First Fridays
Vineyard Disease Management Strategies for 2013
Dr. Annemeik Schilder, Michigan State University
Friday, May 3, 3-5 p.m.
Northwest Michigan Horticultural Research Station
Pruning will be done, so participants have nothing to fear.
Please spread the word!
See you Friday,
P45 Board of Directors.
Grape Kickoff!!!!
We have a very special grape kick-off planned for this year! It will be at the Northernwest Michigan Horticultural Research Station next Friday April 12th at 9:30am. until around 5pm. The cost is $30 for members and $40 for non-members of P45. There will be a lunch included. You can reserve a spot by replying to this email or just show up the day of.
If you come early there will be some pruning opportunities with Duke as well as possibly after if there is time.
There will be three amazing speakers: Joe Scrimger from Bio-Systems to discuss soil biology, R.J. Rant from Morgan Composting, and Claudia Tyagi Master Sommelier to taste and discuss wine varietals that are grown here and how they compare around the world.
Joe Scrimger- If you attended the 1st Friday that he spoke at then you are ready for his followup 201 level discussion on soil biology. Joe is currently working with several vineyards in the area and will share what has been done and how it works.
https://www.msu.edu/~sollmana/Bio-Systems_site/contact.html
R.J. Rant- He and his company are making and supplying many of the vineyards in the area as well as working with them to build up their sites, so were excited to learn from his experiences.
http://www.dairydoo.com/Morgan_Composting/Home.html
Claudia Tyagi- She is one of only 129 people in all of North America to be conferred the title of Master Sommelier! She earned that title in 1997 and has been building wine lists everywhere from Las Vegas to Detroit.
http://www.mastersommeliers.org/Pages.aspx/Claudia-Tyagi
So you read correctly we are getting down in the dirt and finishing high on a tasting!
Hope to see you this Friday!
P45 Board of Directors
The Changing Labor Landscape, How Will Farms Survive?
As labor supplies tighten and change, farmers are looking for ways to “think outside of the box” when it comes to labor and labor management.
By Stan Moore, MSU Extension Dairy and Ag Human Resource Management Educator
Following the 2012 disaster in tree fruit crops that required far fewer migrant laborers, and the continued wait on immigration reform at the federal level, farmers in Michigan are concerned about a changing labor landscape. Growers depend on a reliable labor pool of workers that normally come back to a specific farm year after year, and after last season, growers are wondering if workers will return following a year with no crop.
On the immigration front, in 2010 immigrants made up 13% of the U.S. population, but 16% of the labor force, [immigrants includes naturalized citizens, legal permanent residents, temporary migrants (including H-1B workers and students), refugees, asylum seekers, and, to the extent to which they are counted, unauthorized immigrants] (Audrey Singer, Brookings Institution, 2013). In 1970, the proportion of immigrants in both the general population as well as the labor force was 5%. Since that time, there has been a substantial overall growth in immigrants, but since 2000, most of the growth in immigrant contribution to the workforce came in the first half of the decade when immigrants represented 67.7% of the labor force. From 2005-2010, the immigrant contribution to labor force growth shrunk to 41.5%.
Industries, such as agriculture, that are reliant on immigrant labor (over 20% of the workforce employed in agriculture is immigrant labor) are certainly affected by decreased growth in the immigrant workforce. This decreased growth coupled with the lack of need for immigrant labor in 2012 have resulted in area growers facing a changing labor landscape and the need to reposition agriculture in the current labor market.
Growers are looking at how they can more efficiently work with Michigan agencies that help them connect with migrant labor, how they might better use more local labor, how they can improve the way they manage labor, and how they can position their farms to be attractive to migrant labor. Growers also face all of these challenges with the need to be efficient with their resources on the farm as well as remain in compliance with all the legal requirements.
MSU Extension is working with growers in this important area of their business. The 2013 efforts began with the Growing Michigan Agriculture Conference on January 24th which included a talk by Dr. Bernie Erven, Professor Emeritus of the Ohio State University. Dr. Erven’s presentation on “Recruiting, Hiring and Keeping Topnotch Labor” is available on the Michigan State University Extension website, www.msue.mdu.edu . Click on “Agriculture” and look for “Growing Michigan Agriculture Proceedings” in the Resource channel in the lower right section of the site.
MSU Extension is also conducting a number of Agriculture Labor Programs across the state in the coming months. The first of those programs is being held at the Northwest Michigan Horticulture Research Station on February 20th, 2013 from 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. At this program, growers will be challenged by MSU Extension, Farm Bureau, Michigan Workforce Development Agency, Immigration and Citizenship Enforcement, and local grower speakers to “Think Outside the Box” in the labor management area, while assuring labor law compliance.
For more information on the February 20th program and to register, please contact the Northwest Michigan Horticulture Research Station at 231-946-1510. Registration cost of the program is $10 and will include lunch. This program is also being financially supported by a donation from Cherry Republic to the Northwest Michigan Horticulture Research Foundation.
Look for information on additional MSU Extension agriculture labor programs in Michigan in the weeks to come, or contact Stan Moore at moorest@msu.edu.
2013 NW Michigan Orchard & Vineyard Show
The agenda for the 2013 Orchard and Vineyard show has been released. You can download the agenda by clicking here.
The show spans two days, January 21-22, at the Grand Traverse Resort in Acme. The Grape & Wine Session takes place on Monday, January 21st from 9am to 5pm, with a social hour to follow. A registration fee of $30/person is required, with registration taking place the morning of the event (please arrive early to register). An optional fruit industry luncheon is also available on Monday for $15.
Compost for Soil Health
Morgan Composting Inc is hosting a lunch at the Boardman River Nature Center on September 18th. P45 members are invited and encouraged to attend! Details:
Time – 11:00-1:30
Date – September 18, 2012
Place – 1450 Cass Rd, Traverse City
Target Audience – Fruit and Vegetable Growers
Entails – An in depth look at what Morgan Composting can offer your farm for better overall soil health, fertility, and biological activity.
Limited – Only 30 people will be able to
attend, so RSVP early.
Please RSVP to:
Morgan Composting Inc – Diane @ 231-734-2451
PLEASE RESPOND BY SEPTEMBER 15TH WITH YOUR INTEREST
Click the link below to see the invitation:
It’s Summer!
| And that means First Friday and Pig Roast!
There is lots going on this summer and we cant wait to see you there. First up is in one week we have a First Friday meeting at Chateau Chantal. Due to the fact that things have changed for MSU and budgets have shrunk there are registration fees and R.S.V.P. needs that need to be met. So let us know if you can! We will have Matt Grieshop to discuss cover crops and discuss the trial Between MSU and some area vineyards.
Annual Pig Roast!!!! It’s time for the annual P45 membership appreciation pig roast. Please join us for an afternoon of food and fun at Montague Vineyards on the beautiful OMP(Old Mission Peninsula). As always, P45 will provide the pig, some sort of beer and soda/water, and all the nessesities to consume these summer staples. We ask those attending bring the traditional, or non-traditional, dish to pass and a bottle of wine to pass. This is a FREE event for paid members of P45. Non-members are welcome to attend for the low cost of $10. We will have membership applications on hand for renewal or new memberships, so please feel free to invite your cellar, vineyard or tasting room staff. |
Winter/Frost Injury Paper – Stan Howell
Its Almost Summer!
| And that means First Fridays.There is lots going on this summer and we cant wait to see you there.
Spring Kick-off is a week away. This year we will have a more social event due to the crazy weather we have had. With all of the warm weather and early bud break there are a lot of discussions going on about what should be done to hedge your bets. So lets get together to strategize and take a variety trial and pruning system walk at the Hort Station with Duke. You may have already seen some emails with a pruning competition included in the Kick-off. Unfortunatly, the weather has not cooperated with this project, and we did not want to have a shoot thinning competition! So it looks like you get another year to practice, and we will try again next year. Please note the change in time for this event as it will not start until 3:00pm and will go until about 5:00pm. As usual we will finish with a wine potluck with bread and cheese provided. We will also have new membership applications and you can update your dues at this time. See you next week, |
The Northern Grapes Project Webinar Series
| This comes to us from Paul Jenkins at MSU. It is a free web-based seminar!
Downy mildew, powdery mildew, black rot, anthracnose – if left unchecked, these diseases and others can destroy a grape crop and severely compromise vine health and longevity throughout the northern grape growing regions. Fortunately, through cultural practices and timely application of fungicides, these diseases can be managed. However, for a management program to be both effective and economically sound, the right products must be used at the right time. Patty McManus, a plant pathologist with the University of Wisconsin, will discuss anthracnose, an emerging disease in the northern states that is especially troublesome on cold-climate cultivars. Wayne Wilcox, a plant pathologist with Cornell University, will cover the essentials in designing a fungicide spray program that takes into account fungicide, plant growth stage, and weather variables. To Register: Registration is free, but required. To register, fill out the online form posted at: https://cornell.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_73WhTVclpFOL02M A few days prior to the webinar, those who register will be sent the web address (URL) for the Adobe Connect session. PLEASE NOTE: Only those who complete the online registration form willreceive connection details to participate in the webinar. Even if you have registered for pastwebinars, you still must register for this webinar in order to receive the email. Further Northern Grapes Project information is available on-line at http://northerngrapesproject.org/ The Northern Grapes Project is funded by the USDA’s Specialty Crops Research Initiative Program of the National Institute for Food and Agriculture, Project # 2011-51181-30850 |
Grape Kick-Off: April 1, No Fooling!
On-line registration is now open (click here) for our upcoming Northwest Michigan Winegrape Grower Kickoff meeting on April 1. Please see the attached flyer for program information and registration form.
We are very excited to have Mark Chien, Penn State Extension, and Stan Howell, MSU Professor Emeritus, as our keynote speakers.
Date: Friday, April 1, 2011
Time: 9AM-4PM (registration and refreshments start at 8:30AM)
Location: NW Michigan Horticultural Research Station, 6686 S. Center Hwy, Traverse City
Lunch is included and the fee is $25 for Parallel 45 members $35 for non-members. Click here for the conference program and printable registration form.
