By Morgan Watts

Rowan Cooperative Extension

Winter is usually a slower time for farmers. It’s a good time to sit down and reflect about things.

There are things you might want to do differently next year or maybe it’s time to figure out how much more pasture renovation you will need for next year.

Because of the drought we faced this fall, it’s also a good time to attend workshops and learn something new.

With the drought and grazing loss that we faced this fall, more pasture renovation will be expected next year in our area. If you need help or if you need to discuss a plan, give me a call.

Another thing to keep in mind is to make sure you have enough hay to last through the winter, more than likely it will be close to April 1, give or take a few days, before pasture availability becomes an option.

Right now there are three upcoming workshops in January that I would encourage you to attend. The first one will be held here in Rowan County at Circle D Farms in Salisbury. This workshop will be held on Jan. 11, noon-3:30 p.m. Lunch will be served and the cost is $5 per person.

This workshop is put on by Amazing Grazing, which is a Pasture Based Livestock Education Program. The workshop will be a winter forage management workshop. Topics to be covered will be extending the grazing season, frost seeding cover, forage management to improve soil nutrient distribution, and introducing warm season grasses into fescue systems. To RSVP, please call the Rowan County Cooperative Extension Office at 704-216-8970.

The Area Beef Conference is another training to keep in mind. It will be held on Jan. 5, 3:30-6:45 p.m. in Wilkesboro. Topics to be covered at this event are NC Cattlemen’s Association activities update, strategies for ranching on leased land, animal health update, producing haylage as forage for beef cattle, cattle marketing, and the importance of nutritional management of beef cows during drought.  Registration for this event is by Friday, Dec. 30. You can register by calling the Rowan Extension Office at 704-216-8970.

The last upcoming workshop is geared towards sheep and goat producers. The Regional Sheep and Goat Producers Training is Jan. 26 at the Guilford County Extension Center. Registration begins at 1:30 p.m. with the opening session at 2 p.m., and ending at 5:30 p.m.

There will be an opening session, concurrent sessions and a closing session on topics related to goat and sheep management. Some of these topics include: understanding grazing management, toxic weed ID, forage selection, fundamentals of fencing and understanding proper use of medications, vaccinations and veterinary feed directive.  Online pre-registration (or call 336-570-6740) is required by Jan. 17: http://go.ncsu.edu/2017goatsheeptraining

There is a fee of $10 per person for this training that will be collected on-site.

If you have any questions about any of these events, hay shortage or pasture renovation, please call Morgan Watts, livestock agent, 704-216-8970, or stop by the Rowan County Extension Office. 2727A Old Concord Road.