Plan to Attend the Great Plains Growers Conference

The Great Plains Growers Conference and Trade Show on January 10th, 11h and 12th, 2013, at the Fulkerson Center on Missouri Western State University’s campus in St. Joseph, Missouri.

“Interesting and useful information will be presented on production and marketing of vegetables, cut flowers and fruit,” said Sarah Browning, Lancaster County Extension Educator. “It doesn’t matter if you are an experienced commercial vegetable grower or someone with just a dream about starting to grow and sell produce, there will be something for you,” he/she said.

The conference and trade show is a collaborative effort of growers associations and University Extension from Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and South Dakota, and each year draws hundreds of producers from our region and beyond.

On Thursday January 10th, the conference kicks off with six day-long workshops that you can choose from.

A. Our high tunnel workshop features presentations by experienced growers, and research and extension specialists from our region. High tunnels provide critical crop protection and season extension. Come and hear the experiences of high tunnel growers, energy ideas, building a Chinese greenhouse, and updates on high tunnel research.

B. The soils and irrigation workshop features Neal Kinsey, soil fertility specialist, along with keynote speaker Jeff Lowenfels, author of “Teaming With Microbes: The Organic Gardener’s Guide to The Soil Food Web”. Rounding out the afternoon are Craig Pisarkiewicz, certified irrigation designer, and research updates on compost, soil health and vegetable irrigation.

C. This year’s fruit workshop features Greg Lang, Michigan State University, specialist on cherry and high tunnel fruit production. Craig Pisarkiewicz, certified irrigation designer, will discuss orchard irrigation systems and equipment.

D. This year’s honeybee workshop will address advanced beekeeping topics, including anatomy of honeybees, pollination requirements, varroa mites, colony collapse, pesticides, drought, and introduction to queen rearing. Come prepared to learn, discuss, and ask questions. The advanced workshop will be of interest to all, no matter what your level of expertise. A short basic beekeeping session will also be offered on Friday for those who are new to beekeeping.

E. New this year is an Introduction to Vegetable Production workshop for Spanish speakers - presented in Spanish. Topics to be covered include site selection, preparation and maintenance; marketing; working with other producers; introduction to integrated pest management; incorporating small animals into specialty crop farms; and considerations for small fruit production.

F. Finally, and also new this year, is a Farm to School workshop, presented by experienced Farm to School growers and state program leaders. Learn the basics of the program, along with business opportunities, and what school food service directors need from growers.

Six concurrent sessions on Friday and Saturday January 11th and 12th provide a total of over 60 presentations on a wealth of subjects related to organic and conventional crop production. In addition to presentations on vegetable production and marketing, there will be tracks on small fruit, tree fruit, cut flowers, beginner and advanced organic, marketing, beekeeping and sessions on urban horticulture and community gardens.

“The trade show is a big draw for conference participants” said Tom Fowler, Buchanan County Extension Specialist, “we had 50 booth spaces last year that filled the Fulkerson Conference Center and expect the same this year,” he added.

Registration, which includes meals and breaks, for the Thursday workshops is $55/person, except for the Introduction to Vegetable Production (Spanish) track which is $35/person, due to grant funding. Early bird registration for Friday and Saturday sessions is $45/day; after December 27th registration is $55.00/day. This year’s conference offers reduced registration for students at $25.00/day.

The conference is going to be held at the Fulkerson Conference Center on the Missouri Western State University campus in St. Joseph, MO. The headquarter hotels are the Ramada Inn, 4016 Frederick, 816-233-6192 or Stoney Creek Inn, 1201 Woodbine 816-901-9600.

A full program, registration information and updated details of the conference can be found at the conference website: http://www.greatplainsgrowers.org for more information about the program and a registration form, contact Mary Beth Alpers at alpersm@missouri.edu or phone (816) 279-1691.