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| SOUTHERN
SAWG E-NEWSLETTER, VOL. 2, #4
May 2006 |
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| Dear
Friends, We are excited to announce in this newsletter the dates and location of the 2007 Southern SAWG conference. Even though the event is over six months away, we encourage folks to start making their plans now to attend. This is also the time to get us your suggestions for the conference, including specific session topics - see the article below for contact info. We'll have more details about the conference soon, and will look forward to seeing you there. In the meantime, look for information about new educational opportunities and resources from Southern SAWG and our partners throughout the region and the country, both in this newsletter and on our web site. And, please remember that if you are receiving this newsletter in text format, the full color versions of this and past issues are available on our web site at http://www.ssawg.org/newsletter.html. As always, we'd like to hear from you, so please drop a line any time to ssawg@aol.com. Many thanks -- Your Friends at Southern SAWG |
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Mark Your Calendars Now-- -- Dates and Location Confirmed! The Southern SAWG conference will return to Louisville, KY on January 25-28, 2007. We are pleased to announce that the conference sessions will be held at The Galt House Hotel and Suites, located on the Ohio River in the heart of downtown Louisville. The hotel is just 7 miles from the Louisville International Airport. Fortunately, this site is considerably larger than our past conference facilities and will be able to comfortably handle our growth. Rates are just $72 for standard rooms, or $92 for snazzy suites. Bring a friend and join us in Louisville! Session Suggestions Wanted Southern SAWG works each year to design our conference sessions according to what folks want to know. We've gotten great feedback already, but need your input, as well. Peggy Hamlett will serve as the session coordinator this year, so please send your suggestions to Peggy at: phamlett@utk.edu. We'll collect ideas over the next two months. The final program will be announced in October. Thank you, Laura For years, Southern SAWG relied on the incredible enthusiasm and energy of Laura Lauffer as conference session coordinator. Laura is stepping down this year so she can concentrate on her community involvement activities. We thank her for all of the excellent work she has done for Southern SAWG over the years and will always be grateful for the joy and excitement she has brought to this work. ---
If you or your organization is interested in
partnering with Southern SAWG on conference
activities, please contact Jean Mills, Southern SAWG Conference
Coordinator at jeanmills@aol.com.
The Southern Region USDA Program on Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SSARE) Program has released calls for proposals in three categories. Grant funding will be available for the 2006-2007 fiscal year for Professional Development Programs (PDP), Research and Education, and Graduate Student projects. The purpose of the SSARE program is "to address issues of sustainable agriculture of current and potential importance to the Southern Region and the nation." A detailed description and complete application instructions for each grant category can be found on the web at http://www.griffin.uga.edu/sare/ or by calling 918-647-9123 for information on the PDP program or 770-412-4787 for graduate student or research and education programs. The SSARE program is utilizing an online submissions process which requires access to the internet. The deadline for submission of Research and Education and PDP pre-proposals and for Graduate Student proposals is 11:59 PM on June 1, 2006.
Federal hurricane assistance funding has been made available through the Farm Services Agency (FSA) for four crop and livestock programs, according to a press release from USDA. The programs include Livestock Indemnity Program, Feed Indemnity Program, Hurricane Indemnity Program, and Tree Indemnity Program with a combined total of $250 million in available funding. Funds for aquaculture operations is also available. For detailed information on the various programs, including a list of eligible counties, payment limits, and application instructions, contact your local FSA office. To find your local office, call the USDA-FSA office at 202-720-7809 or visit http://www.fsa.usda.gov. |
Farmers and farm
organizations in targeted states with an interest in Sustainable Meat
Goat Production or Sustainable Broiler Production now have an
opportunity to bring Southern SAWG training programs to their
areas.
We are currently producing two new virtual farm tours featuring these
topics and are designing accompanying training programs and
materials.
The agenda for training programs will include presentations by a
Southern SAWG goat or poultry specialist, plus first-hand, practical
insight offered by an experienced and
knowledgeable producer. All training participants will receive a
copy
of the virtual farm tour DVD and an Enterprise Manual containing farmer
profiles, comprehensive resource lists, and copies of some of the best
educational materials available on the practice. Targeted states
that
are eligible for the free trainings are AR,
LA, MS, KY, or TN, but Southern SAWG can provide training programs in
other areas, too.
In addition to the two
new virtual farm tours, Southern SAWG offers complete training programs
in Management Intensive Grazing and Sustainable Turkey Production and
Marketing and virtual farm tour videos covering these and other
sustainable farm operations such as organic horticulture and cut
flowers. The full list of videos plus a sampling of training
materials
can be found on the web at http://www.ssawg.org/virtualfarm.html.
For more information about arranging a
training in your area or to request a draft copy of the Sustainable
Meat Goat or Sustainable Broiler Production Enterprise
Manual, please
contact Barbara Bellows at m2b2ultra@peoplepc.com or 864-548-0018.
As part of Southern SAWG's ongoing work with
enterprise development resources and training programs, we have
developed an enterprise manual for cut flower operations. The Cut
Flower Enterprise Manual includes detailed profiles of two successful
cut flower farms and provides sources of other information, such as
getting started info from Virginia Tech, ATTRA's sustainable flower
production publication and post-harvest handling recommendations from
Kansas State Cooperative Extension. Perhaps the most valuable
aspect
of this manual is the information developed through practical
experience and shared by Mark Cain of Dripping Springs Garden and Vicki
Stamback of Bear Creek Farms, Inc.
Both farmers operate cut flower farms in the South. Through this manual they offer their first-hand insight into business planning guidelines, recommended variety lists and garden layout, and a comprehensive resource list for further study on cut flowers. This and other enterprise manuals were developed in partnership with USDA's Risk Management Agency. They are useful as stand-alone resources, but each of the manuals can be complimented by a video from Southern SAWG's Natural Farming Systems in the South series, which also includes organic horticulture, management intensive grazing of beef, and pastured turkey production. The videos and manuals are can serve as an excellent tool for producers interested in expanding or refining their operations, or for groups that work directly with farmers in the South. The manuals are available for free download on the Southern SAWG web site. The videos can be previewed through the site and can be ordered by printing out the order form. Click the link for the manuals and videos: http://www.ssawg.org/virtualfarm.html.
Featured in the new cut flower training manual is information shared by Vicki Stamback of Bear Creek Farms, Inc. in Stillwater Oklahoma. The Bear Creek Farms profile, developed for the manual, is also a part of Southern SAWG's series of comprehensive farm stories available on our web site. Vicki Stamback started Bear Creek Farms, Inc. ten years ago, and has been in year-round production since. Bear Creek makes use of four 30X96 foot greenhouses plus ample field production space totaling eight acres of specialty cut flowers and ornamentals. Her markets include forty florists near Stillwater, Oklahoma - an area that includes larger cities like Tulsa and Oklahoma City. Bear Creek's sustainable approach relies on intensive soil management and input reduction and detailed record keeping. The online profile of Bear Creek provides more in-depth information about growing methods and other insight. Check out Bear Creek's farm profile at http://www.ssawg.org/stamback.html and view the complete list of farm profiles at http://www.ssawg.org/farmstories.html.  Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group, Inc. (Southern SAWG) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 1991 to promote sustainable agriculture in the Southern United States. Newsletter Archives, Subscribe and Unsubscribe |
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