The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1003328
The Press-Dispatch Pike County Planter SWCD Newsletter September and October 2017 D- 1 Pike County SWCD SUPERVISORS Norman Dillon, Chairman Paul Lake, Vice Chairman Kelly Atkins, Supervisor Josh Collins, Supervisor Tom Rudolph, Supervisor Brad Smith, Associate Supervisor STAFF S. Erica Burkemper-Fischer, District Administrator Emily Kelly, Agronomic Technician Julie Loehr, Watershed Coordinator Vince Pitstick, NRCS District Conservationist SWCD/NRCS HOURS Monday through Friday 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Due to the nature of the work that the SWCD and NRCS staf f performs, at times there will be no one in the office. Call 812-354-6120 ext. 3 before visiting. Farm Service Agency COUNTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Amy R. Barber amy.barber@in.usda.gov SENIOR FARM LOAN OFFICER Corey Heldt Corey. heldt@in.usda.gov PROGRAM TECHNICIANS Amy Foust, Lisa Gladish, and Brenda Nicholson COUNTY COMMITTEE (COC) Jeffrey K Brenton, Chairperson Christian Rudolph, Vice-chair Katrina M. Seitz, Member FSA OFFICE HOURS: Monday through Friday 8 a.m.-4:30pm July, August and September 2018 VOLUME 9, ISSUE 3 Special section published quarterly by The Press-Dispatch Pike County Soil and Water Conservation District Newsletter Pike County Planter Planter DISTRICT MEETINGS The Soil and Water Con- ser vation District has set its 2018 monthly board meetings for the first Tuesday of ever y month. These meetings will take place at 5:30 p.m. at the USDA Ser vice Center confer- ence room in Petersburg, Ind. The meetings operate under an open door policy. Meetings are subject to unexpected cancel- lation the day of a scheduled meeting if a quorum cannot be met. For more information or to be added to the SWCD meeting email chain, contact the SWCD office at 812- 354-6120 ex. 3. Beacon Ag Group is a department of Beacon Credit Union. Each account insured up to $250,000 by American Share Insurance. By members' choice, this institution is not federally insured. *Crop and livestock insurance and equipment leasing are offered by Plan One Financial Services, LLC DBA Beacon Ag Service, a wholly owned affiliate of Beacon Credit Union. Positioning your family business for the next year has never been more critical. Let's face it, today's market presents new challenges and relying on the past does not guarantee a sure path forward. That's where the conversation starts. Beacon Ag Group was founded on the promise of sharing expert knowledge with the members we serve. As ag people serving ag people, we know that making the right decision means having more options. We listen to your unique challenges and guide the way toward financial success. Let's talk. It all starts with A conversation. CONTACT BEACON AG GROUP AG LOAN OFFICER BRANDON DECKER OR BEACON AG SERVICES* CROP INSURANCE SPECIALIST KALLIE BURKE-SCHUCKMAN TODAY AT (800) 825-6703 OR BEACONAGGROUP.ORG | 2018 Soil Health Expo to bring top quality speakers to the area Returning for a third time to southwest Indiana, the 2018 Soil Health Expo will be on Thursday, August 23 at the Toyota Events Center located at the Gibson County Fairgrounds in Princeton, Ind. This event is being hosted by the Soil and Water Conser vation District partnership of Gibson, Knox, Pike, Posey, Vander- burgh and Warrick Counties along with the Natural Resourc- es Conser vation Ser vice, the Middle Patoka Watershed Steering Committee and the Conser vation Cropping Systems Initiative. This year promises to be the best one yet with two highly reser ved speakers on the line up. Flying in from Pennsylvania is Steve Groff, founder of Cover Crop Coach- ing and a conser va- tion minded farmer. Groff started doing cover crop research in 1995 on his farm under the direction of Dr. Ray Weil, Soil Scientist with the University of Mar y- land. In 2001 as part of this ongoing re- search relationship, Dr. Weil brought specimens of cover crop radishes to Groff's farm. Starting with those, Groff sub- sequently helped develop what became the world-renowned Tillage Radish. Perhaps more than any other single cover crop, this product eventually helped draw attention to and generate enthusiasm for cover crops of all kinds and their role in modern agriculture. In 2004 Groff realized there was an unmet need, so he founded the first U.S. business dedicated exclusively to marketing cover crop seeds. Rapidly increasing demand for quality seed and education propelled the business into the international arena. Groff states he gleaned valuable insights from working in that side of the cover crop industr y. Today Groff is eager to train the trainers and producers on what he's learned and to help advance the practical and profitable use of cover crops for key audiences anywhere in the world. The second phenomenal speaker of the event is Dave Brandt. Brandt farms 1,150 acres in central Ohio's Fairfield County. He began no-till farming in 1971 and has been using cover crops since 1978. David has participated in yield plots for corn, soybeans and wheat into vari- ous covers. This information has been used by seed growers as well as county agents and universities to encourage other farmers to adapt no-till practices in their farming operations. He has also been planting various blends of cover crops to find out what benefits they provide to improve soil. At present Brandt is working with Ohio State Uni- versity's Randall Reeder and Rafiq Islam on reduc- ing input costs of fertilizers and herbicides using various cover crops, which improve soil health. Brandt is also working with the regional Natural Resources Conser vation Ser vice (NRCS) soils lab in Greensboro, N.C., on the benefits of cover crops to improve soil health. Brandt has received numerous awards for conser vation practices, including the Ohio Conser vation Educator Award from the Ohio No-Till Council, Ohio State University South Center's Supporter of the Year, Ohio Agri- culture's Man of the Year, the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation Distinguished Ser vice to Agriculture Award, and Ohio NRCS Soil Conser vationist Partnership and State Volunteer Awards. The SWCD partnership is pleased to announce that this event is free to attend. Handouts and lunch will be provided at no charge, too, however RSVP's are required to ensure enough handouts and meals are available. A trade show is in the works with numerous agricultural businesses expected to be in at- tendance to visit with. PARP credits are being requested too and will require a $10 payment to the Extension office hosting the session. To register for the event, please visit: https://bit.ly/2L34JNV or by contacting your local SWCD office. No longer in the seed business, Steve Groff focuses his time on "training the trainer." Dave Brandt was named the 2016 Ohio Master Farmer. He uses no- till and cover crops to improve soil health. Boy Scouts Earn their Soil and Water Conservation Merit Badge Thirteen scouts from troops across the Tri-State participated in the annual Soil and Water Conservation Merit Badge sponsored by the Soil and Water Conservation Districts in Gibson, Pike, Po- sey, Vanderburgh and War- rick counties. During the merit badge workshop, the scouts learned about soil for- mation, soil health, water quality, water treatment and how to improve water quali- ty by reducing soil erosion. As a requirement, the scout had to participate in a con- servation project. Their pro- ject was the establishment of a pollinator plot at The Turn- ing Pointe UMC on the west- side of Evansville.