Month: April 2020

Event Notice – Farmer’s Breakfast Special “Stay-at-Home” Spring Planting Edition

From Mary Griffith, ANR Extension Educator, Madison County

Stuck at home and really wish you could come to an Extension event? Us too, but we thought we could bring another great speaker to you. Join OSU Extension and Ohio Farm Bureau on Friday, April 17 and April 24 from 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. for their virtual breakfast series. Each meeting will kick off with a weather forecast from the State Climate Office of Ohio’s Aaron Wilson, followed by a guest speaker. On April 17, Scott Schearer of OSU Department of Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering will be discussing “Combating Compaction:  Minimizing Soil Compaction this Spring.” On April 24, John Fulton also of OSU Department of Food, Agriculture, and Biological Engineering will be presenting “Planter Set-up to Maximize Yield.”

In order to join us virtually please register at go.osu.edu/farmersbreakfast to receive the link! Please contact Madison County ANR Educator Mary Griffith at 740-852-0975 or griffith.483@osu.edu with questions.

OSU Ag and Natural Resources Madness – Week #4

“Agriculture and Natural Resources Madness: A Tournament of Education” features online educational opportunities Monday – Friday at 9 a.m., noon, and 3 p.m. The education tournament is free of charge, and webinar links are available at go.osu.edu/agmadness. Topics covered during week #4 include the following:  Sheep Production & Management, Horticulture, Small Farms, Vegetable Production, and Farm Taxes.

Week #4 April 13-17
Monday Bracket: Sheep Production & Management
9:00 a.m. Marketing Sheep; Breeds of Sheep
Christine Gelley, Agricultural and Natural Resources Educator, OSU Extension Noble County
Brady Campbell, Program Coordinator, OSU Sheep Team		 Join
Noon Basic Sheep Nutrition: Nutritional Needs During Each Stage of Production
Christine Gelley, Agricultural and Natural Resources Educator, OSU Extension Noble County
Brady Campbell, Program Coordinator, OSU Sheep Team		 Join
3:00 p.m. Basic Health Management: Disease, Vaccines, Parasites
Christine Gelley, Agricultural and Natural Resources Educator, OSU Extension Noble County
Brady Campbell, Program Coordinator, OSU Sheep Team		 Join
Tuesday Bracket: Horticulture
9:00 a.m. Tree ID
Kathy Smith, Program Director, Forestry, OSU SENR		 Join
Noon Asian Longhorned Beetle Update
Joe Boggs, Horticulture Educator, OSU Extension Hamilton County		 Join
3:00 p.m. Ornament Horticulture Update
Jim Chatfield, Horticulture Specialist, OSU Extension
Tom DeHaas, Agricultural and Natural Resources Educator, OSU Extension Lake County		 Join
Wednesday Bracket: Small Farms
9:00 a.m. Meat Goat Production
Tony Nye, Agricultural and Natural Resources Educator, OSU Extension Clinton County		 Join
Noon Pasture Pork
Tony Nye, Agricultural and Natural Resources Educator, OSU Extension Clinton County		 Join
3:00 p.m. Thinking About Adding a Livestock Enterprise?
Tony Nye, Agricultural and Natural Resources Educator, OSU Extension Clinton County		 Join
Thursday Bracket: Vegetable Production
9:00 a.m. Growing Pumpkins
Jim Jasinski, Integrated Pest Management Program Coordinator, OSU Extension
Sally Miller, Plant Pathology Specialist, OSU Extension		 Join
Noon Small Fruit Weed, Disease & Insect Management
Doug Doohan, Professor, OSU CFAES Department of Hort & Crop Science
Melanie Ivey, Assistant Professor, OSU CFAES Department of Plant Pathology
Celeste Welty, Associate Professor, OSU CFAES Department of Entomology		 Join
3:00 p.m. Managing Sweet Corn Worms
Doug Doohan, Professor, OSU CFAES Department of Hort & Crop Science
Jim Jasinski, Integrated Pest Management Program Coordinator, OSU Extension
Celeste Welty, Associate Professor, OSU CFAES Department of Entomology		 Join
Friday Bracket: Farm Taxes
9:00 a.m. Farmer and Farmland Owner Income Tax Issues Webinar Replay Part I with Live Q&A
Barry Ward, Director, OSU Extension Tax School Program		 Join
Noon Farmer and Farmland Owner Income Tax Issues Webinar Replay Part II with Live Q&A
Barry Ward, Director, OSU Extension Tax School Program		 Join
3:00 p.m. New Income Tax Legislation Update
Barry Ward, Director, OSU Extension Tax School Program		 Join

“Farm Office Live” returns Monday, April 13 at 8:00 p.m.

OSU Extension is pleased to be offering a second “Farm Office Live” session on Monday evening, April 13, 2020, from 8:00 to 9:30 p.m.  Farmers, educators, and ag industry professionals are invited to log-on for the latest updates on the issues impact our farm economy.

The session will begin with the Farm Office Team answering questions asked over the past week.  Topics to be highlighted include:

  • Update on the CARES Paycheck Protection Program
  • Update on the Dairy Economy
  • Examination of how COVID-19 is impacting agricultural exports
  • Bureau of Workers Compensation’s announcement  of dividend returns
  • A look at the long term macroeconomic impact of COVID-19
  • Will property taxes be delayed?
  • Potential Legal Impacts of COVID-19

Plenty of time has been allotted for questions and answers from attendees. Each office session is limited to 500 people and if you miss the on-line office hours, the session recording can be accessed at farmoffice.osu.edu the following day.  Please register at  https://go.osu.edu/farmofficelive 

Knowledge Exchange from Ohio State On COVID-19

The CFAES Knowledge Exchange, Ohio State University Extension, and CFAES research communities are pleased to launch the COVID-19 Hub – a place to share science-backed COVID-19 information, education, and resources with the public.

You can connect with the hub at kx.osu.edu/covid-19.

The COVID-19 Hub content will evolve and expand as more information becomes available throughout this experience. Please help us share the hub link with your audiences as well.

Ohio’s Coronavirus-19 Stay at Home Order and Agricultural Businesses

By: Peggy Kirk Hall, Ohio State University, Associate Professor, Agricultural & Resource Law
It’s been a quiet few weeks here at the Farm Office as we adjust to life with Coronavirus-19, but it’s time to get back to the Ohio Ag Law Blog.  We hope our readers are safe and healthy.
We’ve received several questions about Ohio’s Stay at Home Order and how it affects agricultural businesses.  As you well know, the Order states that residents are to stay at home and may leave “only for Essential Activities, Essential Governmental Functions, or to participate in Essential Businesses and Operations.”  All non-essential businesses and activities are to cease.  It became effective early Tuesday morning and remained in place until the end of the day on April 6.  Here are the relevant parts of the Order that answer the questions we’ve received:

Continue reading Ohio’s Coronavirus-19 Stay at Home Order and Agricultural Businesses →

The Farm Office is open

Image may contain: textThe Ohio State University Extension Farm Office team is ready to answer your questions. Find information on Agriculture Law from Peggy Hall, ask questions about Grain Markets with Ben Brown, talk taxes with Barry Ward, look at your farm’s bottom line with Dianne Shoemaker, talk farm management and succession planning with David Marrison.  This team of specialists is ready to serve you.

Each week, the Farm Office Team offers live office hours to update you on current issues affecting the farm economy.  Join our experts for quick presentations and Q & A.  Go here to register at no cost.  Go to this page to view past webinars and PowerPoint slides.

Great Backyard Poultry Resource

CLICK HERE for Backyard Poultry Production Webinar  (apologies as it was zoom-bombed by a Cloverbud named Becky who added to the graphics in her own personal way)

From Extension Educator, Dr. Timothy McDermott

There has been a resurgence of people who wish to raise their own food for personal and family food security, both with produce and with poultry.  I am increasingly getting asked about backyard poultry keeping so I wanted to put a resource together to assist you in getting the knowledge you need for safe, healthy and productive backyard poultry keeping.

FIRST THING:  Find out the regulations in your city or municipality that governs the keeping of backyard poultry and follow those rules carefully. 

We also have a number of Fact Sheets hosted on Ohioline to support poultry keeping:

There is also a fact sheet on Selling Eggs in Ohio: Marketing and Regulations that details safe handling, washing, and storage of eggs.

If you need help finding a Veterinarian that sees poultry,  we have a list plus a map to assist you with that.

I will be hosting another webinar on Backyard Poultry Production for Ag Madness for OSU Extension on Wednesday, April 29th at NOON.  CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS.

If you have questions regarding the keeping of poultry after watching the webinar then feel free to contact me at mcdermott.15@osu.edu

Late Planted Corn Silage Yields Value

By: Garth Ruff, OSU Extension Henry County; Jason Hartschuh, OSU Extension Crawford County; Allen Gahler, OSU Extension Sandusky County (originally published in Ohio Farmer on-line)

Teff, Italian ryegrass, oats, and corn were included with 5 other ‘covers’ in this study

The combination of poor quality hay made in 2018, historic alfalfa winter kill, and excessive rainfall across most of Ohio in the spring of 2019 created a large need for high-quality alternative forage sources this past year. Record amounts of prevented plant acreage across the state created an opportunity to grow forages on traditional row cropped acres. As crop and livestock producers planted a variety of forage and cover crop species to supplement feedstocks, it was recognized that there was also a need to gather forage analysis results from these fields in order for growers to properly value and feed the forage grown. The following data are from cover crop forage samples that were submitted by farmers and from OARDC research stations where annual forages were grown as part of the 2019 Ohio State eFields program available at your local extension office or digitalag.osu.edu/efields. Continue reading Late Planted Corn Silage Yields Value →

Pesticide and Fertilizer Private Applicator Update

With the signing of House Bill 197, Ohio’s COVID-19 emergency response legislation, the March 31, 2020 deadline for private pesticide applicators (farmers) and the May 31, 2020 deadline for agricultural fertilizer certificate holders to renew their license and get training has been extended.

The deadline is now 90 days after the state of emergency Executive Order ends or December 1, 2020, whichever comes first.

All in-person OSUE events are canceled or postponed through at least May 15. Applicators that still are in need of training are encouraged to visit pested.osu.edu for more information when classes resume.

If you have not received your updated applicator card please be aware that ODA is working diligently with a reduced on-site staff to get cards out. Your pink (or yellow) copy of the re-certification sheet (the triplicate from the re-certification class or conference that you attended) is your temporary certification until you get your card.