Foundations of Fencing Workshop

Are you intimidated by the thought of building your own fences? Do you simply need a hands-on refresher? There are limited seats remaining for our Foundations of Fencing workshop on August 11 in Pine River! Join Kent Solberg and Jonathan Kilpatrick, along with members of the Crow Wing River Basin Forage Council, for a day in the field learning…

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Dirt Rich: Dealing with Drought

July has seen swaths of Minnesota move into increasingly intense drought conditions, per the U.S. Drought Monitor. With the 2021 drought in the rearview mirror, five SFA farm consultants from across Minnesota gathered for a roundtable drought discussion on our latest episode of Dirt Rich. Listen in to hear how Angie Walter, Derek Schmitz, Doug Voss,…

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Say ‘Hey’ to SFA at FarmFest

Will you be at FarmFest this year? Come say hello at the Soil Health Tent! We will be at the Redwood County event all three days, August 1-3, co-hosting the Soil Health Tent with Minnesota Soil Health Coalition and a whole crew of great partners. We’ll have rainfall demonstrations, cover crop and Kernza plots, live…

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Watering Systems for Livestock Workshop

Want to get some ideas for bringing your watering system to the next level? Come on out to Voss Farms in Paynesville on Friday, July 21, 1:00-5:00 PM! During this field day, Doug Voss and Jonathan Kilpatrick will be showcasing many options and opportunities for graziers to provide water to their livestock. You’ll see several elements…

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Kernza: Grain, Grazing, or Both?

What are the possibilities around using Kernza® for both a forage and grain? View Kernza plots and how it can fit into a grazing system at a free field day from 2 to 5 p.m. July 14 at the U. of M. West Central Research and Outreach Center, 46352 State Hwy 329 Morris. Brad Heins,…

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Workshop: Is your soil functioning?

Join SFA’s Kent Solberg and Doug Voss along with Lake of the Woods Soil & Water Conservation District and Natural Resources Conservation Service staff for an afternoon in the field from noon to 3 p.m. Wed., July 5, in Williams, Minn. We will be looking at ways we can evaluate whether or not our soils…

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New Case Studies Tell Hopeful Stories

A brand new volume of farm case studies are hot off the press. This time, the case studies highlight farms and their soil health practices who are certified through the Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program (MAWQCP).  Angie Walter, the MAWQCP Outreach Coordinator with SFA, began working on this project in 2021 thanks to a boots-on-the-ground…

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Fencing for Small Ruminants Workshop

Due to popular demand for our spring workshop, we are hosting another Semi-permenant and Temporary Energized Fence Systems for Small Ruminants workshop! Join Jonathan Kilpatrick and Kent Solberg for this free, hands-on event suitable for both beginning farmers and those who need a refresher. They will cover the basics of electric fencing geared towards small…

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PaddockTrac Grazing Demonstration June 16

Organic dairy grazier Angie Walter will demonstrate PaddockTrac at her family farm in Villard on Friday, June 16, from 2:00-4:00 p.m. PaddockTrac is a grazing tool being developed by the University of Missouri. Guests will see how it works in the field and hear about what the Walters have used while using it on their 100-cow…

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SFA Welcomes Derek Schmitz

We are excited to have dairy grazier Derek Schmitz join us as our Minnesota Dairy Initiative (MDI) coordinator! Derek farms near Cold Spring with his wife Taylor and two (soon to be three) children. They milk 70 grass-based dairy cows, raise hair sheep, custom graze, and direct market beef. You may have been to their…

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