Welcome
Greetings Area Forage and Livestock Producers,
On behalf of the entire Southwest Missouri Spring Forage Conference Planning Committee, I would like to invite you to our 41st annual Southwest Missouri Spring Forage Conference on Tuesday, February 25th, at The Oasis Convention Center on north Glenstone Avenue in Springfield. Registration begins at 8:00 am with the first session starting at 8:45. What started 41 years ago as a small low-key meeting revolving around utilizing No-Till farming practices has transformed into the grazing community’s premier educational and networking event of the region. Each year, we work hard to put together an exceptional slate of speakers on a wide array of topics.
This year we have the honor of having Dr. Gary Bates, Department Head Plant Sciences Department at the University of Tennessee, as our keynote speaker. He served twelve years as the Director of the UT Beef and Forage Center and the forage extension specialist for almost 30 years, where his research and educational program focus on forage management to improve the economic, environmental, and social sustainability of livestock production.
In addition to the keynote address, we will have 20 Breakout session options with topics geared around lengthening the grazing season through improved grazing practices and incorporation additional forage species, grazing land economics, sheep, and goat production, and recovering from the drought. There will be several trade show exhibitors set up, giving attendees the opportunity to see the most current innovations in fencing and forage management, livestock handling, genetics, and other farm related issues.
We look forward to seeing you all on February 25th!
Ashley Fisk
SWMO Spring Forage Conference
Planning Committee Chair