Livestock
farmers depend on good grass to make cheaper gains, affecting profits. Those
topics are featured at the Missouri Forage and Grassland Council meeting, Nov.
4-5, Lake Ozark, Mo.
Grass
farmers will hear about new toxin-free fescue grasses and proper use of managed
grazing, says Craig Roberts, University of Missouri Extension forage
specialist.
Other
talks include grazing economics and marketing pasture-finished beef.
The
first day’s program includes an economic outlook for beef by Scott Brown, MU
livestock economist. With cow numbers at lowest levels since 1952, some farmers
are rebuilding their herds. That will require more and better pastures,
organizers believe.
Conference
sign-in starts at 10 a.m., Monday, Nov. 4, at Port Arrowhead on the Highway 54
business loop south of Bagnell Dam.
Keynote
speaker will be Burke Teichert of Carrus Land Systems. He will tell five
essentials of profitable ranch management. He has managed ranches for more than
30 years.
Missouri
producers Darrell Franson, Lawrence County, and David Hall, Howell County, will
tell why, and why not, to renovate pastures with novel-endophyte fescue.
Franson
represents MFGC on a new fescue alliance giving education and management tips
on fescue.
The
opening program on the second day will be on pasture-finished beef. Chris
Boeckmann of Osage County and Meera Scarrow of Greene County will share
production and marketing experiences.
Byron
Wiegand, meat scientist at the MU College of Agriculture, Food and Natural
Resources, will follow with “Beef Value Cuts.”
Jim
Russell, professor of animal science, Iowa State University, will tell of mob
grazing as a tool for grassland management.
Russell
has one of the few scientific studies of mob grazing in Midwest pastures. “Mob
grazing involves super-high stocking densities on restricted grazing areas,”
Roberts said. “It’s a tool for cleaning up out-of-control grasslands. It is
used more often on western ranges.”
Mark
Kennedy, grazing specialist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation
Service, will wrap up the day with a post-drought pasture report. His topic:
“When Do You Renovate?” NRCS is a co-sponsor of the event.
The
registration form is available at agebb.missouri.edu/MFGC. The full agenda is listed. Fees
depend on days and meals attended. The website tells how to register by mail.
For details, call Joetta at MFGC office, mornings only, at 573-499-0886.
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