Getting More From Your Milk

Thursday, August 8, 2024 · 9 am–12:30 pm

Alberta, Virginia

This event has been cancelled. Please see the full calendar for more events.

Extending the Sheep & Goat Grazing Season Virtual Pasture Walk

Thursday, August 31, 2023 · 7–8 pm

This workshop has been canceled. For more information, contact Mandy Fletcher at 804-892-0108 or afletcher@vsu.edu.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact the Small Farm Outreach Program office at smallfarm@vsu.edu or call (804) 524-3292 / TDD (800) 828-1120 during business hours of 8 am. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations five days prior to the event.

Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments. Its programs and employment are open to all, regardless of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, military status, or any other basis protected by law.

Get More From Your Milk

March 30, 2023 • 1–4 pm

Alberta, Virginia

Stacey West will host this workshop at her dairy farm, Golden View Guernseys, in Alberta, Va. She will demonstrate how she makes value-added products for her herd-share customers by modifying A2/A2 whole milk, from which she produces cream, buttermilk, butter and yogurt. To learn how to expand your milk production to include value-added products, register for this workshop today.

Space is limited to 12 participants.

For more information, contact Marilyn Estes at 804-481-0485 or mestes@vsu.edu.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact the Small Farm Outreach Program office at smallfarm@vsu.edu or call (804) 524-3292 / TDD (800) 828-1120 during business hours of 8 am. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations five days prior to the event.

Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments. Its programs and employment are open to all, regardless of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, military status, or any other basis protected by law.

2023 Eastern VA Forage Conference

Thursday, March 23, 2023 · 8:30 am–2:15 pm 

White Oak Volunteer Fire Department, 12 Newton Rd Fredericksburg VA 22405

Familiarize yourself with essential knowledge to help your livestock operation be successful! Topics will include:

• Economics of Hay vs. Grazing: Dr. John Fike, Virginia Tech Forage Specialist

• Basics of Forage Identification: Dr. Kathryn Payne, Applied Forage Systems Specialist, SPAREC

• Weed Management: Dr. Michael Flessner, Associate Professor of Plant Pathology, Physiology, and Weed Science

• Warm Season Grass Manadement: B. Daniel. Grass and Agronomist ot USDA-NRCS

• Lunch & Learn, Compensatory Yield Responses to Defoliation Management: Dr. Vitalis Temu, Virginia State University Associate Professor - Research (Small Ruminants & Forage Ecology)

In the afternoon, we will travel to Aspen Grove Farm, and visit with Janet Harris, Owner/Operator.

For more information, contact Mary Zulauf at 540-656-2401, or email education@tccswcd.org.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact the Small Farm Outreach Program office at smallfarm@vsu.edu or call (804) 524-3292 / TDD (800) 828-1120 during business hours of 8 am. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations five days prior to the event.

Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments. Its programs and employment are open to all, regardless of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, military status, or any other basis protected by law.

Changes to Livestock Antibiotic Regulations in 2023

Thursday, February 9, 2023 · 7–8 pm

Zoom Event

Dr. Chris Fletcher D.V.M., a large animal veterinarian, will provide instruction for livestock producers on the following topics: 

• Brief history of antibiotic use in the U.S., including examples of antibiotic resistance 

• Recent changes involving veterinary feed directive and using antibiotics 

• New and upcoming changes to all livestock antibiotics in June 2023 

• Adopting good stewardship when using antibiotics 

A question and answer session will wrap up the meeting.

For more information, contact Mandy Fletcher at 804-892-0108 or afletcher@vsu.edu.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact the Small Farm Outreach Program office at smallfarm@vsu.edu or call (804) 524-3292 / TDD (800) 828-1120 during business hours of 8 am. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations five days prior to the event.

Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments. Its programs and employment are open to all, regardless of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, military status, or any other basis protected by law.

Managing Cattle in Today’s World

Wednesday, December 7, 2022 • 3–5 pm

VCE Greensville Office, 105 Oak St, Emporia, VA 23847

Join us for updates about the current status of tick-borne illnesses in cattle, recommended immunizations and general health updates from Dr. John Currin, DVM with the Virginia-Maryland School of Veterinary Medicine. VA Cooperative Extension agents Cynthia Gregg and Taylor Clarke will provide information on grazing management. Dr. Kathryn Payne will discuss her current research at the Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center and the importance of forage and hay testing for analysis. In addition, Dr. Payne’s graduate student will discuss his research on the integration of legumes with warm-season grasses for grazing. Finally, we will get an update on the research happening at Virginia State University from Austin Hilliard, cattle manager at Randolph Farm.

Space is limited to 20 participants.

For more information, contact Marilyn Estes at 804-481-0485 or mestes@vsu.edu.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact the Small Farm Outreach Program office at smallfarm@vsu.edu or call (804) 524-3292 / TDD (800) 828-1120 during business hours of 8 am. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations five days prior to the event.

Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments. Its programs and employment are open to all, regardless of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, military status, or any other basis protected by law.

Beekeeping For The Beginner

Saturday, November 12, 2022 · 10 am–12 pm

Unionville, VA

Beekeeping is a pleasurable and rewarding activity if you love to see nature at work. This workshop will help you become a good beekeeper, whether you intend to start keeping bees or already have them. The class is designed to help both new and inexperienced beekeepers in setting up or improving their style of working with and understanding bees. If you want to learn the basics of beekeeping, register for this class. There is no one correct way to keep bees.

Space is limited to 20 participants

For more information, contact Roland Terrell at 804-892-4612 or rterrell@vsu.edu; or Michael Carter Sr at 804-481-1163 or mcarter@vsu.edu.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact the Small Farm Outreach Program office at smallfarm@vsu.edu or call (804) 524-3292 / TDD (800) 828-1120 during business hours of 8 am. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations five days prior to the event.

Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments. Its programs and employment are open to all, regardless of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, military status, or any other basis protected by law.

Preparing for Honeybees: New Hives and Hive Expansion

Wednesday, March 23, 2022 • 9:00 AM - 12:30 PM

VSU Randolph Farm Pavilion, 4415 River Road, Petersburg, VA 23803

Our state apiarist, Keith Tignor, will present a classroom lecture followed by a hands-on demonstration at the VSU apiary. This workshop is designed for people interested in getting started in beekeeping and beginning beekeepers with less than five years of experience. Topics will include bee ecology, hive components and construction, beekeeping equipment, bee nucs, bee packages, feeding and caring for bees, integrated pest management, and colony collapse disorder. Those attending the hands-on portion of this workshop must bring their own bee suit, wear closed-toe footwear and light-colored clothes, and be fragrance-free in order to enter the bee apiary.

For more information, contact the Small Farm Outreach Program at (804) 524-3292 or smallfarm@vsu.edu.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact the Small Farm Outreach Program office at smallfarm@vsu.edu or call (804) 524-3292 / TDD (800) 828-1120 during business hours of 8 am. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations five days prior to the event.

Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments. Its programs and employment are open to all, regardless of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, military status, or any other basis protected by law.

Small Ruminant On-Line FAMACHA Certificate Program

Thursday, April 9 • 9AM-11AM

You are invited to a Zoom meeting.

Petersburg, VA 23806

Despite opportunities for success in sheep and goat production, parasite control and anthelmintic resistance are major problems faced by producers. In order to help producers address the challenges of internal parasites on the farm, the American Consortium for Small Ruminant Parasite Control (ACSRPC; www.acsrcp.org) was formed. The objective has been to develop research-based options to make up a toolbox of practices for controlling internal parasites on farms. This workshop emphasizes the use of multiple techniques, such as pasture management and strategic deworming, for the effective control of internal parasites. This is important to assist producers in prolonging the efficacy of chemical dewormers on their farms.

Presented by

Dr. Dahlia O’Brien, Small Ruminant Specialist, Virginia State University
Dr. Niki Whitley, Small Ruminant Specialist, Fort Valley State University

Register in advance for this meeting

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

For more information, contact the Small Ruminants Program office at mjklingman@vsu.edu.