Archive for the ‘Workshop’ Category

UMaine Extension Offers Workshops for Sheep and Goat Producers

Monday, May 6th, 2013

two goats; photo by Edwin RemsbergUniversity of Maine Cooperative Extension is offering FAMACHA workshops this spring for sheep and goat producers interested in learning more about an internal parasite of small ruminants. The practical workshops will show producers how to determine the degree of infection from the barber pole worm (Haemonchus contorutus) by observing the blood color of the capillaries around the eyes of sheep or goats. The workshops will be presented by two members of UMaine Extension’s sheep research team: Thomas Settlemire and Richard Brzozowski. Participants will receive an information packet and record sheets. The workshop fee is $20 per farm. The two-hour workshops are offered three times:

  • Sunday, May 19, 10 a.m.-noon, at Northeast Livestock Expo on the Windsor Fairgrounds, Windsor, Maine
  • Saturday, June 1, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Maine Fiber Frolic on the Windsor Fairgrounds, Windsor, Maine
  • Saturday, June 15, 2013, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., MOFGA Farm & Homestead Day, Unity, Maine

Settlemire and Brzozowski are experienced in sheep production and applied research in breeding natural resistance to the barber pole worm. When sheep and goat producers learn the FAMACHA technique and apply it to their livestock, they are apt to have a more productive herd. They also save on deworming because of this targeted approach and select those animals for breeding that are resistant. For more information or to request disability accommodations, call 207.781.6099 or 1.800.287.1471 (in Maine only).

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Upcoming Hands-on Workshop: Assistive Technology and Farming with a Disability

Friday, March 22nd, 2013

Friday, April 19, 2013
9:00 AM to 3:30 PM; check-in starts at 8:30
Elk’s Club, 397 Civic Center Drive, Augusta, ME

Cost: $25.00

Register online or contact us at 207.944.1533 or maine.agrability@maine.edu.

This hands-on workshop provides participants with an overview of hundreds of assistive technology solutions that can be created in minutes using everyday tools and materials found around the farm or in rural communities. Participants will learn amazing uses for 42 different tools and materials for fabricating quick solutions in rural remote areas without the need for electricity.

Farming values the family working together to take care of the land, animals and farmstead. Farm families are frequently challenged with limited time and resources and are in need of an immediate fix to a challenging situation. When a farmer experiences a disability this sense of urgency is even more important. The assistive technology solutions and methods developing and providing these solutions benefit everyone in all life functions at home, school, work and play.

Dr. Therese Willkomm, PhD, ATP, is an amazing Assistive Technology magician who has invented over 600 different Assistive Technology solutions including 50 different iPad solutions for people with disabilities. Dr. Willkomm holds a PhD in rehabilitation science and technology and is the director of New Hampshire’s state wide Assistive Technology program.  She is also a clinical professor in the Department of occupational therapy at UNH and oversees the graduate certificate program in Assistive Technology. She also has over 25 years of experience assisting over 1,200 farmers with disabilities. Dr. Willkomm was the first project coordinator of Breaking New Ground in the Agricultural Engineering Department at Purdue University and has developed over 30 different resources on farming with a disability.

Maine AgrAbility is a non-profit collaboration of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, Goodwill Industries of Northern New England, and Alpha One. Maine AgrAbility is part of a nationwide network of United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs begun through the 1990 Farm Bill. The goal of the National AgrAbility Project is to inform, educate, and assist farmers, ranchers, farm workers, and their families with disabilities, so they can continue to have successful careers in agriculture.

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You Can Program Series: Farm Direct Market Ideas & Tips

Friday, February 1st, 2013

DOVER-FOXCROFT: You will learn tips and techniques for getting the word out to potential customers for your agriculture products from Donna Coffin in the next workshop in the YOU CAN series to be held, Wednesday, February 27th from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension Piscataquis County Office at 165 East Main St., Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426.

Even though times are tough, YOU CAN sustain your family! The Piscataquis Valley Adult Education Cooperative and the University of Maine Cooperative Extension have put together a series of workshops that will give you the skills to get started in self-sufficiency.

The cost of this workshop is $5 and you can register through PVAEC, 48 Morton Ave., Suite M, Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426 or call 564-6525 or register online at http://bit.ly/pyoucan.

Different customers have different preferences for learning about local products. We will discuss the variety of ways you can contact customers including business cards, flyers, community groups, traditional media, Internet, email, Facebook, etc.

Donna Coffin is the University of Maine Cooperative Extension Educator in Piscataquis County for over 30 years. Her area of expertise includes sustainable agriculture and home horticulture. She received her Master of Science degree from the University of Maine in Animal Science in the area of animal nutrition.

For more information or to request a disability accommodation, call 564-3301 or in Maine 1-800-287-1491.

About University of Maine Cooperative Extension:

As a trusted resource for almost 100 years, University of Maine Cooperative Extension has supported UMaine’s land and sea grant public education role by conducting community-driven, research-based programs in every Maine county.

UMaine Extension helps support, sustain and grow the food-based economy. It is the only entity in our state that touches every aspect of the Maine Food System, where policy, research, production, processing, commerce, nutrition, and food security and safety are integral and interrelated. UMaine Extension also conducts the most successful out-of-school youth educational program in Maine through 4-H.

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UMaine Extension Starting Agritourism Initiative

Tuesday, November 6th, 2012

Farm-based tourism, known as agritourism, can provide farmers with significant supplemental income, especially for smaller operations. University of Cooperative Extension, which recognizes the economic impact agritourism can have on individual farmers, is devoting a new program area focusing on educating, promoting, and supporting agritourism opportunities throughout Maine’s farming community.

UMaine Extension’s Marc Edwards, a tourism and economic development professional, will present the program, “An Introduction to Growing Tourism on the Farm,” in two locations this month. Edwards will be at UMaine Extension’s Androscoggin/Sagadahoc counties offices, located at 24 Main St. in Lisbon Falls, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Nov. 8. The second session will be at UMaine Extension’s Franklin County office at 138 Pleasant Street, Suite 1, in Farmington from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Nov. 15.

The sessions are open to the public and cost $25 for materials.

The program is intended for new and existing farmers currently not engaging in agritourism activities, but who may be considering developing agritourism on their farms. It will bring awareness of agritourism opportunities and the potential for farmers to benefit from developing agritourism on their farms.

After attending this program, participants will have a general understanding of agritourism, and will be able to identify at least one potential agritourism activity on their farm. Participants will also be able to identify the first three basic steps towards developing agritourism on their farm.

What defines agritourism, according to Edwards, can range from roadside stands and pick-your-own operations to farmers markets and on-farm retail stores.

“It really depends on who you ask,” he says. “There are many definitions out there.”

A 2006 UMaine report estimated Maine farms that incorporate agritourism activities generated total farm sales of $65.6 million. Agritourism activities accounted for about 43 percent ($28.3 million) of the total sales on those farms. These sales supported 1,762 full- and part-time jobs, or 39 percent of all hired workers on agritourism farms.

UMaine is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action institution. To provide adequate time to respond to your request please provide as much notice as possible.

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