HARRISBURG, Pa. – Are you a current no-till farmer or looking into the benefits no-till and cover cropping may provide to your farm? If so, you won’t want to miss the annual Summer Soil Health Field Days, hosted by the Pennsylvania No-Till Alliance. The two Summer Field Days – Wednesday, July 20 at Bupplyn Farm, 9715 Loop Road, Seven Valleys (York County) and Friday, July 22 at East Hill Farm, 4766 Lamor Road, Hermitage (Mercer County) – will offer informative panels and demonstrations as well as educational presentations for those in attendance. Also, new this year will be a raffle where attendees have the opportunity to win $500 of cover crop seed! Pre-register for the event by Tuesday, July 12 for free admission. After July 12, the event is $10 to attend. Further registration details may be found below.
Hosting the Field Day on both sides of the state allows for further adaptability to particular no-till and soil health experiences, based on geography and weather patterns. All are invited to attend! Due to a change in plans, we are excited to now welcome Jim Hoorman as keynote speaker. Hoorman resides in Hancock County, Ohio with his wife and son on a 40-acre farm. After working in agriculture since he was 13 years old and working 14 years as an educator for the Agricultural Extension Service, and 4 years as a National Soil Health Specialist for the USDA-NRCS, Jim started his own soil health services consulting business in 2019.
During his career, he has written fact sheets on topics ranging from understanding soil microbes to nutrient recycling to slugs to cover crop management. He also became a sought-after speaker nationally on cover crops, no-till and soil health, including trips to China and Australia. His recent focus has been related to micronutrients and their impact on plant health which will be the topic of his keynote address. Additionally, he will address using humates to improve soil health.
Also included in the field days will be a variety of breakout sessions and demonstrations including planting green into sod, rainfall simulator, ST-1 Co2 Senor use to measure in-field nitrogen, and cover crop plots.
Additionally, a Meeting of the Minds dinner and discussion will be held the evening prior to each field day. Beginning at 6 p.m., join the Alliance for in discussing current cover crop and no-till challenges, with the opportunity to converse with other dedicated farmers and industry professionals. Come out and join the conversation!
Need overnight accommodations for either event? For the July 20th field day, overnight rooms are available at The Hampton Inn (Shrewsbury). Call 717-235-9898 to reserve your room. Also, for the July 22nd field day, overnight rooms are available at The Quality Inn (Hermitage). Call 724-981-1530 to reserve your room.
If pre-registered by July 12, the Meeting of the Minds dinner, and the Field Days are FREE. Pre-register via email (jhowes@pennag.com), calling 717-574-4510, or mailing the registration form. If not pre-registered, cost to attend each event is $10, collected at the event. More event information is available at www.panotill.org.
–Kelly J. Caldwell, Pa. No-Till Alliance
