SMALL FARMS AND VEGETABLE CONFERENCE SCHEDULED

  

The Horticulture Committee of Austin County will be sponsoring a Small Farms and Vegetable Conference on Friday, February 27 at Cat Spring Ag Society Hall.  Registration will take place from 8:30 a.m. until 9:00 a.m. with the program to follow.

This year’s program will focus on vegetable production for South Central Texas, and strategies related to marketing, irrigation and the economics of production.

Dr. Joe Masabni, Professor and Extension Vegetable Specialist will be on hand to discuss vegetable varieties suited for our area as well as planting tips for both the seasoned and novice gardener.

Also on the program will be Brad Stufflebeam, owner of Home Sweet Farms in Brenham.  Home Sweet Farms is a multi faceted operation that incorporates the growing of vegetables, small animal production, and the concept of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).

Tomi Beth Drabb, owner of Farm to Market will also be on hand to discuss plans for the upcoming Farmers Market Project in Bellville, and Brad Kieschnik with the Natural Resources Conservation Service will be discussing cost share programs available through the USDA.

The program will begin at 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.  Lunch will be served and there will also be several snack breaks built-in to help get the blood flowing again.  There will be 5 CEU’s offered to pesticide applicators, 3 hours in General, 1 IPM and 1 Laws and Regulations.

Cost for the event is $30.00 per person, which goes to cover speaker materials, meal cost and the handouts.  To pre-register for the event, contact the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Office of Austin County at (979) 865-2072, or visit our website at http://austin.agrilife.org. mailto:austin-tx@tamu.edu.