Iowa Beef Center to Host Fencing and Grazing Clinic

The 2023 Fencing and Grazing Clinic, organized and hosted by the Iowa Beef Center and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, is set for May 16 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Iowa State University Armstrong Memorial Research and Demonstration Farm near Lewis, in southwest Iowa.

Erika Lundy-Woolfolk, beef specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach, said the clinic is timely and practical. There is no cost to attend the event, but preregistration is required.

“By holding this clinic in May, we hope participants will be able to take more information they’ve learned and put it to use this grazing season,” she said. “Attendees will learn about new fencing tools and technology, managing paddocks and unwanted forages to improve productivity and more.”

Lundy-Woolfolk and Iowa Beef Center extension program specialist Beth Reynolds are planning the daylong event, which will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Wallace Learning Center, at the farm, 53020 Hitchcock Ave., Lewis.

“In the morning, our hands-on learning includes a permanent and temporary fencing demonstration led by Gallagher, and a group activity on designing paddocks within your pasture, led by NRCS,” Lundy-Woolfolk said. “We’ve also planned classroom sessions on identifying and managing weeds in pastures, water quality and building a grazing calendar.”

Topics and confirmed speakers are:

• New Tools in Fencing – Brad Cochran and Brad Ketchum, Gallagher.
• Building your Paddocks – Kayla Creek, Natural Resources Conservation Service.
• Red Flag Forages – Aaron Saeugling, ISU Extension and Outreach field agronomist.
• Planning a Grazing Calendar – Beth Reynolds and Erika Lundy-Woolfolk, Iowa Beef Center.
• Water Quality: Testing, Interpreting, and Impact on Performance – Garland Dahlke, Iowa Beef Center.

There is no cost to attend thanks to the event sponsors: Gallagher, Iowa Forage and Grassland Council, Theisen’s, Millborn Seeds, Iowa State Beef Checkoff Program, Practical Farmers of Iowa and Dairyland Laboratories Inc.