Burlington--The University of Vermont (UVM) Extension Northwest Crops and Soils Program will host the 2022 Dairy Webinar Series in February and March, featuring experts from Vermont and other states discussing a wide range of dairy-related topics.
The webinars are free with no advance registration required. They will be offered via Zoom from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Details and the Zoom link can be found at http://go.uvm.edu/conferences.
The dates and topics for the webinars are:
February 11: Manure Matters: Sustainable Dung Ecology. Bryony Sands, a UVM postdoctoral research fellow, will discuss integrated parasite management for cattle and her research on the role of insect decomposer communities in suppressing livestock parasites on pastures and the impacts of veterinary parasiticides on these processes.
February 18: Higher Forages Diet. Patrice Vincent, Belisle Solution Nutrition, will share examples of farms feeding cows high-fiber diets of forages and the impact on milk production, somatic cell count and reproduction. He also will describe what these farmers did differently with their forage production to achieve their goals. Kurt Cotanch, Barn Swallow Consulting, will help participants better understand forage analyses and how those values relate to quality.
February 23: Dairy Loose Housing Systems. For her presentation, Marcia Endres, University of Minnesota, will give an overview of compost bedded pack barns and how research and on-farm observations have provided valuable input for continued improvements.
February 25: UVM Forage and Dairy Research. Dr. Heather Darby and Sara Ziegler, UVM Extension, will provide updates on UVM forage and dairy research projects including forage trials for variety evaluations, stockpiling studies and interseeding. They also will discuss alternative milking strategies and alternative forages.
March 2: Greenhouse Gas Emissions on Organic Dairy. Farmers will hear about research on seaweed feeding of cows to reduce methane emissions from André Brito, University of New Hampshire. Dr. Horacio Aguirre-Villegas, University of Wisconsin-Madison, will talk about his work with evaluating manure management practices and technologies to reduce environmental impacts of organic dairy systems.
March 4: Genetic Considerations for Organic Dairy Herds. Dr. Glenda Pereira, University of Maine Cooperative Extension dairy specialist, will share information on crossbreeding rotations, feed efficiency of crossbreds and polled and disbudding management.
March 9: Cost of Production in Organic Dairy Systems. Jen Miller, NOFA-VT, will speak about the different dairy management systems and cost of production on 100 percent grass-fed dairy farms and organic dairy farms. Sarah Flack, a Fairfield grazing consultant, will provide UVM grass-fed dairy research data on production on 100 percent grass-fed dairy farms in the Northeast.
To request a disability-related accommodation to participate, contact Susan Brouillette at (802) 524-6501, ext. 432, two weeks in advance of the webinar.