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The Rockingham County Extension Office is hosting a crabgrass seed pool. The variety we are offering this year is Quick-n-Big Spreader, developed by Dalrymple Farms of Thomas, Oklahoma. This is an improved forage crabgrass with an upright growth form plus the capacity to spread, ideal for sacrifice pastures, feeding areas, or as a summer forage component in thinning pastures. A […]

The VFGC would like to feature more good photos from different farms around the state in the annual grazing calendar. To encourage you to send in your best photos, we have decided to have a contest. Who is eligible:  Anyone can submit a photo, but to win one of the prizes you have to be a dues paying member of […]

The USDA fact sheets described below were developed from a Conservation Innovation Grant with Virginia Tech titled, Demonstrating conversion of wildtype to novel endophyte fescue pastures for greater livestock performance and better environmental outcomes. Follow this link https://vaforages.org/resources/publications/ to the Publications tab to view the fact sheets and learn more about fescue toxicosis, fescue sampling, strategies for mitigation, conversion to […]

Matt Booher, Rockingham County Extension Agent, has started a weekly digital forage mini-newsletter. If you would like to get on the email list to receive this, please contact Matt at mrbooher@vt.edu.  

Keith Tuck, Tuck Farms, Moneta VA Keith Tuck owns and operates a commercial cow-calf operation in an all grass production system. He typically carries 100 cow-calf pairs and develops about 15-20 replacement heifers. The farm is located just north of Smith Mountain Lake in Moneta, VA, in southern Bedford County. Historically this had been a tobacco farm and about 20 […]

Demonstrating conversion of tall fescue to native warm season grasses for greater livestock performance and better environmental outcomes Project Background While tall fescue (Schedonorous arundinaceus) is the predominant forage species in Virginia pasture systems, the species has limited productivity during the summer months. In addition, most of the tall fescue in Virginia is infected with an endophyte that produces ergot […]

The Grazing School originally scheduled for May 12-13, 2020, in Glade Spring has to be cancelled for now due to the uncertain conditions regarding the Corona virus and the Governor’s stay at home order through June 10th.  Everyone who sent in registration checks will get refunded in full.  If possible we will try to reschedule this grazing school in the […]

Please contact John Fike at jfike@vt.edu or Gabriel Pent at gpent@vt.edu regarding these events. Are you interested in starting a pasture-finished beef operation or improving your existing forage-finished beef operation? If so, consider attending one of the upcoming Pasture-Finished Beef Production Meetings held at three convenient locations around Virginia. These workshops are part of a collaborative effort between Virginia Tech, […]

Sign up now for the 2020 Novel Tall Fescue Renovation Workshop hosted by Virginia Tech and the Alliance for Grassland Renewal. Remember when Dr. Dan Undersander reminded us of the danger of being penny wise and pound foolish at the 2020 VFGC winter conferences? Specifically, Dr. Undersander mentioned how novel endophyte tall fescue can often increase cow conception rates and […]

Demonstrating conversion of wildtype to novel endophyte fescue pastures for greater livestock performance and better environmental outcomes Project Background  Tall fescue is the predominant forage species used in animal production systems across the upper Southeast, but it is the host for a fungus that produces alkaloids that are toxic to livestock. Environmental concerns relative to pasture systems may have strong […]