Central Dakota Ag Day set for December 16, 2024
A multi-county Extension team from Foster, Barnes, Eddy, Griggs, Sheridan, Stutsman, and Wells counties, and the Carrington Research Extension Center, develops the Central Dakota Ag Day program each year. This year’s Central Dakota Ag Day will be held on Monday, December 16, at the NDSU Carrington REC. The full program begins at 9:30 a.m. with coffee and donuts. A sponsored lunch will be served. There is no registration fee, and preregistration is not required.
Along with keynote speakers Tom Brusegaard from U.S. Senator John Hoeven’s office and NDSU Extension Crops Economist Frayne Olson, three concurrent tracks take place in our meeting rooms.
Because of my involvement with the Ag Life track, let’s look at that room first. Our goal, at first, was to provide an option for ‘other’ programming – if the topics in the Livestock or Agronomy rooms didn’t fit your operation, maybe a session on rural life would be interesting. We also know that spouses and neighbors often ride along to events like CDAD, and we want everyone to find engaging topics.
This year, we have three speakers on gardening and pollinators and three speakers from public agencies in the Ag Life room, the Video Conference Room in the northwest corner of the CREC headquarters.
Ethan Johnson, a beekeeper with Robson Honey Company, will share his experience with a multi-state, family-owned honey production company. On a smaller scale, Michelle Gilley from Eddy County Extension will talk about community, school, and private gardens that sustain and nurture bees and other pollinators. Dennis Swanson, Co-chair of the Carrington Garden Club has been gathering photos and notes from Garden Club projects and private ‘yardens.’ What landscaping ideas and new plants will fit in your garden or on your porch?
Cassidy Holth from the ND State Climate Office will showcase the NDAWN weather station network and its easy availability to farmers, ranchers, and arm-chair meterologists. Amanda Olson from the ND Department of Public Instruction will talk about the Farm to School program that allows schools to purchase farm-fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, meat, honey, dairy products and more from local producers for their school lunch menus. Kim Watson, volunteer for the Foster County Museum will bring artifacts from Foster County’s past to spark a conversation.
If you’re looking for agronomy topics, though, of course we have you covered, with presentations on disease management in wheat and soybean, weed management, canola production, and intelligent spray drones. Read more about these agronomy sessions.
Livestock producers will meet in our Library, in the southeast corner of the CREC HQ. That room has five speakers scheduled, with one booked for a double-session. Topics include livestock markets, artificial insemination, silage production, sheep breeding, and Beef Quality Assurance. Read more about these livestock sessions.
Sponsors of the 2024 Central Dakota Ag Day include the ND Corn Utilization Council, the ND Soybean Council, the ND Wheat Commission, Northarvest Bean Growers Association, and Northern Canola Growers Association.
The event is free and open to everyone, with no pre-registration required. A complimentary lunch will also be provided. Don’t miss this opportunity to connect with fellow farmers, ranchers, and ag professionals while gaining the knowledge to thrive on the ranch in 2025.
For more information about Central Dakota Ag Day visit our event page. Direct questions or accommodations requests to Jeff Gale at 701-652-2581 or by email at jeff.gale@ndsu.edu .
Linda Schuster
Linda.Schuster@ndsu.edu
Administrative Assistant
