STEUBENVILLE -- Learn all about management intensive grazing through Pastures for Profit classes being offered in Harrison, Jefferson and Carroll counties as a three-part series this year.
Anyone interested in pasture management and forages is welcome to join the course, and those new to livestock and hay production are encouraged to participate, explained Erika Lyon, agriculture and natural resources educator, Ohio State University Extension
Topics covered include management intensive grazing, goal-setting, improving soil fertility and forage growth, meeting animal needs, water quality, paddock design, grazing economics and year-round grazing.
The Pastures for Profit program is a long-standing collaboration between Ohio State University Extension, USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, Ohio Federation of Soil and Water Conservation Districts, Ohio Department of Agriculture, Eastern Ohio Grazing Council and the Ohio Forage and Grasslands Council.
The 2023 schedule for Pastures for Profit is as follows:
– Part I: Feb. 13, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Harrison County Fairgrounds Commercial Building, 550 Grant St., Cadiz -- Core Grazing Principles;
– Part II: Feb. 27, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Eastern Gateway Community College Lecture Hall, 4000 Sunset Blvd., Steubenville -- Science of Grazing; and
– Part III: March 13, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., at the Carroll County Extension Office, 540 High St. NW, Carrollton -- Meeting Your Grazing Goals.
The cost is $55 per person, which includes a meal for each session and a copy of the Pastures for Profit manual. Pre-registration is required by Feb. 10 by calling the Extension office at (740) 264-2212.