, an oral request must be made to a doctor, followed by a 15 day waiting period. After that, a return visit to the doctor is required where an additional request must be made. Then, the bill would require the doctor to explain all options and a written request must be made and it must be witnessed by two other people, neither of whom could benefit by the ultimate decision. The doctor would again explain the options and would direct the patient to another doctor for confirmation of a terminal diagnosis. This doctor would write a letter explaining the condition, confirming that it is terminal and provide an estimated time of life expectancy. The bill would require the doctor to wait 4 days before prescribing the end of life drugs. Finally, the doctor would call the pharmacy and the pharmacy decides whether to fill the prescription.

Strong opinions on the moral, legal and ethical implications of this bill were expressed during the discussion period, and it was acknowledged that few physicians and pharmacists would take part in the process. Loveland explained her support for the bill was due in part because her family had been touched by the tragedy of suicide. 

Montana, Vermont, Oregon and Washington currently have these assisted suicide laws on the books. HB 119 was not voted out of committee in the Wyoming state legislature and therefore lacked support for a vote before the entire House.

Senior-Wise is held Tuesdays at 12:30 at the Casper Senior Center, located at 1831 East 4th Street in Casper.

INCOME TAX FILING INFORMATION PRESENTED AT SENIOR-WISE

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(Casper, WY) -- Tax filing season is here and that can mean lots of questions from tax filers. Sandy Sowder of Liberty Tax Service in Casper (pictured above), addressed the Senior-Wise group at the Casper Senior Center recently to answer questions some of those questions. 

One of the first questions she addressed concerned the safety feature involved in filing an income tax return annually. "If your sole source of income is Social Security and you have no other form of income you may still want to file your tax return each year," she recommended. "You can do it as an information filing to make sure that your Social Security number is not being used by anyone else in the IRS system." She said Liberty Tax Service will do a free information filing just on your Social Security income. "It's a good idea to bounce that off the IRS each year," she said, "to make sure your Social Security number is not being used in their system for any other purpose." She pointed out that Social Security fraud can also catch up with seniors from a medical standpoint at the hospital, because in the hospital's record system you are also your SS number. "If someone checks into a hospital using your Social Security number then a medical profile starts to build that doesn't belong to you," she cautioned. "It can be very difficult and very expensive to get your identity back."

Tax forms like W-2 and 1099 should already been in your possession. "They don't have to be delivered by the end of the January but they must be postmarked by the end of January," she said. But she also noted it's the tax filer's responsibility to make sure these employers have a current address. This is easy one to forget if you use direct deposit, she said, because your address can change while your bank account number did not. 

If you plan to do your own taxes there are some valuable resources to consult. She recommended checking the irs.gov website as a useful and user friendly resource. She said there's more security and safety filing your taxes with a professional firm, since franchises like Liberty Tax are required to follow even tougher regulations that what the IRS requires. She also said it's more difficult now to obtain paper copies of tax documents. "Almost all tax information is being directed by the government to irs.gov," she said, "but you can still order the paper forms for free from irs.gov and they'll be mailed to you." 

Senior-Wise is held Tuesdays at 12:30 at the Casper Senior Center, 1831 East 4th Street, Casper, WY.

SPRING PLANTING TIPS FOR GARDENERS DISCUSSED DURING SENIOR-WISE

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(Casper, WY) -- Despite the winter cold, it's really not too early to begin thinking about the spring planting season and Donna Hoffman, Natrona County Extension Horticulturist (pictured above), shared some tips with local enthusiasts during a recent edition of Senior-Wise at the Casper Senior Center.  

Most of her program concerned the planting and care for perennials, the plants that return annually. She said an important place to begin is to improve the soil in your garden. "Any of you who have gardened for years probably know that the WY soil is pretty shallow," she said. "There aren't a lot of nutrients and there's very little organic matter in our garden soil. That's true for most of the rocky Mountain region." So she said it's a good idea to add organic matter such as peat moss or compost or straw to your garden because all those will benefit future generations of plants. "Adding organic matter is one of the first and most important things you can do  to improve the success of anything you grow in your garden," she said.

She noted that as far as geology is concerned Wyoming soil is still pretty young so there's not as much plant growth here as there is in the Midwest. Hoffman recommended cutting down on water use in your garden in the summer by mulching. This also cuts down on the weeds that come up and helps protect perennials from harsh winters. She added that good mulch can contain such common matter as shredded tree bark and straw. 

Also, because Wyoming soil has such low nutrient content she recommends using fertilizers. "You may want to begin with a soil test to know exactly what your soil will need," she said, "and those of us at the extension office will be glad to test your soil."

Having a successful garden also requires proper care during the winter. "It's important to protect plants from warming up too much so they don't germinate and come back up too early," she said. "We want to protect them in case we have freezing temperatures and the best way to do that is keeping the mulch layer on until things really do need to start greening up."

The Natrona County extension office has available to the public a publication called "Landscaping: Herbaceous Perennials for Wyoming" that lists nearly one hundred plants that survive and thrive in our climate. It is available free of charge.

Senior-Wise is held Tuesdays at 12:30 at the Casper Senior Center.

HEALTH CARE MAINTENANCE FOR SENIORS DISCUSSED DURING SENIOR-WISE

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(Casper, WY) -- Health care maintenance for seniors was the discussion topic during a recent edition of Senior-Wise, the weekly informational program at the Casper Senior Center. The guest speaker was Dr. Tabitha Thrasher (pictured above), a resident physician at Wyoming Family Practice in Casper. She stressed that preventive  care is important from birth throughout life and suggested many practices to help us all live our lives to the fullest. 

First, she said, know what you're dealing with. "The three leading causes of death for seniors," she cautioned, "are heart attacks, strokes and cancer. So take care of your heart and your body and make sure you regularly screen for cancers to help with early detection."

Second, she noted, it's important to have the appropriate immunizations, to make lifestyle modifications such as exercising regularly and quitting smoking. She also recommended a pneumonia vaccination if you're over the age of 65 and have never had one. In addition, she urged seniors to get a shingles vaccination. "You only need to be vaccinated for shingles once in your lifetime," she said.

She also stressed the importance of regular exercise. "Thirty minutes of moderate exercise five days a week is a good idea for those over 65, and since bone fractures are more common in seniors, weight bearing exercises are important too," she noted.

She also shared some new blood pressure guidelines for those over the age of 60 with no history of diabetes or chronic kidney disease. "For those individuals, it's not recommended that the blood pressure be 150 over 90. She said it's been learned that aggressive blood pressure controls can cause falls. She said for those persons with diabetes or chronic kidney disease blood pressure should still be 140 over 90.

Finally, she stressed the importance of regular tests and screenings for things like cancer. "If you're over 50 you should get a colonoscopy every ten years as long as the test results are normal. For women, get a mammography starting at age 50, or sooner if there's  a risk of breast cancer in your family." And she said it's also a good idea to get annual blood work done starting at age 35, to screen for things like blood sugar and cholesterol.

Senior-Wise is the weekly information and discussion program held Tuesdays at 12:30 at the Casper Senior Center,

PROPER DISPOSAL OF PRESCRIPTION MEDICATIONS DISCUSSED DURING SENIOR-WISE

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(Casper, WY) -- Did you know that in Casper, WY, the third most abused drug in the community is prescription medication? Casper overall is a pretty safe community but unfortunately there are some drug abuse issues here. That was the message shared by Casper Police Sgt. Joe Nickerson (pictured above) recently, during his presentation at Senior-Wise at the Casper Senior Center. He said marijuana is the most commonly abused drug and methamphetamine is second. This all poses challenges for local law enforcement. "The problem with prescription drugs," he said, "is if we find a guy with marijuana or meth, those are against the law and we can arrest them. But someone who is addicted to prescription medication is harder to evaluate because they may have that prescription legally." 

The way the Casper police department combats this problem is by collecting all unused prescriptions so they can be disposed of safely and properly. Sgt. Nickerson said flushing them down the toilet is the most common practice but that's not a good idea because medications flushed down the toilet can adversely affect our water supply. "City water treatment plants are designed to remove harmful bacteria from our water supply and are not designed to remove some of the chemicals found in prescription medications," he cautioned. "The bottom line is, please don't flush unused or out of date medications down the toilet."

The Casper Police Department has a drop box available in the lobby of the police headquarters at 201 North David Street and the lobby is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. "It's a big green box," Sgt. Nickerson said, "that looks like a mail box. Just open the drawer, drop your medications inside, and they'll fall into a locked container. That way the drugs are kept off the street."

Seniors are a popular demographic for those who would abuse prescription medications and some people who come to visit you in your home may not have the purest of motives. "We've seen cases where a grandchild comes to visit and brings a friend," he told the group. "Then while you're talking to your grandchild the friend leaves and snoops around the house looking for prescription medications." He said this happens most often with high school or junior high school kids. Prescription medication theft also occurs during real estate open houses, he said. Sometimes a criminal will attend an open house, excuse himself to use the bathroom and then open the medicine cabinet to look for drugs. 

If you are unable to leave your house the Casper Police Department will come to your house to collect your unused our out of date medications. Call the non-emergency number at (307) 235-8278.

Senior-Wise is held Tuesday at 12:30pm at the Casper Senior Center.