Monthly Archives: July 2021

Srdan Verstovsek, MD: In the treatment of myelofibrosisthat is the most difficult to manage of the MPNs [myeloproliferative neoplasms]there is certainly a major change in the management of myelofibrosis with the application of the JAK2 inhibitors. If we are talking about treatment for PV [polycythemia vera] in the second-line setting, a quarter of the patients or perhaps more, would need something beyond this frontline therapy of hydroxyurea. With ET [essential thrombocythemia], there is a similar situation. Regarding myelofibrosis, I think we can say that development ofJAKinhibitors is earth-shaking for the outcome of these patients. I think you would agree with that statement.

Andrew Kuykendall, MD: Yes, it has completely changed the game for, as we said, these salvage approaches. We have gone from sometimes very gruesome approaches of taking peoples massively enlarged spleens out to now being able to provide a pill that, for the vast majority of patients, is going to improve their spleen size just by taking it twice a day. I imagine it is a pretty big change for patients.

Srdan Verstovsek, MD: Yes, and again, it is active regardless of mutational status and whether you have primary myelofibrosis, or have it secondary to PV or to ET. The benefits are seen across the board to a similar extent, and on average, from clinical studies, for about 3 years, and a good proportion of the patients have that benefit prolonging their life. I think the evidence, particularly over the last couple of years, speaks to that prolongation of life as a benefit that we did not really imagine because we were talking about controlling the symptoms and the spleen. Now, we are looking at the Medicare database and the SEER [Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results] database; we have all these large, federal databases that are suggesting people actually live longer.

Andrew Kuykendall, MD: It is really encouraging, obviously. That is the goal of all these medications, to have people live longer and live better. For ruxolitinib, we knew people were living better, but there is good evidence that people are living longer, too. As someone who has closely reviewed the COMFORT trials, it is almost hard to understand how there was a survival benefit when patients were allowed to cross over after 6 months, and most patients did. It reinforces the benefit of getting these patients on ruxolitinib earlier, if they are appropriate candidates for it. There is clearly a benefit to getting treated earlier. To show a survival benefit in a study that allows crossover after 6 months is challenging to do, but when it is shown, it shows the benefit of early initiation.

Srdan Verstovsek, MD: The early initiation, I think, is one of the key factors for achieving that longevity because if you are introducing the therapy late, you are facing patients who are very debilitated, who particularly have anemia and thrombocytopenia that affect the delivery of the therapy. Early intervention is needed even when patients are not extraordinarily sick, especially those who have an indication for therapy with symptomatic splenomegaly and general systemic symptoms. If they do not have excessive anemia or thrombocytopenia, your management will be easier; you can get a better dose of ruxolitinib and a better chance for extensive improvement of the patients metabolism, function of the organs, performance status, and spleen size, making the spleen as small as possible.

The analysis of the benefits stretch from, you have a high albumin, high cholesterol, your weight goes upI think that is a very well-known patient complaint, gaining too muchbut performance status improves, kidney function improves, and the spleen is much smaller. Then, people can sustain life with much better quality for much longer, and I think that is the goal of our efforts today, versus 10 years ago. We would say, Do not wait. Early intervention matters. You will make people happier sooner. Why do you need to wait for people to be dying? Intervene early, and that will translate, as you optimally treat the patients with the safest, highest dose to decrease the spleen as much as you can, to life extension. I think that is something we need to strive for, to be widely accepted, to up the bar from quality of life improvement to life extension.

Andrew Kuykendall, MD: I definitely agree. I think the one thing we focus on is the survival benefit, as was seen in patients who were eligible for the study, patients who had big spleens. I think there is a lot of discussion around what really constitutes a symptomatic spleen. Sometimes patients do not know, or physicians do not know, but a big spleen is usually symptomatic. I had a recent patient I saw in the clinic who had a spleen that was extending past his belly button, but he said it was not causing him any symptoms. He did not really understand why he was having increased urinary frequency, or frequent diarrhea, or why his kidney function was going up, but he said the spleen that was across his midline was not symptomatic. I think we probably waited a little too long to treat a patient like that; sometimes just asking a patient if they are symptomatic or not probably is not right. These big spleens, once they are 5 cm, or palpable under the rib, usually cause some degree of discomfort, even if its minimized by patients.

Srdan Verstovsek, MD: You extended this discussion to proper assessment of patients. We should be asking questions or utilizing what we were saying before when discussing ET and PV; we need to be assessing the quality of life with the proper questionnaire, which should become part of the electronic medical record, so we can respectively follow the quality of life as the patient answers those questions. You have a point from 0 to 100, and then you can track it like you tack the CBC [complete blood count]. Unfortunately, we do not have anything like that for the spleen itself. These are the limitations of what is happening right now, but with education, I think the assessment of patients quality of life and early intervention through recognition of the bad quality of life sooner rather than later will be ultimate goal. There are studies, as you know, done with low-risk patients, we still go by the risk of dying, but low-risk patients should not be symptomatic. They are, though, if you ask the questions, right? You have to ask the questions, and that is why the NCCN [National Comprehensive Cancer Network] guidelines say that, for even lower-risk patients, if they are symptomaticwhich is the keyyou need to ask the questions. There is a role for ruxolitinib.

Andrew Kuykendall, MD: If you are ever wondering what the flaw is in using risk models for determining treatment withJAKinhibitors, splenomegaly is not included in any of the risk models. That is one of the main reasons we are using those drugs. Low risk, high risk, whatever risk it isif they are symptomatic based on the symptom score or they have problematic or bigger spleens, then they are candidates, and they can benefit from these drugs.

Transcript edited for clarity.

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EP. 8: Targeted Therapies for Myelofibrosis - Targeted Oncology

Your phone is an extension of your online life. Here are three ways to make sure your devices are protected against hackers.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. With the recent news of pipelines being hacked and major companies having to pay ransom to get their files back, it might leave you wondering how secure your devices are.

It has become way more than just a mobile phone. In all reality, our phones are an extension of our online life. We bank on it, we monitor financial investments on it, and we might even save password lists to a variety of sites.

First, who is vulnerable? The answer is everyone. Will you know if you have been hacked or had spyware put on your phone? Likely no, which is why this information is so important.

Know that spyware can collect all of your information, stuff like passwords, contacts, photos, videos, and documents that you have stored on your phone or computer.

So, how can you make sure your phone is secure? Here are three things you can do to make sure your phone, and the information on it, are locked down tight.

Lastly, dont click on odd emails or messages from long-lost friends that suddenly drop in out of the blue with a link to photos or some other link they want you to click on. Also, be wary of the click here for the good deal coupon." It can show up from any store. Before you click, google the ad to see if its real, but dont just blindly click.

We dont want to admit it, but operator error and password laziness are the two things that make us the most vulnerable.

WCNC Charlotte is always asking "where's the money?" If you need help, reach out to the Defenders team by emailingmoney@wcnc.com.

Contact Bill McGinty atbmcginty@wcnc.comand follow him onFacebook.

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Where's The Money? | Ways to keep your phone safe - WCNC.com

The Indiana Pacers have an interesting decision coming up this season. T.J. Warren is entering the final year of his contract after missing basically the entire 2020-21 season with a foot injury. With his deal coming to an end, should the Pacers plan for life without him?

I love T.J. Warren and think he can be the best player on the team once he gets back to full health thanks to his ability to carry the offense. He was just hitting his stride in the bubble and carried that momentum into last season before an injury shut things down in a hurry. Now, the Pacers have to figure out the future with Warren, Brogdon, Sabonis, and Turner all set to make big money.

The Pacers have locked up Sabonis for three more seasons, finishing his deal at $21.3 million in 2023-24. Brogdon and Turner are both signed through the 2022-23 season at a high value, as is Caris LeVert. The four are combined to make roughly $79.3 million during the 2022-23 season before even accounting for an extension for T.J. Warren.

Warren, who is arguably the best offensive player on the team, deserves a big payday when he becomes available. The Pacers have to make a tough decision. Either they can pay him big money with his injury risk always being on the table or they can let him walk in order to keep the rest of the core together.

The biggest problem with the two-big lineup is that it essentially costs the Pacers $40 million at the center position in the starting lineup while neglecting other needs. Trading one of the centers now to open up space for a Warren extension and helping the rest of the roster right now should be considered.

Unfortunately, there has been no sign of the Pacers actively shopping either center in recent months, aside from broken down talks of sending Myles Turner to the Celtics for Gordon Hayward once again.

T.J. Warren is a vital piece for the Pacers moving forward. His absence last season was too much to overcome as the Pacers missed the playoffs and looked lost on defense far too often. If he does not return after this season, the Pacers will have to work very hard to replace his impact. Drafting a potential replacement in the 2021 NBA Draft has to be on their minds.

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Should the Indiana Pacers prepare for life without T.J. Warren? - 8 Points, 9 Seconds

The regional energy landscape has gone through layers of disruption to evolve into its current form. As the demand side of the equation evolved, a departure from the traditional way of powering the worlds energy needs was witnessed through an accelerated uptake of digital interventions and a marked shift towards cleaner options.

Companies across the industry spectrum adopted indigenous, technology-driven solutions for operational benefits and sustainability.

Painting a green pictureAmid larger economic recovery and regenerative strategies, a number of stakeholders are keen to build a future without the cloud of climatic cataclysm. Hydrogen is a resourceful fuel and can be used in several ways across the entire energy spectrum, but the traditional way of producing it entails substantial carbon emissions.

However, it does draw a crucial link between traditional and sustainable fuels and, in its low carbon form, could possibly signal the worlds transition to a sustainable energy future. Hence clean hydrogen has now secured a major spot within the futures energy drawing board. While blue hydrogen, in which carbon emissions are captured and stored, is one option, the cleanest alternative is green hydrogen, which is created when renewable energy is used to split water molecules via electrolysis.

For a sustainable future, we will need a mix of fuels and energy sources, depending on the application and environment, to ensure we can get to net zero quickly and cost effectively, opines Jonathan Carpenter, vice president of New Energy Services at Petrofac.

The Gulf has enormous renewable energy resources particularly solar that will be increasingly harnessed for domestic power generation and needs. Potentially, green hydrogen, green ammonia and green methanol can also be produced for export. However, this will be constrained by freshwater availability in the region and desalination plant deployments. As a result, the Gulf has the opportunity to remain a major energy exporter for the foreseeable future, while also providing clean, low cost and abundant energy domestically which can be a catalyst for further economic growth and development, he adds.

Stakeholders across local and regional countries have shown intent to pursue sustainable fuels. In May, UAE firm Beeah announced that it will be pursuing the regions first waste-to-hydrogen project, which includes a green hydrogen generation plant and a hydrogen vehicle fuelling station, in collaboration with UK-based Chinook Sciences. Earlier this year, Mubadala Investment Company, state-owned ADNOC and ADQ formed the Abu Dhabi Hydrogen Alliance to develop a roadmap to accelerate the countrys adoption and use of hydrogen in major sectors. Omans OQ too announced recently that, as part of an international consortium, it is developing one of the biggest green fuel projects in the world.

Saudi Arabia also has ambitious plans it aims to develop the worlds largest green hydrogen project after an agreement was signed between Air Products, ACWA Power and NEOM last year. The $5bn green hydrogen-based ammonia production facility will be located in NEOM and will produce green ammonia for export to global markets. Meanwhile, an Abu Dhabi Ports subsidiary also announced the formation of a green ammonia production facility, in which privately-owned Helios Industry plans to invest over $1bn. The plant will use solar power to electrolyse water and split molecules, and at peak capacity, release 40,000 tonnes of green hydrogen, which will be used to produce 200,000 tonnes of green ammonia.

While green hydrogen does inspire hope, the technology to produce it remains expensive. A study by Strategy&, part of the PwC network, reveals that green hydrogen is currently more expensive than traditional production processes, roughly twice as much as gray hydrogen. However, advances in electrolysis technology, decreasing costs of renewables, and increased economies of scale should significantly reduce its production cost and make it an economically viable solution.

Furthermore, GCC countries have several advantages, primarily highyield solar and wind resources, that can generate power at a very low levelised cost of energy. These will allow the GCC region to produce green hydrogen at scale and at low cost.

We expect that the total demand for green hydrogen could reach about 530 million tons (Mt) by 2050, displacing roughly 10.4 billion barrels of oil equivalent (37 per cent of pre-pandemic global oil production) in various sectors such as heating, transportation, power generation, chemicals, and primary steel manufacturing. This is part of a broader move towards decarbonisation that has sped up thanks to the Covid19 pandemic, which has slashed hydrocarbon demand. At that point, we expect that the yearly global export market for green hydrogen will be worth about $300bn, the study read.

Transnational alliances have also been formed to pursue low-carbon fuel forms and address climate change. In 2020, Saudi Aramco announced that the worlds first blue ammonia shipment was dispatched from Saudi Arabia to Japan. Ammonia releases zero carbon emissions when burned in thermal power plants and has the potential to make a significant contribution to an affordable and reliable low-carbon energy future, according to the energy giant.

Ammonia can also be used across multiple industrial applications. ADNOC revealed recently that it would advance a blue ammonia production facility in Ruwais to meet demands for low-carbon fuels. Blue ammonia is produced from nitrogen and blue hydrogen that is derived from natural gas feedstocks, with carbon emissions captured and stored.

Ammonia will allow large quantities of the energy captured from renewables, which is converted to hydrogen and then ammonia, to be transported cheaply and can be used to power ships but also replace natural gas or coal in power stations, effectively displacing these fossil fuels in the process. If needed, ammonia can also be converted back to hydrogen at the destination, if that is the preferred fuel source, adds Carpenter.

Going ahead, in the face of towering climatic and environmental implications, the search for sustainable energy sources continues unabated. The future of biofuels which are sourced from biomass also appears promising. Biofuels represent an important aspect of the roadmap for transport decarbonisation.

To meet our sustainable energy goals, we may also anticipate the need for increasing deployment of many kinds of biofuels. These include not only ethanol, biodiesel and biogas, but also other types of alcohols, such as methanol or butanol, as well as renewable diesel (HVO) and other so-called drop-in fuels that meet the fossil fuel quality standards a report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) revealed.

However, the primary challenge for biofuels is the ability to produce at scale; presently, biofuels rely on feedstocks that are generally not as widely available in the volumes needed to make an effective substitute for fossil-derived fuels, opines Carpenter.

Expanding production will require significant land and water use that are not sustainable. Present biofuels production works best when it is focused on a localised supply chain of feedstock to produce biofuels to meet localised demand, as to limit emissions to enhance its sustainability. Freshwater availability also remains a key challenge for biofuels particularly in water-stressed regions like here in the Middle East.

This challenge is also driving innovation, with many technology companies looking to convert more abundant raw materials, or even waste, into biofuels to drive both increased scale and improved economics, he adds.

One such example is the Green Fuels project in Oman with Wakud, where their technology takes used cooking oil via a transesterification process to create biodiesel. Tyres, municipal waste, even sewage and animal slurry, can be converted into fuels, including aviation fuel, which will help to address one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise.

Advanced biofuels which make use of non-food and non-feed biomass, including waste materials and energy specific crops also offer opportunities to mitigate climate change, harness waste and energy crops, create new jobs, andstrengthen energy independence, the IRENA report states.

However, despite the advantages of a transition to producing and using 2G (second generation) biofuels, the emergence of the advanced biofuel industry has been sluggish due to numerous barriers such as high production costs, immature supply chains, dependence on government support schemes that are subject to political influences, and consequent uncertainty around market size, it said.

Digital diveAs technological advancements permeate industrial ecosystems, and as companies within the oil and gas sector increasingly integrate their physical systems with digital solutions, businesses can derive timely insights, respond to real-time queries, foster safety and scale operational efficiencies. Emerging technologies will not only equip companies to adapt to changing market conditions and help achieve their sustainability objectives, but also effectively alter how energy is supplied to the world.

There is a serious focus in the oil and gas industry to improve on sustainability, efficiency and reduce emissions/environment impact while maintaining health and safety levels. In this context, we see a focus on digitalisation solutions, seeing as they are a key enabler for critical aspects like predictive/preventive maintenance, workplace hazard reduction, remote operations, enhanced inspection, and operations ability, and overall asset life extension through higher reliability and reduced risk, opines Abhay Bhargava, senior director, Industrial Practice, Middle East and South Asia at Frost & Sullivan.

Key technologies and solutions being used across the oil and gas landscape include sensors, analytics, drones, cloud/edge computing, AR/VR and digital twins, blockchain, 3D printing/additives, connected fields, wearables, robotics and 5G.

However, the industry is dealing with and prioritising only those technologies that can support in advancing the automation of activities, which can result in higher efficiency of assets and extension of life, he adds.

Technologies such as a digital twin which is a virtual representation of assets/processes is a bridge between physical and digital worlds. Oil giant BP deploys APEX, a simulation and surveillance system that creates a virtual copy of all the companys production systems throughout the world. APEX delivered 30,000 barrels of additional oil and gas production per day during 2017 across BPs global portfolio, according to the companys website.

The benefits of digital twin technology go beyond simple convenience providing avenues of real-time monitoring, faster response times, better prediction of potential issues/ deviations to processes, and even the ability to control entire assets/processes remotely, says Bhargava.

Stakeholder collaborations and key initiatives that address factors impeding the development of sustainable fuels, as well as widespread adoption of digital solutions will underpin the worlds transition to a sustainable global energy system.

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GCC's energy space: What does the future hold? Gulfbusiness.com - Gulf Business

Texas and Oklahoma in the SEC? What would it mean for college football?

USA TODAY Network SEC reporters Nick Kelly and Nick Suss discuss the potential ramifications of adding Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC.

Nick Kelly and Nick Suss, The Tuscaloosa News

Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby thanked reporters last week for not asking about conference realignment at theleaguesmedia days in Arlington. I think I won five bucks on that, he joked.

Not to say it couldn't happen, he added, but it's not one of the things that keeps me up at night.

Bowlsby must be restless now. The Big 12 Conferences shelf life looks considerably shakier now that University of Texas and University of Oklahoma officials are exploring a move to the rival Southeastern Conference, a seismic shift that would rattle college athletics down to its core.

Its also complicated, a decision that would require serious backroom dealing, tacit state legislative approval and 11 affirmative votes from 14 current SEC schools with Texas A&M already likely to vote no.

Three Big 12 sources told the American-Statesman the major decisions could come quickly. The Big 12s television contract runs through the 2024-25 athletic year. The league has asked its members for a five-year extension, pushing that commitment out to at least 2030, one Big 12 source said.

More: Are Texas and Oklahoma trying to join the SEC? Officials say 'no comment' on possible discussions

Texas does not want to extend itself that far in this environment. Players can now get paid because of changes in name, image and likeness rules, and conference commissioners are discussing an expanded 12-team playoff format. With the proliferation of cord cutting, its unclear what the TV landscape will look like in 2025, much less in 2030.

Thus, Texas wants to step back and examine all options, one source said. The Longhorns are expected to send a letter to the Big 12 office next week saying they do not wish to extend their TV rights beyond 2025. A UT source called it "the first step" Thursday.

From there, UT officials believe they must send a letter to the SEC expressing interest in joining theconference. The SEC would then vote on whether to approve the Longhorns and take another vote on the Sooners for expansion.

Big 12 presidents and athletic directors were scheduled to meetat 5 p.m. Thursday, CBS Sports reported.

More: Big 12 TV partners decline early negotiations

For UT, this is about moving the NCAAs most financially lucrative athletic department into the most prestigious, most lucrative athletic conference in America. For Oklahoma, its about not getting left behind and about giving the SEC a 16th team, creating the nations first so-called superconference.

Ive been trying to tell people everybody wants to play in the SEC, man, Missouri coach Eliah Drinkwitz said Thursday at SEC media days in Hoover, Ala. If you can attract a couple of really good schools to come play, thats great.

After issuing a nondenial statement Wednesday, Texas officials have gone silent. Its believed this decision is being driven by three people working in tight-knit fashion: UT System Board of Regents Chairman Kevin Eltife, UT President Jay Hartzell and athletic director Chris Del Conte.

At the University of Texas, we have a proud tradition of competing at the highest levels amongst the elite programs in college football, Eltife said Jan. 2, when Steve Sarkisian was introduced as the new football coach. And in honor of that tradition, we never settle for anything short of excellence. We dont do things halfway.

All three worked in conjunction to bring Sarkisian and Texas Tech men's basketball coach Chris Beard to Austin this year. Del Conte did the interviews and legwork with Hartzells approval, and Eltife signed off on the multimillion-dollar financial ramifications of both coaching changes.

This type of harmony is a huge change from the previous decade, when UT regents were suing the president and fans loathed the athletic director. When were all rowing in the same direction, Del Conte has said numerous times, its a sight to behold.

For Del Conte,getting Texas into the SEC would be the biggest achievement of his professional life. The loquacious athletic director has not returned multiple calls or messages left by the Statesman. Other Texas administrators did not respond for comment Thursday.

Meanwhile, the Big 12 schools potentially getting left behind are scrambling.

We are gathering information and will monitor closely, Oklahoma State officials said in a statement late Wednesday. If true, we would be gravely disappointed.

Baylor graduate and state Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Plano, tweeted Thursday: The lack of transparency by our flagship institution is wrong. Such a monumental economic and educational decision impacting the entire state must not be made in a bubble on the forty acres. Working on legislation requiring legislative approval for UT to bolt the BIG XII.

Messages left with Leachs office by the Statesman were not returned.

Financially, the SEC is in better shape than the Big 12. The SEC distributed $45.5 million to each of its 14 members from the 2019-20 fiscal year, the league announced in February. The Big 12 distributed $34.5 million to each of its 10 members for the 2020-21 fiscal year.

Then in May, the SEC distributed another $23 million to its members to help offset losses from the pandemic. The league was borrowing from revenue expected from its new ESPN deal, which will startin 2024.

Television contracts are a driving force in all these discussions, but not the end-all, be-all, one league source told the Statesman. The Big 12s TV contract runs through the 2024-25 athletic year, and UTs contract with the Longhorn Network extends to summer 2031.

Its believed that if Texas went to the SEC, the Longhorn Network would be wound down. Texas gets an extra $15 million annually from LHN that would have to be accounted for somewhere else in a new agreement with the SEC.

In 2012, Oklahoma struck a 10-year deal with Fox Sports for the Sooners third-tier TV rights worth approximately $40 million over the life of the deal. In the SEC, all members have signed their third-tier rights over to the league, which created the SEC Network.

The extra money Texas would get from going to the SEC would somewhat be secondary. The Longhorns are now losing competitive ground to the Aggies in recruiting as players view SEC competition as superior to the Big 12. Texas lost a recruit late Wednesday as four-star cornerback Jaylon Guilbeau from Port Arthur Memorial suddenly backed away from his commitment to UT's 2022 recruiting class.

Oklahoma has won six straight Big 12 football titles, but Texas has been competitive everywhere else. The Longhorns, who claimed three national team championships this spring, won the Learfield Directors Cup for the first time in school history during the 2020-21 athletic year. The Directors Cup goes to the most successful athletic program in the nation.

Texas would still keep its annual football grudge match against OU at the Cotton Bowl every year. But UT officials would gladly trade home games against Kansas and Kansas State for dates with Arkansas and LSU, for example.

How quickly all this would happenremains to be seen.

Im so nervous about the schedule we have coming up and all that, I havent paid much attention about it, Arkansas coach Sam Pittman said. I know were going to play Texas this year. We play them Sept. 11, and were very excited for that.

Contact Brian Davis by phone or text at 512-445-3957. Email bdavis@statesman.com or @BDavisAAS.

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Big 12s request to extend TV rights prompts Texas to look at all options, including SEC - Hookem.com

Were well into gardening season and you might have some questions. For answers, turn to Ask an Expert, an online question-and-answer tool from Oregon State Universitys Extension Service. OSU Extension faculty and Master Gardeners reply to queries within two business days, usually less. To ask a question, simply go to the OSU Extension website, type it in, and include the county where you live. Here are some questions asked by other gardeners. Whats yours?

Q: For a couple of years now, I get a couple of nice blooms from my dahlia at the beginning of the season. And then, on the other buds, they dry out and die before they open, like something is eating it inside.

A: That certainly looks like thrip damage. The eggs are deposited (tiny, tiny ones) on the buds and they eat the inside of the flower, turning it brown and it dies.

Thrips come around in late spring and summer so timing is about right. There are a number of things you can do to not only stop the buds from dying but disrupt the life cycle of thrips.

This may be the western flower thrip, tiny 1/20th of an inch long, they are yellow or brown and very hard to see even as adults.

The larva eat the developing flower petals and by the time the flower starts to open, the larva are gone.

Thrips like dry weather (which we have in abundance this year). Water thoroughly weekly down at least 2 inches and mist frequently.I dont usually recommend this but you can put a sprinkler on the plant to keep it moist.If the weather were anything but hot and windy, I would not recommend this as it is a great way to grow mold, but thats in our wet, foggy and cool weather with rainy periods.

No matter if the plant is in a pot or in the ground, keep the lawn mowed down or any weeds out of the area. Thrips will overwinter on these plants.

Spinosad is a spray that can be used and may penetrate down to the petals in a bud.Itwill kill the thrips.Spray all sides of the plant. Also, 100% pure Neem oil (found online) will kill them.You can alternate, but follow the directions carefully.Both are considered organic sprays and can be used on food plants as well.Getting the population down will help keep the new buds healthy.

Another pest, the broad or cyclamen mite also likes the dahlia buds but they usually attack in wet cool weather. In that case, you would spray with Neem. If the buds are slightly ready to open you can gently open a small area of thebud and spray a little of the Neem inside.Neem is a plant-based oil that helps with fungus as well as pests. Both of the sprays will kill ALL insects so do not spray on open blossoms or near bees and other pollinators.

Neem oil is usually effective for about 24 to 36 hours on the petals.Other flower pests will eat them and die.The bees are interested only in the pollen but it is almost impossible to spray a flower without getting the pollen.

You can also use yellow and/or blue sticky paper. You can find it online.Thrips seem to be attracted to blue sticky paper more than the yellow, but I use both.Another pest that eats dahlias like crazy are the striped and spotted cucumber beetles.They are attracted to the yellow color.

Neem oil likes to gel, so if that happens, put the spray bottle in warm water. It will liquify quickly.Always shake the bottle before spraying to make sure the oil is mixed with the water.

Here is a link about the life cycle of a thrip for your review. Sheryl Casteen, OSU Extension Master Gardener

Fallen pine treeOSU Extension Service

Q: A pine tree fell on my property. It separated where the trunk meets the root structure. Half of the core at the base is black. How do I analyze the standing pines to see if they are impacted? Is there a treatment available to eliminate this fungus? Washington County

A: That is a difficult question as diagnosis of root disease/rot in tree roots is notoriously difficult.In this case it appears that the tree was wounded, and the fungus came in to the tree causing the rot.One way to investigate the other trees is to check for wounding/callus tissue at the base of the tree.

If root disease is an issue for the other trees, it will likely show up in the crown.Trees with root disease tend to have thin foliage (not full crowns),yellowing foliage, maybetop dieback and lots of smaller-than-normal cones (stress crop) in the crown also. If your trees look healthy, they may be OK.Sometimes, the crown will look fine yet the tree somehow compensates, so it is not always for sure.

If the trees are a hazard, ie. if they are big enough to hurt someone, you should invite an arborist to check them out. David Shaw, OSU Extension forestry specialist

Winter squash can take 50-55 days to fruit set. File photo. (Gus Chan / The Plain Dealer) The Plain Dealer

Q: I planted five sweet meat pumpkins in May and for the last few weeks I have only seen male flowers. Should I be worried or are the female flowers coming soon? Im concerned that I wont have enough time for a pumpkin to mature before the weather turns cold. Marion County

A: Generally, it takes about 50 to 55 days after fruit set until harvest for winter squash. Some varieties take a little bit longer.So, there is still time to get harvestable fruit by end of September or early October if the plant starts producing flowers soon. Im guessing that the heatwave interrupted the normal flowering and now the plant has to catch up. So, cross your fingers anddont give up hope yet. Brooke Edmunds, OSU Extension horticulturist

Wood chip mulch would be an easier choice then most plants under a maple tree. Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Q: Do you have any suggestions for low-growing, easy-care ground cover under a maple tree? Multnomah County

A: Maple tree ground covers are tricky because maples shed their leaves, which need to be raked up. Not raking will often kill a ground cover and raking over it becomes tricky without damaging the plant you have chosen.

A wood chip mulch is sometimes the easiest solution to the ground cover problem, especially for older trees with lots of leaves. It breaks down to give the tree more nutrients and keeps the roots moist and cooler than bare soil. You can get arborist chips for free in most areas.

Then there is the shade problem. You will want a plant that can tolerate shade but doesnt compete too much with the trees roots. Also, some maples actively discourage other plants from growing in their root areas (allelopathic) so not just any plant will work.

Some ideas include sweet woodruff, hostas, ferns, bleeding heart, rhododendron, wild geranium, violets, trillium and hardy cyclamen. Dont add soil to the area or you risk smothering your tree roots. Also realize that birds will add their own seeds to whatever you plant, so keeping the area weed free will be necessary to keep the tree healthy.

I guess that puts me back to the arborists chips. Rhonda Frick-Wright, OSU Extension Master Gardener

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Having trouble with thrips? Ask an expert - OregonLive