The West Central Ohio Dairy Luncheon will be this Wednesday, Dec. 19, at the Pizza Hut on the south side of New Bremen. Pizza and salad bar opens about 11:30 a.m. with the program featuring Dr. Bill Weiss to begin about noon. Bill will be addressing “Managing Feed Rations in Tough Economic Times.” The cost for this program is your own lunch. All are welcome!!
There will be an Ag Outlook Meeting in Auglaize County on Friday, Jan. 11, from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. This will be held at the Eagles in downtown Wapak. Speakers will include Barry Ward and Ben Brown from OSU Ag Econ department. Topics to be discussed include enterprise budgets, land values, and the current condition of farming. Ag policy, grain markets, and how to market grain will also be addressed. Lunch will be provided. Please register by Jan. 4 so Jeff can have enough food and handouts: 419-739-6580.
We don’t think much about sheep and goats when we think about this area of the state, but I am truly surprised how many flocks I do see!! For those of you involved in this enterprise, there is a Lambing and Kidding School being held on Saturday, Jan. 12, at the Jeff Criswell Farm near Marion from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Speakers will include Dr. Michelle “Mitch” Michalak, co-owner of Maria Stein Animal Clinic, with “Obstetric & Care of Newborns” and Jacci Smith, Delaware County OSU Extension Educator, providing hands-on opportunities with her “Birthing Simulator,” a model that enacts different birthing problems and allows directions to improve the survival of newborns.
Also presenting will be Tim Barnes, Marion County Extension Ag Educator, reviewing the options for sheep and goat producers to artificially raise young kids and lambs. With the continued development of advanced milk replacers and early feed options, he tells us orphan kids and lambs are easy to manage. The topic of animal nutrition will be addressed by Dallas Miller who is associated with Kalmbach Show Feeds. All of these presenters are involved with their own sheep and/or goats!
The registration fee for the event is “free.” Each adult will receive resource materials. The Marion County Sheep Improvement Association will serve a light lunch. The deadline for pre-registration is Jan. 9. For more information, please contact Tim Barnes at 740-223-4040 or [email protected].
The Ohio Hop Conference – “From Bines to Steins” – will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, Jan. 9-10, at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Columbus. Conference registration and hotel room rates are discounted for those who register prior to Dec. 18.
Hop Quality from a Brewer’s Perspective; Sensory Analysis, Beer, and Hops; and Maximizing Hop Yields with Best Practices in Fertilization, Irrigation, and Pest Control will be the main presentations by keynote speakers. Additional topics include harvest timing, trade show, selling your hops, insect and disease management, a panel of brewers as well as a panel discussion by growers, and much more! You can find more information at bit.ly/OHGGRegister.
Just a reminder that Harold Watters is holding an Ohio Certified Crop Adviser Pre-Exam Training on Jan. 9-10, 9 a.m to 5 p.m. both days at our Shelby County Extension Office in Sidney. The cost is $150 and the registration deadline is Dec. 28. For details/to register, go to go.osu.edu/CCAprep.
Well, Stanley’s getting along well with his new knee! He’s able to get around the house and even doing some cooking! Of course, the physical therapy wears him out … and he claims he’s not getting the other one done for “years,” if ever! We’ll see … It’s only been a week! He might be begging for another surgery a year from now!
