A new field day, a Dairy Day, will be held June 20, 2013, from 10:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the University of Missouri Southwest Research Center. The free event is open to all farmers. Lunch will be served, courtesy of field day sponsors: Schreiber Foods, Main Street Feeds, ADM Alliance Nutrition, Midwest Dairy Association and Legacy Farm & Lawn.
The program offers sound, research-based farm management practices, says Tony Rickard, Cassville, MU Extension dairy specialist.
The information applies to conventional or grazing dairies, large or small, Rickard adds. Topics cover forage, rations, economics and breeding. There will be talks and field tours. Farmers who have trouble making quality hay in a season of frequent rains can pick up tips on baleage from Rob Kallenbach, MU Extension forage specialist.
Joe Horner, dairy economist with the MU Commercial Agriculture Program, will tell four things shared by profitable dairy farms. Scott Poock, DVM with MU Extension, will tell protocols used for success and applying breeding research on synchronized artificial insemination.
Details are available from Rickard at 417-847-3161 or rickardt@missouri.edu