Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Support Applicator Education - Sponsor the 2015 Aquatic Weed Control Short Course!

May 4-7, 2015

Ft. Lauderdale Coral Springs Marriott

11775 Heron Bay Blvd.

Coral Springs, FL 33076

PH: 954-753-5598

WEBSITE

Join the event!

conference.ifas.ufl.edu/aw

Short Course Features:

- Earn 20+ Florida CEUs

- Take Florida Certification
Exams

- Exam Study and Q&A
Sessions

- Interactive Calibration
Training Sessions

- Live Plant ID Sessions

- Fully Re-certify in Florida's Aquatics, Natural Areas, Right-of-Way, or Forestry designations.

Sponsor the 2015 Short Course!

The Sponsorship Commitment Form is LIVE!

Sponsoring the Aquatic Weed Control Shot Course increases your brand recognition and exposure to more than 400 applicators in person, and 5000+ applicators via our digital and printed publicity announcements. Be sure to commit by March 1st to meet print deadlines!

Sponsorship levels are posted on the short course website.

CLICK HERE to become a sponsor!

The 2015 Aquatic Weed Short Course will be held May 4-7, 2015 at the Ft. Lauderdale Coral Springs Marriott in Coral Springs, FL. We invite you to support this training, engage with your industry, and network with your customers!

Sponsorship Benefits Include:

· Tabletop Display Space

· Complimentary Registration(s)

· Access to 400+ qualified applicators

· Exposure to 5000+ certified applicators via publicity

· Participation in course sessions and CEU offerings

· Recognition as a supporter of the largest and longest running Aquatic Weed Conference in the world.

QUESTIONS? Contact Jhanna Gilbert at jhanna@ufl.edu or 352-392-5930

www.conference.ifas.ufl.edu/aw

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UF/IFAS OCI \| PO Box 110750 \| Bldg. 639 Mowry Road \| Gainesville \| FL \| 32611

Monday, December 1, 2014

SWFREC Open House

Below is an invitation to the first annual open house of the UF/IFAS Southwest Florida Research & Education Center in Immokalee, which is set for Friday, Dec. 5! If you plan to attend, please RSVP to Becky. A map to the center is attached.

Thank you,

Julie

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Julie A. Carson

Media Coordinator

UF/IFAS Southwest Florida Research and Education Center

2685 SR 29 North

Immokalee, FL 34142

P: 239-658-3462

F: 239-658-3469

carsonj@ufl.edu

http://swfrec.ifas.ufl.edu

********** NOTICE ********* This IFAS-ANNOUNCE-L list is for UF/IFAS business-related announcements that may be of general interest to all IFAS faculty and staff. Subscription to this list is optional. To leave the list and cease getting list messages, send a message mailto:listserv@lists.ifas.ufl.edu with the following command in the body of the message:

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To add yourself to the list, send a message mailto:listserv@lists.ifas.ufl.edu with the following command in the body of the message:

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new hydrilla IPM book

Hydrilla Integrated Management by Jennifer L. Gillett-Kaufman, associate extension scientist; Verena-Ulrike Lietze, senior biological scientist; and Emma N.I. Weeks, assistant research scientist; Entomology and Nematology Department, UF/IFAS Extension, Gainesville, FL is available in limited quantities as a hard copy and is also available as an electronic file in PDF format (144 pages, 5.9 MB). The book is linked from this EDIS document: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in1044 Thanks!

Dr. Emma N. I. Weeks

Assistant Research Scientist

Entomology and Nematology Dept.

Bldg. 970, Natural Area Dr.

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL 32611-0620

Tel. (352) 273-3954

Fax. (352) 392-5660

eniweeks@ufl.edu

SIFT News - Fall 2014

Garlic for the Spring, CSA Lessons Learned, Appropriate Tomatoes, and Souping Up the Coop
Even though the growing season is essentially over, there is still lots going on here at the SIFT farm. We planted garlic in mid-October, and right now it's tucked away under a layer of mulch, awaiting a new season. Garlic is planted in the fall and mulched. It overwinters, and its shoots are one of the first things to emerge in the spring. We hope by planting the garlic at the ideal spacing this year, we will get an abundance of big bulbs to sell and use for seed next year. >>more

Chicken Chores
We have some new residents on the SIFT farm—a flock of laying chickens. In addition to fresh eggs, they have been a great source of entertainment (especially as chicks). If you are contemplating acquiring chickens and want to learn more taking care of them, here are some of our chicken chores. >>more

Winterizing Your Chickens
Winter is coming. If you are raising chickens for the first time this can be a daunting realization, especially if you live somewhere like Butte, Montana, where it is not uncommon for temperatures to plummet into the negative 20s in the winter months. So, what can you do to ensure the safety of your chickens this winter? The first step is to realize that chickens are fairly cold-hardy. So, take a deep breath. Your chickens should be able to easily survive the winter. That being said, there are things you can do to ensure their safety and happiness. >>more

Keep It Light: Just Wear a Hat
Those who know me know that every now and again I ponder strange things. Nobody knows this better than my wife. I know my ponderings are strange because when I tell her about them, she gives me what our family calls "the look." It's not an eye roll, but close. It's more like a glance with slightly squinted eyes then a turn away. Her body language is that of just giving up to the fact that, for better or worse, she's stuck with me. When what I'm pondering is really strange, I'll know by the accompanying head shake that goes with "the look." So, the other day I got "the look" and the head shake when out of the blue I asked her, "Why don't people wear stylish hats anymore?" >>more

Weekly Harvest, November 26, 2014

Home | Newsletter Archives

Weekly Harvest Newsletter
Sustainable Agriculture News Briefs - November 26, 2014

Weekly sustainable agriculture news and resources gleaned from the Internet by NCAT staff for the ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture website. The Weekly Harvest Newsletter is also available online.

#GivingTuesday is Coming
Join the National Center for Appropriate Technology in supporting #GivingTuesday, a global day dedicated to giving back. #GivingTuesday is set for Tuesday, December 2, 2014, and charities, businesses, community organizations, and individuals are invited to help celebrate generosity and to give.

News & Resources

Help Available to Understand FSMA Proposed Rule Changes
Cover Crop Survey Reports Yield Boost
Veteran Careers in Agriculture Resource Guide Available
Interview Series Highlights Agricultural Innovations
Grassfed Beef Financial Calculators Available Online
Soil Solarization in High Tunnels Possible in a Week, Says Arizona Study

Funding Opportunities

Annie's Sustainable Agriculture Scholarships
New York State New Farmers Grant Fund
Mary Boyer Sustainable Food and Agriculture Grant

Coming Events

Future Harvest CASA's Cultivate the Chesapeake Foodshed
GrassWorks Annual Grazing Conference
Oklahoma & Arkansas Horticulture Industries Show

News & Resources

Help Available to Understand FSMA Proposed Rule Changes
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is accepting comments on proposed changes to four Food Safety and Modernization Act (FSMA) rules until December 15, 2014. To help producers understand the proposed changes, University of Vermont Extension has prepared a Summary of FSMA Supplemental Revisions for Produce Rule. In addition, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) has posted its analysis of "The Top 10 Fixes and Fails in FDA's Revised Draft Food Safety Rules." Also, NSAC and others will host a public webinar, "The Food Safety Modernization Act: What the proposed rules mean for farmers and local food," on December 1.

Cover Crop Survey Reports Yield Boost
For the second year in a row, a national survey of farmers has documented a yield boost and other benefits from the use of cover crops in corn and soybeans. The survey, funded by North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) and carried out by the Conservation Technology Information Center, also details the challenges and benefits farmers expect from cover crops, data on the costs of seed and establishment, and insight into how farmers learn to manage cover crops.

Veteran Careers in Agriculture Resource Guide Available
Farmer Veteran Coalition has released Veteran Careers in Agriculture: A Resource Guide. The 40-page PDF publication introduces the Farmer Veteran Coalition and its work, profiles veteran farmers, discusses opportunities for veterans to find employment in agriculture, and offers resources for business planning. It also serves as a directory of agricultural organizations and educational opportunities for farmer veterans.
Related ATTRA Publication: Veteran Resources

Interview Series Highlights Agricultural Innovations
The "FutureFood 2050" publishing initiative of the Institute of Food Technologists has released its latest four interviews exploring agricultural innovations that will help feed the world. The series showcases imaginative researchers and policy makers who are looking far beyond the traditional bounds of agriculture to accelerate food production by using technology to improve—rather than replace—natural processes.

Grassfed Beef Financial Calculators Available Online
The Pasture Project of the Wallace Center has posted two financial calculators. The Grassfed Beef Decision Calculator is a comprehensive, interactive Excel spreadsheet that allows users to examine the costs of various beef cattle enterprises. Another spreadsheet, Comparison of Rental Rates for Landowners, lets landowners compare rents from leasing to grass-fed beef operations versus corn producers.

Soil Solarization in High Tunnels Possible in a Week, Says Arizona Study
Soil solarization uses solar radiation to passively heat moist soil, with the goal of increasing soil temperatures to the point where they are lethal to soilborne organisms. The authors of a study published in HortScience demonstrated that in Arizona, June is the optimal time for high-tunnel growers to use solarization. In their experiments, clear polyethylene mulch was used on the growing beds in conjunction with the glazing on the tunnels. With this configuration, soil temperatures increased so that solarization would be completed in less than one week.

>> More Breaking News

Funding Opportunities

Annie's Sustainable Agriculture Scholarships
Annie's Homegrown awards scholarships through the Sustainable Agriculture Scholarship program, open to full-time undergraduate and graduate students studying at an accredited two- or four-year college or graduate school in the United States for the 2015/2016 school year. Students must be focusing studies on sustainable agriculture.
Applications are due by January 5, 2015.

New York State New Farmers Grant Fund
The New York State New Farmers Grant Fund provides assistance to new and early-stage farmers and encourages farming as a career path. The fund will provide grants from $15,000 to $50,000 for up to 50% of project costs including, but not limited to, lease or purchase of farm machinery and equipment; construction or expansion of farm buildings or systems; and purchase of supplies such as root stock, seed, and fertilizer.
Applications must be postmarked by January 28, 2015.

Mary Boyer Sustainable Food and Agriculture Grant
Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture (BRWIA) is accepting applications for the 2015 Mary Boyer Sustainable Food and Agriculture Grant. The grant is open to female farmers, ranchers, and producers in the BRWIA service area in North Carolina and Tennessee. Two grants of up to $2,000 will be awarded.
Applications are due by December 19, 2014.

>> More Funding Opportunities

Coming Events

Future Harvest CASA's Cultivate the Chesapeake Foodshed
January 15-17, 2015
East Hyattsville, Maryland
The largest sustainable agriculture conference in the lower Mid-Atlantic includes a day of hands-on, pre-conference workshops. The main conference has keynote and featured speakers, seven different tracks comprising 42 sessions, and breakouts for networking.

GrassWorks Annual Grazing Conference
January 15-17, 2015
Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin
This annual conference provides learning opportunities for both new and seasoned graziers. The agenda includes a day focused on dairy grazing, keynote speakers, and a tradeshow, as well as sessions on regenerative agriculture, livestock handling, animal health, and more.

Oklahoma & Arkansas Horticulture Industries Show
January 16-17, 2015
Fort Smith, Arkansas
At "Modern Tools and Technology for Growers and Marketers," educators and researchers will share the latest information on vegetables, fruit, Christmas trees, farmers market crops, and public gardening.

>> More Events

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ATTRA was developed and is managed by the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT). The program is funded through a cooperative agreement with the United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Business-Cooperative Service.

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Veteran Resources

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