Green stuff? Brown stuff? The brown stuff makes green stuff? I could go on and on. Jokes in the “manure world” are endless and make me smile. If you’re looking for your fill of fun and education on manure and nutrient management, August is the month for you!

You’ve heard me talking about it for a year and now it’s finally time. The North American Manure Expo will be co-hosted by NDSU Extension on August 15-16 in Brookings, SD. If you have livestock that produce the brown/green stuff, have ever wondered about using manure as a fertilizer, or just think the Manure Expo sounds interesting, then plan to head south next week. You will not have the opportunity this close to home to have experts in the industry (including livestock and crop farmers) answer your questions at the educational sessions, see the latest manure spreading equipment go head-to-head on the demonstration fields, and attend the largest (only? But it IS big!) manure industry expo. Tours on August 15 are $20 to hold you seat on the bus. The Manure Expo on August 16 is free, but registration is appreciated. If you make the trek south, make sure you find me and say hi!

If sticking closer to home is more your thing, don’t worry, because the week following Manure Expo is Nutrient Management (NM) Day at the Carrington Research Extension Center. Plans are finalized and registration is open for the August 22 event. Every year I wonder if there’s anything new I can share with you and every year I get more excited once NM Day is planned. This year you will find me in the front row taking in all the latest information:  new technologies in the compost industry, how to manage herbicide residuals in compost and manure, integrating the manure spreader with autosteer and adjusting the application rate automatically,  and checking out actual results of product inconsistency and the importance of knowing what’s being spread where. We have speakers from NDSU Extension, Hefty Seed Company, Centrol Crop Consulting, Corteva Agriscience, and Topcon Agriculture joining us. Folks, I haven’t been this excited for a NM Day since…last year! You can find more details on the LEM website: www.ag.ndsu.edu/lem. The event runs from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

And if you’re more of an on-the-farm person, this final manure event is for you! On Friday, August 24 we will be at Bloms Land and Cattle, LLC in Renville County for a manure compost demonstration day. The event will run from 10 a.m. to noon. We will discuss the process of composting manure, do a live turner demonstration, hear from the producer who has been running the turner and answer questions about using compost as a fertilizer. This event is free and there is no registration. Event details can be found here: https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/lem.

Manure Compost Demo Day on-farm site.

August will be a (slurry) flurry of manure excitement and I hope to see you at one of these events. Let me know if you have any questions mary.berg@ndsu.edu or 701.652.2951.

Mary Berg
mary.berg@ndsu.edu
Extension Specialist/ Livestock Environment Management