Monday, April 28, 2014

Weekly Events & Opportunities in Sustainable Agriculture

Urban Farms: Commercial Farms or Socially Minded Operations?

April 29. 12 p.m. Central. This webinar will provide an analysis of the differences between nonprofit and commercial urban farms, and is based on research conducted by researchers at NYU, Penn State, and NCAT-ATTRA. https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/601408714

A Recipe for the Perfect Salsa Tomato: NAPB Webinar

April 29th. 12pm. This presentation is part of the "How to Breed New Plant Varieties: Imagining and Engineering Crops" series and describes how processing tomatoes are bred.

Entomology Lecture

Tuesday, April 29th. 4:00 pm-5:00 pm. "Teaching scientific outreach and spreading the ethos of scientific engagement beyond the university" by Dr. Linda Rayor, Department of Entomology, Cornell University. On UNL's East Campus in the Student Union

Preparing a Seeding Plan for Conservation Practices

April 30th. 1pm. Participate to learn methods and procedures that will help to develop a plan for the successful seeding of conservation areas. The presenter will discuss issues to consider when planning and implementing critical area seedings and other conservation plantings. Choices made in planning a seeding for critical area stabilization, conservation plantings, or a restoration will be highlighted. Emphasis will be placed on issues such as the use of natives, spread of invasives, and selecting, purchasing, and installing plant materials. http://www.conservationwebinars.net/webinars/preparing-a-seeding-plan-for-conservation-practices

Nebraska Game and Parks Safety Brief

Thursday, May 1st. 12:00 pm-1:00 pm. The mission of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is stewardship of the state's fish, wildlife, park, and outdoor recreation resources in the best long-term interests of the people and those resources. To accomplish that purpose, the Commission plans and implements its policies and programs efficiently and objectively; maintains a rich and diverse environment in Nebraska's lands and waters; provides outdoor recreation opportunities; manages wildlife resources for the maximum benefit of the people; and attempts to help Nebraskans appreciate their role in the natural world. This course will provide the attendee with an opportunity to receive a pre-summer brief from a Game and Parks Law Enforcement Officer. PLEASE REGISTER HERE: http://bit.ly/1iQUhrv

Webinar: “Drought tolerance in grasslands”

Thursday, May 1. Webinar: “Drought tolerance in grasslands”, sponsored by the North American Invasive Plant Short Course.  More info athttp://ipscourse.unl.edu/.

Application of Genomics to Strawberry Breeding Webinar

May 1. 12pm. A native of Oak Ridge, North Carolina, Dr. Vance M. Whitaker completed his undergraduate degrees in Horticultural Science and Agricultural Economics at North Carolina State University. He later completed his graduate degrees at the University of Minnesota in Plant Breeding and Molecular Genetics. At Minnesota Dr. Whitaker’s research emphasis was in plant pathology, discovering and developing genetic markers for novel disease resistance genes in landscape roses. Register now at http://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/282381377

Sustainable Water Use and Management in Urban and Rural Landscapes: Applications for Homeowners, Institutions and Communities

May 1st. Metro Community College, Fort Omaha Campus, Building 10 Room 110. 3:30pm. Landscape water use and management is important when rain is plentiful as well as in drought.  Stormwater (rainwater that runs off any surfaces - roofs, roads, parking lots) can be managed in your home or business to mitigate flooding, enhance water quality and protect water resources - while also benefiting your landscapes.  Effective stormwater management using landscape plants and soils - including "green" infrastructure and other sustainable strategies - can be applied in the home, institution or community level. In this presentation, you will also learn about water-wise plant types, planting design, and other strategies to help your yard survive and stay beautiful even when rain is slim.  It is planting with conservation in mind.

All Bugs Good and Bad Webinar Series: Are Those Itsy Bitsy Spiders Good or Bad?

May 2. 1pm. Let's talk about the benefits that spiders provide and how we can harness their usefulness -- how they fit into IPM plans. This webinar will be presented by Dr. Nancy Hinkle, a Professor in the Department of Entomology at the University of Georgia. Moderated by Charles Pinkston, Regional Extension Agent, Alabama Cooperative Extension System.  http://connect.extension.iastate.edu/fireant

Seed Savers Exchange Rare and Unusual Heritage Plant Sale

Saturday, May 3. Decorah, IA. Discover old family heirlooms and historic commercial varieties offered exclusively at Heritage Farm. Join SSE staff to uncover the nearly-forgotten history of these plants and learn how SSE has preserved the seeds and their stories. This event also marks the start of SSE’s spring transplant sales at the Lillian Goldman Visitors Center. For more, visit: http://www.seedsavers.org/Education/Events/

Low Stress Livestock Handling Ranch Tour

May 3. Olsburg, Kansas. This tour is the last "Amazing Grazing" event sponsored with funding from North Central Risk Management Education Center, USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Partners include the Kansas Farmers Union, Kansas SARE, Kansas Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Alternative Crops, Kansas Graziers, Kansas NRCS, and Kansas Grazing Land Coalition. Two Olsburg ranches will highlight working facilities that utilize low stress methods to quietly and effectively process cattle, sheep and goats. Link:http://bit.ly/1gRb5bo


News

Nebraska Veteran Embarks on New Mission with Poultry Operation

Rural America could be considered fertile ground for patriotism. The ties of close-knit communities foster certain sentiments about people, the land, and hard work.  And for some, protecting this way of life is more than just an option or an expectation… It’s a given.   Dan Hromas/York, Nebraska:"I was done with high school…1995.  Six days later I was standing tall in the yellow footprints at Paris Island, South Carolina for Marine Corp boot camp.  My mom was a Marine and so I told the recruiters I wouldn’t sign anything unless they had in writing I could go to Paris Island and graduate from the same place my mom did 20 years prior.” Dan Hromas pursued a military career that took him across the globe.   But wherever the young Nebraskan was stationed, his thoughts would eventually turn to home.
Read the rest of this story about Dan at,  http://www.iptv.org/mtom/story.cfm/feature/11689/mtom_20140415_3934_feature



Opportunity

One Row Potato Digger Needed

I'm looking for a used one row potato digger.  Much like this: http://www.ussmallfarm.com/PotatoDiggers.html If you have one that you aren't using or know of some one who might have one, please let me know. Thanks! Ellen Walsh-Rosmann, Pin Oak Place at Rosmann Family Farms,  712-579-1933

Certified Organic Corn for Sale

We have around 100 bushels of feed grain certified organic yellow corn for sale.  It would be available for feed in small amounts if desired or someone could buy the whole thing.  Price is $10 per bushel.  Test weight is 59.8 lb. and moisture is around 13.8%.  This is extra that did not go on a semi-load that we sold. Ke n Thiltges,  Bluff Valley Farm, Rulo. kmgthiltg@sentco.net

Looking for a Brady or barge feed wagon

I am in the market for a Brady or barge feed wagon, or anything that can store bulk feed and be pulled w/ a ball & hitch.  Thank you for your time and consideration! Dan Hromas, Prairie Pride Poultry, 

Seeking Manure

The Clyde Malone Community Center, located in Lincoln, Nebraska is seeking a donation of livestock manure, preferably older than a year and fed non-GMO.  The Malone Center is an African-American Community Center that provides educational, cultural, and advocacy programs. The center hosts a Day-Care Program for low-income families in the community during the summer, and the children have voiced their desire to get dirty and learn in the garden!  We would like to fill one pick up truck bed full of manure for the garden project. We are willing to load and transport. The closer to Lincoln, the better.  You may reach me by e-mail: danny.martin303@gmail.com or by phone/text: (402)512-0066.  Thanks, Danny Martin

Cottonwood Needed

I'm a student at UNL doing a class project, working with the Student Organic Farm.  Our project is to build them a hugleculture that they can plant on this spring, and were needing a source for a downed cottonwood tree that we could take of someones hands.   Thank you for your time, 
 Kendra Nelson, jknelson827@yahoo.com

Solar Power for Habitat for Humanity Families

Nebraskans for Solar & Habitat for Humanity of Omaha are crowdfunding on Indiegogo to install solar hot water systems on five new or rehabilitated houses: www.tinyurl.com/Omahasolar. If we reach our goal, five Omaha families will be able to reduce their monthly energy costs by harnessing power from the sun for the next 20 to 25 years! The money they save can be spent on food, healthcare, education, and other needs, benefiting their families and communities for a very long time.

Organic Seed Production

Blue River Hybrids, an organic, non-GMO seed company located south of Ames, Iowa, needs to expand its production capabilities. We are currently looking for grain drying facilities near organic farms with irrigation in Nebraska. Would you be aware of any locations with grain drying capabilities? Cheri Johnson, cheri@blueriverorgseed.com

Friday, April 25, 2014

Nebraska Young Farmer Nights

Young Farmer Nights to kickoff in May


We will once again be holding the highly successful Nebraska Young Farmer Nights this growing season.  We will kickoff the season with our first young farmer nights in the middle of May.  The Nebraska Young Farmer Nights are held at farms (urban & rural) throughout Nebraska and typically involve a farm tour/pasture walk, a potluck meal, and a time for building community and connecting.  The Nebraska Young Farmer Nights are hosted by NSAS, and we offer a modest honorarium for farms hosting a YFN.

The idea behind the Young Farmer Nights (YFN) is to build a community of young farmers, farm interns, and folks interested in food/farming in Nebraska. We see each other at conferences and events, but rarely spend time together or see the amazing work we are all doing. YFN are a way for us all to get to see and learn from one another and get off our own farms for an evening. The model for each event (which moves around to different farms in Nebraska) is: to eat dinner together (usually potluck style), have a farm related activity (e.g.tour the fields or give a presentation on something that works well on your farm), and hang out (e.g. bonfire or play cards). The YFNs are meant to be a jumping off place for us to form a community. Last year at the Healthy Farms Conference, Sustainability Happy Hour & FSG events, the connections and friends made led to collaboration such as: tool borrowing/trading, brainstorming on pest management, fed cooperatives, shared practices, etc. Our first YFN is scheduled for the middle of May.

If you would like to host, please contact William at healthyfarms@gmail.com.







Monday, April 21, 2014

Weekly Events & Opportunities in Sustainable Farming & Foods

Responding to an S.O.S. from the Commercial Beekeeping Industry

April 22. 12pm Central. Presented by: Marla Spivak, University of Minnesota. Given the chronic health problems facing honey bees and the increasing demand for pollination services from almond, blueberry, cranberry, apple, vine crops and many other growers, commercial beekeepers and breeders have requested assistance in maintaining healthy colonies. To this end, we began a novel “Bee Tech Transfer Team” program through the Bee Informed Partnership, a 5-year grant funded by USDA-NIFA. These teams consist of independent beekeepers that provide on-the-ground services to commercial beekeepers to assess and record colony health information; survey beekeepers about management; test for bee diseases and parasites; and assist in breeding bees that are more resistant to diseases and parasites. There is demand for this program nationwide and we are exploring ways to ensure that the Tech Team services are economically sustainable after the funding ends in 2016. As bees are directly or indirectly responsible for 35% of our diet through their pollination services, it is critical to increase effort to keep bees healthy and to provide hands-on assistance to the beleaguered beekeeping industry throughout the U.S. To register for the webinar go to: http://ncrcrd.msu.edu/ncrcrd/innovations_in_agriculture_and_rural_development

Webinar: Getting your Food Product Into Retail Stores

April 22.  4:30 p.m. The School for Organic Processing Entrepreneurs continues with this session presented by Matt D’Amour and Adrian Reif. Learn about the pros and cons of working with a distributor as opposed to direct marketing your product. Register here, http://www.organicprocessinginstitute.org/events/school-for-organic-processing-entrepreneurs-getting-your-food-product-into-retail-stores/

All About Seeds-From Germination to Re-Generation

Tuesday, April 22, 10am – 11am.  Rebecca Bloom and Elizabeth Goodman will partner together to present this webinar.  Rebecca is from Omaha, Nebraska and is an experienced organic producer that grows organic vegetables across the river near Crescent, IA at her farm, Bloomsorganic.  Rebecca has experience with CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture), selling to fine restaurants in the Metro area, farmers markets and food coops.  Rebecca has served on the Nebraska SARE Advisory Committee for many years.  Elizabeth Goodman, also from Omaha is working with Rebecca on her operation.  This is Elizabeth's fifth year with Bloomsorganic, she has been working on various organic farms since 2008. In Fall 2010, Elizabeth completed Seed School with Native Seed SEARCH and volunteered at Green Journey Seeds in Eugene, OR to learn the seed trade. February 2013, as a result of her volunteer efforts, Omaha Public Library opened Common Soil Seed Library. They will discuss issues of seed germination, seed savings and succession planting and how they are using these principals in their operation.  To access this webinar go to: https://connect.unl.edu/r27r7nuna10/

Driving Sustainability: Empowering Growers with On-Farm Research

Tuesday, April 22, 11am – 12pm. The Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy invites you to join its third annual policy workshop webinar series, Frontiers in Food and Agriculture. In response to the growing interest in food and agriculture policy, both globally and locally, the series, co-sponsored by the Yale Sustainable Food Project and the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems at Vermont Law School, is investigating four broad themes. Part I explored linkages between theory and practice in food justice; Part II looked at a legal framework for the new food movement; Part III examined GMOs and intellectual property, and Part IV, considers the farm bill and the future of farming. https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/470665063

Webinar: Getting Your Food Product Into Retail Stores

Tuesday, April 22, 4:30pm – 6:30pm. This session will provide steps and strategies for forming relationships with retail stores, from different perspectives. Matt D’Amour of Yumbutter, one half of “the Om Boys,” will share some of their experiences as growing entrepreneurs and gurus of modern visionary business culture, as a B Corporation (B=Benefit) and contributors to the “Buy 1 Feed 1″ food security campaign. In addition, Kathleen Torbleau of Metcalfe’s Market will share the perspective of the retail store working with local food businesses and provide fundamentals of working with retailers.  http://www.organicprocessinginstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/SOPEregF3.pdf

Wildland & Prescribed Fire Training 

Tuesday, April 22nd. 6:00 pm. S-133 Look up, Look down, Look around. No registration fee but pre-registration is encouraged athttp://tinyurl.com/mo8or3w. Hardin Hall on UNL's East Campus in Lincoln. 

Estate and Transition Workshop

Wednesday, April 23. Pender.  Call the Farm Hotline at 800-464-0258 to sign up.

Water Seminar Series

Managing Water Resources for Multiple Benefits. Wednesday, April 23rd.  3:30 pm-4:30 pm. Hardin Hall in Lincoln. Contact, Steven Ress, 402-472-9549

Maps & Apps, Mobile Media Marketing

April 24. Online. This webinar is part of a free monthly series of marketing webinars presented by OSU Extension and OARDC. This session is presented by Rob Leeds, an OSU Extension educator.  http://bit.ly/1c1fEVj

Legal and Financial Clinic

Thursday, April 24. Norfolk. 
 
Call the Farm Hotline at 800-464-0258 to sign up.

Webinar: Emerald Ash Borer

Thursday, April 24. Highlighting challenges the forest pest creates for civic leaders and conservation professionals. More info on this webinar can be found at http://bit.ly/NACDeab

Beginning Farmer Service Provider Webinar: Diversifying beyond direct

April 25. 
Online. 
Cornell Small Farms Program is offering two free, one-hour webinars for service providers. This second webinar is titled "Diversifying beyond direct – Supporting beginning farmers in exploring wholesale markets." Learn through the experience of Deep Root Cooperative and their work with organic vegetable farmers in the Northeast. Learn about the nature of wholesale relationships, terms of pricing and payment, and expectations for quality and packaging. Exploring the structure of wholesale markets will help you design outreach and education programs that prepare beginning farmers to consider these channels as their enterprises grow. 
http://smallfarms.cornell.edu/2014/04/15/upcoming-bf-service-provider-webinars/

Climate Change – Implications for Local and Regional Food Systems

April 25. 
Online. 
Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development sponsors this free, 90-minute, Web-based seminar featuring scientists whose research focuses on how the temperature and precipitation changes that are forecast to occur over the next decades may affect food production. 
 Link: http://news.psu.edu/story/311595/2014/04/11/research/webinar-focus-climate-change%E2%80%99s-impacts-regional-food-systems

Sustainable Farm Energy Virtual Tours

April 25. 
Online. 
In this four-part webinar series sponsored by NE SARE (Northeast Sustainable Ag Research and Education) and the Cornell Small Farms Program, you'll meet an organic vegetable farmer, grape grower & winemaker, sunflower & biodiesel producer, and pastured livestock farmer who will lead you through a virtual tour of their sustainable farm energy systems and ecological production techniques. This lunchtime webinar series will run from noon-1:00pm every Friday in April. All of the webinars are free and open to the public. Registration is required. 
 http://smallfarms.cornell.edu/2014/04/01/sustainable-farm-energy-2014-virtual-tours/

Diversifying beyond direct – Supporting beginning farmers in exploring wholesale markets

Friday April 25th. 11am Central. 
 Join us for a free webinar to learn through the experience of Deep Root Cooperative and their work with organic vegetable farmers in the NE. Learn about the nature of wholesale relationships, terms of pricing and payment, and expectations for quality and packaging. Exploring the structure of wholesale markets will help you design outreach and education programs that prepare beginning farmers to consider these channels as their enterprises grow. 
 Register for this webinar here

Building Rural Resiliency: Who Should Help? What Should They Do?

April 25th. 1pm. Despite the importance of rural and agricultural resiliency, few local emergency planning committees include agricultural expertise and organizations. Rural and agricultural resources and capabilities should be cataloged to assist in planning, mitigating, responding to, and recovering from disasters. Thus, a research study was conducted to describe the perceptions of two groups of professionals, one agriculture-focused and the other disaster-focused, regarding organizations that should be involved in the phases of disasters impacting rural areas and agricultural businesses. The number and range of organizations identified by the experts demonstrates a wealth of potential social capital within communities. The list of organizations and roles that resulted from this study provides a foundation for decision-makers to examine the organizations involved in their communities, with the goal of strengthening the networks that support disaster preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery activities. Stronger networks during each disaster phase will in turn lead to increased community resiliency. Dr. Amy Dronberger, Oklahoma State University will discuss her findings during this 60-minute session. It is open to anyone, and may be of special interest to local governments and agencies involved in emergency operations planning, and to EDEN members. Please register for this free webinar at http://eden.lsu.edu/Conferences/SCAP/Registration/Registration.aspx Choose "Building Rural Resiliency: Who Should Help? What Should They Do?" from the drop down menu.


News

Think Local Food

What will the next 20 years of Omaha’s local food scene look like? By Summer Miller Wildham
I grew up a few miles west of the Union Stockyards in South Omaha. On windy days when the sun burned hot and bright in a blinding blue sky the acrid sent of manure would fill my nostrils while I worked alongside my parents and siblings picking pole beans and tomatoes in our garden. When I look back to my youth, before my parents were divorced, before south Omaha transformed from one kind of ethnic community into another, I think of our garden and the bright and blinding summer sun.
Read the rest of this story about local foods in Omaha and beyond at, http://www.thereader.com/index.php/site/comments/think_local_food/


Opportunity

Cottonwood Needed

I'm a student at UNL doing a class project, working with the Student Organic Farm.  Our project is to build them a hugleculture that they can plant on this spring, and were needing a source for a downed cottonwood tree that we could take of someones hands.   Thank you for your time, 
Kendra Nelson, jknelson827@yahoo.com

Solar Power for Habitat for Humanity Families

Nebraskans for Solar & Habitat for Humanity of Omaha are crowdfunding on Indiegogo to install solar hot water systems on five new or rehabilitated houses: www.tinyurl.com/Omahasolar. If we reach our goal, five Omaha families will be able to reduce their monthly energy costs by harnessing power from the sun for the next 20 to 25 years! The money they save can be spent on food, healthcare, education, and other needs, benefiting their families and communities for a very long time.

For Sale

Bobcat 440B Skid Loader. 43" bucket, 18hp Kohler gas engine, 700 hours, new tires, nice machine for smaller jobs. $3,500. Steven Bley(402) 802-5092

Fencing Equipment Available & Poultry Options

I just wanted to let folks know that we will have some premium hedge corner posts and line posts this spring.  They are a minimum 8 foot long with minimum 6” tops but can cut to your specs.  These are all Osage Orange posts that are guaranteed to outlast the hole that you put them in.  Over the years we have gotten lots of referrals for broilers and turkeys.  Unfortunately many requests came in too late to accommodate.  This year we have the help to ramp up our production enough to accommodate some of these requests.  The only requirement, on this end, is that we need to have the chicks and turkey poults ordered by July 1st.  So if you want to add broilers or turkeys to your CSA or your product line, just let us know and we will do our best to provide. Paul Rohrbaugh, Pawnee Pride Meats, Steinauer. pawneepridemeats@windstream.net

Organic Seed Production

Blue River Hybrids, an organic, non-GMO seed company located south of Ames, Iowa, needs to expand its production capabilities. We are currently looking for grain drying facilities near organic farms with irrigation in Nebraska. Would you be aware of any locations with grain drying capabilities? Cheri Johnson, cheri@blueriverorgseed.com

Monday, April 14, 2014

Grass-fed Beef Nebraska


Pawnee Pride Meats
Steinauer

Fulton Farms
Litchfield

North Star Neighbors
Fullerton

Branched Oak Farm
Raymond
Doug & Krista Dittman, branchedoakfarm@gmail.com

Davey Road Ranch
Raymond
Ben Gotschall, bdgotschall@gmail.com

American Lean Beef
Wolbach

Common Good Farm
Raymond

L L Jacobsen
Marquette
Larry Jacobsen, jacobsenlu@yahoo.com

Marlowe’s Farm
Butte
Christopher Marlowe, marlowepasture@nntc.net

Boettcher Organics
Bassett
Bruce Boettcher or Amy Schaffer, grassfedbeef@boettcherorganics.com

Butterfly Acres
Stanton

Circle Arrow Longhorns
Harrisburg
Christine Randall, info@circlearrowlonghorns.com

Clover Clove Ranch
Atkinson
Kathleen Gotschall, kathleen@clovercove.com

Got Grassfed
Plainview

Grain Place
Marquette
Mike Herman, mrherman@hamilton.net

Highland Hills
Crofton
Jessica Schieffer, hlhfarm@hotmail.com

Oak View Park
Orchard
Dave Hansen, info@oakviewbeef.com

Paradise Prairie
Lincoln
Charlotte Ralston, paradiseprairie@gmail.com

Prairie Blossom Trails
Fordyce
Julie Steffen, hairycow@gpcom.net

Sandhills Red Angus
Ellsworth
Lesa Schwanebeck, derek@sandhillsredangus.com

The Tucker Hill Farm
Norfolk

Walnut Creek Organic Ranch
DeWeese
Joe Mazour, walnutcreekorganicranch@hotmail.com

Waucapona Farms
Hartington
Marvin DeBlauw, (402) 254-3429

Open Sky Farm
Deshler

Jon Yoachim, jkyoachim@gmail.com



A farm or ranch missing from the list? Let us know, healthyfarms@gmail.com

Weekly Events & Opportunities in Sustainable Agriculture


On-Farm Food Safety and Conservation Webinar

April 15. Online. This webinar is part of the Organic series of webinars presented by USDA NRCS East and West National Technology Support Centers in partnership with Oregon Tilth. The presenter is Jo Ann Baumgartner, Director of Wild Farm Alliance. This webinar will cover how pathogens get on the farm, the prevalence in animals, and environmental factors that influence pathogen reduction. A multi-barrier approach will be discussed where conservation practices and food safety Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) are used to minimize food safety concerns.  http://www.conservationwebinars.net/documents/planned-conservation-webinars


"Clonal Reproduction in Plants -- Genetic Component with Utility for Apomixis and Haploid Induction"

Tuesday, April 15th. 4:00 pm-5:00 pm. Lincoln. Presented by Dr. Peggy Ozias-Akins, professor, Department of Horticulture, The University of Georgia Tifton Campus. Apomixis, asexual reproduction through seeds that harnesses apomeiosis and parthenogenesis to yield clonal progeny, is a genetically controlled trait found in wild relatives of come crop species, but rarely in crops themselves. Clonal reproduction through seeds in crops would enable the development of self-reproducing hybrids, impacting the production of hybrid cultivars and expanding access to hybrids in the developing world. Identifying genetic components for apomeiosis and parthenogenesis that could be used to install apomixis in sexually reproducing crops has benefitted from the study of female reproduction in natural apomicts and mutants of sexual plants. Our research on apomicts in the genus Pennisetum has yielded the discovery of a gene that induces parthenogenesis in sexual pearl millet and could have utility for both apomixis and haploid induction. All Biochemistry/Redox Biology Center Seminars are free and open to the public. Website: http://www.hort.uga.edu/personnel/faculty/profile/FacPOA.html


Composting Workshop - Lincoln, NE (link)

April 15th. 6:00 pm. Learn how to be successful with composting by attending a composting workshop sponsored by University of Nebraska–Lincoln Extension in Lancaster County and the City of Lincoln Recycling Office. At each composting program, two lucky participants will win either a composting thermometer or a composting bin. Website: http://lancaster.unl.edu/hort/ Location: Loren Corey Eiseley Library, 1530 Superior St. Lincoln


Community Gardens

April 16. 11:30. Lunch ‘n Learn Webinars. Using Participatory Design to Build & Enhance Community Gardens. Abbey Piner, MHS, Participatory designer + Permaculture designer. http://goo.gl/fQKN7


Modeling Short Rotation Hybrid Poplar Plant Growth and Yield

April 16. 12pm Central. 
 Hybrid poplar is one of the potential sustainable sources of bioenergy that could play a key role in sustainably meeting the long term energy needs in Pacific Northwest.  A viable poplar-based bioenergy industry will require a system to supply biomass to the refinery consistently and cost effectively. This system will depend primarily on the biomass production potential in the region. As such, the ability to predict poplar biomass under different climate and management regimes will help in developing management strategies to facilitate the best use of available water, land, and other input resources (e.g., fertilizers) and to maximize the regional biomass yields. In addition, economic and optimization models require regional biomass estimates in order to configure the efficient biomass supply chain and develop sustainable bioenergy systems.  
 
In this webinar, we present the features and application of the 3PG-AHB poplar growth and yield model, its application, and the GIS-based web interface. 
 


Please register for this webinar at http://breeze.wsu.edu/e3pzmwr3phy/event/registration.html


Dr. Vandana Shiva

April 17th & 18th. Dr. Vandana Shiva’s talk will cover the value of diversity in nature and in society, as well how the monoculture of the mind can destroy that diversity at every level. She will share what is happening to seed and food, and how “Gardens Of Hope” protect Seed Freedom and Food Democracy.  http://www.cultivatekc.org/events/vandanashiva/

dirt! The Movie

Thursday, April 17th. 7:00 pm. Free for students. $4 for non-students. Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center. Lincoln


Enhancing Native Pollinator Populations on Farms

April 17. Online. In this hour-long Vermont New Farmer Project webinar, John Hayden from The Farm Between in Jeffersonville, Vermont, will present on who the native pollinators are, why they are in trouble, and how we can bring back populations with ecologically sound farming practices, pollinator friendly plantings, and by providing nesting and overwintering habitat. http://www.uvm.edu/newfarmer/?Page=webinars/upcoming_webinars.php&SM=webinars/sub-menu.html


Legal and Financial Clinic

Thursday, April 17. Lexington. Call the Farm Hotline at 800-464-0258 to sign up.


“Fire intensity and mortality thresholds – what is needed to achieve restoration objectives?”

April 17. Webinar: “Fire intensity and mortality thresholds – what is needed to achieve restoration objectives?”, sponsored by the North American Invasive Plant Short Course.  More info at http://ipscourse.unl.edu/.

Sustainable Farm Energy Virtual Tours

April 18. Online. In this four-part webinar series sponsored by NE SARE (Northeast Sustainable Ag Research and Education) and the Cornell Small Farms Program, you'll meet an organic vegetable farmer, grape grower & winemaker, sunflower & biodiesel producer, and pastured livestock farmer who will lead you through a virtual tour of their sustainable farm energy systems and ecological production techniques. This lunchtime webinar series will run from noon-1:00pm every Friday in April. All of the webinars are free and open to the public. Registration is required. http://smallfarms.cornell.edu/2014/04/01/sustainable-farm-energy-2014-virtual-tours/

Beginning Beekeeping Workshop 

Saturday, April 19th. 10:00 am. ARDC near Mead. Details, http://entomology.unl.edu/beekeepingworkshops14.pdf



Opportunity

For Sale

Bobcat 440B Skid Loader. 43" bucket, 18hp Kohler gas engine, 700 hours, new tires, nice machine for smaller jobs. $3,500. Steven Bley(402) 802-5092

Fencing Equipment Available & Poultry Options

I just wanted to let folks know that we will have some premium hedge corner posts and line posts this spring.  They are a minimum 8 foot long with minimum 6” tops but can cut to your specs.  These are all Osage Orange posts that are guaranteed to outlast the hole that you put them in.  Over the years we have gotten lots of referrals for broilers and turkeys.  Unfortunately many requests came in too late to accommodate.  This year we have the help to ramp up our production enough to accommodate some of these requests.  The only requirement, on this end, is that we need to have the chicks and turkey poults ordered by July 1st.  So if you want to add broilers or turkeys to your CSA or your product line, just let us know and we will do our best to provide. Paul Rohrbaugh, Pawnee Pride Meats, Steinauer. pawneepridemeats@windstream.net

Organic Seed Production

Blue River Hybrids, an organic, non-GMO seed company located south of Ames, Iowa, needs to expand its production capabilities. We are currently looking for grain drying facilities near organic farms with irrigation in Nebraska. Would you be aware of any locations with grain drying capabilities? Cheri Johnson, cheri@blueriverorgseed.com


Earth Day Farmers Market

Saturday April 19. 9:00am – 3:00pm. Set up by 8:30am. Parking lot on west side of Elmwood Park, along Elmwood Park Road. Seeking local producers of any kind - produce, meats, eggs, honey, bedding plants or locally produced food product. No Arts & Crafts. One 10’ x 10’ space = $25. Application here: http://earthdayomaha.com/vendor-and-exhibitor-registration.php (Note some details on this site are pending and will change.)



Upcoming



Responding to an S.O.S. from the Commercial Beekeeping Industry

April 22. 12pm Central. Presented by: Marla Spivak, University of Minnesota. Given the chronic health problems facing honey bees and the increasing demand for pollination services from almond, blueberry, cranberry, apple, vine crops and many other growers, commercial beekeepers and breeders have requested assistance in maintaining healthy colonies. To this end, we began a novel “Bee Tech Transfer Team” program through the Bee Informed Partnership, a 5-year grant funded by USDA-NIFA. These teams consist of independent beekeepers that provide on-the-ground services to commercial beekeepers to assess and record colony health information; survey beekeepers about management; test for bee diseases and parasites; and assist in breeding bees that are more resistant to diseases and parasites. There is demand for this program nationwide and we are exploring ways to ensure that the Tech Team services are economically sustainable after the funding ends in 2016. As bees are directly or indirectly responsible for 35% of our diet through their pollination services, it is critical to increase effort to keep bees healthy and to provide hands-on assistance to the beleaguered beekeeping industry throughout the U.S. To register for the webinar go to: http://ncrcrd.msu.edu/ncrcrd/innovations_in_agriculture_and_rural_development


Building Rural Resiliency: Who Should Help? What Should They Do?

April 25th. 1pm. Despite the importance of rural and agricultural resiliency, few local emergency planning committees include agricultural expertise and organizations. Rural and agricultural resources and capabilities should be cataloged to assist in planning, mitigating, responding to, and recovering from disasters. Thus, a research study was conducted to describe the perceptions of two groups of professionals, one agriculture-focused and the other disaster-focused, regarding organizations that should be involved in the phases of disasters impacting rural areas and agricultural businesses. The number and range of organizations identified by the experts demonstrates a wealth of potential social capital within communities. The list of organizations and roles that resulted from this study provides a foundation for decision-makers to examine the organizations involved in their communities, with the goal of strengthening the networks that support disaster preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery activities. Stronger networks during each disaster phase will in turn lead to increased community resiliency. Dr. Amy Dronberger, Oklahoma State University will discuss her findings during this 60-minute session. It is open to anyone, and may be of special interest to local governments and agencies involved in emergency operations planning, and to EDEN members. Please register for this free webinar at http://eden.lsu.edu/Conferences/SCAP/Registration/Registration.aspx Choose "Building Rural Resiliency: Who Should Help? What Should They Do?" from the drop down menu.