July
SDSU Northeast Research Farm Tour
The tour begins at 4 p.m. CDT on July 2nd at the farm, located two miles west of the South Shore exit of Interstate 29. Topics and speakers during the tour include herbicide studies by Mike Moechnig, SDSU Extension weed specialist, and Darrell Deneke, SDSU Extension integrated pest management coordinator; Mike Catangui, SDSU Extension entomologist will speak on corn, soybean, and alfalfa insect threats, and Larry Osborne, SDSU Extension pathologist, will address wheat diseases; Brad Ruden, interim manager of the SDSU Plant Diagnostic Clinic, will explain how to get a strong diagnosis, and Bob Hall, SDSU Extension crops specialist, will recommend small grain varieties; Chuck Langner, SDSU Extension agronomy educator, will explain field pea production and usage; Ron Gelderman, manager of the SDSU Soils Testing Laboratory, and Anthony Bly, SDSU plant science research associate, will discuss efficient fertilizer use in a wet year; Al May, SDSU Extension grain marketing specialist, and Steve Minor, Brookings County Farm Security Administration supervisor, will explain marketing grains and the new farm program; John Ball, SDSU Extension forestry specialist, will host a tree management session; and Karl Glover, SDSU spring wheat breeder, and Lon Hall, SDSU oats breeder, will share information on small grain breeding. Call Lon Hall, (605) 688-4758, for more information.
Conservation Tillage Bus Tour: Strip Tillage in Action
Please join us for the “Conservation Tillage Bus Tour: Strip Tillage in Action” on Wednesday, July 2nd. The day will be spent visiting with farmers currently practicing strip tillage in Southwest Minnesota and learning about the latest University of MN strip tillage research. All interested, including producers, agricultural professionals, agency personnel, and agricultural educators are encouraged to attend. Tour stops include the Tom Muller farm by Windom, MN, the Butch Eidem farm near Jeffers, MN, and the Southwest Research and Outreach Center in Lamberton, MN. Along with these innovative farmers, Extension Soil Scientist John Lamb, and Extension Educators Jodi DeJong-Hughes and Liz Stahl will be speaking on the tour. The tour will depart from the Burger King parking lot in Jackson, MN located at I-90 and Hwy 71 at 8 am CDT and from Windom, MN at 8:30 am from the Runnings parking lot just off of Hwy 60. The tour will end in the afternoon, returning to these locations at 3:30 and 4 pm. Further details are available at: http://www.extension.umn.edu/county/Jackson/news/StripTillBusTourFlyer.pdf. Registration is available online at https://umnext.cmiregistration.com/ProgramDetail.aspx/ConservationTillageBusTour or by calling the Worthington Regional Extension Office at 1-888-241-4635. Registration must be received by June 30th to reserve a spot as space is limited. Registration is $25 per person which includes coach transportation, lunch, refreshments, and handouts. 3 CEUs have been applied for (1.0 NM, 1.0 SW, and 1.0 CM). Please contact Lizabeth Stahl, Extension Educator in Crops (1-888-241-4635, stah0012@umn.edu) if you have any questions or would like further information. This tour is presented by University of MN Extension and sponsored through North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture (NCR-SARE).
NDSU Research and Extension Center Field Days for 2008
July 8, 2008 3 p.m. MDT Hettinger Research Extension Center
July 9, 2008 8.30 a.m. MDT Dickinson Research Extension Center
July 10, 2008 8:30 a.m. Williston Research Extension Center
July 14, 2008 5:30 p.m. Agronomy Seed Farm, Casselton
July 15, 2008 9 a.m. Carrington Research Extension Center
July 16, 2008 9 a.m. North Central Research Extension Center, Minot
July 17, 2008 8 a.m. Langdon Research Extension Center
Dickinson Research Extension Center Field Day
The annual field day at NDSU’s Dickinson REC will be held at the headquarters in Dickinson, ND (corner of State and Empire) beginning at 9 am MDT on July 9. There will be a horticulture tour featuring Ron Smith, Tom Kalb and Jerry Larson and a small grain varieties tour featuring NDSU small grain breeders. After lunch Pat Carr and Jeff Gunderson will demonstrate a cover crop roller-crimper and the Cover Crops Demonstration Project team will discuss aspects of this joint NDSU, NRCS and SCD project. Carl Pederson and Cole Gustafson will discuss energy efficiency of farm buildings and the prospects for biofuels in North Dakota. In the evening the Dickinson Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual Ag Barbecue on the DREC grounds beginning at 5 pm MDT. For more information call 483-2348.
Organic Farm Tour
Mercer County Extension and FARRMS will lead a tour of organic farms and discussions of topics of interest to farmers wishing to examine and make use of organic farming methods. Things get started at 9 am CDT on July 10 at the civic center in Tappen, ND (Exit 214 off of I-94, south into town, left on Van Buren Ave and right on Main St). The morning session will include an organic farm and crop tour followed by a lunch featuring local and organic foods. In the afternoon there will be workshops covering topics from organic weed management to a walk through an organic inspection to successful organic crop rotations to a roundtable discussion for agriculture educators and professionals. A pre-registration fee of $10 is required (due 1 July) that covers lunch and refreshments. To register and for more information contact FARRMS at 701-486-3569 or info@farrms.org. This event is supported by the North Dakota Department of Agriculture.
Practical Farmers of Iowa Field Days
Practical Farmers of Iowa holds field days across the state. In July there will be three in northwest Iowa, Healthy Soils, Healthy Food, Healthy People on July 10 near Okoboji, Buy Fresh, Buy Local Tour on July 12 near Sioux City, and Growing Grapes on 19 July near Farnhamville. For more information visit the PFI website at www.practicalfarmers.org .
Friends and Neighbors Day
The Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory (1701 10th Ave. SW, Highway 6 South, Mandan, ND) has announced its annual Friends and Neighbors Day on the 17th of July. There are a host of workshops and activities on the main campus beginning at 2 pm CDT (urban gardening, Native American ethnobotany, garden soil, youth activities, trees and birds of ND, etc.) with tours getting under way at 4 pm CDT (remote sensing in range management, roots and carbon sequestration, corn production, bioenergy, cover crops, etc.). The day finishes with a barbecue and a bluegrass band in the evening. For more information you can check out the lab website www.mandan.ars.usda.gov or call 701-667-3000.
McPherson County Range Day
Drought management and grazing will be topics at the July 17 McPherson County Range Day. SDSU Cooperative Extension will host the event. It begins at 9:30 a.m. at The Nature Conservancy’s Ordway Prairie preserve, located 10 miles west of Leola, SD on state Highway 10. The program repeats in the afternoon, and a noon meal will be served. SDSU Extension Range Management Specialist Roger Gates will present field demonstrations on grazing lands and soil resources. Kevin Sedivic, NDSU Extension range specialist, will lead a range plants identification discussion. Jim Faulstich, South Dakota Grasslands Coalition, will speak during the noon meal on long-term sustainability and drought management on rangeland. The South Dakota Cooperative Extension Service, Ducks Unlimited, The Nature Conservancy, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service are sponsoring the event. Preregistration for the lunch is required. Call the McPherson County Natural Resources Conservation Service office, (605) 439-3336, ext. 3, before July 9.
NPSAS Summer Symposium and Farm Tour
The Northern Plains Sustainable Agriculture Society will be holding its 2008 Annual Summer Symposium and Farm Tour on July 22nd near Madison, South Dakota. Registration begins at 8 am at St Peter’s Lutheran Church south of town. The morning will start with a presentation by Chuck Francis of the University of Nebraska who will identify issues that Extension and other educators need to know about organic production and then move to tours of two organic farms that include certified crop and beef production. After lunch back at the church there will be panel discussions about managing obstacles in organic production and marketing. Registration is $15 for NPSAS members and $20 for nonmembers and it includes the lunch, snacks and beverages. Contact NPSAS for more information at slnpsas@drtel.net or minpsas@drtel.net or 701-883-4304 or http://www.npsas.org/events.html.
Is Your Soil Healthy Field Day(s)
USDA Soil Microbiologist Kris Nichols and NDSU Extension Nutrient Management Specialist Ron Wiederholt will guide attendees through the monitoring of soil health using test kits and tools you can build at home. They will also show how to use this information to guide farm management decisions for long term profitability with a special focus on organically managed farms, although the information will have broader applications. The first of these field days will be held at the Duane and Chantra Boehm farm southeast of Richardton, ND on 23 July from 10 am to 3 pm MDT. The same information will be presented again at the Dwight and Janine Hofmann farm near Medina, ND on July 29 from 10 am to 3 pm CDT. Lunch will be provided for a free-will donation and space is limited so please RSVP by 7 July to FARRMS at 701-486-3569 or info@farrms.org. This program is supported in part by the North Dakota Department of Agriculture.
August
21st North American Prairie Conference
Winona State University in Winona, MN will host this conference about all things “prairie” from 4-8 August, 2008. Keynote speakers include Wes Jackson, Viktor Dedkov and Calvin Fremling. See more information about the conference at http://bio.winona.edu/NAPC and registration information at http://bio.winona.edu/NAPC/registration.htm.
Organic Market Garden Tour
FARRMS will be facilitating a tour of Marvin Baker and Ilene Evanson’s North Star Farms near Carpio, ND on the 20th of August. This free tour will run from 1:30 to 5:30 pm CDT and include a tour of the garden, a discussion of getting produce ready for market, a visit to the Carpio Farmer’s Market and more. Please RSVP by 1 August to FARRMS at 701-486-3569 or info@farrms.org.
Practical Farmers of Iowa Field Days
Practical Farmers of Iowa holds field days across the state. In August there will be two in northwest Iowa, Water Quality, Sustainable Farm Systems on August 22 near Jefferson and Monitoring Cattle Performance on August 27 near Holstein. For more information visit the PFI website at http://www.practicalfarmers.org .
September
SDSU CES Field Days
Southeast Research Farm fall tour, Beresford: Sept. 3, 10 a.m. to 3 pm; Northeast Research Farm fall tour, South Shore: Sept. 4, 1 to 4 pm. Call Bob Hall for more information at (605) 688-4760.
Practical Farmers of Iowa Field Days
Practical Farmers of Iowa holds field days across the state. In September there will be one in northwest Iowa, Farm-Scale Ethanol from Sorghum on September 17 near Sioux Center. For more information visit the PFI website at www.practicalfarmers.org .
Northern Plains Biomass Economy: What Makes Sense?
How does the Northern Plains fit into the vision of cellulosic biomass for liquid fuels and other applications? NDSU is holding a one day conference on Monday, 29 September to review this Federal mandate, update the public about ongoing research at NDSU, consider the implications of this approach for farmers and the regional economy, and to develop ideas about what makes sense for the northern plains. The conference will be held at the Ramada Plaza and Suites at 1635 42nd St S in Fargo, ND. Registration is $75 for those registering by September 15, 2008 and it includes conference materials, lunch and refreshments during breaks. For more information about registration, contact Ms Judy Normann at Judy.Normann@ndsu.edu or 701/231-7334.
