August field day in Hillsdale County to feature nutrient management and conservation practices
Print
EmailRain or shine, join us for a day in the field! A field day for livestock producers and field crop farmers who utilize commercial fertilizer or manure in their crop nutrient program.
On August 25, 2016, the Hillsdale Conservation District, Hillsdale County Farm Bureau and Michigan State University Extension will be hosting a field day for agricultural producers who utilize inputs, such as commercial fertilizer or manure, in their crop nutrient program. This event will feature demonstrations and discussions on technologies and conservation practices that help keep nutrients in the field, in the crop root zone and out of surface waters. The Hillsdale County Nutrient Management Field Day is hosted by Jay and Kelli Williams of Stoney Ridge Farms, a Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP) verified farm, at 14031 Broom Road in Waldron, Mich. – just a half mile west of U.S. 127. The field day will begin with registration at 7:30 a.m., sessions starting at 8 a.m. and wrapping up by 2 p.m. A pork barbecue sandwich lunch will be provided. Don’t forget to pre-register by August 19 for this event by contacting the Hillsdale Conservation District at 517-849-9890, ext. 3 or hillsdalecd@macd.org.
The Hillsdale County Nutrient Management Field Day event promises to be a very informative and interactive day. The event will provide participants the opportunity to see firsthand conservation practices that could be implemented on farms throughout Michigan or Ohio, time to network with fellow producers and learn from agency staff, Extension educators and more.
A few of the topics featured throughout this field day event include:
- A discussion on nutrient management with keynote speaker Joe Nester, Nester Ag, LLC.
- Dig deeper into soil health as we evaluate soil pits with David Lamm, USDA NRCS national soil health team leader.
- Learn more about cost-share opportunities with NRCS to amend soil properties with gypsum products with NRCS District Conservationist Jason Wheeler.
- Discover the benefits of cover crops with Jeff Rasawehr, Center Seeds.
- Learn about dissolved reactive phosphorus and edge of field monitoring with Greg LaBarge, Ohio State University Extension field specialist in agronomic systems.
- Join us for “Shop Sense”, a farmer-led panel about local conservation with Jason Wheeler, NRCS district conservationist, and Emily Reinart, agricultural ecology specialist with Michigan Farm Bureau.
There will also be an opportunity to hear from Shelby Burlew, Michigan State University Extension educator, about the farmer-led 2015 and 2016 Hillsdale County Tile Drainage Water Quality Monitoring Project taking place within the Western Lake Erie Basin. The purpose of the project is to:
- Develop a multi-year database covering different crop rotations, tillage practices, fertilizer and manure applications, etc.
- Educate producers in the area on the importance of tile monitoring and how to take samples from their own fields. There will be a review and discussion of the samples taken from four different tiled crop fields. Join in on the discussions of the results and observations from the project, as well as the lessons learned in the field.
The Hillsdale County Nutrient Management Field Day is a MAEAP Phase 1 event with four Restricted Use Pesticide (RUP) credits and five Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) credits available. Join us for an interactive and educational event. For more information or to RSVP by Aug. 19, 2016, contact the Hillsdale Conservation District at 517-849-9890, ext. 3 or hillsdalecd@macd.org.
