union swcd annual meeting re cap! · pdf filebob “shannon” anderson of marysville...
TRANSCRIPT
Board of Supervisors
Suzi Clarridge
Bill Conklin
Jay Rausch
Steve Robinson
Matt Staley
SWCD Personnel
Terri Gravatt
Brent Nickel
Kaylee Port
Bob Scheiderer
Mark Watkins
NRCS Personnel
Robin Sweeney
Pheasants Forever
Brian Ortman
Union SWCD
18000 St. Rt. 4 North
Suite B
Marysville, OH 43040
tel: 937-642-5871 x 3
fax: 937-642-2825
www.co.union. oh.us/SWCD
Volume 18, No. 3 Fall 2013
Union SWCD Annual Meeting Re-cap!
The Union Soil and Water Conservation District held its 68th Annual Meeting on Wednesday, August 14, at the Union County Service Center Building in Marysville. An election of supervisors was held to start off the evening, and candidates starting new terms on January 1, 2014, will be Bill Conklin of Dover Township and Lisa McNamee of Jackson Township. Conklin is presently serving his 12
th year on the USWCD board,
and McNamee will be a new board member, replacing retiring supervisor Suzi Clarridge.
Clarridge was recognized by SWCD Board Chairman Steve Robinson for her nine years of service (January 2005-December 31, 2013) and her contributions to Union SWCD and Union County. Robinson said, “Suzi brought a different perspective to the SWCD board, and helped us put more emphasis on the importance of conservation education.” She is an 8th grade Science teacher at Bunsold Middle School in Marysville, where she enjoys creating life and earth science learning opportunities to improve students’ exposure and understanding of wildlife, watersheds, natural cycles, impacts of pollution, and basic environmental stewardship.
Bob “Shannon” Anderson of Marysville gave an informative talk on the adventures of
Lewis and Clark. The Anderson family is descendant of George Shannon, the
youngest member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition that set out from Pittsburgh PA in
1803, following the Ohio River into the unknown Northwest Territory. A big thank you
to Mr. Anderson for coming to the meeting and sharing with us many great tales of
Lewis and Clark!
Cooperator of the Year This year, Union SWCD recognized Derek and Brigit Nicol as the 2013 Cooperator of the Year.
Each year, the District honors a local landowner for their outstanding support of conservation and land stewardship during the Annual Meeting. The Nicol’s have been active in the farming community for many years, installing many Best Management Practices to reduce pollution in our streams and soil.
Congratulations, Derek and Brigit Nicol, keep up the great work! Conservation needs folks like you!
Wild About WildlifeWild About Wildlife Brent Nickel, Union SWCD Wildlife Specialist.
Fall Wildlife, Habitat and Hunting Fall Wildlife, Habitat and Hunting Interests and ConcernsInterests and Concerns
Wildlife Conflict Management ...Forget Control!
Experiencing wildlife conflicts? Try the solutions associated with this wildlife conflict resolution website!
The Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management: http://www.icwdm.org/
Injured—or what appears to be Helpless Wildlife? Call or contact the Ohio Wildlife Center – 614-793-WILD (9453) – then follow their every instruction!
http://ohiowildlifecenter.org/dnn/
New Deer Regulations Set for 2013-14 Season
Union County is now a 4 deer county, three either-sex permits and one antlerless permit may be used in Union
county for the 2013-14 season. Statewide, Archery season opens on Sept 28. and an all new Statewide
Antlerless Deer Muzzleloader Season comes in for the weekend of Oct 12-13. Antlerless deer permits will not be valid after Dec.1, 2013. This year the statewide total bag limit is nine with no more than one antlered deer. The 3
former Deer zones have been eliminated and now individual county bag limits have been created. Deer
hunting hours have also been expanded to 1/2 hr. before sunrise to 1/2 hr. after sunset during the entire season.
For further information, please refer to the Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations 2013-14
Tallgrass Truths—Revealed! Management is your Friend…
Landowners, there is nothing wrong or “illegal” with mowing random and curving “hunt trails”, or walkways,
through the voluntary conservation grassland practices. It is always best to mow to an eight-inch height. Hunting
trails that wind through the tall and thick vegetation will not place the landowner in “non-compliance” with the
voluntary conservation practices’ contracts. Up to 1/3 of your acreage can be mowed per year under your contract without penalty. If done in sections or strips, this will not only open up the field for wildlife to use but will also open
it up more for you to use and be easier to hunt.
Don’t Forget Your Best Friend State public hunting areas opened back up to training and
exercising on Sept. 1. Several hunting seasons are open also. Get out there with your best friend and enjoy the early season, either with the gun or just to get some exercise and do some
scouting for other upcoming seasons. The work you put in now can pay big dividends come Upland Hunting Season.
Contact your local hunting dog organization such as NAVHDA, UFTA, AKC, NSTRA, or other testing/ field trialing
organization to come out and see some amazing dogs in action.
Advanced Trapper Workshops! The Ohio Division of Wildlife, in cooperation with The Ohio State Trappers Association, sponsors Advanced Trappers Workshops prior to the season. These workshops provide the opportunity to learn about the sport of trapping. Traps are set for furbearers on Saturday and then checked on Sunday morning. On Sunday afternoon, skinning and
preparing fur for market is covered.many of these work-shops offer the Trapper Education Course as well.
Visit ohiostatetrapper.org for more information.
Share Your Love for the Outdoors - Take A Kid Hunting
Hunting season is here and now’s the time to get into that Hunter’s Education Class. The Division of Wildlife offers three types of certification courses; instructor-led training, home study courses, and proficiency testing for those 18
and older. Best of all; It’s FREE! For more information about when and where these
classes are available, see the web page below: http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Home/Huntingand%
20trappingSubhomepage/Hunter_trapper_Certification_tool/HunterEducationand%20Certification/tabid/18566/Default.aspx
If your young one isn’t quite ready for Hunter’s Education, check out the Hunter’s Apprentice Program. Apprentice hunting licenses or fur taker permits allow new hunters
and trappers, both adults and youth, to sample the experience of hunting under the mentorship of a licensed adult prior to taking a hunter or trapper education course.
Opportunities are available through several local
Pheasants Forever Chapters for youth and ladies to come out for a Free day of shooting and/ or hunting. Check with your local chapter for dates and times.
What’s In-Season Always Refer to the Current Year’s Regulations.
See what is currently “In-Season” at this website: http://www.ohiodnr.com/wildlife/dow/regulations/seasons.aspx
Fishing Regulations: http://www.ohiodnr.com/wildlife/dow/regulations/fishing.aspx
“Hunting With Permission” forms,
Hunting Regulations, Fishing Regulations, and Trapping Instruction Packets
are available at our office.
Wetland Dike Problems? For anyone experiencing chronic damage from muskrats, now is the time to recruit trappers to reduce the explosive
muskrat population. In Union County, the regulated muskrat trapping season is from November 10, 2013
through February 28, 2014. I have a list of willing trappers in my office if you need someone to assist you.
Up the Crick... Using resources today, conserving for tomorrow.
Kaylee Port, Bokes/Mill Technician [email protected]
Fun Facts in Agriculture
Each American, on average consumes 53 pounds of bread each year.
One bushel of corn will sweeten more than 400 cans of soda pop.
It takes a combine 9 seconds to harvest enough wheat to make 70 loaves of bread.
Americans consume around 1.12 billion pounds of popcorn per year.
One acre (43,560 square feet) of soybeans can produce 86,368 crayons.
In a year’s time, a dairy cow produces 1,500 gallons or 6,000 quarts of milk.
A hen requires 24-26 hours to produce an egg. Thirty minutes later, she starts all over.
Straight from the cow, the temperature of cow’s milk is 97 degrees Fahrenheit.
It takes about 40 gallons of maple tree sap to produce one gallon of syrup.
Ohio typically produces 100,000 gallons of maple syrup each year.
One acre of wheat could produce enough bread for a family of four to live off of for ten years.
Egg yolks are one of the few foods that naturally contain Vitamin D.
A cow’s daily production is 2.6 pounds of butter, 7 gallons of milk, or 6 pounds of cheese.
A newborn piglet doubles its weight in just one week after birth.
Pigs don’t sweat; they roll in the mud to cool off.
It takes approximately 1.4 gallons of milk to make 1 gallon of ice cream.
Agriculture is the top industry in Ohio.
One-half of all daily U.S. newspapers are printed with soybean oil-based ink.
Union County is Special!
There are approximately 900 farms averaging 237 acres per farm in Union County.
Close to 70% of Union County’s land is dedicated to crop production.
Of 88 counties in Ohio, Union County ranked:
31st in corn production
20th in soybean production
22nd
in wheat production
55th in cattle production
50th in milk cows
15th in hogs and pigs
The Ohio Quarter Horse Association is headquartered in Richwood.
Select Sires, a world-renowned bovine genetics company is headquartered outside of Plain City.
Harmony Agricultural Products (HAPI-O), a subsidiary of Honda of America Mfg., processes an estimated 32,000 acres of non-genetically modified food-grade soybeans and 1,300 acres of organic soybeans for Japanese customers where it is made into gourmet quality tofu.
NRCS Update
Keep an Eye Out for Conservation Needs During Harvest and Sign-Up for the
Environmental Quality Incentives Program Applications submitted by November 15th will receive 1st priority for funding.
Columbus, OH, Sept. 17, 2013 — It’s the time of year Ohio farmers hit the fields to harvest, driving over the land planted last spring. As combines remove the crop, the land hidden beneath reveals areas that may benefit from conservation treatments to improve the health of the land and next year’s crop.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) employs
professional conservationists who, together with the farmer, evaluate how the land may benefit from conservation treatment. They then develop a conservation plan outlining which conservation treatments, or practices, will improve the land. State Resource Conservationist Mark Smith describes a possible scenario. “When the farmer harvests a field, he or she may notice things like wheel tracks, gullies, or places where the crop didn’t grow well. These may indicate areas of soil compaction, soil erosion, or some other problem. Cover crops, gaining popularity among farmers, can help improve soil health, reduce compaction, tie up nutrients, and improve the amount of water soil can hold.”
Dot Harris, Ohio’s Assistant State Conservationist for Programs, manages the Environmental Quality
Incentives Program (EQIP) and explains how EQIP can help with the cost of trying a new conservation practice like cover crops. “With a conservation plan in hand, the farmer applies for EQIP to pay for conservation practices like cover crops, drainage water management, rotational grazing, and much more. The financial assistance pays a part of the cost of trying these things, which may be just what’s needed to make trying something new worthwhile.” When it comes to cover crops, Dave Brandt, a Fairfield County farmer and cover crop advocate, believes that over time, cover crops actually increase profit and increase the value of farmland.
Any eligible agricultural producer can apply for EQIP anytime. Periodically, NRCS reviews applications
for those that provide the most environmental benefit, a process called ranking, and selects those that provide the highest benefit for funding depending on the availability of EQIP funds. Recognizing that it may be challenging to make an appointment with the local NRCS office to develop a conservation plan and apply for EQIP during harvest, those that do apply by November 15 will receive priority over those that apply after that date. NRCS will send letters to farmers who applied for EQIP last year but were not selected for funding, to determine if they want to re-submit their deferred applications for funding consideration now.
After NRCS selects applications for funding, the conservationist will contact the applicant to sign an EQIP contract describing which conservation practices the farmer agrees to apply, how much NRCS will pay for with EQIP funds, and develop a schedule that the farmer agrees to for applying or installing the conservation practice. After the farmer installs or applies the practice, he or she notifies NRCS. After NRCS verifies that the farmer installed or applied the conservation practice as agreed upon, the conservationist will certify the practice and initiate the payment process. Typically, the farmer agrees to maintain the practice for a given time-period, which is the average time of the practices’ effectiveness.
Agricultural producers interested in applying for EQIP and conservation planning assistance should contact their local NRCS office. The Ohio NRCS website at www.oh.nrcs.usda.gov has a listing of telephone numbers and addresses by county. Telephone directories typically list NRCS or U.S. Department of Agriculture numbers in the government section of the directory.
For more information on available EQIP assistance in Union County, please contact Robin Sweeney
at 937-642-5871 ext. 107
Straw Blower For Rent
The Union Soil and Water Conservation
District has purchased a Model 20 Tailgate
Mulcher on a 6’ x 12’ trailer to rent to the
public. The Tailgate Mulcher is electric start,
will blow straw about 40 ft. and can spread an
average of 120 straw bales per hour. It will rent
for $75/ day and $100 for a weekend. This type
of blower is typically used for new lawns, new
seeding establishment and for waterway and
pond bank grass establishment. Please contact
Union SWCD at 937-642-5871 ext. 106 to get
more information or to schedule.
No-Till Drill For Rent
Straw Blower for Rent
The Union Soil and Water Conservation District
has a Model 20 Tailgate Mulcher on a 6’x12’ trailer to rent to the public.
The Tailgate Mulcher is electric start, will blow straw about 40 ft.
and can spread up to 100 bales per hour.
It will rent for $75 per day and $100 for a weekend.
This type of blower is typically used for new seeding establishment,
and for waterway and pond bank grass establishment.
Please contact Union SWCD at 937-642-5871 x3 for more
information or to schedule.
The Union SWCD has a John Deere 1590 no-till drill
for rent. The drill is 15 foot with 7.5 inch row spacing
and is equipped with markers and a grass seed box.
A 100 horse-power tractor with 2 hydraulic outlets is
needed to pull the drill. The drill rents for $10.00 per acre
and there is a $75 minimum charge.
If you are interested in using the drill,
call 937-642-5871 x3 or stop in our office to sign-up.
Rental Equipment
Tree Puller For Rent
Union SWCD recently purchased a tree puller for use by Union County residents. This tree puller can effectively
remove tree, trunk, and root ball in one quick motion, leaving less damage to the ground.
The tree puller mounts on a skidloader with a quick attach
plate or, we have adapters to use a global loader mount or, a tractor’s three point hitch.
Manage your fence rows, filter strips, CRP, ditch banks, or
anywhere that unwanted trees or saplings are growing.
The puller rents for $100.00 per day and $150 for a weekend rental. Any adapters that you may need are included in this
price.
Please call 937-642-5871 ext. 3 for additional information.
In Addition…
OSU Extension to Host Annie’s Project Marysville, Ohio -- Women in agriculture who are interested in taking a more active role in farm operations may sign up for Annie's Project, a multi-part risk-management course offered by Ohio State University Extension. The workshop is being sponsored by OSU Extension offices in Champaign, Delaware and Union counties. The six-week workshop will be held at the Union County Extension Office beginning January 15, 2014 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and running consecutive Wednesdays through February 19th. Annie's Project is designed to strengthen women's role in modern farm enterprises. The project's namesake was a woman who grew up in a small rural community and spent her adult life learning how to be an involved, successful business partner with her husband. Annie's daughter, Ruth Hambleton, became an Extension educator in Illinois and developed the program in 2000 in honor of her mother's life experience. It is currently offered in 22 states. Annie's Project focuses on five broad aspects of risk management typical in the agricultural setting: human, financial, marketing, production and legal. OSU Extension began offering Annie's Project in 2007, touching hundreds of lives since and inspiring women to become more active in agricultural roles. It has received wide support not only from participants, but agricultural lenders, agribusinesses, ag service providers and agricultural organizations, which have provided information, class instructors and sponsorship for the workshops. Cost for the workshop is $80 per person (reduced from the state fee of $95 through local support). Seating is limited, so early registration is encouraged. To register or for more information contact the Union County Extension Office at 937-644-8117.
The Union Soil and Water Conservation District and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibit discrimination in their programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs
and marital or familial status.
Upcoming Events
November 11, 2013 - Veteran’s Day Holiday - Office Closed November 14, 2013 - Union SWCD Board Meeting - 6:00 PM Ag Center - Conservation Mtg. Room November 17, 2013 - Union County Sheriff’s Office Benefit Turkey Shoot 15146 US RT 36, Marysville OH 10 AM - 4 PM November 28, 2013 - Thanksgiving Day Holiday - Office Closed December 12, 2013 - Union SWCD Board Meeting - 6:00 PM Ag Center - Conservation Mtg. Room December 24, 2013 - Christmas Eve - Office Closed December 25, 2013 - Christmas Day Holiday - Office Closed January 1, 2014 - New Year’s Day Holiday - Office Closed
Would you like to receive Conservation News by email on a quarterly basis? Email [email protected] to be included on our list.
Union SWCD Seeks 2013 Affiliate Members
The Union SWCD is presently seeking Affiliate Members for 2014. Affiliate members are businesses or individuals that assist and support the SWCD by making contributions which go towards soil and water conservation/natural resource education efforts. Such efforts include displays, pond clinics, tours, camp scholarships, and school presentations.
All affiliate members will be listed in the Union SWCD Annual Report, Annual Meeting Program, Quarterly Newsletters and on the SWCD website.
This year the following affiliate memberships are available:
Diamond Membership -$500 or more; Platinum Membership – $250-$499;
Gold Membership - $100-$249; Silver Membership – $50-$99.
For more information, please contact the Union SWCD at 937/642-5871 x113, or by visiting the office located at 18000 SR 4, Suite B, Marysville, Ohio.