Extension to hold in-person meetings on livestock, forage

The Cooperative Extension Service’s livestock and forage production meetings will take place in-person in winter and spring 2022. Kevin Lawson, director of extension’s Ozark District, said county agents and producers are excited to gather face to face again.

“[These meetings] will be open to all producers who want to come and learn about what happened this past year and what we’ve got coming up new,” Lawson said. “We have some hot topics right now. One of them, of course, is fertilizer prices. A lot of these meetings are going to cover fertility issues with forages, like alternatives to putting out fertilizer, including chicken litter.”

Lawson said the meetings will encourage producers to be aware of “things that don’t work” and avoid salespeople who take advantage of high fertilizer prices to sell misleading products. He added that “a lot of our beef producers are looking at ways to get more bang for their buck,” so the meetings will also cover how producers can add value to their livestock.

“The meetings are mainly on the western side of the state, and our agents set this up every year to help producers learn more and get more value for their product,” Lawson said. “That’s what we’re here for.”

Lawson said producers are excited to hear about the “economics side” of the industry from James Mitchell, extension livestock economist and assistant professor for the University of Arkansas System Division Of Agriculture. He said producers are also interested in learning more about small ruminates, which includes sheep, goats and specialty animals such as llamas.

All meeting venues will have space for social distancing, and attendees will be asked to wear masks. Winter production meetings begin in January. Dates and locations for individual meetings may be subject to change due to weather, covid or other factors. For specific production meeting

details, contact a county extension office.

MEETING SCHEDULE: JANUARY

■ Jan. 26 – Forage Fertility Meeting – Ozark County.

■ Jan. 27 – 300 Days of Grazing Meeting – Sevier County.

■ Jan. 31 – Clark and Hot Spring County Forage Clinic – Clark County Fairgrounds.

FEBRUARY

■ February TBD (to be determined) – Van Buren, White, Cleburne, Stone and Searcy County Forage Production Meeting – Heber Springs.

■ Feb. 8, 10, 15 and 17 – Forage Short Course – Polk County Extension Education Building.

■ Feb. 12 – Tri-County Forage Conference (Conway, Perry, Faulkner) – TBD. Feb. 15 – Pulaski, Lonoke and Prairie Forage Meeting – Lonoke County Extension Office.

■ Feb. 15 – River Valley Beef Conference – Morrilton Fairgrounds.

■ Feb. 22 – Yell County Ag Producers Meeting – TBD.

■ Feb. 24 – Boone County Livestock and Forage Production Meeting – Boone County Farm Bureau.

MARCH

■ March 1 – Tri-County Forage Meeting (Franklin, Logan, Johnson) – Paris.

■ March 2 – Twin Lakes Beef and Forage Conference (Marion and Baxter County) – Cotter High School.

■ March 4 – Crawford County Beef and Forage Meeting – Crawford County Extension Office.

■ March 8 – Grant County Beef and Forage Workshop – TBD.

■ March 10 – Faulkner County Beef and Forage College – TBD. March 15 – Sebastian County Beef and Forage Meeting – TBD.

■ March 17 – Madison and Benton County Forage Meeting – Huntsville.

■ March 18 – Beef Meeting – Ozark.

APRIL

■ April 7 – Cleburne, Faulkner and White Small Ruminant Workshop - TBD.

Find the meetings list visit https://bit.ly/2022ARKWinter-Meetings, and on the Division of Agriculture events calendar. To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact a local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow the agency on Twitter and Instagram at @AR_Extension.