Plenty of spring farming work is underway around Green County and the agricultural community has the opportunity to lean on University of Wisconsin-Extension Green County Agricultural Agent Mark Mayer, an area native who has 32 years of experience.
Mayer said he's a believer in the "Wisconsin Idea," which fosters the public university's contributions to the state, especially to local communities.
"That's the forefront of our mission, and we take university research and use it in the field in local communities to help citizens," Mayer said.
Mayer was hired in 1985 as a dairy and livestock agent, but at the time the state was going through a series of budget cuts and a local horticulture agent was eliminated. So, Mayer became the county's only ag agent.
Flash forward to 2017 and Mayer is a full professor with the UW System and a department head with 20 percent of his job going toward administration and 80 percent going to work in the field.
He works on a variety of projects, none too big or too small. He may be identifying insects one day, and then helping design a ventilation system for a building the next day.
"No two days are alike, and this is an opportunity to help people and better lives," Mayer said.
He likes visiting farms, but technology has changed how he handles questions. Last year he had more than 8,000 direct contacts for information or help. Many of those are phone calls and more and more are becoming emails.
Mayer has developed an agriculture plastic recycling program for Wisconsin: He saw how much No. 4 plastic was being used as farmers switched from upright silos to using plastic forage bags.
By recycling No. 4 plastic instead of sending it to a landfill or having it burned, a great environmental positive has occurred. It's estimated that 40,000 cubic yards of landfill space has been saved under Mayer's program.
The pilot program Mayer started had 14 farms in 2015 and 80 farms in 2016 and this year is being used statewide.
The program he developed is one of many managed through the UW-Extension agricultural service, including the Clean Sweep program, which allows people to properly dispose of hazardous waste from their homes. The UW-Extension in Green County works with many different county departments to bring the Clean Sweep program to fruition. It is a major effort by many people.
"People now know what to do with everything from old medications to an old can of gasoline that they've had sitting around for years," Mayer said. "Green County residents can get rid of their hazardous waste safely."
An agricultural agent doesn't just deal with large-scale environmentalism or agriculture. For example, Mayer oversees the UW-Extension's Master Gardener program. During this offering, a person can take 36 hours of instruction and learn how to become a better residential gardener. Mayer said the program has been a success.
Still, many things go back to what people consider traditional agriculture and Mayer often finds himself working with fifth- or sixth-generation dairy farm families. He helps them make transitions and investments from old stanchion-style barns to free-stall barns with milking parlors.
"Cows are simply larger than they used to be and a lot of farmers must do modernization to change with the times," Mayer said.
The 2012 ag census said there are 1,500 farms in Green County but that counts hobby farms and lifestyle farms. When Mayer started in Green County, there were more than 600 dairy farms. Now there are about 145. Some dairy farmers have switched to cattle operations. Herd sizes have grown.
Mayer is one of many professionals working in Green County for the UW-Extension. There are many others in a variety of programs and much more can be found online at green.uwex.edu.
The UW-Extension is again going through changes, much like it was when Mayer first arrived. The state government is making changes with the program.
"Come the first of the year, we don't know what it will be," Mayer said.
Mayer said he hopes it's as helpful to residents as it has been over the past 30-plus years he's been with the program.
- Matt Johnson is publisher of the Monroe Times. His column is published Wednesdays.
Mayer said he's a believer in the "Wisconsin Idea," which fosters the public university's contributions to the state, especially to local communities.
"That's the forefront of our mission, and we take university research and use it in the field in local communities to help citizens," Mayer said.
Mayer was hired in 1985 as a dairy and livestock agent, but at the time the state was going through a series of budget cuts and a local horticulture agent was eliminated. So, Mayer became the county's only ag agent.
Flash forward to 2017 and Mayer is a full professor with the UW System and a department head with 20 percent of his job going toward administration and 80 percent going to work in the field.
He works on a variety of projects, none too big or too small. He may be identifying insects one day, and then helping design a ventilation system for a building the next day.
"No two days are alike, and this is an opportunity to help people and better lives," Mayer said.
He likes visiting farms, but technology has changed how he handles questions. Last year he had more than 8,000 direct contacts for information or help. Many of those are phone calls and more and more are becoming emails.
Mayer has developed an agriculture plastic recycling program for Wisconsin: He saw how much No. 4 plastic was being used as farmers switched from upright silos to using plastic forage bags.
By recycling No. 4 plastic instead of sending it to a landfill or having it burned, a great environmental positive has occurred. It's estimated that 40,000 cubic yards of landfill space has been saved under Mayer's program.
The pilot program Mayer started had 14 farms in 2015 and 80 farms in 2016 and this year is being used statewide.
The program he developed is one of many managed through the UW-Extension agricultural service, including the Clean Sweep program, which allows people to properly dispose of hazardous waste from their homes. The UW-Extension in Green County works with many different county departments to bring the Clean Sweep program to fruition. It is a major effort by many people.
"People now know what to do with everything from old medications to an old can of gasoline that they've had sitting around for years," Mayer said. "Green County residents can get rid of their hazardous waste safely."
An agricultural agent doesn't just deal with large-scale environmentalism or agriculture. For example, Mayer oversees the UW-Extension's Master Gardener program. During this offering, a person can take 36 hours of instruction and learn how to become a better residential gardener. Mayer said the program has been a success.
Still, many things go back to what people consider traditional agriculture and Mayer often finds himself working with fifth- or sixth-generation dairy farm families. He helps them make transitions and investments from old stanchion-style barns to free-stall barns with milking parlors.
"Cows are simply larger than they used to be and a lot of farmers must do modernization to change with the times," Mayer said.
The 2012 ag census said there are 1,500 farms in Green County but that counts hobby farms and lifestyle farms. When Mayer started in Green County, there were more than 600 dairy farms. Now there are about 145. Some dairy farmers have switched to cattle operations. Herd sizes have grown.
Mayer is one of many professionals working in Green County for the UW-Extension. There are many others in a variety of programs and much more can be found online at green.uwex.edu.
The UW-Extension is again going through changes, much like it was when Mayer first arrived. The state government is making changes with the program.
"Come the first of the year, we don't know what it will be," Mayer said.
Mayer said he hopes it's as helpful to residents as it has been over the past 30-plus years he's been with the program.
- Matt Johnson is publisher of the Monroe Times. His column is published Wednesdays.
