Weekly Events & Opportunities in Sustainable Farming & Foods

Organic Weed Management Webinar Series: Managing Weeds with Crop Rotations

March 10. Organic Thinking presents a free webinar series on organic weed management on four Mondays in March, led by organic farmers and specialists from across the United States. In this webinar, sustainable agriculture specialist Tammy Howard, of the National Center for Appropriate Technology, will cover principles for effective weed management through the use of crop rotations and cover crops. Christine Mason will then describe the rotation she uses on her farm and strategies she uses for managing specific weeds.  http://www.ydae.purdue.edu/oarei/webinars.html

Integrating perennial grasses for sustainable agricultural systems to maximize farm profitability

March 11th. 12pm Central. More information: The future of agriculture could include a perennial grass-based sustainable farming system within its landscape that will encourage environmental services, decrease use of fossil fuels and chemical products, improve diversity of plants and animals, generate more locally grown foods and bioenergy feedstock, and improve farm profitability. Biodiversity within agricultural landscapes will promote productivity and sustainability of our agriculture through food, feed, fiber, and fuel. Dr. Lee will discuss sustainable agricultural systems integrated with perennial grasses; how to design and establish market potential, a case study, and an on-farm example. To register for this FREE upcoming webinar go to: http://events.anr.msu.edu/Agruraldev/ 

Soil Health and Production Benefits of Mob Grazing Webinar

March 11. Join the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service for one of their ongoing series of free Science and Technology conservation webinars. This webinar focuses on how both soil health and productivity can be improved by managing grazing to mimic the impact bison had on prairies, a system characterized by high plant diversity, intensive grazing, trampling of vegetation, and long rest periods. The webinar is presented by Doug Peterson, State Soil Health Conservationist, USDA NRCS Missouri. http://www.conservationwebinars.net/documents/planned-conservation-webinars

Land Access – Leases to Support Conservation and Beginning Farmers

March 11th. 7pm. Explore legal issues pertinent to beginning farmers, including farm succession, the transition of land and assets to the next generation, custom grazing legal questions and writing farm leases. Meg and Dave Schmidt, and Ed Cox. http://connect.extension.iastate.edu/farminar2

Incorporating Sustainable Practices into Plasticulture Strawberry Production

March 11. Online. North Carolina State University presents a webinar that will cover sustainable soil management and integrated pest management practices that can easily be integrated into plasticulture strawberry production systems. Topics to be covered include soil health, compost, cover crops, soil testing, integrated pest management practices and ideas for incorporating these concepts into a plasticulture production system. The webinar will primarily focus on practices suited for producers in the southeastern United States but the general concepts could be applied elsewhere.https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/QGZXS8J

Developments in Switchgrass Production for Bioenergy

March 11th. 12pm Central. 

 The NEWBio Webinar Series  is hosted by Mike Jacobson, Penn State University and eXtension Farm Energy and held (usually) on the second Tuesday of each month at 1PM Eastern time, 12 CT, 11 MT, 10 PT. These online, hour-long presentations are free to the public, and feature important topics related to bioenergy in the northeast. 

Attend the live webinars at https://meeting.psu.edu/bioenergy - sign in as a guest.

Whole Earth Summit

March 11-13. Online. This free, three-day, online event features 42 visionaries joining together to share valuable insights around food, water, the commons, ecological activism and design, social transformation, collective vision, and practical models for making a difference. Gain valuable insights and inspiration to be a more dynamic, community-oriented, and effective change-maker. Participants will include Joel Salatin, Raj Patel, Danielle Nierenberg, and Allan Savory.http://wholeearthsummit.org/

Getting Started With Organic Field Crops Webinar

March 12. This evening webinar on organic field crops is part of the ongoing 2014 Beginning Farmer Webinar Series from Michigan State University Extension. http://msue.anr.msu.edu/news/dependable_information_for_beginning_farmers_where_can_it_be_found

Wholesale Success Training

March 12. Kansas City, Kansas. Wholesale Success trainings will provide you with a copy of the Wholesale Success Manual, as well as giving you hands on training from experienced farmer-trainer Atina Diffley. This day-long workshop is hosted by Cultivate Kansas City and Lincoln University in partnership with FamilyFarmed.org . Topics will include Postharvest Handling, Maintaining the Cold Chain, Cleaning and Drying, Packing and Grading, Relationships with Buyers, and Food Safety Best Practices. http://www.cultivatekc.org/events/event/2014/03/12/wholesale-success-workshop

Incorporating Video into the Marketing Strategy

March 13th. 1pm Central. Presented by Jeremy Doan, Rolling Plains Adventures. 

 Video today is as important today as content marketing.  Learn how Jeremy Doan, Rolling Plains Adventures uses video to explain what their business is about, how they can share customer experiences, and what it takes to create short video segments to benefit your business. 

https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/etc-cop

Organic Blackberry Production Webinar

March 13. Join eOrganic for a Webinar on organic blackberry production, presented by Bernadine Strik and Luis Valenzuela of Oregon State University and David Bryla of the USDA ARS in Corvallis, Oregon. This webinar presents tips from an ongoing research study, including the impacts of weeds on blackberry growth and yield; methods for weed control; fertigation for planting establishment; the effects of post-harvest irrigation on productivity, plant water status, and soil moisture; and root growth in blackberry. While this webinar focuses on trailing blackberry, grown predominantly for a machine-harvested, processed market, the outcomes of this study are also of importance in the production of other types of blackberry. The webinar is free and open to the public. Advance registration is required. http://www.extension.org/pages/70279/

IOIA/OMRI COR Crop Input Materials Course

March 13. Online. IOIA/OMRI COR Crop Input Materials webinar is an intermediate 200-level course. The course is geared for persons with an understanding of COR Crop Standards and farm inspection or certification. This course is comprised of three components: pre-course self-study, the webinar, and post webinar evaluation. http://www.ioia.net/schedule_web.html#mar13

Legal and Financial Clinic

Thursday, March 13. North Platte. Call the Farm Hotline at 800-464-0258 to sign up.

Small Farms Winter Webinar Series: Small Orchard: Orchard Management

March 13. Online. The University of Illinois Extension presents a weekly educational series for the small farm community, providing practical knowledge on emerging topics which advance local food production in Illinois. Webinars are held from 1:00 - 2:30 pm on Thursdays and are free. This session is presented by Elizabeth Wahle, University of Illinois Extension Horticulture Educator. https://webs.extension.uiuc.edu/registration/?RegistrationID=8854

Wyoming Farmers Marketing Association Conference: Growing Together

March 13-15. Sheridan, Wyoming. Wyoming Master Gardeners and Wyoming Farmers Marketing Association are holding a joint conference that will offer Market Master Certification, hands-on workshops on grapes and vineyards and tomato grafting, and conference sessions in five tracks. http://bit.ly/1cuK3cd

Combining Livestock, Manure, and Cover Crops Webinar

March 13. American Society of Agronomy and other sponsors present this free webinar as part of the Cover Crops Webinar Series. Registration is required for each webinar and must be done at least one hour prior to start time. A livestock and cover crop combination is the fastest way to profit from your investment. Cover crops not only provide feed for livestock they also hold and scavenge precious nutrients to reduce potential offsite pollution. https://www.agronomy.org/education/online-courses

Good Agriculture Practices & Food Safety Modernization Act

March 14-15. Kansas City, Missouri. This two-day workshop is part of the Growing Growers workshop series.http://www.growinggrowers.org/workshops.html

Farmer Veteran Coalition of Iowa Workshops

March 13 or 15. Red Oak or Storm Lake, Iowa. Farmer Veteran Coalition of Iowa (FVCIA) is hosting workshops that will provide vets interested in Iowa agriculture with networking opportunities and education. The workshops will feature educational presentations about farm business development, sustainability, legal issues, and any other concerns vets may have. Attendees also will have the chance to meet with service providers from USDA, Veterans Affairs, the ISU Beginning Farmer Center, the Drake Agricultural Law Center, and more. http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/news/12-30-2013/workshops-assist-iowa-veterans-farm

Opportunity

Annual Farm Auction

Norm Greene Realty is holding their annual farm equipment auction next week here in York; I've included a link to their bill of sale:  http://www.normgreenrealty.com/auctions/031214Consignment.html

Laying Hens Wanted

I'd like to buy 4-6 laying hens that are laying or will be laying soon.  Thank You! Jon Yoachim, 402-309-4088,jkyoachim@gmail.com

Upcoming

Adding Value to Farm Products Webinar

March 17. Farm Commons delivers fast-paced webinars that help farmers move forward on the legal issues that affect their farm operation. This webinar focuses on value-added products. Employment laws, liability potential, state/federal regulations, and tax factors all change when a farm begins to process product. Farms relying on cottage food laws should make sure to attend; the webinar will talk about what these laws do not do to protect farms. http://farmcommons.org/webinars/

Organic Weed Management Webinar Series: Different Approaches to Weed Management

March 17. Organic Thinking presents a free webinar series on organic weed management on four Mondays in March, led by organic farmers and specialists from across the United States. In this webinar three organic farmers will discuss the strategies they've developed for managing weeds, their reasons for selecting those practices, and the conditions necessary for those methods to be successful. http://www.ydae.purdue.edu/oarei/webinars.html