A variety of speakers will address issues on the minds of local and regional farmers at the Farm Focus Field Day at the Marsh Foundation Farm on Old Lincoln Highway in Van Wert.
Registration will begin at 8 a.m. The last shuttle will leave by 8:30 a.m. for the field demonstrations and sessions.
Those attending will be split into four groups to allow for better interaction with demonstrators and presenters. Participants will have the opportunity to attend all four sessions. The sessions will be run concurrently with groups rotating to each session during the morning.
Local agri-businesses and equipment dealers will be on hand with demonstrations of their newest products and equipment pertaining to today’s farming needs. The Farm Focus committee invites all area farmers and agri-businessmen to attend the field day which will also include a complimentary lunch provided by the sponsors.
“The growth of the livestock industry in Northwestern Ohio and the drastic increase in commercial fertilizer prices has created a great deal of interest in manure and how it can be applied to crops to reduce overall fertilizer costs,” said Gary Prill, program manager of Farm Focus. “The committee believed that it was a topic of interest for our area as well as workshops on soil structure and compaction of soils. Another hot topic they thought should be addressed was the pricing of crop inputs and grain in today’s volatile market environment, so that’s what we will be addressing on the 29th,” Prill said.
On hand will be Natural Resource Conservation Service soil specialists Frank Gibbs, Don McClure and Don Burgess discussing soil structure and compaction along with Matt Deaton of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Randall Reeder, agricultural engineer for OARDC and OSU Extension.
Barry Ward, Ohio State agricultural economist will hold discussions on the grain and crop input pricing in today’s volatile market environment.
Two separate field demonstration sessions will be held with one on liquid manure applications and one on new equipment technology.
A free lunch will be provided courtesy of the Field Day sponsors. After lunch, participants are invited to visit with the various speakers and demonstrators on a more one to one basis as well as take the opportunity to take a wagon tour of the Farm Focus research plots. A self-guided tour of the plots is also available.
This field day offers 4.0 hours of Certified Crop Advisor CEU’s, 1.0 hour in Nutrient Management, 1.0 hour in Soil & Water, 1.0 hour in Crop Management and 1.0 hour in Professional Development for those that attend the full four sessions.
The Farm Focus Field day is sponsored by the Farm Focus committee, OARDC and OSU Extension.
For more information, contact Gary Prill, Farm Focus/OSU Extension-Van Wert County at 419.238.1214 or visit the website: http://farmfocus.osu.edu/