Here are several upcoming field days that may be of interest to area farmers.

[naviga:h3]O’Neill farm[/naviga:h3]

A daylong grazing educational field day will be held at the A.J. O’Neill family farm in Clarion County from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Aug. 4.

The field day will provide an opportunity to absorb a great deal of information and education from well-known experts to help forage and livestock producers improve their operations in Western Pennsylvania.

Additional features of the field day will be a tour of the O’Neil farm at 799 Route 322 in Cranberry, and O’Neil’s Quality Foods Market located nearby.

A.J. O’Neil raises Devon cattle for grass-fed beef on a rotational grazing system. He has a pasture and watering system that allows him to move the cattle as often as twice a day when needed to optimize forage quality and management of his herd.

Most of the animals raised are for the family’s retail meat market, O’Neil’s Quality Foods, near Clarion.

Featured speakers for the program include Mark Bader, owner of Free Choice Enterprises in Lancaster, Wis., who will speak on the chemistry and physiology of plant, animal, and soil, including yield, volume, energy content, and the quality of various grasses.

Also presenting is Jeremy Engh, manager of Lakota Ranch in Remington, Va. The ranch specializes in Devon cattle. Lakota’s genetics have been the premier Devon genetics in this country since 1950. Engh will discuss genetic selection and most appropriate beef animals for grazing systems.

Although the main program is scheduled to conclude at 4 p.m., there will be additional optional activities continuing after 4 p.m. for those who are interested.

A session on linear measurement of cattle with Engh will take place and a tour of the O’Neil’s market will be offered.

As an added attraction, Bob Van Kirk, owner of Four Seasons Farm in Tyrone, Blair County will have a 2015 National Reserve Grand Champion Devon Bull at the farm for evaluation.

For complete information on the field day or to register for the event, head to the Events page of the Penn Soil RC&D website www.pennsoil.org.

Registration fee is $30 per person which includes a hot, catered lunch by O’Neil’s Quality Foods. The deadline for registration is today.

For more information, contact Wes Ramsey at 814-726-1441, Ext. 5.

[naviga:h3]Adaptive grazing[/naviga:h3]

Southwest Project Grass, in conjunction with the Beaver County Conservation District, will host an adaptive grazing field day in Darlington on July 30.

The event will feature two farms; Mike Carreon from McRoberts Farm and Bill and Sally Patton.

Carreon runs a cow/calf operation while the Pattons are contract graziers currently running 60 plus stockers on their operation.

After visiting a high-stock, density grazing operation last year, both have adopted many of the high-stock density practices on their own operations using frequent daily moves, reduced paddock size and tall grass grazing.

The event will look at what they’ve learned one year into this transition by taking an NRCS grazing plan to the next level. They will discuss the benefits of high-stock density grazing such as improved soil health as well as the increased economic gain from increasing stocking rates.

This field day also will feature Russ Wilson, an adaptive grazier from Forest County as well as several NRCS and conservation district staffers who will talk about adaptive grazing’s benefit on soil health and the long-term goal of improved pasture production throughout the growing season.

The cost to register is $25 and includes a hot lunch.

To register or for more information, contact Jeff Leindecker at the Beaver County Conservation District 724-378-1701 or jeff.leindecker@bccdpa.us.

[naviga:h3]Cover crops[/naviga:h3]

The Beaver County Conservation District along with NRCS will host a cover crop evening meeting from 6 to 9 p.m. Aug. 12.

The event will look at adding cover crops to your farm, what types and when covers can be added as well as grazing cover crops.

Attendees will observe soil structure benefits of long-term no-till versus tillage, water infiltration tests and hands-on soil examination to identify healthy soil characteristics.

We also will discuss the benefits of multispecies cocktails over single species, planting timing and the challenges of adding a cover to your rotation.

The event will be held at Steve and Chris Fischer’s Windy Ridge Dairy farm off Route 288, about 10 minutes outside of Zelienople.

Registration for the event is $5 to cover the cost of hot dogs and ham barbecue served from 6 to 6:30 p.m.

To register or for more information, contact Jeff Leindecker with the Beaver County Conservation District at 724-378-1701.

Andy Gaver is a conservationist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service in Butler County.