Gallia Soil and Water Conservation District

Established October 6, 1944

Newsletter

Meet the Candidates for Supervisor

For term January, 2009-December, 2011

 

 

 

Lawrence resides with his wife Judy in Raccoon Township.  They have 4 children.  Lawrence owns and operates a beef /forage operation.  He has completed several conservation practices on his farm, which includes spring developments, waterways, drainage practices, livestock waste management, winter feeding facility and woodlot improvement practices.  His farm consists of approximately 200 acres and he rents approximately 100 additional acres.  He has served as a Soil and Water Supervisor for 23 years, serving on the State Education Committee and Area V Directors.  In 2005, he was elected to served as Secretary/Treasurer of the Ohio Federation of Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and currently serves as the Vice-President. 

 

 

David was born and raised on the family farm in Walnut Township, being the oldest son of Merrill and Marguerite Carter.  He graduated from Southwestern High School and The Ohio State University where he received a B.S. degree in Agronomy and a M.S. degree in Agriculture Education.  After graduating, he spent 5 years as a Vo Ag teacher at Hannan Trace High School.  He then left Gallia County to reside in Butler County where for 27 1/2 years he was District Administrator for Butler Soil and Water Conservation District.  David has two children, Le Ann of Cincinnati and Evan, a student at OSU.  He now resides on the family farm which consists of 290 acres and is presently being leased for production of beef cattle.  He promotes conservation by planning, maintaining and installing a variety of  conservation practices  on his farm. He has been a Supervisor for 3 years and  is currently an Area V Director of the Ohio Federation of Soil and Water Conservation Districts and Vice-President of Ohio Valley Resource Conservation & Development Council.

 

 

Mark E. Neal II

 

 

Mark is a 5th generation cattleman with a 280 acre family commercial cow/calf operation.  He graduated from Southwestern High School and went on to attend The Ohio State University/ATI for Beef Production.  He is the owner of Neal Brother’s Cattle Company and is employed  at United Producers Inc., Gallipolis.  Mark raised the Grand Champion Heifer and was third overall with the Born and Raised in Gallia County Fair Steer.   He was a director of the Gallia Co. Cattleman’s Association, the president of the Southeastern Ohio Angus Association, and the Ohio Angus Association Director. In 1992, he received his state FFA Degree and was the Ohio Farm Bureau regional winner of Young Farmers.  He presently is on the village council of Rio Grande and has a 6 year old son, who is a first grader at Washington Elementary. 

 

Dormant Seeding May Be Your Best Bet

   Traditionally in Ohio, warm and cool season grasses are seeded in early spring through May when soil temperatures and conditions allow.  Dormant seedings, on the other hand, are done from December 1 to March 14 for cool season grasses and from November 1 to March 14 for warm season species.  When the soil temperature is 50 degrees Fahrenheit or cooler, the seeds will remain dormant and not germinate until the soil warms up again in the spring. There are several reasons why dormant seeding may be your best option.  Spring seedings occur during a busy time of the year for many producers.  Winter seedings, on the other hand, can be made when there is more time for field work. Dormant seeding also extends the window of opportunity by 4 months, allowing more time to wait until the soil conditions are just right for seeding, thereby, reducing the potential for soil compaction.  If you are dependent on a contractor or farmer who has the proper equipment to make the seeding for you, the winter seeding again provides more time for them to work you into their schedule.  Warm season grass seedings especially benefit from dormant seeding.  The freezing and thawing over winter can stratify “hard” seed, helping it to germinate in the spring when soil temperatures warm.  It also helps the seed to “settle in” the soil providing good seed to soil contact and better germination.  Under natural conditions, seed is produced in the fall and lies dormant over winter, ready to germinate in the spring, so a dormant seeding better mimics nature.  While a dormant seeding can be a good alternative, there are several things to consider and steps to follow to help ensure a successful planting.

Seed Selection  The type of seed chosen will vary depending on the intended use of the area.  Grasses and legumes selected for forages will be different than grasses selected for wildlife habitat as a field border.  The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service has a seeding table that outlines the grasses and legumes suitable for different uses and provides formulas for calculating seeding rates.  This table can be found in the Ohio Field Office Technical Guide (FOTG) located on the web by visiting http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/efotg  and clicking on Ohio and selecting any county.  The table is in Appendix A of Section IV.  A caution is given when purchasing seed to make sure that the seed comes from a vendor that is registered with the Ohio Department of Agriculture.  When dormant seeding, NRCS recommends increasing the seeding rate by 25 percent.

Site Preparation  This is a critical component of a successful seeding.  Good soil contact is necessary for good germination; however, planting too deep may result in a planting failure.   How the seed bed is prepared will depend on the ground cover prior to planting, the planting method chosen, and the type of seed.  The same equipment used for planting seed during the spring can be used during the dormant season, provided there is no snow cover or the area is not frozen too hard.   The area may need to be prepared ahead of time; reducing the amount of residue.  Light tillage may need to be completed late in the fall.  Broadcast seeding warm season grasses into stubble may help reduce seed movement from wind and water erosion.  Seed can be broadcast on frozen ground and snow melt may carry the seed down into small pockets of soil.  (There needs to 50 percent bare exposed soil; seeds applied on top or in residue will not grow.)

Application Rate and Method  The application rate and methods will vary depending on the seed.  Broadcast seeding, no-till seeding, and conventional seeding are all acceptable methods of seeding depending on the conditions of the area and the seed.  The seeding table in Appendix A of the Ohio FOTG also gives recommendations for varying ground cover (clean seed bed vs. planting into corn, bean, or wheat stubble) and seeding methods depending on the intended use of the planting.  For example, the grasses planted for forages may be different than the grasses planted for wildlife cover.  Therefore, these different grasses will need to be planted at different rates as per the recommendations in the FOTG.  Landowners considering a dormant seeding should contact their local NRCS office to determine if their conservation plan needs to be modified from spring planting to dormant seeding and to receive technical assistance. 

Conservation begins with you for a better tomorrow. 

Joe & Cindy Dailey host September 24th County Soil Judging

 

Individual Ag—First: Ben Schrock (RV), Second: Leah Stumbo (SG),

Third: Zane Carroll (RV)

Individual Urban—First/Second (tie):  Morgan Daniels and Kayla

 Harrison, Third (tie): Tyler Davis, Andrea Withee (all GAHS)

Team Ag: River Valley HS -1050 points—Ben Schrock, Zane Carroll,

Alisha Green and Chris Diamond (tie)

Team Urban: Gallia Academy -  1591 points—

Morgan Daniels and Kayla Harrison, (tie)

Tyler Davis and Andrea Withee (tie)

Scenes from the 2008 Gallia County Fair

Nick Mills

Presenting award

Wanted:  Affiliate Members

 

Last year we awarded our 6th education scholarship to Elizabeth Ann Payne, a student at Ohio State University and a major in Animal Science.  This $500 scholarship was made possible through affiliate membership donations.  Again, this year, we are offering another $500 scholarship to an individual of Gallia County, pursuing a college education in agriculture, environmental sciences, forestry, wildlife, or other natural science fields.  The affiliate donations also assist the District with conservation-related education of the public on both youth and adult levels.

 

The 2008-2009 Affiliate Members will be honored at the Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet on Thursday, November 6, 2008 at 7:00 p.m.  This will be held at the First Church of the Nazarene in Gallipolis.  An affiliate member is entitled to one free banquet ticket with their membership.  Additional tickets may be purchased through our office.

 

If you are interested in becoming an affiliate member and wish to support the District, please complete the enclosed form and make checks payable to the Gallia SWCD.  Return it with your reservations for the banquet by November 3, 2008

SWCD Booth