Agriculture

The Iowa State Fair, Tractor Supply Co. and WHO News Radio 1040 are searching for six farm families to recognize with the Way We Live Award at the 2015 Fair, August 13-23. These families must exemplify farm values derived from hard work and a love for the occupation of farming.
To enter, submit an entry form along with a 500-1,500 word essay describing how living on a farm and choosing the occupation of farming has shaped the family’s life. All entries must include a family picture that illustrates the family’s commitment to their farming operation. Entry forms can be downloaded from the Iowa State Fair website: http://www.iowastatefair.org/competition/the-way-we-live-award/. All entries must be postmarked or e-mailed to ewynn@iowastatefair.org by May 1.

by Joyce Davidshofer, Allamakee County Executive Director

by Sara Berges,
Allamakee SWCD

by Joyce Davidshofer, Allamakee County Executive Director

Reminders
February 27 – Deadline for yield updates and base reallocations for ARC/PLC program.
March 31 – Deadline for ARC/PLC program elections – ARC-CO, ARC-IC or PLC.
Postcards will be sent in the coming days to all eligible producers and landowners in Allamakee County as a reminder of the deadlines for the ARC/PLC program.
The Yield updates and/or Base reallocations have a deadline of February 27. After this date the current base and yield on the farm will kept.
The PLC, ARC-County and the ARC-Individual elections have to be selected by March 31. After this deadline the farm will default to the PLC program for 2015-2018 and the 2014 will not be paid if it triggers a payment.
If the PLC program is selected by the March 31 deadline, and if the 2014 payment triggers, then the farm will be paid for 2014.

Northeast Iowa - Silos & Smokestacks National Heritage Area (SSNHA) will be hosting the webinar “Best Practices in Telling the Modern Ag Story” Wednesday, February 25 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. CST as part of a series of winter webinars. Lanny Haldy, Amana Heritage Society; Megan Kregel, Iowa’s Dairy Center; and Linda Perrenoud, Jasper County Historical Society Museum will demonstrate how three very different Heritage Area Partner Sites are connecting with current day agricultural practices in their community. What visitors want to know about just might surprise you - wind energy, robotic dairying and methane gas.
The final webinar of the series is “Silos & Smokestacks General Grant Application,” Wednesday, March 4, 10 a.m. - 11 a.m. CST. There is no cost for these webinars, but registration is required. For more information or to register, visit www.silosandsmokestacks.org/partner.

by Joyce Davidshofer, Allamakee County Executive Director

The Allamakee County Committee meeting will be Thursday, February 12 at 9 a.m. at the Allamakee County FSA Office.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey encourages eligible farm owners to apply for the 2015 Century and Heritage Farm Program. The program is sponsored by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and the Iowa Farm Bureau and recognizes families that have owned their farm for 100 years in the case of Century Farms and 150 years for Heritage Farms.

by Joyce Davidshofer, Allamakee County Executive Director

The Allamakee County Committee meeting will be Thursday, February 12 at 9 a.m. at the Allamakee County FSA Office.

by Joyce Davidshofer, Allamakee County Executive Director

The Allamakee County Committee meeting will be Thursday, February 12 at 9 a.m. at the Allamakee County FSA Office.

Reminders
January 30, 2015 – Deadline for 2012 Livestock Feed Program (LFP) and 2012 Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP).
January 30, 2015 – Deadline for the “Early Out” on CRP (Certain criteria must be met to qualify).
On January 29, 2015 both the ISU extension and our FSA Office will be hosting an ARC/PLC program meeting at the Farmer’s and Merchant’s Savings Bank at 1 p.m. Call the extension office to reserve a spot at 563-568-6345

Practical Farmers of Iowa is now accepting registrations for its 2015 annual conference, “Mapping Our Future,” which will take place January 23-24 at the Iowa State Center Scheman Building, on the Iowa State University campus in Ames. All are welcome to attend. Register online at http://practicalfarmers.org/2015-annual-conference.
This year’s theme spotlights the decisions Iowa farmers face as they wrestle with land management and farm transfer, erosion and soil health, price and weather volatility – including a range of possible solutions to help make farms more resilient and connected in the future. From farmer-led sessions on extended crop rotations, irrigation and land transition to pollinator habitat, profit margins and grazing systems, attendees will come away with ideas for how to chart their own farming futures.