Farmers of the Sugar River plan annual meeting

Jim Leverich gives a presentation at last year’s annual meeting of the Farmers of the Sugar River at the Albany Lions Club. The annual meeting is a chance for farmers to network with neighbors, learn tips and tricks from other farmers to make no-till and cover crops work better on their fields, and to find out how the producer-led group can help them achieve their goals.

sugar river farmers meeting — Jim Leverich gives a presentation at last year’s annual meeting of the Farmers of the Sugar River at the Albany Lions Club. The annual meeting is a chance for farmers to network with neighbors, learn tips and tricks from other farmers to make no-till and cover crops work better on their fields, and to find out how the producer-led group can help them achieve their goals.

ALBANY — Area producers and farmers may attend the annual meeting of the Farmers of the Sugar River Wednesday, Feb. 26 at the Albany Lions Club, 402 Cincinnati St. Sign-in starts at 10 a.m. Introductions and program kick off will be at 10:30 a.m. Resources will be previewed so attendees are aware of the abundance of information available.

Two Wisconsin farmers will share their experiences as to why and how they make no till and cover crops work on their farms. Adam Lasch will share his experiences with interseeding, mixed species intercropping and expanded rotations. Albany Lions Club will serve a hot roast beef lunch. The Farmers of the Sugar River will give an update to what the group is planning for 2020. Aaron Augustian will present “Building a more sustainable, profitable no-till dairy operation.” The afternoon will finish with Frank Lessiter, founder of the No-Till Farmer magazine, sharing stories of no-till from his time in the industry.

Adam Lasch and his wife own and operate a highly diversified crop and livestock operation near Lake Geneva. Lasch has noticed drastic improvements in his soil quality, water infiltration, soil biology, nutrient cycling and decreased inputs since going 100% no-till and adding cover crops. Aaron Augustian and his brother manage 1,200 cows and youngstock, no-till 1,100 acres and participate in the Door-Kewaunee Watershed Demonstration Farm Network. Augustian will share results of their cover crop and low disturbance manure application program, as well as- data they’ve generated with a water-monitoring station as they seek to mitigate the risk of groundwater and surface water contamination.

Contact Tonya Gratz at the Green County LWCD to RSVP for the event at 608-325-4195 ext. 121 or by email: Tonya.Gratz@wi.nacdnet.net by Feb. 21 for a lunch count. There will be a charge at the door to help offset the costs of the event.

For more information on the group and past events, visit https://greencountylwcd.com/farmers-of-the-sugar-river/ or contact the Green County Land and Water Conservation Department located at 1627 4th Ave. West, Monroe.

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