IOWA CITY, Iowa — Susan Young, of Lucky Star Farm, will host a Practical Farmers of Iowa field day exploring pasture-raised poultry production on Saturday, Sept. 21, from 2-4 p.m., on her farm near Iowa City (2625 Highway 1 SW, about 9.5 miles southwest of town).
The event – “Rotationally Raised Poultry on Pasture” – is free to attend and will include an ice cream social after the field day. RSVPs are requested for the social by Wednesday, Sept. 18. Sign up online at practicalfarmers.org/field-days, or contact Debra Boekholder at (515) 232-5661 or debra@practicalfarmers.org. The field day is sponsored by Premier 1 Supplies and Professional Proteins, LTD.
Susan owns and operates Lucky Star Farm, located on a 20-acre stretch of land on the outskirts of Iowa City. The farm is home to about 100 chickens, a small flock of turkeys, a dozen Nigerian dwarf goats and a trio of dogs and llamas.
During the field day, Susan will share her advice for raising poultry rotationally on pasture. Guests will see her setup for raising Thanksgiving turkeys, and Susan will discuss how she has started the process of incorporating silvopasture – an agroforestry practice that integrates livestock – into her system.
Susan offers pasture-raised eggs year-round, and the day will conclude with a marketing discussion about using home delivery to sell eggs. Additional speakers will include Joe Dixon, a district conservationist with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Joe Klingelhutz, a farm specialist with the Sustainable Iowa Land Trust.
Directions to the field day are available on Practical Farmers’ website.
This event is part of Practical Farmers’ main 2019 field day season, which includes 40 events across Iowa, and the region, on topics spanning the agricultural spectrum. The field days are meant to help connect farmers with their peers for networking and farmer-to-farmer learning.
Practical Farmers’ 2019 field days are supported by several sustaining and major sponsors, including: Albert Lea Seed; Bio Till; Center for Rural Affairs; Gandy Cover Crop Seeders; Grain Millers Inc.; H.A. Wallace Chair for Sustainable Agriculture – Iowa State University; Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance; Iowa Beef Center at Iowa State University; Iowa State Department of Agronomy; La Crosse Seed; Man@Machine; MOSA Certified Organic; Niman Ranch; PepsiCo; Pipeline Foods; Premier 1 Supplies; River Valley Cooperative; Scoular; Sunderman Farm Management; Sunrise Foods International; Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education; Trees Forever; Unilever; Welter Seed & Honey Company.
— Practical Farmers of Iowa
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