Bucolic Briefs
The 2015 Northern Piedmont Specialty Crops School will be held March 6 at the Person County Extension Center in Roxboro. The school will feature many ideas for specialty crops growers to be successful in their ventures, and will include discussions on marketing and growing practices. The cost is $25 for the first person of a family or business, and $15 for each additional family member or business associate. The fee includes lunch. Pre-registration is required to guarantee a seat and lunch.
For a copy of the program and pre-registration form, go to: granville.ces.ncsu.edu or contact Carl Cantaluppi at 919-603-1350 or at carl_cantaluppi@ncsu.edu.
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The Virginia-North Carolina Horse Festival will be held March 7 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Olde Dominion Agricultural Complex at 19783 U.S. 29 S in Chatham, Va. This will be an educational and fun horse-related event for all ages. Admission is free, and food vendors will be on site.
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Back Country Horsemen of Uwharrie will hold work days March 14, April 18 and Sept. 19. The group meets at 9 a.m. in the Canebrake Horse Camp in the Badin Lake Recreation Area near Troy. The group also holds chapter meetings March 9, April 13, May 11, June 8, Aug. 10, Sept. 14, Oct. 12, and Nov. 9 at 6 p.m. The meetings will be held at Best Foods Cafeteria, 220 E. 11th St., Siler City. Back Country Horsemen of Uwharrie is a nonprofit organization and chapter of the Back Country Horsemen of North Carolina and America. The website is www.bchUwharrie.com
The Back Country Horsemen of Uwharrie works in alliance with other chapters across North Carolina, the U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service to ensure that forests will be available for equestrian use. Members of the BCHU volunteer their time and resources to maintain trails.
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A Johnston County Horse Show Clinic, featuring youth and adult coaching and judged classes, will be held March 28 at the Johnston County Livestock Arena in Smithfield. Classes include showmanship, halter, in hand trail, trail, English equitation and English walk, Western horsemanship and Western walk. Cost is $10 per session and pre-registration is required by March 25. For more information, contact Michelle McLaughlin at 919-915-4403, email at johnston.county.horse.show@gmail.com or go to www.blaine-mclaughlin-stables.com.
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The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has received a grant from the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission to offer branded non-waxed, water resistant produce boxes to Community Supported Agriculture farms through a cost-share program. Boxes would be marked with the Got to Be NC logo and would be available for CSA’s that are members of the Goodness Grows in NC/Got to Be NC programs. Membership for the programs is free. For registration information on these programs, go to www.gottobenc.com/become-a-member. Boxes are expected to be bundled in lots of 50, with an anticipated cost-share to farmer of 50 cents a box. Boxes are expected to be available in early 2015. For more information about obtaining boxes, email your name, business name, address, email and daytime phone number to Jack Nales at jack.nales @ncagr.gov.
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Beekeepers with bees for rent and growers interested in bee pollination services can post their information on the BeeLinked website at www.ncagr.com/beelinked. The site is hosted by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the N.C. State University Apiculture Program. Anyone interested in listing their information can do so by filling out an online Submit Your Ad form on the BeeLinked page or by contacting NCDA&CS at 919-233-8214 or by email at NCHoneybee@ncagr.gov or call NCSU at 919-515-1660. The NCDA&CS Plant Industry Division regulates the movement of agricultural or related items capable of spreading harmful insects, diseases, and other pests. Beekeepers participating in this program will be required to comply with all honey and bee industry regulations.
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