Public invited to tour farms of Mason County

Public invited to tour farms of Mason County

GRANT TOWNSHIP — Mason-Lake Conservation District is hosting its annual farm tour, Thursday, September 5, 2019, from 5 to 8 p.m. Attendees will meet at Farm View Resort located at 6700 N. US 31. 

The Tour is open to farmers as well as the public. The night will start off with participants enjoying a picnic dinner before embarking on a bus tour to a view a local dairy farm and a Christmas tree farm.  

There is no cost to attend the farm tour but a $5 donation is being asked to help cover dinner costs. An RSVP is requested by Thursday August 29 by contacting the Mason-Lake Conservation District at (231) 757-3707 ext. 5 or email Technician Jamie VanDerZanden at jamie.vanderzanden@macd.org.

The tour is an opportunity to learn about many different farming practices and operations. Whether a farmer wants to learn about best management practices or a landowner wants to learn more about the farms in their community, there is something for everyone. Specific topics will include an overview of programs through the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), such as cost-share for conservation activities and farm loan options. An overview will be provided of the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP), which works with local farms to recognize those that reduce erosion and runoff from entering public waters, among other environmental stewardship practices. This event will also highlight two MAEAP Verified farms on the tour, Stakenas Farms and Needlefast Evergreens, Inc. After dinner, the participants will travel by bus over to Stakenas’ Farms for a discussion on forage, manure and water management on a dairy farm. The group will also get an introduction to the link between agriculture, water protection and developing wildlife habitat. The last visit on the tour will take place at Needlefast Evergreens, Inc., to learn about key aspects of managing a Christmas tree farm. 

This event is possible through a MAEAP grant from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. This event has been approved for participants to receive credit for a MAEAP Phase One Event and has been approved as well for three Restricted Use Pesticide Credits (RUPs), which will be given out for completion of the tour at the end of the night.