GUERNSEY, Iowa  -- A field day will be held Aug. 24 at the Jim and Loraine Stevens Farm north east of Guernsey beginning at 3:30 p.m. This field day is one of a series of meetings titled “Grazin’ Days – A Pasture Management Workshop” held throughout Iowa this summer. It will be an excellent opportunity for farmers who are implementing a rotational grazing system to learn more about how to manage a grazing system.

The meeting will be conducted in a pasture walk format at Stevens farm. Stevens will describe their system during the walking tour. Stevens, along with Dan Morrical, professor, Animal Science, Iowa State University (ISU) and Brian Peterson, State Grassland Conservationist with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), will answer attendees’ questions. Denise Schwab, ISU Extension livestock specialist, will also be on hand to assist with the program. 

Topics covered at the event will be: plant identification, manure distribution, decentralized watering system, weed and brush control, managing forage heights, pasture condition scoring and contingency plans during weather crisis (too wet or dry). In addition, participants are encouraged to ask questions on grazing management to help them better manage their system.

Directions to the Jim and Loraine Stevens farm: From Interstate 80 go south on Highway 21.Turn east onto 445^th Avenue into Guernsey. Go through Guernsey on Cleveland Street (445^th turns into Cleveland St. in town, then turns into 230^th Street south of town). Continue southeast on 230^th Street about 1 mile to 450^th Avenue. Turn east onto 450^th Avenue to the first intersection. Turn north onto 235^th Street. The second house is Stevens.

Cost for the workshop is $20, which includes a new version of the popular publication the ISU Extension publication, Pasture Management Guide for Livestock (PM 1713), a three-ring binder with literature on various components of grazing systems and meal. 

To register, send $20 to Iowa Forage and Grassland Council, 900 Des Moines Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50309-5549. Make checks payable to: Iowa Forage and Grassland Council.  Include a note with your payment that this is for the Jim and Loraine Stevens Workshop. 

“Grazin’ Days – A Pasture Management Workshop” is sponsored by the Iowa Forage and Grassland Council, NRCS, ISU Extension, Iowa Beef Center, Iowa Farm Bureau Federation, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Southern Iowa Forage and Livestock Committee, and Practical Farmers of Iowa.  For more details, contact Brian Peterson, NRCS State Grassland Conservationist, at (515) 323-2216 or Dan Morrical at (515) 294-2904.

--30--