Montgomery County Extension to Offer "Horseman's Dream" Series

The Montgomery County Extension Office will be offering their first ever "Hosremen's Dream" series for horse owners in and around the Montgomery County area. The Horsemen's Dream Series will consist of three different programs scattered throughout the end of 2008 and 2009. Programs offered in the series include:

A Forages for Horses Workshop- This workshop will take place on Monday, November 17 and Thursday November 20. The forages for horses workshop covers everything a horse owner needs to establish and or maintain the proper forages for proper horse nutrition. This workshop will be held from 6:30 to 9:30 on both evenings.

An Equine Environmental and Liability Awareness workshop-Helod on Monday, January 12 2009 and Thursday January 15 2009. The Equine Environmental and Liability Awareness Workshop will not only cover the environmental issues a horse owner must contend with but also the liabilities that come with owning a horse.

A Pasture Walk- After learning all about growing quality forages in the forages for horses workshop, participants will have the ability to go out in a pasture and put that knowledge to "hand's on" use. The date for the pasture walk has not been set but it will take place some time in the spring or summer of 2009. The specific date will be announced at the end of the Equine Environmental and Liability Workshop.

All three events in the Horsemen's Dream series are offered at a price of $65.00 for early registration and $75.00 at the door. With the understanding that, if you register at the door, some of the materials may not be available to you. Early registration deadline is November 3. For more information, and to register, contact Suzanne Mills-Wasniak at the Montgomery County Extension Office.

North Central Ohio Dairy Grazing Conference January 29 and 30, 2009

North Central Ohio Dairy Grazing Conference will be January 29 and 30, 2009 at the Buckeye Event Center in Dalton, Ohio. The focus is “Managing Resources”. The speakers and panels will look at the different practices and systems that a dairy grazier has to make work. Speakers include Cheyenne Christianson and Gary Zimmer from Wisconsin, Abe Collins from Vermont, Marlin Newswanger, Tom Noyes, Jeff McCutcheon, David Barker and local dairy producers from Ohio. Both days offer beginner and advance sessions for dairy graziers. The cost for the conference is $45 for the two days. Registrations are due by January 21, 2009. For a brochure or more information, contact Leah Miller at Small Farm Institute, 28850 SR 621, Fresno, Ohio 43812; leah@smallfarminstitute.org or 740.545.6349.

Equine Environmental & Liability Awareness Program

The Medina County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) along with Medina County Farm Bureau, NRCS, and Town & Country Seville are presenting the Equine Environmental & Liability Awareness Program to Medina County Equine Operations. The program is set up to address Equine operations facility management in a manner that is friendly to your horses, alpacas, neighbors, and the environment.

The main topics for the program will address

Water Quality

Rules and Regulations

Nutrient Management

Pasture, Hay & Forage Management

Facility Management and Design

Neighbor Relations

Equine Liability Law.

Due to the complexity of these topics, the training session will take place over two evenings

November 19 and 20, 2008 ~ 6:30 to 9:15 each night.

Medina University Tech Center, 6300 Technology Lane, Room 309 (off State Route 162). Deadline for registration is November 14, 2008.

There will be a registration fee to all participants of $20.00 which will be refunded if the participant attends both nights. Farm Bureau members can attend at no charge. Light refreshments will be served.

By attending and completing the training program you will satisfy one of the requirements for a livestock producer to receive cost share assistance from the State or Federal Government programs.

All paid participants will receive a manual for your use and reference. Sorry you cannot receive a manual unless you attend the training sessions. If you have any questions or would like a registration form please feel free to call the office and ask for Jim or Jeff (330.722.2628 ext. 3) or visit our web site at www.medinaswcd.org or contact Medina County Farm Bureau at 330.263.SILO.

Pasture Growth by October 12

The following table shows the growth from pastures participating in the project. For information about the project see the original post. The information is reported in pounds of dry matter grown per acre per day. It contains the reported results as of the posting date. Some reports may be delayed for various reasons. Previous week’s information is updated when it is received. The current table will reflect the total information available.

Weekly Pasture Growth for 2008

Week Starting	Fields sampled	Minimum	Maximum	Average
	(no.)	(pounds of DM per day)
April 6	4	18	109	53
April 13	3	18	118	59
April 20	5	26	138	73
April 27	19	20	197	72
May 4	29	28	211	114
May 11	30	12	220	92
May 18	12	15	200	88
May 25	24	14	172	71
June 1	19	7	138	45
June 8	11	9	75	46
June 15	30	1	239	40
June 22	28	4	157	37
June 29	28	2	131	46
July 6	25	1	119	49
July 13	21	10	171	59
July 20	27	1	187	43
July 27	21	3	143	37
Aug. 3	21	0	77	17
Aug. 10	16	0	103	31
Aug. 17	11	2	34	15
Aug. 24	15	2	56	20
Aug. 31	8	5	61	25
Sept. 7	9	3	23	12
Sept. 14	12	0	38	18
Sept. 21	14	0	51	16
Sept. 28	14	0	57	15
October 5	10	0	55	14

September Amazing Graze Newsletter now posted

The September issue of the Amazing Graze Newsletter is now posted on the Ohio Forage Network website. Follow the newsletter link. In this issue you will find articles entitled: Planned Winter Feeding, Prussic Acid Poisoning Potential in Frosted Forages, Fall Cutting of Alfalfa.

Be sure to check out the Events Page for grazing/forage related events in the next few months and even into next year.