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Iowa regional news and notes Monday, June 16, 2008
Field day to focus on organic dairy systems
FAIRFIELD, Iowa -- Francis and Susan Thicke of Fairfield will host a Practical Farmers of Iowa field day on their farm June 21.
Sponsored by the McKnight Foundation, the Ceres Foundation and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the event will involve discussion on bird habitat, solar-powered water systems, gravity and geothermal water system techniques, no-till drilling and fly control.
The field day will begin at 9 a.m. at Radiance Dairy and continue with lunch at 11:45 a.m. at Revelations Bookstore and Coffeehouse.
Radiance Dairy is a 236-acre, 80-cow, grass-based, certified organic dairy that processes milk on-farm into bottled milk, cream, yogurt, and cheese for sales through local grocery stores and restaurants. This dairy is all planted to forages and has 60 paddocks for controlled, rotational grazing.
Directions to Radiance Dairy: 1745 Brookville Road, Fairfield. Take Hwy 34 to the west edge of Fairfield; turn north on Brookville road; Radiance Dairy is 3 miles on the right.
Field day to feature corn, bean production topics
NASHUA, iowa -- The Spring Field Day at the Northeast Research and Demonstration Farm will be 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. June 19 at the farm near Nashua.
Roger Elmore, Iowa State University Extension corn specialist, will talk about corn production issues and ISU Extension soybean specialist Palle Pedersen will talk about soybean production issues. Alison Robertson, ISU Extension plant pathologist, will talk about fungicide use on corn and soybeans and Aaron Gassmann, ISU research entomologist will talk about corn rootworm control.
The Riverton Lucky Clovers 4-H Club will serve a buy-your-own lunch and refreshments from noon to 1:30 p.m.
Kanawha research farm to host field day
KANAWHA, Iowa -- The Northern Iowa Research and Demonstration Farm at Kanawha will host a field day from 9 a.m. to noon July 1 at the farm.
A discussion is planned on soybean production issues by Palle Pedersen, Iowa State University Extension soybean specialist. Robert Hartzler, ISU Extension weed specialist, will talk about weed management.
Mark Hanna, ISU Extension ag engineer, will discuss spray drift management. John Holmes, Paul Kassel and George Cummins, ISU Extension field agronomists, will talk about corn production issues.
Events offer opportunity to win 4-wheelers
URBANDALE, Iowa -- Soybean producers can to sign up to win one of nine Polaris 500 4-wheelers as a part of the Iowa Soybean Association's All in a Day's Work campaign.
On June 24, District 3 and District 6 in the northeast and east central parts of the state will join forces at the Heartland Acres Agribition Center at Independence for an opportunity to experience Ag Info for All Ages from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.
For producers, the event will focus on increasing yield and risk management; topics for women will be financial planning and soy foods; the children's program will feature a soy school with "ag in the classroom" activities.
The schedule includes a pork barbecue lunch with speaker Aaron Putze of the Coalition to Support Iowa's Farmers.
Woodlands Field Day scheduled June 26
NEW PROVIDENCE, Iowa -- A Woodlands Field Day will be June 26, one mile south and one-third mile west of New Providence.
Topics include "Direct Seeding of Hardwood Trees," "Management of Existing Woodlands," "Woodland Weed and Grass Control," "Woodland Insects," and "Improving Wildlife Habitat in Woodlands."
The program begins at 9:30 a.m. and will conclude at 3:00 p.m. A "walleye fry" lunch will be served at the New Providence Roundhouse at 12:30 p.m.
The cost of the program is $15 and includes materials, lunch and refreshments.
For more information, contact Hardin County ISU Extension, at (641) 648-4850 or toll-free 1-888-648-5005.
Pork niche market field day offered at Schaller
SCHALLER, Iowa -- A June field day will explore options to bring farms with unused hog facilities back into production for niche markets.
The field day will be 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. June 26 at the Mark and Valerie Olson farm, 1283 180th St., Schaller.
Extension agriculture engineers will discuss options to upgrade or retrofit facilities. ISU swine field specialists will talk about production flow and management issues related to each site, as well as discuss the potential optimum number of market hogs to optimize economically efficient use of each facility.
The Olson farm has a confinement farrowing building and a small confinement nursery, both with gutter systems for manure removal. There are also two Cargill units for finishing hogs, plus various smaller buildings and lots of unused concrete.
Sensitive crops and apiaries registry created
DES MOINES -- The Iowa Department of Agriculture has created a registry for producers to list the locations of their pesticide sensitive crops and for beekeepers to list the locations of their apiaries.
This registry will be used to create an on-line directory for use by pesticide applicators to identify the locations of sensitive crops and apiaries and minimize the potential for pesticide drift damage.
The Sensitive Crops Directory will provide pesticide applicators with the locations of those crops that are most susceptible to pesticide drift damage.
The department has ordered field markers that will be available on a cost share basis to registered producers. Producers are asked to post the field markers at the physical location of the pesticide sensitive crop at a height above the crop canopy that will make the field markers visible to both ground and aerial applicators.
Watershed improvement funds are available
DES MOINES -- Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey is encouraging eligible groups to apply for $5 million in grant funding available to support projects that will improve water quality.
"These funds present a great opportunity for local communities to make needed changes either in town or on the farm that can improve water quality," Northey said. "A wide variety of projects are eligible and I encourage qualified groups to look at the needs of their watershed and consider applying."
The $5 million in grant funds are available to local watershed improvement committees, soil and water conservation districts, public water supply utilities, county conservation boards and cities. Individual projects can request up to $500,000.
All applications are due Aug. 1 and will be reviewed by the Watershed Improvement Review Board.
For more information, call Jerry Neppel at (515) 281-3599.
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