The 2017 North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (NCR-SARE) Partnership Grant Program Call for Proposals is now available online at http://www.northcentralsare.org/Grants/Our-Grant-Programs/Partnership-Grant-Program. NCR-SARE’s Partnership Grant program is intended to foster cooperation between agriculture professionals and small groups of farmers and ranchers to catalyze on-farm research, demonstration, and education activities related to sustainable agriculture.
Individual grants are limited to $30,000. The deadline for Partnership Program proposals is Oct. 27, 2016, at 4 p.m. CDT. For questions or additional information regarding the Partnership Grant Program, contact our office and I can put you in touch with our Ohio SARE coordinators Alan Sundermeier (Sundermeier.5) and Mike Hogan (hogan.1).
Mercer County is holding a Manure Composting Event from 1 to 3 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 25, at the Ron and Marlene Pohl Farm on Philothea Road, Coldwater. This is a chance to learn about manure composting and to see a compost turner in action! There will be demonstrations on watering those compost piles, information on nutrient analysis of that manure both before and after composting, and a Farmer Testimony on the benefits of composting. You’ll even get to See, Smell, and Feel the finished compost!
This event is free and open to the public. Ice cream and water will be available for all. If you have questions, contact Theresa Dirksen at 419-586-4209.
I will be “out of commission” for a couple weeks. Below are some upcoming programs/ activities you’ll want to make note of now. Most of these have been mentioned in previous articles and/or we have fliers available at our office …
Southwest Ohio Corn Growers Field Day: Tuesday, Aug. 16, from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Fayette County Farm, 2770 state Route 38 NE in Washington Court House. Free. Includes lunch.
Dispose of unwanted pesticides: Monday, Aug. 22, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Hardin County Fairgrounds (Kenton) and Wednesday, Aug. 24, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Miami County Fairgrounds (Troy). Only farm chemicals will be accepted. To pre-register, or for more information, contact the ODA at 614-728-6987.
Fertilizer Applicator Certification Training: Monday, Aug. 29, at the Palazzo in Botkins. Light refreshments at 6 p.m.; program to begin at 6:30 p.m. This three-hour program will allow certification to apply commercial fertilizer to 50 acres or more for those who do not presently hold a pesticide applicator license. RSVP by August 24th.
Ohio No-Till Summer Field Day: Wednesday, Aug. 31, on the Jan Layman Farm, 15238 Township Road 119, Kenton. Using cover crops in no-till systems. Early registration (includes lunch) for the event is $40 by Aug. 22; on-site registration is $60. A complete agenda and registration information are available at ohionotillcouncil.com/2016/06/29/hardin-county-event/. You can contact Bret Margraf at [email protected] or 419-447-7073 with questions.
Additional: Shelby County Cattlemen’s Fall Round-Up: Tuesday, Sept. 6. Facility Tour, 6:30 p.m.; Dinner, 7 p.m. Poepplemans’s is 3 miles west of Fort Loramie on state Route 705.
Scrap Tire Disposal Day: Shelby County Fairgrounds in Sidney, Saturday, Sept. 10, 8 a.m. to noon. Shelby County residents only; free. Passenger, truck, farm, and tractor tires will be accepted; on rims or not. No commercial or industrial tires, please!
This is provided by the Shelby County Health Department as well as other Shelby County organizations. For more information, contact Kent Topp at 937-498-7249.
Farm Science Review is Tuesday through Thursday, Sept. 20-22.
Okay, I’ve gotta “steal” a couple lines from the North American Manure Expo that was two weeks ago … They had t-shirts available with the “Top 10 Rejected Manure Expo Slogans” listed. Here are a couple of the better ones: “Nobody sticks their nose in our business.” “You name the species; we’ve got the feces.” And “The incredible spreadable.”
