NEWS YOU CAN USE ~ DECEMBER 21, 2019
A monthly collection of recent news, upcoming events, and articles of interest
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Wishing All No-Till Alliance Members a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!
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Renew Your Membership for 2020 NOW to Take Advantage of a FREE Offer
Through our partnership with our good friends at the Stroud Water Research Center, the Alliance is excited to offer FREE membership renewals to any member taking a few extra minutes to complete the Cover Crop and No-Till Survey. (
Click here
to download the survey.)
The Alliance is fortunate to have support of grants administered by the SWRC, but accepting these funds requires certain reporting to ensure that goals are being met. Your farm-specific information will not be shared beyond identifying the watershed involved and definitely not without approval of the Board of Directors of the Alliance.
Your membership renewal form can be found by
clicking here
. Simply return the forms to the PA No-Till Alliance, 2215 Forest Hills Dr., Suite 39, Harrisburg, PA 17112.
*The same offer applies to potential new members, so if you have friends or neighbors who would like to join the Alliance, they have the same opportunity to receive a free membership!
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Come Visit the 2020 Farm Show and View the Conservation, No-Till and Cover Crop Display
The Alliance is again partnering in the presentation of
a nearly 5,000 sq ft conservation and stewardship display at the Pennsylvania Farm Show, featuring growing corn, soybean and vegetable crops planted using cover crop and no-till practices. It also features a fenced and buffered stream and, new this year, a rainfall simulator.
If you make it out to the Farm Show, come visit us in the Main Exhibition Hall, right behind the PennAg food booth!
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"Making Cover Crops Pay" Workshops
The Alliance is pleased to support the Penn State Extension agronomy team by sponsoring five "
Making Cover Crops Pay
" workshops in January and early February.
Topics will include:
- Soil physical properties and soil microbiology
- Organic matter, nitrogen cycling and legumes
- Cover crop selection and mixes
- Weed management with cover crops
Locations and dates:
- Tuesday, January 14 - Lancaster County (Lancaster Farm & Home Center)
- Tuesday, January 21 - Armstrong County (Armstrong Extension Office, Kittanning)
- Wednesday, January 22 - Centre County (Willowbank Building, Bellefonte)
- Friday, January 24 - McKean County (Lantz Corners Conference Center, Kane)
- Wednesday, February 5 - Adams County (Adams County Ag. Center, Gettysburg)
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Save the Dates for Winter Meetings in Clarion and Lancaster
The Alliance is aware of a growing interest in soil health, no-till and cover crops in the western counties of Pennsylvania. Therefore, this winter there will again be meetings in both the eastern and western regions of the Commonwealth. The program for each is being finalized now, but will be tailored to the needs and interests of each area. Both will, however, feature Trey Hill from Harborview Farms, a well known no-till innovator from Maryland’s Eastern Shore, as keynote speaker.
The western PA event will be held Monday, February 24 at Trinity Point Church of God in Clarion, PA and the eastern PA event is scheduled for the following day, Tuesday, February 25 at the Lancaster Farm & Home Center in Lancaster, PA. Save the dates now and watch for further information to be available soon!
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Join the Alliance at the 2020 PASA Conference
As part of the PASA Sustainable Agriculture Conference on February 5-8, 2020, the Alliance will be presenting a 3-hour session on February 6 entitled, “Farming on the Cutting Edge – the Latest in No-Till and Cover Crops." All Alliance members are encouraged to attend this and many other sessions during PASA's exciting four-day conference. More information is available at
www.pasafarming.org
.
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January 3-11
PA Farm Show
Harrisburg, PA
January 14
Making Cover Crops Pay Workshop
Lancaster Farm & Home Center,
Lancaster, PA
January 21
Making Cover Crops Pay Workshop
Armstrong Extension Office,
Kittanning, PA
January 22
Making Cover Crops Pay Workshop
Willowbank Building,
Bellefonte, PA
January 24
Making Cover Crops Pay Workshop
Lantz Corners Conference Center,
Kane, PA
February 5
Making Cover Crops Pay Workshop
Adams County Ag. Center,
Gettysburg, PA
February 24
Winter Soil Health Meeting
Trinity Point Church of God,
Clarion, PA
February 25
Winter Soil Health Meeting
Lancaster Farm & Home Center,
Lancaster, PA
March 12
Western PA Regional Soil Health Workshop
Prospect, PA
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Registration Now Open for the 2020 PA Agronomic Education Conference
Scheduled for January 16-17 at the Wyndham Garden Hotel and Mountain View Country Club in Boalsburg, the PAES conference will offer a day and a half to earn a variety of CCA CEUs, PA Pesticide credits and Act 38 Nutrient Management credits, in addition to hearing some excellent speakers share insight on a broad selection of topics. The annual PA Agronomic Education Society business meeting will also be held, in addition to a variety of other activities.
Confirmed conference sessions range from compaction and a newly developed cover crop nitrogen tool to glyphosate concerns and forage analysis. Stay tuned for a complete agenda and preliminary credits coming soon.
To register, simply visit
http://www.cvent.com/d/ghqxw6
. You may choose to attend both days at a reduced rate or select just a single day. For those who prefer to submit their reservation via email, mail or fax,
print the registration form here
.
Register and pay in full by 11:59 PM on December 31st for a discounted two-day fee!
Interested in sponsoring the conference?
Choose from a variety of sponsorship packages, ranging from Bronze at $300 to Platinum at $1200. Each level is complete with a unique set of benefits aimed at getting your business out in front of the most engaged agronomy industry professionals in PA. Visit
http://www.cvent.com/d/3hqxwb
to become a sponsor and take advantage of this valuable opportunity. To print a sponsorship form,
click here
.
For questions about registration or sponsorship, contact Jessica Darr, Conference Coordinator, at
jdarr@pennag.com
or 717-651-5920.
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Three Great Events, One Location, One Don't Miss Day
You won't want to miss the 2020 Expo to be held Wednesday, February 19 at Spooky Nook in Manheim, Pa. Despite wintry weather conditions, the 2019 event still welcomed large crowds and we anticipate larger crowds for 2020! Also, an excellent buffet lunch for ONLY $5.00 per person will be offered once again.
Keystone Pork Expo, Poultry Progress Day and Mid-Atlantic Manure Summit offers a diverse array of sponsorship opportunities designed to fit a variety of budgets. Select from three primary levels, choose to add on or participate via an a la carte offering or simply join in as a tradeshow exhibitor. Join us on Wednesday, February 19, 2020 from 8AM to 3PM for the expo! Secure your sponsorship and/or exhibit space online at
http://www.cvent.com/d/jhqx2v
or
download a registration form
.
New in 2020!
The inaugural Mid-Atlantic Manure Summit joins the mix, bringing in a broad network of manure applicators and haulers to the expo and helping to link pork and poultry growers with professionals equipped to assist with their nutrient management needs. We welcome businesses catering to the manure hauling and application industry to join us as sponsors and/or exhibitors and look forward to this exciting new addition to the expo!
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Signup for Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Now Open
Signup for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is now open. The deadline for agricultural producers to sign up for general CRP is February 28, 2020, while signup for continuous CRP is ongoing.
Farmers and ranchers who enroll in CRP receive a yearly rental payment for voluntarily establishing long-term, resource-conserving plant species, such as approved grasses or trees (known as “covers”) to control soil erosion, improve water quality and develop wildlife habitat on marginally productive agricultural lands.
CRP has 22 million acres enrolled, but the 2018 Farm Bill lifted the cap to 27 million acres. This means farmers and ranchers have a chance to enroll in CRP for the first time or continue their participation for another term.
To enroll in CRP, contact your local FSA county office or visit
fsa.usda.gov/crp
.
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FieldWatch: Promoting Stewardship in Agriculture
FieldWatch, Inc. is a non-profit company created to develop, expand and continue to innovate the DriftWatch Specialty Crop Site, BeeCheck Apiary Registry and CropCheck Row Crop Registry. It promotes communication between producers of specialty and row crops, beekeepers and pesticide applicators in support of ongoing stewardship activities. FieldWatch's tools are voluntary in nature, free to use and were originally developed by the Purdue University Agriculture and Biological Engineering Department.
The university’s successful web-based program, launched in 2008, was effective in allowing both farmers and applicators to identify, map and communicate where high-value specialty crops are grown as part of ongoing stewardship activities.
As the tool caught the attention of neighboring states, a non-profit company was formed called FieldWatch. At that time, FieldWatch transitioned from the Purdue IT environment to a secure private IT service provider who developed a national software program from which to grow FieldWatch into a national registry. Today, FieldWatch has expanded into twenty-one states and one Canadian province.
Click here
to visit their site to learn how FieldWatch might help you and your agribusiness.
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Website Launched to Highlight Careers in PA Agriculture
The Grow PA Agriculture Workforce Development Committee recently launched a new website showcasing careers in Pennsylvania’s agricultural and food industry.
AgandFoodCareersinPA.com
hosts nearly 60 videos of professionals sharing information about their career path and the skills and education each requires.
The video library (
also available on YouTube
) is a resource for Pennsylvania’s agricultural industry, primarily focused at helping middle and high school students learn about careers in agriculture and food. Agricultural teachers, farmers and industry supporters are encouraged to use the videos in the classroom, in presentations, at trade shows or on social media.
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Thank You Alliance Sponsors
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Gold Sponsors
Stroud Water Research Center
PA Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA)
PA Department of Environmental Protection
Silver Sponsors
Gro-Mor Plant Food Co.
Univest Corp.
DowDupont/Pioneer Seeds
MM Weaver, Inc.
Melvin Weaver & Sons
Lancaster Farming
AgChoice and Mid-Atlantic Farm Credit
Bronze Sponsors
Fulton Bank
American Dairy Association North East
King's AgriSeeds
Bayer Crop Science
The Mill
Sponsor
Bottom Line Ag Supply
Timac Agro
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Pennsylvania No-Till Alliance
2215 Forest Hills Drive, Suite 39, Harrisburg, PA 17112
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