Intro to organic grain - weed management, soil health, and marketing a diverse rotation
An in-person workshop by OATS
Organic grain can be profitable for farmers, but weed management and understanding marketing are common challenges. Come to Fitzgerald Family Farm to learn from farmer Matt Fitzgerald and other organic ag professionals in hands-on field walks and presentations. This event is useful for all types of ag advisors who work with organic farmers or would like to, and those who want to broaden their weed management toolbox. (NRCS, Extension, CCAs, agronomists, etc.)
Matt Fitzgerald will walk through their line of weed management equipment, discuss helpful techniques, and demonstrate the pros and cons of a speed disc; UMN Extension soil health expert Dr. Anna Cates will lead a field walk to explore balancing tillage and soil health; Craig Tomerra from Grain Millers will discuss how farmers can market a diverse rotation and how to market through organic transition; Matt Leavitt from UMN will talk about new organic support programs from the state and feds.
When: August 28th, 9:30am - 3:00pm CT
Where: Fitzgerald Farm - 4564 110th St. Glencoe, MN 55336
Who: Ag advisors who want to learn more about organic grain agronomy and marketing - such as CCAs, NRCS staff, Extension staff, Coops; and organic-curious farmers
How Much: $25.00
Registration Deadline: August 23rd
Planning Partners: Grain Millers, UMN Forever Green Initiative, Minnesota Office for Soil Health, Fitzgerald Family Farms
AGENDA
9:30 - 10:00 Registration (coffee and pastry provided)
10:00 - 10:10 Welcome - Sam Oschwald Tilton
10:10 - 10:30 Intro to Organic - Matt Fitzgerald
10:30 - 11:00 Forever Green, Organic support programs, TOPP - Matt Levitt
11:00 - 12:00 Marketing presentation and panel discussion - Christian Reveland
12:00 - 12:45 Lunch
1:00 - 1:45 Soil health, Tillage field walk - Dr. Anna Cates
1:45 - 2:45 Cultivator tour and talk, speed disc in the field - Matt Fitzgerald and Sam Oschwald Tilton
3:00 Adjourn
“This event will be a great opportunity for ad advisors to improve their knowledge of organic grain, and learn from an experienced organic farmer and other experts in organic agronomy.”
SPEAKERS
Matt Fitzgerald
Matthew grew up on his family's organic farm and has been a partner over the last several years. Matthew has helped diversify crop rotations and implement new technology into the operations. He is also a certified organic inspector with the International Organic Inspectors Association (IOIA). Matthew is excited about the future of farming and working to support the next generation.
Anna Cates
Anna Cates is Minnesota’s State Soil Health Specialist in the MN Office for Soil Health (MOSH). MOSH is dedicated to improving soil health in Minnesota by working with farmers and conservation professionals. Anna’s research focuses on soil organic matter cycling and soil structure in a variety of cropping systems. She received a PhD in Agronomy and an MS in Soil Science and Agroecology from University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Matt Leavitt
Matt Leavitt is the Perennial and Winter Annual Agronomy Specialist with the University of Minnesota Forever Green Initiative; helping farmers of all types around the state adopt new and novel continuous living cover crops into their rotations. Prior to this, he worked for 12 years as the organic seed lead and agronomist at Albert Lea Seed, a diversified farm seed company in Albert Lea, MN. He also serves as the national steering committee chair of OATS.
Christian Reveland
Christian Reveland is the US Crop Specialist with Grain Millers. Christian grew up on a small hobby farm in South Central Minnesota. Here is where he first gained an interest in agriculture. From here he worked on larger farming operations and gained exposure to the tremendous career opportunities that agriculture holds. Ultimately attending the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities.
Sponsored by UMN Forever Green Initiative and the USDA’s TOPP program
Funding Acknoledgement:
This material is based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under agreement number 2022-38640-37486 through the North Central Region SARE program under project number ENC22-215. USDA is an equal opportunity employer and service provider. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.