First of all, my apologies! for no report last week. West Ohio Agronomy Day went fine on Monday; I was tired, but got stuff done on Tuesday and Wednesday. However, by Thursday afternoon, the fever began … 102 on Friday with hacking cough, sore throat, and total exhaustion. I was “down for the count”! Still not 100 percent up to par (hoarse), but the fever’s been gone! Another busy week and more things coming up:
Upcoming Private Pesticide Applicator Recertification Training and FertCert Trainings: Champaign County/Urbana – Wednesday, Jan. 25, Pesticide 9 a.m. to noon, FertCert 1 to 3 p.m.; Logan County/Bellefontaine – Monday, Jan. 30m, PAT 2 to 5 p.m., FertCert 6 to 9 p.m.; Clark County/Western Research Station, South Charleston – Tuesday, Jan. 31, PAT 9 am. to noon , FertCert 1 to 3 p.m. Visit pested.osu.edu to register or for more information.
Shelby County Cattlemen’s Association meeting: Tuesday, Jan. 24, 7:30 p.m.; Al’s Place in Fort Loramie. Planning for February Banquet!
The 2017 Ag Outlook Meeting will be held on Friday, Feb. 3, at Romer’s Party Room, East Main St., Greenville. The program starts with lunch at noon. Topics to be covered include 2017 Land Values, Cash Rents, Input Costs, and Potential Crop Profitability; Farm and Estate Tax Laws; Ohio Swine Production Update; and Speculation on President Trump’s Policy Agenda.
Preregistration and prepayment are required: $20 per person; deadline is Friday, Jan. 27. Registration flyer can be accessed at http://darke.osu.edu/events/2017-ag-outlook; we also have some in our office.
The 2017 Soybean College will be held at the Andersons Marathon Ethanol meeting room on Sebring Warner Road, Greenville on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Topics include Market Outlook, Agronomic Practices that Optimize Profitability – Perception vs. Reality; Nutrient Management and How Cover Crops Fit In; Insect Pressures and Future Controls; Diseases (now and into the future); and Decision Making with High Resolution Crop Imagery.
Preregistration and Prepayment are required by Wednesday, Feb. 1: $50 per person includes breakfast, lunch, and materials. (Registration fee after 2/1 = $100!) Limited to 50 participants! Certified Crop Adviser CEUs available. Flyer/more information: http://darke.osu.edu/events/2017-darke-county-soybean-college; also in our office.
OSU Extension, Champaign County is holding a “Computerized Farm Record Keeping Workshop using Quicken” on Thursdays, Feb. 9 and 16, 6:30 to 9 p.m. at the Champaign County Community Center, South Highway 68 in Urbana. This workshop will use the data from an “example farm” to teach how to set up accounts, categorize income and expenses, run tax reports, and prepare farm production reports. Experience with keyboarding and using a mouse is a must. It is a medium-paced workshop and covers a variety of farming examples to maximize the learning experience. The instructor is Bruce Clevenger, OSUE Educator, Defiance County.
Quicken software is a simple cash system and is popular with farmers due to the ease of data entry and its low price ($75-$100). This single-entry system is essentially an electronic checkbook allowing users to record transactions of both the farm and family, to track loans, write checks, reconcile the checkbook with the bank statement, and quickly create reports for financial and tax purposes. (Stanley has been using it for 30-plus years and loves it!!)
Participants will use an OSU Computer Lab during the workshop with Quicken software installed. A workshop manual/home reference will be provided. Registration is $75 per farm business (maximum two people/farm) and includes light refreshments. Space is limited to 10 workstations. Registration is due by Feb. 2. You can get more information from the Champaign County Extension office (937-484-1526). The registration flyer is at http://go.osu.edu/agevents.
Closures: Our office and the “Ag Building” will be closed the morning of Thursday, Feb. 2, for staff training. We should be back open by 1 p.m. or so. Please plan accordingly!
