I hope that everyone has had a great holiday season.  We took the time to travel back to West Virginia to spend Christmas with all the family, and everyone did their own thing during New Years.  I enjoy seeing the family despite all the travel, even though it is only a 4-hour drive, we are happy to be home. I am excited to kick off the OSU Extension – Wayne County program season.  This week, if you are a subscriber, you should have received the latest edition of our Ag and Natural Resources Newsletter.  If you are getting it by mail, it should arrive to you shortly.  On the back page is a list of programs that we will be offering over the next three to four months, and I would like to highlight all of those today.

Private Pesticide Applicator Recertification

Those producers that hold an Ohio private pesticide or fertilizer applicators license, and need to be recertified by March 31^st, will have five opportunities in the region.  The first will be held in conjunction with AgPro’s open house at Harvest Ridge, in Millersburg, on January 22^nd. We will have other opportunities on: January 27^th at the Mt. Hope Livestock Auction, February 6^th at Drake Park in West Salem, February 19^th at the Kidron Community Center, and March 3^rd at the Secrest Welcome Center in Wooster.  For all of these training courses, registration begins at 8:30 AM.  Pesticide recertification is from 9:00 AM to noon, and the fertilizer recertification is from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM.  The recertification fee is $35 for pesticide and $15 for fertilizer, or $50 if you need both.  As a reminder, this recertification fee is separate from the license fee that is to be paid with your license renewal paperwork that you are to send to the Ohio Department of Agriculture.

Commodity Outlook and the Basics of Commodity Marketing

We will host our 2026 Commodity Outlook program at Secrest Arboretum Welcome Center on January 20^th.  Presentations will provide market performance expectations for grains, dairy and the live cattle market.  Our speakers will be Dr. Charles Nicolson from Penn State University, Dr. Andrew Griffith from the University of Tennessee, and Lindsey Pullins Green from Stone X.  As a note, Dr. Griffith’s presentation will be virtual.  For those that would like to sharpen their commodity marketing skills, we will hold a Basics of Commodity Marketing program on February 3^rd at Secrest as well. This session will discuss how to draft a marketing plan, basic grain marketing contracts, and the use of LRP’s for marketing cattle.  I will be covering marketing plans, and we will also be joined by our Allen County Extension Educator Garth McDorman and OSU Beef Specialist Garth Ruff.  Both programs will run from 9:00 AM to noon, are free to attendees, and refreshments will be provided.  We do ask that you make a courtesy reservation in advance of each program.

Webinars

There are two webinar series that I would like to promote.  The first has been titled “All About Sheep!”.  The series, which begins on February 3^rd, is for those new to sheep production or those experienced producers that would like to brush up on some of the basics of sheep husbandry.  The webinar will held on February 3^rd, February 17^th, March 3^rd, and March 17^th from 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM.  There will be a different topic every night.  You can find out more about the program, or register, by going to the link https://go.osu.edu/allaboutsheep26.  The second series is coordinated by the OSU Extension Beef Team and will be a six-night series beginning on January 8^th for beef and dairy beef producers.  For more information, and to register, go to https://go.osu.edu/beefschool26.  Both series are free and you can attend any, or all of the individual programs.

Mark your Calendars!

There are several other programs we will be offering each week.  February 10^th we will host a beef feedlot school at Fisher Auditorium from 9:00 AM to 2:30 PM.  It will be a mix of presentations and hands-on demonstrations.  You will also get to meet our new beef nutritionist, Dr. Haley Linder, who will be covering mineral supplementation programs.  This program costs $20 per attendee and lunch will be provided.  On February 24^th I will provide a Beef Quality Assurance certification/recertification.  Our annual Agronomy Day will be February 27^th from 9:00 AM to noon.  This year we will be covering nitrogen management and small grains/cover crops for forage management.  March 14^th is the OSU Extension Small Farm Conference at the Shisler Conference Center.  March 27^th is the OSU Women in Ag Conference, also at Shisler.  Finally, beginning April 7^th, we will be hosting the first session of the OSU Extension Small Farm Business College.  This will be a four-night series and we will have details available shortly.

If you are not a newsletter subscriber, I would encourage you to contact our office to get added to the list.  If you have questions about any of these programs, or would like to register, contact me at the OSU Extension office in Wayne County by calling 330-264-8722.  You can also access individual program flyers on our website at https://wayne.osu.edu and clicking on the “events” tab.