NODPA Events Calendar

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February 2010

February 1, 2010
Soil Fertility and the Theory of Constraints PLUS: Tips for Managing Cows Naturally
Yoder's Restaurant, New Holland, PA

Farmer Educator, Author and farming advocate plus Dr Hubert Karreman, holistic veterinarian will present. $30 registration covers admission and lunch. Contact Sam Zook, 717-354-0614.

February 2, 2010
Soil Fertility and the Theory of Constraints PLUS: Tips for Managing Cows Naturally
Country Cupboard, Lewisburg, PA

Farmer Educator, Author and farming advocate plus Dr Hubert Karreman, holistic veterinarian will present. $30 registration covers admission and lunch. Contact Jonathan Zeiset, 717-433-7702.

February 4-6, 2010
PASA’s  19th Annual Farming For the Future Conference
State College, PA
For more information, contact PASA at: 814-349-9856 or www.pasafarming.org 

February 5-6, 2010
NSAS Annual Healthy Farms/Rural Advantage Conference
Lincoln, NE
Network with experts, university faculty, and fellow agricultural colleagues. Includes commercial and educational exhibits, silent support auction, live auction and an “All Nebraska Dinner.” The keynote will be Congressman Jeff Fortenberry, on the House Agriculture Committee and serves as the Ranking Minority Member on the Subcommittee on Department Operations, Oversight, Nutrition, and Forestry. Email healthyfarms@gmail.com, or http://www.nebsusag.org/ 

February 5-6, 2010
Missouri Organic Association Conference: "Forging Relationships:
Preserving Local, Organic and Sustainable Farmers"
Columbia, MO.
Friday's workshop theme – How to Start? Networking to Obtain the Financing to Start Your Operation. Saturday's workshop theme - Making it Happen. Organic Production and Marketing. Contact Sue Baird, SueBaird Organics, LLC, gbaird@iland.net, www.suebairdorganics.com. 

Monday, February 8th through Friday, February 12th
King's AgriSeeds, Inc. Winter Seminars
9:45 am to 3:00 pm, New Wilmington, PA, Arcade, NY (Wyoming Co.), Romulus, NY (Seneca Co.), Dryden, NY (Tompkins Co.), and Greenwich, NY (Washington Co.), respectively - call for more specifics

Topics to include forage systems, use of rotations in nutrient management, making the most of winter annuals, forage mixtures, manure management, developing a grazing farm, corn varieties, and high forage diet rations. Lunch will be provided. For more information and to reserve your seat, call 866-687-6224 one week prior to the meeting of your choice.

February 9-11, 2010
Northern Plains Sustainable Ag. Winter Conference
Watertown, SD
Keynote speakers Tom Stearns, founder of High Mowing Organic Seeds, Wolcott, Vermont and Dr.Paul Dettloff, DVM, Arcadia, Wisconsin, staff veterinarian for Organic Valley, plus workshops, and a variety of exhibitors. For more information call 701-883-4304, e-mail npsas@drtel.net or go to www.npsas.org. 

Friday, February 12th - 12:00 noon to 2:30 pm
Feeding Dairy Cows on a Pasture Foundation
Dobisky Center, 100 Riverside Avenue, Ogdensburg, NY (St. Lawrence Co.)

Well-managed pasture is perhaps the cheapest source of high-quality dairy feed there is, but it presents a number of feeding challenges. Join Karen Hoffman, USDA-NRCS's grazing dairy nutritionist, to learn more about measuring pasture intake, estimating quality, proper and low-cost supplementation strategies for dairy cows, and more. The program is free, and lunch is included. RSVP is preferred but not required - call Stephen Canner at St. Lawrence County Cornell Cooperative Extension at 315-379-9192 or email src93@cornell.edu for more information.

Friday and Saturday, February 12th and 13th,
and Monday and Tuesday, February 15th and 16th
Organic Dairy Herd Health Meetings In New York
10:00 am to 3:00 pm each day - held in Penn Yan (Yates Co), and LaFargeville (Jefferson Co.) on 2/12 and 2/13, respectively, and Malone (Franklin Co.) and Richfield Springs (Otsego Co.) on 2/15 and 2/16, respectively - call for specifics

You are invited to attend a presentation and barn visit covering organic dairy herd health practices with Dr. Guy Jodarski, DVM and Peter Miller, CROPP NE Regional Dairy Pool Coordinator. Dr. Jodarski is an experienced large animal veterinarian practicing in Wisconsin. Dr. Jodarski has consulted dairy producers and vets nationally over the years on organic herd practices, and has worked as staff veterinarian for two organic and sustainable livestock health aid supply companies. Topics to include calf rearing, Johnes, herd diagnostic education and preventative practice with herd. Dress warmly for a farm visit in the afternoon. Lunch will be provided. For more information call Peter Miller at 612-801-3506 or to RSVP call CROPP Cooperative Membership Services at 888-809-9297.

February 13-15, 2010
NOFA Vermont Winter Conference
University of Vermont, Burlington, VT
For more information, contact NOFA Vermont: info@nofavt.org, 802-434-4122 

Tuesday, February 16th - 11:00 am to 2:00 pm
Mohawk Valley Graziers
Fulton Montgomery Cornell Cooperative Extension, 55 East Main St., Johnstown, NY

Come eat, chat, and learn with peers about pasturing techniques and management. Open to both small and large livestock producers, or anyone interested in starting up. We'll be meeting once per month starting in February; each session on a different topic. Lunch will be served! The first session will be "Grazing Economics" with speaker Bill Paddock of the Oneida County SWCD and Groeslon Farm in Remsen, NY. For more information contact Amanda Schaller at 518-853-4015 or amanda.schaller@ny.nacdnet.net. Sponsored in part by NY-GLCI.

February 18-20, 2010
18th Annual Wisconsin Grazing Conference: Pastures, People, Planet, Profits
Wisconsin Rapids, WI
The conference, organized by GrassWorks, Inc., is a key event for grass-based farmers or “graziers” of all species and at all levels. Topics range from “mob grazing” to pastured poultry to the health benefits of grass-fed meat, eggs and dairy products. http://www.grassworks.org/ or contact Heather Flashinski at 715-289-4896 or grassheather@hotmail.com. 

February 25, 2010
State of Organic Seed Symposium
La Crosse, WI
Organic Seed Alliance in partnership with MOSES, National Organic Coalition, and OFRF will be hosting a one-day working State of Organic Seed Symposium at the 2010 Organic Farming Conference. The Symposium will be an opportunity for the organic community to discuss and refine a draft State of Organic Seed Report and prioritize an action plan. Learn more at http://www.seedalliance.org/Advocacy/ or email matthew@seedalliance.org. 

Thursday, February 25th - 10:00 am to 3:00 pm
Step It Up in 2010 - A Winter Grazing Gathering
BW's Restaurant, Pavilion, NY (Wyoming Co.)

Speakers for the workshop will be Rick and Terri Hawbaker from Pewamo, MI, who will share their experiences with seasonal grazing, featuring how they will use internal herd growth to establish their dairy. Additional speakers and topics include Tom Ormond of Ormond Dairy Farm in Kennedy, NY focusing on early spring grazing of winter rye, heifers on pasture, and using cows as a cash crop, and Dr. Debbie Cherney of Cornell University's Department of Animal Science covering high energy forage varieties. For more information contact Colleen Klein-Wolfanger, CCE Wyoming Co. at 585-786-2251 or Nancy Glazier, NWNY Team/CCE at 585-315-7746. Partially funded by Finger Lakes RC&D Council, NYS GLCI, and the Northeast SARE program.

February 25-27, 2010
21st Annual Organic Farming Conference and Organic University
La Crosse, WI
The largest organic farming conference in the country, organized annually by MOSES! http://www.mosesorganic.org/conference.html or 715-778-5775.