Don’t Farm Naked Field Day

Don’t farm naked, plant cover crops for soil health! Eaton Conservation District, Eaton County Farm Bureau and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation service will be sponsoring a fall field day on Friday, September 12, 2014. The event, hosted by The Country Mill and Upright Farms in Charlotte MI, will feature nationally renowned guest speaker, Dr. Hans Kok! Hans is an Indiana based agriculture consultant who contracts with the Indiana Conservation Cropping Systems Initiative. He uses an innovative approach to teach producers about the importance of managing soils much like they would livestock or crops to maximize long term sustainability and farm economics. 

In addition to Dr. Kok’s presentation, the Field Day will feature great demonstrations and discussions about improving soil health on the farm, integrated weed management tips to get more bang for your pesticide costs, and  an update on the new Farm Bill. RUP credits will be available for certified pesticide applicators who attend and MAEAP phase 1 credit is available for all participants. Local businesses have donated prizes for the event, including cover crop seed from the Eaton Farm Bureau Co-op. Registration is $10 and covers lunch and materials. Farm Bureau members will receive a reduced rate at $5. Those interested in participating in the tour should contact the Eaton Conservation District (517) 543-5848 ext. 5 no later than September 9th to register.

Drones Added to Don’t Farm Naked Field Day!
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAVs or drones) demonstration has been added to the Don’t Farm Naked Field Day on September 12th. Bruno Basso, associate professor at MSU, will be joining the agricultural field day to  demonstrate his work using UAVs to model water and nutrient cycling in relation to agro-ecosystems. Basso is working to develop SALUS, a next-generation process-based model that integrates crop productivity with water, carbon, and nutrient fluxes in a spatially explicit manner.


Friday September 12th 9am-4pm
The Country Mill and Upright Farms
4648 Otto Road
Charlotte, MI  48813

Field Day Topics 

• Don’t Farm Naked: Plant Cover Crops - Dr. Hans Kok 
• Get Dirty in a Soil Pit! - Soil Health with Upright Farms  & NRCS 
• Weed Wrangling with Fred Springborn - MSU Extension 
• Rainfall, Erosion & Runoff Simulator 
• Farm Bill Update - Michigan Farm Bureau 
• Conservation District, USDA and Farm Bureau Updates 
• UAV Demonstration (drone) - Bruno Basso pending 
• MAEAP Phase 1 & 6 RUP Credits

Win Free Prizes and Cover Crop seed!