CROPPING PROFITABILITY SEMINARS IN FRANKLIN JANUARY 21

The Nebraska Grain Sorghum Producers Association (NeGSPA) and Grain Sorghum Board will be hosting the Annual Sorghum Cropping Profitability Seminar that will be held on Thursday, January 21 at the Ag Center, located at the Franklin County Fair Grounds in Franklin, NE. The program will run from 9 AM to 3:30 PM. The meeting, supported by the United Sorghum Check-off Program, University of Nebraska and Kansas State University Extension Service, is the third of three meetings held across southern Nebraska. Other dates and locations are on Tuesday, January 19 at the Saline Center at Hwy 15 & County Road M and Wednesday, January 20 at the 4-H Building in Deshler. There are new and exciting things happening within the sorghum industry. The seminars are intended to share the latest news and production information to make sorghum production more profitable. Producers are always looking for ways to gain efficiencies and reduce risk while achieving top yields. This program is designed to provide farmers information they can apply immediately to their operations. Program presentations at Franklin include: Al Dutcher UNL, Climatologist, to provide a weather outlook and Alvero Cordero, Sorghum Specialist with the U.S. Grains Council, and Florentino Lopez, Marketing Director for the United Sorghum Checkoff Program, to share an update on activities under way to expand foreign and domestic markets for sorghum. Galen Erickson, UNL Extension Livestock Nutrition Specialist, will talk on the superior forage value of BMR Sorghum and feeding sorghum DDGS. Dewey Lienemann, UNL Extension Educator in Webster County, will discuss weed management in sorghum including data on the effectiveness of new herbicides registered for use on sorghum. Special attention will be put on best management practices for the use of atrazine, a widely used agricultural herbicide which is coming under attack by environmental groups. Jenny Rees, Clay County Extension Educator will share data from her recently completed study comparing water usage among sorghum, soybeans and corn on dryland production. There is a lot of acres in CRP that are destined to come out this coming year, so any producers thinking about putting CRP back into crop production may want to hear Dewey Lienemann talk give you steps to assure a successful transition in putting CRP back into production. Kraig Rooseboom, Agronomist from Kansas State University, is on the program at Franklin to discuss sorghum production fundamentals to achieve maximum yield. Information will also be available on the improved forage quality of brown midrib sorghum and management principles for herbicide tolerance in sorghum. The noon meal will feature the traditional sorghum pancake feed with all the fixings. Agribusiness representatives will have exhibits to showcase new products and production/management information. Door prizes will also be given to attendees at the end of the meeting. Registration at the door is for a minimum cost, however, members of the Nebraska Grain Sorghum Producers Association will be admitted free. Producers wanting more information are encouraged to contact their local UNL Extension office or the Nebraska Grain Sorghum Board/NeGSPA office at 402/471-4276 or email: https://mail.cccneb.edu/owa/redir.aspx?C=be1ce69dc46f4fb4993761b6d48e8739&URL=mailto%3asorghum.board%40nebraska.gov.