Good afternoon,
I hope you are enjoying President’s Day today. Be careful if you are outside as I noticed slippery spots and freezing rain on my windshield driving to Kenton this morning. Hopefully this weather will be gone by tomorrow morning so that everyone can make it to the final Conservation Tillage Club breakfast program. Tuesday, February 16’s program will feature Dr. Peggy Kirk Hall, Assistant Professor and Field Specialist of Ag and Resource Law with OSU Extension. Hall will be discussing farm transitions and leases to help provide direction with passing down the farm to new ownership. She will also provide information about making informed decisions with land, wind, solar, and pipeline leases. See the attached flyer for more information. I would like to thank all of the sponsors that have made this series possible.
Tomorrow evening (2/16) will also be the final Ohio Beef Cattle School for this year, starting at 7:00 pm at the Extension office in Kenton. Dr. Lyda Garcia, Assistant Professor of Meat Sciences at The Ohio State University, will be the featured speaker for the final session. Garcia will begin her presentation by describing the characteristics that establish yield and quality grade differences and how they impact consumer satisfaction. She will demonstrate carcass fabrication into primal and sub-primal cuts and discuss how quality and yield differences establish beef values.
Dr. Francis L. Fluharty, Research Professor in the Department of Animal Sciences at The Ohio State University, will provide the wrap-up for the entire School. He will highlight some of the challenges facing beef producers in our region in the near future, remind us to stay focused on the important management issues to remain profitable, and emphasize the importance of meeting the needs of today’s consumer. Details about this program can be found on the attached flyer. Thanks to Farm Credit Mid America for sponsoring the winter webinar series again this year.
Did you take care of getting your fertilizer certification yet? There are two fertilizer trainings coming up in the county with a 3-hour training at ONU in Ada on March 1 at 1:00 pm for those who do not have a pesticide license. March 10 there will be a 2-hour training at 1:00 pm in Mt. Victory at the Plaza Inn for those who do have a pesticide license. This will be after the morning pesticide recertification training. Farmers and commercial applicators who apply fertilizer on 50 or more acres of a crop for sale need to be certified by September 30, 2017. See the attached news article and flyers for more information about how to register.
3 Hour Fertilizer Training Ada
2 Hour Fertilizer Training Mt Victory
Fertilizer Training News Release
Reservations are now being accepted for Allen County’s second annual Agriculture Outlook Event on Thursday, February 18th at the Old Barn Out Back in Lima. The target audience is farmers but this program will interest agribusiness professionals as well. The morning event features three key speakers. Scott Shearer, Professor and Department Chair with The Ohio State University will be addressing Precision Agriculture and what the technologies mean to productivity. Mike Mock, Senior Risk Manager with The Andersons Grain Group will speak on price and revenue risk management in the agriculture commodity grain markets. Matthew Lane of the Ohio Department of Agriculture will overview compliance with the new Nutrient Law impacting farmers in the Western Lake Erie Basin and how the state is addressing water quality impacts from manure and fertilizer runoff. There will also be sponsor exhibits. Those wishing to participate in this event are required to register through the Chamber office at 144 S. Main Street in Lima, or by calling them at 419-222-6045, or through their website at http://www.limachamber.com/ through the events calendar. The registration fee is $5 per person and space is limited to 200 attendees. The program is being conducted from 7:30 to 11:30 am on February 18th with breakfast being included – breakfast buffet will open at 7:15 am with the first speaker on the agenda at 7:45 am.
Did you attend our Cover Crop Soil Health Workshop and are looking for more information? Are you hearing about precision fertility and wonder if it can be feasible on your farm? Do new equipment technologies interest you? Maybe you are wondering what kind of things you can do to plan your corn and soybean production for this spring without busting the bank. The Conservation Tillage Conference (CTC) is being held March 2 (Wednesday) and 3 (Thursday) this year at ONU in Ada. I have attached a news article and brochure so that you can find out more details and take advantage of registering before the prices go up. This year’s conference is something Hardin County can be proud of with about 60 presenters and over 900 attendees.
Believe it or not, winter banquet season is almost here for the livestock commodity organizations. The Sheep Improvement Association Lamb Banquet is being held March 5 at St. John’s UCC in Kenton, starting at 6:30 pm. The Dairy Service Unit is holding their Dairy Banquet on March 12 at the Plaza Inn in Mt. Victory, starting at 12:00 noon. See the attached news release for information about tickets, along with royalty and scholarship opportunities. Did you hear that Ohio Ag Net Farm Broadcaster Dale Minyo is coming to Hardin County? He will be speaking at Farmers’ Breakfast being held March 1, starting at 7:30 am at the Plaza Inn, Mt. Victory. Contact sponsor Liberty National Bank at 419-634-5015 or HCox@LNBbank.com to RSVP by February 22. See the attached flyer for more information about this event.
If that’s not enough to keep you busy learning about agriculture, I have also attached a copy of the Northwest Ohio OSU Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources Newsletter. This was mailed out earlier this winter, but contains many events being held by OSU Extension in Northwest Ohio that may interest you. I have also included some agronomy articles below for your use. Other upcoming local events this week include the Soil & Water Conservation District monthly meeting at 9:00 am on Wednesday (2/17) at the SWCD office. It seems like this email is getting very long, so I need to let you off the hook. Maybe it’s time to go back to weekly editions…
Mark
So there is lots to talk about in the weather – Jim Noel
After a record warm December, colder weather returned to Ohio and surrounding areas for January with temperatures in January running just below normal. The headlines surround a strong El Nino in the Pacific Ocean. This looks to be the strongest on near-term record. Most of the data suggests this El Nino is similar to the winters of 1957/58, 1982/83 and 1991/92 and like but with some differences to the 1997/98 winter. El Nino is only one of many things affecting the weather pattern but it has its strongest influence on our weather from January into March. Go to http://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/so-there-lots-talk-about-weather to continue reading this article.
Seed treatments for watermolds and fungi are essential for Ohio’s poorly drained soils – Anne Dorrance, Pierce Paul
Much of Ohio’s soybean production ground is on soils with poor to fair drainage, high clay content, and reduced tillage systems. Any one of these factors alone or in combination contributes to the environmental conditions that favor infection of seeds and seedlings by watermolds. Reduced tillage systems favor pathogen build-up in the very place that the seed is planted each year. Go to http://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/seed-treatments-watermolds-and-fungi-are-essential-ohio%E2%80%99s-poorly-drained to finish reading this article.
Nutrient Management Plan Development Workshop Announced – Greg LaBarge
Nutrient management plans developed to meet Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) EQUIP program criteria can be developed by Certified Crop Advisors in the State of Ohio as a service to their farm clientele. Nutrient management plans take soil fertility recommendations one step further and start to assess the environmental concerns of field sites to nutrient runoff/loss via nutrient indexes plus assessing erosion and other resources concerns on the farm. Ohio State University Extension is offering workshops on Nutrient Management Plan Development to assist CCA’s in preparing their first plans. Go to http://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/nutrient-management-plan-development-workshop-announced to find out more about this workshop being held in Wood County for Certified Crop Advisors.
Ohio Farm Custom Rate Survey 2016 – Barry Ward
A large number of Ohio farmers hire machinery operations and other farm related work to be completed by others. This is often due to lack of proper equipment, lack of time or lack of expertise for a particular operation. Many farm business owners do not own equipment for every possible job that they may encounter in the course of operating a farm and may, instead of purchasing the equipment needed, seek out someone with the proper tools necessary to complete the job. This farm work completed by others is often referred to as “custom farm work” or more simply “custom work”. To find out more about how you can help with this survey, go to http://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/ohio-farm-custom-rate-survey-2016.
Solar Energy in Agriculture – Mary Griffith
Many farmers consider investing in on-farm solar energy systems to stabilize energy input costs. Farmers interested in installing solar energy systems can learn more about the technology and potential cost savings during an OSU Extension workshop on February 24th at Der Dutchman in Plain City or February 18th at the Crawford County Economic Development Partnership Building in Bucyrus. Solar energy systems offer many benefits, including the positive environmental impact of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and reduced future energy costs. Go to http://agcrops.osu.edu/newsletter/corn-newsletter/solar-energy-agriculture to continue reading about these solar energy workshops.
Mark A. Badertscher
Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator
OSU Extension Hardin County
1021 W. Lima Street, Suite 103, Kenton, OH 43326
419-674-2297 Office
