Events

USDA Announces Grassland Conservation Reserve Program Enrollment is Open

On April 17, 2023 the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that agricultural producers and private landowners could begin signing up for the Grassland Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Applications will be accepted through May 26, 2023. Among CRP enrollment opportunities, Grassland CRP is a unique working lands program, allowing producers and landowners to continue grazing and haying practices while conserving grasslands and promoting plant and animal biodiversity as well as healthier soil.

Find more details Grassland CRP Program linked here or by contacting your local USDA Service Center.

Southwest Ohio Spring Cow/Calf Workshop

RSVP by 4/28/23

Make plans now to attend the Southwest Ohio Spring Cow/Calf Workshop on Friday, May 5, 2023 beginning at 9 a.m.

Morning program: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Lunch: 12:15 PM
Pasture walk: beginning at 12:45 PM

RSVP by 4/28:  https://buytickets.at/greenacresfoundation/878640 or OSUE (513) 714-3891

Location:
Greenacres Handling Facility, 8300 Spooky Hollow Rd., Cincinnati, Ohio 45242

Topics & Speakers:

  • Cow Nutrition during Pregnancy:  Garth Ruff, Field Specialist; Beef Cattle, OSU Extension
  • Preparing your Calving Facilities:  Steve Boyles, Ph.D., OSU Beef Extension Specialist, OSU Extension
  • Impacts of Management Practices with Handling, Safety & Meat Quality:  Lyda G. Garcia, Ph.D., Extension Meat Specialist, OSU Extension
  • Dealing with Dystocia and Calving Issues:  Krom Veterinary Service
  • Pasture Walk:  Garth Ruff, Field Specialist, Beef Cattle, OSU Extension
Posted by at Posted in Events

Attend the International Grassland Congress, in Kentucky May 14-19, 2023

Coming to Kentucky in May!

The International Grassland Congress (IGC) will be held in Kentucky USA from May 14 to 19 and will offer the unique opportunity to listen and talk to grassland scientists, extension leaders, farmers, ranchers, and industry leaders from around the world. The theme of the conference is “Grassland for Soil, Animal, and Human Health.” This is only the 3rd time the Congress has been held in the U.S. since it started in 1927 and the first time since 1981.

The IGC program is packed with applied and academic presentations on the production, storage, and utilization of forages and will offer discussions of grassland policies, social issues, and ecosystem services. There will also be a trade show marketplace, which will be the hub of the event, where over 600 attendees from more than 60 countries will gather to Continue reading →

Stockmanship and Stewardship Event Coming to Caldwell Ohio

Make plans now to attend.

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) in partnership with Merck Animal Health and the checkoff funded Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program, are hosting four regional Stockmanship and Stewardship (S&S) events. These regional events are intended to bring together cattle producers from a large area for a two-day cattle handling and educational program. Events will highlight proper stockmanship techniques as well as local stewardship information.

We are pleased to announce that one of these events is being hosted in Caldwell, Ohio on September 29 and 30, 2023! This unique Stockmanship and Stewardship event is focused on live low-stress cattle handling demonstrations, Beef Quality Assurance training, and industry updates you won’t find anywhere else. Participants will gain an edge on Continue reading →

What is a Mineral?

– Christine Gelley, Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator, Noble County OSU Extension

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn about proper mineral supplementation.

A mineral is a naturally occurring, inorganic element or compound that has an orderly internal structure and characteristic chemical composition, crystal form, and physical properties. Sometimes minerals are described as rocks. But rocks are actually aggregates of one or many minerals bound together. Minerals primarily make their way into our diets through plants that draw them from the soil or through animals that ate those plants.

We all know that vitamins and minerals are important things to include in our diets so that our bodies function and are healthy. The same is true for our pets and livestock. Knowing how much is needed and how to supply them can be challenging to understand, especially when the answer is- “it depends”.

Mineral needs vary vastly due to many factors including where you live, what you eat, your life stage, and even your genetics! Fortunately, in the United States we have access to many food items that supply most of the nutrients, vitamins, and minerals that we need and if Continue reading →

Ohio Beef Expo to Celebrate 35th Anniversary March 16-19

When: Friday, March 17, 2023
9:30 a.m. – Reception
10:00 a.m. – 35th Anniversary Recognition

Where: Ohio Expo Center – Voinovich Building, Expo trade show, sale ring
717 East 17th Ave.
Columbus, Ohio 43211

Who: Speakers include:
Tom Karr, President, Ohio Cattlemen’s Association
Brian Baldridge, Director, Ohio Department of Agriculture
Elizabeth Harsh, Executive Director, Ohio Cattlemen’s Association

What: The Ohio Cattlemen’s Association coordinates the Ohio Beef Expo, the premier event for Ohio’s beef industry. It attracts an annual attendance of over 30,000 people and over 1,500 head of cattle between the various sales and shows.

The 2023 Expo features nine breed sales, a Continue reading →

Posted by at Posted in Events

OFGC Conference set for Cambridge on February 17

– Christine Gelley, Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator, Noble County OSU Extension

Reserve your seat today!

The Ohio Forage and Grasslands Council will be hosting their 2023 Annual Meeting on Friday, February 17, 2023 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Deerassic Park Education Center (14250 Cadiz Road, Cambridge, Ohio 43725). This meeting serves as an opportunity to interact with forage growers of all backgrounds and interests and share with each other. Along with socialization you can listen to intriguing presentations, interact with vendors of forage growing supplies, and enjoy a delicious lunch.

The Ohio Forage and Grasslands Council is Ohio’s commodity organization for pasture and hay crops. The Ohio State University partners closely with the Ohio Forage and Grasslands Council to support forage education, research, and outreach throughout the state. It is the only organization of its kind, bringing together farmers, conservationists, academics, industry representatives, and service personnel into a shared environment to converse and build relationships that lead to more productive forage and grassland ecosystems and more profitable farm operations. The Ohio Forage and Grasslands Council is the state affiliate organization of the American Forage and Grassland Council. Ohio members are automatically extended membership to the national level for even more networking opportunities and learning experiences.

The 2023 meeting theme is “Feeding Forages ↔ Forages Feeding Us” and will feature information on how to provide adequate fertility to forages while on a budget, how to create pasture ecosystems that are simultaneously beneficial to livestock and wildlife, cutting edge research from The Ohio State University, and Continue reading →

Posted by at Posted in Events

Pasture Improvements by Osmosis

– Christine Gelley, OSU Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator, Noble County

Make plans to join us on February 17th.

The New Year evokes a spirit of willingness to change for the better. Resolutions to make healthier, cleaner, more economical, more environmentally friendly, and/or more spiritually fulfilling decisions are prevalent right now. Something about flipping the calendar gives us hope that now is a good time for change. Regardless of what day on the calendar it is, if you want to change something for the better, today is the perfect day to start.

Personally, I am a fan of the kind of resolutions that create less work for myself rather than those that create more. My day and my mind are already divided between too many things, to add another or three makes me exhausted just thinking about it. What I need is change by osmosis.

Osmosis, what does that word really mean?

It means “the spontaneous movement of a substance across a semipermeable membrane.”

So, that makes my body and soul the semipermeable membrane and new Continue reading →

Two Cattle Feeding Programs Offered on February 6

Join us for a beef feeding school with a focus on dairy beef.

Join the OSU Extension Beef Team for two opportunities to learn more about cattle feeding in 2023. The program will be offered at 12:00 p.m. at the Hancock County Extension office in Findlay and again at 6:00 p.m. at the Shisler Conference Center on the OARDC Campus in Wooster. This year’s featured speaker is Dr. Jerad Jaborek from Michigan State University. Jerad is the Extension Feedlot Specialist at MSU and will be speaking on Feedlot Management and Feeding Dairy and Beef x Dairy Cattle.

Following Jerad will be Eric Richer, Farm Management Field Specialist for OSU Extension. Over the past few years Eric has conducted several research projects with fed cattle manure and will be discussing How to Optimize Value of Pen Pack Manure.

Finally, Garth Ruff, Beef Cattle Field Specialist with OSU Extension will give a brief Cattle Market Outlook presentation to round out the program.

Registration can be made at both the Hancock and Wayne County Extension offices for their respective site. See additional detail and registration information regarding the program at: Ohio Beef Cattle Feeding School

Posted by at Posted in Events

Ohio Cow-Calf Field Day to be held in Morgan County

Make plans to join us, register today!

The first of two statewide cow-calf field days will be held Monday, February 20 at Clemens Farms in Morgan County. The program will begin at 9:00 a.m. and focus on Optimizing Herd Fertility. Heifer development and cow-calf nutrition will be the primary topics of the day. OSU Extension Beef Cattle Field Specialist Garth Ruff, as well as a team of local county Extension professionals will teach the morning program. A hot lunch will follow, and the event will conclude with a farm tour looking at animal handling facilities and conservation practices. The morning program and lunch will take place in a heated farm shop but, dress appropriately for the afternoon activities.

Registration is required ahead of time. The program fee is $10. Contact the Morgan County Extension office to register or send in the registration form linked here: Ohio Beef Cow/Calf Workshop – Optimizing Herd Fertility

Posted by at Posted in Events