By Alena Whitaker
Iowa Learning Farms will host a cover crop and grazing field day Tuesday, April 4, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at A.J. and Kellie Blair’s farm near Dayton. The free event is open to farmers and landowners and includes a complimentary meal.
Cover crops offer many benefits to farmers and landowners including reduced soil erosion, weed suppression potential, reduced nitrogen and phosphorus loads entering water bodies, and increased organic matter in the soil. When paired with grazing, cover crops add an additional food source for cattle or other animals on the farm.
A.J. and Kellie Blair, Iowa Learning Farms farmer partners, will share their experiences with cover crops and grazing beef cattle. Angie Rieck-Hinz, field agronomist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, will discuss termination of cover crops after grazing and methods to terminate if not grazing. Russ Euken, beef specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach, will speak about grazing beef on cover crops.
The field day will be held at the Blair Farm, 3531 Paragon Avenue, Dayton. From Dayton, head west on IA-175 then turn right to go north on Paragon Avenue for about 1 mile. The farm is located on the west side of the road and field day signs will mark the driveway to enter.
The event is free and open to farmers and landowners, though reservations are required to ensure adequate space and food. For reasonable accommodations and to RSVP, contact Alena Whitaker at 515-294-2473 or ilf@iastate.edu. Attendees will be entered in a drawing for Iowa State Prairie Strips honey.
Iowa Learning Farms field days and workshops are supported by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Source : iastate.edu