The Polk County University of Missouri Extension Council will hold their annual election from Jan. 16 thru Jan. 19. Balloting may be done online or in person at the Polk County Extension Center, 110 E Jefferson, Bolivar, Mo. The online link may be found on the extension Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/www.polkcounty.edu . Ballots may be requested to be mailed by calling the office at 417-326-4916.
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1/9/24
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The Water Protection Program received notice on Jan. 2, 2024, that Missouri Prime Beef Packers is withdrawing its permit application to use the innovative iLEAF technology for discharge to the Pomme de Terre watershed. This permit application was the subject of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources Draft Notice of Intent to Deny Missouri State Operating Permit MO-0113204, Nov. 7, 2023, and a public meeting scheduled for Jan. 6, 2024. As the department no longer has a permit application to consider or deny, a public hearing is no longer necessary. By way of this announcement, the department is notifying the public and interested parties that the public hearing scheduled for Jan. 6, 2024, is hereby canceled. No future public meetings for this site are scheduled at this time.
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1/4/24
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Missouri Farm Bureau wrapped up another great Annual Meeting in December, and this year’s theme focused on our organization being “Guided by Tradition.” One of those annual traditions is the Farmometer survey.
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1/4/24
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Empowers Department of Agriculture with Greater Oversight and Enforcement Authority Regarding Foreign-Owned Agricultural Land Purchases
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1/2/24
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The new 4-H year has gotten off to a fast start under the leadership of our newly elected Woodlawn Club officers:
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1/2/24
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On Saturday evening, Nov. 4, thirty-four Polk County 4-H Clover Kids and 4-H members were recognized for their project work and other 4H accomplishments during the 2023 4-H year. Thirteen 4-H volunteers were recognized for their years of service as club and project leaders. The “Friends of Polk County 4-H” awards were given to Bolivar Tractor Supply and Midwest Archery. Recipients of this award are selected by the 4-H youth and are given to thank the person, group or business for their continued support of the Polk County 4-H program.
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12/28/23
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COLUMBIA, MISSOURI — Missouri is home to 95,000 farms — the second highest number of farms per state in the country. Farming is a way of life for people here, one that is increasingly threatened by the effects of a changing climate. Now more than ever, reforming the ways farmers practice their craft is vital for survival. Earlier this year, MU implemented the $25 million, statewide Missouri CRCL Project — funding that more than half of is going directly to farmers in the form of eight tailored incentive payments to support the adoption of climate-smart practices.
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12/25/23
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“It is important to provide the latest information on beef cattle production, marketing, economics, nutrition and forage utilization,” says Patrick Davis MU Extension Regional Livestock Field Specialist. Extension services from universities of Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Missouri, and Arkansas are providing a joint conference titled the KOMA Beef Cattle Conference. This year’s Missouri portion of the conference will be held on Feb. 12, 2024, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the MU Southwest Research Extension and Education Center, 14548 State Rd H, Mount Vernon, MO 65712.
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12/25/23
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Top harvest counties were Callaway, Pike, and Lincoln.
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12/12/23
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A panel of judges selected Madison Meyer, of Dearborn, and Caleb Simpson, of Bolivar, as 2024 Missouri Farm Bureau (MOFB) Ambassadors during the organization’s 109th annual meeting at the Lake of the Ozarks.
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12/12/23
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The Missouri Agricultural and Small Business Development Authority (MASBDA) is now accepting applications for a new tax credit program created to promote investment in urban agriculture.
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12/11/23
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) Executive Director Karen Stillings in Polk/Dallas Counties reminds producers that FSA continues to accept applications for the Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) for grazing losses due to drought. The deadline to apply for 2023 LFP assistance is Jan. 30, 2024.
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12/7/23
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”Bull breeding soundness exams (BSE) are important to make sure bulls are ready for the upcoming breeding season,” says Patrick Davis MU Extension Livestock Field Specialist. These exams determine if bulls are physically and reproductively sound to breed cows during the breeding season.
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12/5/23
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On Thursday evening, Nov. 9, the Polk County Clover Kids met for their monthly meeting. The theme was “all things trees”. The young dendrologists explored trees by identifying leaves, counting the rings in a “tree cookie” to determine the age of a tree and by making leaf prints.
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12/4/23
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On Thursday evening, Nov. 9, the Polk County Clover Kids met for their monthly meeting. The theme was “all things trees”. The young dendrologists explored trees by identifying leaves, counting the rings in a “tree cookie” to determine the age of a tree and by making leaf prints.
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11/28/23
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Having opportunities to work, earn and live comfortably in a community you love – it’s
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11/22/23
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Friday Nov. 17, Governor Mike Parson signed Executive Order 23-10, extending Missouri's drought alert until May 1, 2024.
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11/21/23
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The annual Southwest Missouri Beef Conference and Trade Show will be held Monday, Nov. 13 from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Sacred Heart Church in Bolivar.
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11/1/23
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As America’s farmers harvest the crops that feed, clothe, and fuel our world, let’s fill the Farmers.gov social media feed with their stories about this year’s harvest season. We’d also like to see how it’s going for farmers that participated in our #Plant2023 campaign in the spring.
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10/10/23
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It’s time to consider what we need to do to get our pastures back into a sustainable grazing condition. The past two years of excessive heat and lack of rainfall along with over grazing has severely damaged our pastures and hayfields. The questions now are how we get them back into a grazable condition with the least number of inputs while retaining our current herd sizes? We will look at the options still yet available while beginning to look towards next year’s potential. How do we begin to better prepare for the next spring’s hay and pasture situations?
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10/10/23
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It’s time to consider what we need to do to get our pastures back into a sustainable grazing condition. The past two years of excessive heat and lack of rainfall along with over grazing has severely damaged our pastures and hayfields. The questions now are how we get them back into a grazable condition with the least number of inputs while retaining our current herd sizes. We will look at the options still yet available while beginning to look towards next year’s potential. How do we begin to better prepare for the next spring’s hay and pasture situations.
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10/5/23
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On Saturday, Sept. 23, 4-H’ers from across Missouri participated in one of Missouri 4-H’s oldest and most popular competitions, the 4-H State Public Speaking Contest. Held on MU’s campus, 45 youth from 27 counties participated.
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10/3/23
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It’s time to consider what we need to do to get our pastures back into a sustainable grazing condition. The past two years of excessive heat and lack of rainfall along with over grazing has severely damaged our pastures and hayfields. The questions now are how we get them back into a grazable condition with the least number of inputs while retaining our current herd sizes. We will look at the options still yet available while beginning to look towards next year’s potential. How do we begin to better prepare for the next spring’s hay and pasture situations.
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10/3/23
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“Are you a cattle producer that has a small number of cattle but wants to experience feeding cattle in the feedyard, evaluate your cattle’s feedyard performance, and determine whether your cattle meet certain targets at slaughter that influence their profitability? Then consider enrolling steers in the Missouri Steer Feedout,” says Patrick Davis, MU Extension Livestock Field Specialist. This program is a cooperation between MU Extension, Southwest Missouri Cattlemen’s Association, Missouri Department of Agriculture and Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity in Iowa that began in 1981. Over the 40 plus year history this program has enrolled over 7,900 head of steers from over 372 farms.
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9/19/23
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“Are you a cattle producer that has a small number of cattle but wants to experience feeding cattle in the feedyard, evaluate your cattle’s feedyard performance, and determine whether your cattle meet certain targets at slaughter that influence their profitability? Then consider enrolling steers in the Missouri Steer Feedout,” says Patrick Davis, MU Extension Livestock Field Specialist. This program is a cooperation between MU Extension, Southwest Missouri Cattlemen’s Association, Missouri Department of Agriculture and Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity in Iowa that began in 1981. Over the 40 plus year history this program has enrolled over 7,900 head of steers from over 372 farms.
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9/12/23
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