Posts

Master Gardener Volunteer Training Offered

by

Hardin County – The Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers will host a Master Gardener Volunteer training course for new Master Gardener Volunteers this winter. The Ohio State University Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Program provides intensive training in horticulture to interested Ohio residents who then volunteer their time assisting with educational programs and activities for Ohio residents through their local Ohio State University Extension county office. Volunteers are not required to have gardening skills or knowledge; but a passion for learning about gardening and sharing this knowledge with others is a must!

Training will be a combination of a self-paced online course combined with in-person classes held at the Hardin County Extension office beginning with orientation on Monday, February 13 from 9 am – 12 pm. Other scheduled in-person classes will be held according to availability of those who enroll. Additionally, new interns will gain hands-on training working alongside current Master Gardeners at the Friendship Gardens in Kenton. Spring garden seminars will be an option for meeting training requirements. The training course is open to interested volunteers from any county with the volunteer commitment to be completed in the volunteer’s home county program.

Specialists from the Ohio State University Extension and experienced Master Gardener Volunteers will be teaching sessions along with some local experts. Some topics include botany, soils, entomology, plant pathology, plant propagation, herbaceous and woody ornamentals, lawns, vegetables, herbs, fruit, pollinators, integrated pest management, pesticide safety, backyard wildlife, houseplants, and therapeutic horticulture.

The cost of the training is $150.00 and includes the training manual and materials for the class. There is also a requirement for a background check at the volunteer’s expense. The program requires 50 hours of classroom training and a commitment of 50 hours volunteer time to become a certified Master Gardener Volunteer. Registration deadline is January 30.  More information is available at https://mgvolunteers.osu.edu or by calling Mark Badertscher at 419-767-6037 at Hardin County OSU Extension. For more information about the Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers, visit their Facebook page.

 

Conservation Tillage Club Breakfast Series Planned

by

Hardin County – The 2023 Conservation Tillage Club breakfast program series will begin on Thursday, January 12 at the Plaza Inn Restaurant in Mt. Victory. Each session will start at 7:30 am with a complimentary buffet breakfast followed by the program at 8:00 am. Other sessions will be held on January 26, February 9 and 23.

On January 12, the program will feature James Uphaus, Chair and Assistant Professor, Agriculture Technology, Rhodes State College. Uphaus will present information about Using Precision Ag Data. Uphaus will share examples about how farmers can take the data from their combine, planter, and sprayer monitor information about their fields’ soil variation and associated cropping practices to create prescription maps from field-based results with a goal to increase agriculture product sales and return on investment.

The January 26 program will feature Amanda Matheny, Grain Origination Specialist with Cargill who will present a program on the Grain Marketing Outlook and the new soybean crush plant being built in Sidney. Matheny will provide information to help crop producers successfully market their soybean and corn commodities based on global supply and demand with an emphasis on market trends. Cargill is the largest soybean extractor in North America and will increase their local capacity with an additional 20 million bushels that will be needed to run the new plant being constructed in Sidney. Upon completion in the summer of 23, the operation will have capability to dump 60 soybean trucks in an hour and draw territory will include over 35 counties in Ohio and Indiana.

February 9 OARDC/OSU Extension Corn Disease Specialist Dr. Pierce Paul will return to the Conservation Tillage Club breakfast program to provide an update on corn diseases in Ohio. Recently, the area has experienced vomitoxin issues in corn, brought about by Gibberella Ear Rot. Tar Spot has also infected corn in Hardin County for the first time in 2021, and with a later season appearance in 2022. He will speak about how to identify these diseases in the field, discuss their disease cycle, and how to manage these issues both in the field and how to prevent problems with grain storage. Discussion will include selecting for disease resistance, weather influence on spore development, scouting for infections, and proper use of fungicides.

The February 23 program will feature both Megan Burgess, District Conservationist, USDA-NRCS Hardin County and Leisha Billenstein, District Conservationist, USDA-NRCS Logan County speaking about the Farm Bill Programs available to local producers in 2023. Information shared will include programs, benefits, who is eligible, how it works, how to apply, along with more information about cost sharing and payment rates. Since these are federal programs, information provided will be based on what is available at the current time for Ohio and surrounding counties. Additional information can be found on the USDA farmers.gov website.

The Conservation Tillage Club breakfast program series is jointly sponsored by OSU Extension and the Soil and Water Conservation Districts of Hardin, Logan, and Union Counties, and in cooperation with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Breakfast is courtesy of the generous support from agricultural lenders and agricultural businesses. All events are open to the public and no advance registration is required. Continuing education credits for Certified Crop Advisers is pending.

January 10, 2023

by

Hello,

I hope you had a good holiday season and are looking forward to the upcoming winter meeting season. Our annual Conservation Tillage Club breakfast series begins this Thursday, January 12 at 7:30 am at the Plaza Inn Restaurant in Mt. Victory. This years line up of topics includes Using Precision Ag Data, Grain Marketing Outlook/Soybean Crush Plant, Corn Diseases, and Farm Bill Programs. See the attached news release and flyer for more details. We hope to see you there starting this Thursday and then every other week in January and February for a total of four events. This year’s Western Ohio Dairy Luncheon series is off to a good start with the next meeting January 18 featuring “Milking a Dairy Farm Analysis for All It’s Worth” in New Bremen. See the attached flyer for more information.

Conservation Tillage Club Breakfast News Release

Conservation Tillage Club Flyer

Western Ohio Dairy Luncheon Flyer

Once again this year were are having a New Pesticide Applicator class in Kenton on January 19. This class is for those farmers or farm employees who want to get their private pesticide applicator license for the first time. We will be following up the class with Ohio Department of Agriculture testing sessions at the Extension office in January, February, and March. If you or someone you know is interested in signing up for the class, contact me to register. I have included both a copy of the news release and flyer with this email. The West Ohio Agronomy Day is being held in Fort Loramie on January 23. This year we have a good line-up of speakers so see the attached flyer for more details about this special day of field crop agronomic speakers.

New Pesticide Applicator Class News Release

New Pesticide Applicator Flyer

West Ohio Agronomy Day Flyer

We plan to train a new group of Master Gardener Volunteers for Hardin County this winter. If you are interested or know of someone who has an interest in gardening and is willing to share their knowledge doing horticulture programing with county residents as part of the OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers, have them check out the new release about our upcoming Master Gardener Volunteer Training and the attached flyer. Deadline for registration for this combined self-paced online and in-person training is January 30. The orientation will be held on February 13 with other classes to follow. If your family is interested in farm succession planning, there is an online “Planning for the Future of Your Farm Webinar Series” starting on January 23. See the attached flyer for more information about how to register your family for this series.

New Master Gardener Volunteer Course News Release

Master Gardener Volunteer Course Flyer

Planning For The Future Of Your Farm Flyer

Other links that you may be interested in include AGNR News Articles at https://hardin.osu.edu/program-areas/agriculture-and-natural-resources/agnr-news-articles, Farm Management Budgets at https://farmoffice.osu.edu/farm-management/enterprise-budgets, and Western Ohio Cropland Values and Cash Rents at https://farmoffice.osu.edu/farm-management-tools/farm-management-publications/cash-rents. I have included some articles about upcoming webinars and other programs below that you may be interested in reading.

 

Mark

 

Don’t Miss Out on 2023 Soil Health Webinar Series – Stephanie Karhoff, Tony Nye, Taylor Dill, Jamie Hampton

Join the OSU Extension Agronomic Crops Team 2023 Soil Health Webinar series for a Thursday morning series about soil health. You won’t want to miss out on this year’s line-up of farmers and academic experts covering a wide range of soil health topics as they dig below the surface to investigate new developments in soil health and soil management. Read more at https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2023-01/dont-miss-out-2023-soil-health-webinar-series.

Join Us for the 2023 Precision U Webinars – Elizabeth Hawkins, John Fulton, Amanda Douridas, Ken Ford, Amanda Bennett

A different approach to farming is on the horizon as automated technologies are becoming available. The 2023 Precision U event will focus on “Automating Agriculture: The Future of Farming.” The event will be online with three Zoom webinars. Topics include regulation of autonomous equipment in Ohio, adoption on the farm, and the Ohio Rural Broadband Initiative. CEUs for Certified Crop Advisors will be offered. For more information, visit go.osu.edu/PrecisionU. Please plan to join us for one or all of these events! More information can be found at https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2023-01/join-us-2023-precision-u-webinars.

2023 “Climate &…” Webinar Series – Aaron Wilson

As we know, weather and climate impact agriculture in significant ways. Please join us for our first in a series of three webinars on January 19, 2023 from 8-9 a.m. as we explore the impacts of extreme weather and climate on diseases with Drs. Pierce Paul and Aaron Wilson. This includes a short presentation on tools available from the Midwestern Regional Climate Center to help with in-season decision making and/or post-seasonal analysis. Additional webinars are available in February and March. Finish reading this article at https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2023-01/2023-climate-webinar-series.

2023 Water Quality Wednesdays – Amber Emmons, Courtney Krieger, Rachel Cochran, Paige Garrabrant, Matthew Romanko

Join OSU’s Water Quality Extension Associates for their annual winter webinar series focusing on the interaction between agriculture and water quality. These webinars will take place monthly from January to March 2023 on the last Wednesday of each month. Each webinar will have knowledgeable speakers and will offer continuing education credits (CEUs) for Certified Crop Advisers (CCAs). Topics in 2023 will be cover crops and wetlands. There is no cost to attend these webinars, but registration is required to receive the connection link. All webinars will be recorded and posted to the OSU Agronomy Team YouTube channel for later viewing. CEUs will not be available from the recordings. Go to https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2022-42/2023-water-quality-wednesdays for more details.

Conservation Tillage Club Breakfast Series – Mark Badertscher

The 2023 Conservation Tillage Club breakfast program series will begin on Thursday, January 12 at the Plaza Inn Restaurant in Mt. Victory. Each session will start at 7:30 am with a complimentary buffet breakfast followed by the program at 8:00 am. Other sessions will be held on January 26, February 9 and 23. The Conservation Tillage Club breakfast program series is jointly sponsored by OSU Extension and the Soil and Water Conservation Districts of Hardin, Logan, and Union Counties, and in cooperation with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Find out more about the Conservation Tillage Club breakfast series at https://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/2023-01/conservation-tillage-club-breakfast-series.

 

Mark A. Badertscher

Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator

OSU Extension Hardin County

1021 W. Lima Street, Suite 103, Kenton, OH 43326

419-767-6037

hardin.osu.edu

New Pesticide Applicator Class

by

Hardin County – A class to help farmers prepare to become private pesticide applicators has been planned for January 19 at the Hardin County Extension office, 1021 West Lima Street, Kenton. In Ohio, pesticide applicators are required by law to have an Ohio Pesticide Applicators License to purchase and apply restricted-use chemicals. These pesticides include but are not limited to herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides. This class will begin at 12:00 pm and end at 4:00 pm. There is a $30 registration fee which covers books for those enrolled.

The class will emphasize the two main categories that most Hardin County pesticide applicators need, which are Core (applying pesticides properly and safely), as well as Grain and Cereal Crops. Resources will be shared for other categories that are available for certification, which include Forage Crops and Livestock, Fruit and Vegetable Crops, Nursery and Forest Crops, Greenhouse Crops, Fumigation, and Specialty Uses. Once a trainee has properly prepared for their pesticide license, they can schedule to take a test at an Ohio Department of Agriculture testing site. Ohio Pesticide Licenses are good for three years, and then the applicator must recertify by attending a three-hour recertification meeting before license expiration or re-test. ODA has a separate fee for maintaining an Ohio Pesticide License.

There are several reasons why someone may wish to become a private pesticide applicator. These reasons may include that they plan to take over the pesticide certification for their farm due to retirement or a change in responsibilities, they plan to use restricted-use chemicals in addition to general-use chemicals to have more options to control problem weeds or pests, or they are new to spraying pesticides on the farm. This class is not designed for commercial pesticide applicators, as they must get training directly from the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Those planning to participate in the class need to call the Extension office at 419-674-2297 by January 5 to register.

Statewide Sheep Tour

by

Hardin County – A statewide sheep production tour of Knox, Licking, and Crawford Counties has been planned for Ohio Sheep Producers the weekend of Saturday, October 15 and Sunday, October 16, 2022. This year’s tour is jointly sponsored by the Ohio Sheep Improvement Association and Hardin County OSU Extension. Join us for a drive your own, sheep production tour focusing on dry lot/confinement sheep operations. There will be four tour stops on this year’s statewide tour, with each farm stop only being offered at the time listed.

The first farm stop will be at Cable Family Lamb Feedlot (10491 Canal Road, Hebron, Ohio 43025). This Licking County stop will be at 10:00 am Saturday, October 15. The Dave Cable family is the host of this stop which includes a large contract lamb finishing feedlot in Ohio feeding several thousand lambs from all over the United States. This farm has more recently added a dry lot/confinement ewe flock to produce additional lambs for the Cable Farms feedlot. Primary facilities include hoop buildings. Lunch will be on your own at 11:30 am.

The second stop on the tour will be Lone Pine Ranch (25267 Blanchard Road, Howard, Ohio 43028). This Know County stop will be at 1:00 pm Saturday, October 15. Greg and Bev Miller are the host of this stop which is in the prime sheep producing area of Knox County. Historically known for their pasture-based sheep production systems, but for the purpose of this production tour, we will be concentrating our educational efforts on their buildings and facilities, where they lamb out their 160 commercial ewe flock and feed out their own lambs for market.

The third stop on the tour will be Skyline Farms (14501 Skyline Drive, Danville, Ohio 43014). This Knox County stop will be at 3:00 pm Saturday, October 15. The Don Hawk family will be the host of this stop, which is a large contract lamb finishing feedlot in Ohio feeding several thousand lambs from all over the United States. This operation has more recently added a dry lot/confinement ewe flock to produce additional lambs for the Skyline Farms feedlot. The primary facilities include renovated turkey barns. There will be a scheduled overnight stay in the Mt. Vernon area. If you need hotel accommodations, contact Hardin County OSU Extension Educator Mark Badertscher at badertscher.4@osu.edu or 419-767-6037 for details. Dinner will be on your own.

The second day of the tour will feature a stop at Hartschuh Livestock (6348 Parks Road, Sycamore, Ohio 44882). This Crawford County stop will be at 10:30 am Sunday, October 16. The Greg Hartschuh family will be the host of this stop, which has recently added a dry lot/confinement commercial and Club Lamb operation in combination with their confinement dairy herd. The recently built confinement/lot building has new and innovative methods of feeding the ewe flock and concentrate many resources to high quality forages due to the dairy cattle part of the operation.

Producers and others who are interested in participating on this statewide sheep tour should register at https://www.ohiosheep.org/osia-programs.html#tour to let the tour hosts know how many people to expect at each stop. Hotel reservations need to be made in advance to assure room availability. Tour participants will be responsible for their own hotel room and meals. As in the past, we have rented a van for Hardin and Hancock County area producers to travel together. If there is enough interest from our area, we will meet for breakfast and travel together in the van. Let me know how many from your family plan to attend so we can make local arrangements.

Leaf Rubbings, Scarecrows & Scavenger Hunts

by

Children’s Program at Friendship Gardens

Hardin County – The Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers are hosting a children’s program at the Friendship Gardens called “Leaf Rubbings, Scarecrows & Scavenger Hunts” on Saturday morning, September 24. This event is from 10:00 am until noon and will provide several activities for kids of all ages. Each child will be able to leave with a leaf rubbing and scarecrow that they made themselves with the help of the Master Gardener Volunteers. There are also garden scavenger hunts planned for the kids. The event will take place at the Friendship Gardens of Hardin County, which is located at 960 W. Kohler Street in Kenton.

Each child is asked to bring either an old button-down kid’s shirt, hat or maybe even both, to dress their scarecrow. Children of all ages are welcome with a responsible adult.  The adult must remain with their children for the entire event. Wear old clothes as making scarecrows involves participants painting faces on their project. The event is free and open to the public with no registration necessary. Come enjoy fall activities in the garden! Questions about this event can be directed to the Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardeners Facebook page or by calling the OSU Extension office at 419-674-2297.

Carcass Show of Champions

by

Hardin County – Have you ever wondered how well the grand and reserve champion fair animals will grade out on the rail?  The OSU Extension office is announcing that the 2022 Hardin County Fair Carcass Show of Champions will be held in-person at Jenkins Meats, 670 E. Marion Street, Mt. Victory on Monday, September 19 starting at 6:00 pm. Viewers will be also be able to watch the OSU Meat Judge giving oral reasons and results at both the Hardin County OSU Extension and Ohio State – Hardin County 4-H Facebook pages in addition to the hardin.osu.edu website after the event. The carcass show will evaluate the meat value of the grand champion and reserve champion steers, barrows, gilts, and lambs from this year’s Hardin County Fair.

Carcass value will be determined by evaluating the dressing percentage, yield grade (external fat thickness, ribeye area (in2), internal fat, and hot carcass weight), as well as quality grade (marbling score and skeletal maturity). Carcass information is very important to breeding livestock operations for making genetic improvements in their seed stock animals; and serves as an effective marketing tool for producers who sell their livestock for meat. The Hardin County Fair Carcass Show of Champions is sponsored by Ohio State University Extension, Jenkins Meats, the Hardin County Fair Board, the Hardin County Sheep Improvement Association, the Hardin County Cattle Producers, and the Hardin County Pork Producers.

Fruit and Vegetable Crop Walk

by

Hardin County – There is a segment of agriculture in southeastern Hardin County that specializes in commercial fruit and vegetable production. Hardin County is also home to the Scioto Valley Produce Auction near Mt. Victory where much of this produce is sold. Hardin County OSU Extension has planned a Fruit and Vegetable Crop Walk program on Tuesday, August 2 from 6:00-8:00 pm to help with fruit and vegetable production issues. The location of the program will be on a produce farm at 15237 County Road 209, Kenton. It is open to all fruit and vegetable producers, whether they are commercial or home gardeners.

OSU Extension Integrated Pest Management Coordinator Jim Jasinski will provide information on using IPM techniques to control pests with produce. Ashley Leach, OSU College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences Assistant Professor of Entomology will provide an update on specialty crops insects. Gary Gao, OSU Extension Small Fruit Production Specialist will provide information on growing grapes and raspberries. Brad Bergefurd, Technical Specialty Crop Agronomist, Brandt Discovery and Innovation will provide an update for growers on vegetable production fertility. Hardin County OSU Extension Educator Mark Badertscher will provide information about Driftwatch; a voluntary communication tool that enables crop producers, beekeepers, and pesticide applicators to work together to protect specialty crops and apiaries through use of mapping programs.

The program will be held outside so bring your lawn chair and umbrella in case of rain. There will be a diagnostic table so be sure to bring along any weeds, plant nutrition problems, plant diseases, and insect specimens in a sealed plastic bag for questions and answers. The program will conclude with a walk through a produce field, pointing out fruit and vegetable issues and steps to properly manage them. There is no cost to attend this event.

Summer Garden Programs

by

Hardin County – The Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers are hosting two summer garden programs at the Friendship Gardens of Hardin County located at 960 W. Kohler Street in Kenton. The events begin at 6:30 pm with an event on edible plants, “I can eat THAT??!!” on July 19 and another on “Growing Cucurbits” on August 16.

Learn about foraging for food in your backyard Tuesday, July 19 with the edible plants program “I can eat THAT??!!” There are many plants besides fruits and vegetables that are growing in your yard or woods that can be used as food. Come learn about some of them and try a taste. This is a good way to stretch your food budget. This will be presented by Master Gardeners Vicki Phillips and Kim Thomas.

What are cucurbits? Why they are squash, cucumbers, pumpkins, melons, and gourds, of course. Learn the tricks on how to grow these delicious vegetables, and tips on how to keep them pest and disease free. This program on “Growing Cucurbits” will be held Tuesday, August 16 and will be presented by Master Gardener Stewart Coats who is an award-winning gardener.

These events are free and open to the public, rain or shine with the featured program inside the shelter house at the Friendship Gardens with seating. Registration is not necessary to attend. Master Gardener Volunteers will be stationed throughout the Friendship Gardens before and after the programs to answer your gardening questions. All interested gardeners are encouraged to attend.

Planting for Color Topic of Evening Garden Affair

by

Hardin County – The Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers are hosting “An Evening Garden Affair” on Tuesday evening, July 12 at the Friendship Gardens of Hardin County located at 960 W. Kohler Street in Kenton. The event is from 6:30 to 8:00 pm and will feature Rachel Hoverman of OSU Extension-Van Wert County with a program about “Planting for Year-Round Color.”

Attendees will gather in the Friendship Gardens of Hardin County for tours at 6:30 pm with Hardin County OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers. Learn about the many different themed gardens at this educational demonstration garden. There will be snacks and drinks available before moving to Simon Kenton School gymnasium at 7:00 pm for the program presented by speaker Rachel Hoverman, Van Wert County 4-H Youth Development/Master Gardener Volunteer Program Coordinator. Following her presentation on “Planting for Year-Round Color,” a basket of garden themed items will be sent home with a lucky winner.

This event is free and open to the public, rain or shine with the featured program inside the Simon Kenton School with seating. Registration is not necessary to attend. Master Gardener Volunteers will be stationed throughout the Friendship Gardens starting at 6:30 pm to answer your gardening questions. All who have an interest in gardening will not want to miss this event. Parking is at the garden off West Kohler Street or in front of Simon Kenton School. For further information contact the OSU Extension office at 419-674-2297.