2nd & 4th Wednesday of each Month at Noon EST
Cost is FREE
All are invited to participate
Upcoming Webinars
2021 Webinars
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3/10/2021: Cultivating Conversation: Understanding Opportunities to Access Federal Conservation Programs
Those new to farming or farmland ownership may not be familiar with federal conservation programs, how best management practices (BMPs) fit into their operation, the process for applying to programs, and program expectations. This webinar will increase knowledge of federal conservation programs, including what types of programs are available, the application process and an explanation of contractual obligations. Participants will learn about how to incorporate best management practices on their farms through voluntary and cost share programs, and will learn how conservation programs can fit into an overall farm plan.
3/24/2021: Getting The Most Out of Your High Tunnel- Best Management Practices
High tunnels, also called hoop houses, are temporary structures made of metal poles and flexible plastic. They are used to extend the growing season in early spring and late fall, and to grow some specialty crops that prefer a hot and dry environment. In the past decade, farmers have built many high tunnels, some with support from the USDA-NRCS high tunnel program. But once you have a high tunnel, how do you best manage it to get the most out of your investment? This webinar will provide an introduction to important high tunnel management practices including temperature management, soil health and growing media, irrigation, and pest and disease management.
4/14/2021: Capture the Flavor- Herbs and Spices
Learn the health benefits of cooking with herbs and spices, how herbs and spices are processed for safety, best practices for storing them, and how to use these plants to flavor meals like a pro!
4/28/2021: Does Your Deworming Program Need a Tune-Up? Best Practices for Deworming Cattle
Management of intestinal parasites is an important component of any livestock operation. Choosing the right drug, selecting the right animals, and applying dewormer at the most opportune time are critical to maintaining an economical and effective deworming program. This talk will provide an overview of current recommendations for deworming cattle and details on how to assess the efficacy of the deworming program.
5/12/2021: Estate Planning
Confused on how to start your family's estate plan? Or how to pass the farm on to the generation? This session will go over the basics of estate and succession planning. Come and ask questions to figure out how to get started.
5/26/2021: Health Insurance Options for Farmers
This session will help build your confidence in understanding what you need to know about health care and health care costs so you can make the right choice regarding your health insurance. We’ll review options, identify items to consider when selecting insurance and learn where to go for information about insurance options.
6/9/2021: Tips for Successful Family Meetings
Effective family communication is a cornerstone of farm business stability. Given that farm operations are often a mix of family and business relationships, farm families face additional challenges in practicing effective interpersonal communication. This webinar will provide the tools that all family members can use to maintain positive family relationships which in turn support the health of the farm business.
6/23/2021: Forage Sampling and Forage Analysis Interpretation
Forage sampling and analysis is an essential component in any livestock feeding program. This webinar will cover forage testing from sampling to analysis interpretation, with discussion on proper forage sampling techniques, the forage analysis process, and what to look for in a forage analysis report.
7/14/2021: What You Need to Know to Grow Your Own Fruit
This webinar will cover information about the types of perennial fruit that can be grown in Maryland including: strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, apples, cherries, peaches, plums and pears. We will discuss how much and what kind of management and land preparation is required prior to and after planting. Lastly, some specific challenges growers face will be discussed and tips for cultivating different fruit crops will be given.
7/28/2021: Principles of Biological Control
Bugs that eat bugs can be a farmer's ally for protecting crops without resorting to chemical pesticides. This webinar will review some of the biology and ecology of predatory and parasitic insect species that help keep pest insects in check. We will cover the fundamentals of biological control, and review how to maximize natural pest control in different cropping systems.
8/11/2021: Basics of Pond Management
This webinar will cover the basics of pond ecology and managing ponds for varied uses, irrigation and recreation - swimming or fishing. Algae/aquatic plants and their management and water quality will be presented.
8/25/2021: Principles of Agronomy
Agronomy is the science and practice of growing plants for food, feed, and fiber. General principles of agronomy include planting, fertility, and pest management decisions and how this may apply across different crops and rotations.
9/8/2021: Managing Farm Family Finances
Farm and family finances often work together to keep the business and family functioning. This session will review strategies you can use to take control of your family finances that will build financial security and resilience.
9/22/2021: Smart Phone Videos: Top 10 Tips for Awesome Videos from Your Smartphone
Michele Walfred updates her presentation and covers essential equipment, microphones, lighting and techniques to produce professional-quality videos for your business or outreach.
10/13/2021: What is Fruit Quality and Factors That Affect it?
Do you enjoy eating delicious fruits? Fruit Quality determines consumer acceptability and fruit marketability. This session will help you understand what is fruit quality, how can it be measured, what are some of the factors that affect it, and what can be done to improve or maintain it.
10/27/2021: Managing Your Finances Resiliently
Are you feeling stressed about money? Wondering how you can manage the stress and build your financial security. This session will focus on using the farm and farm family resilience worksheet to get organized and take steps to financial wellness.
11/10/2021: Wildlife management on the farm
From deer in crops to biosecurity, wildlife can have a major effect on agriculture. We review a variety of approaches to solving ag-related wildlife problems and improving habitat for healthy wildlife populations.
11/24/2021: No webinar, Thanksgiving week
12/8/2021: Helping Farmers to be Good Neighbors
As rural areas become more developed it is so important for farmers to be good neighbors. New neighbors may have never been exposed to production agriculture might complain about a farm's noise, pesticide application, odors, dust or a newly constructed farm building. This session will discuss many aspects of how to be a good neighbor from the appearance of their farm to community involvement.
12/22/2021: No webinar, Christmas week
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For optimal performance we suggest the following:
High speed Internet
Browser: Internet Explorer
Ethernet connection instead of wireless (wireless will work, but a hard line is more stable)
Archived Webinars
Our Archived Webinars are organized by the 5 areas of Risk Management.
Financial
- Creating a Farm Business of Continuity Plan [3]
- Creating a Farm Loan Package [4]
- Developing a Farm Strategy [5]
- [5]Enterprise Budgeting [6]
- Estimating and Tracking Production Costs [7]
- Excel and Spreadsheets on the Farm [8]
- Farm Financial Statements [9]
- Farm Recordkeeping [10]
- Grant Writing for Agriculture Businesses [11]
- Planning for Retirement [12]
- SARE Farmer Grower Grants [13]
- Understanding Credit and Credit Scores [14]
- Understanding Your Credit and Credit Scores 2019 [15]
- USDA FSA Farm Loan Programs [16]
- What is Annie's Project [17]
Human Resource
- Communicating on Difficult Topics [18]
- Emotional Well-Being: Warning Signs and Resources- 2019 [19]
- Emotional Well-Being: Warning Signs and Resources- 2020 [20]
- Estate and Transition Planning Success [21]
- Family Communication in Farm Succession Planning [22]
- Health Care in Your Senior Years [23]
- Hiring and Firing Practice [24]s
- Hiring Farm Employees- Process and Recommendations [25]
- Hiring Maryland Farm Interns and Associated Labor Laws [26]
- [26]Migrant, Seasonal and H2-A Visa Workers [27]
- Smart Choice Health Insurance Basics [28]
- Smart Use Health Insurance- Smart Actions [29]
- Stress Management on the Farm [30]
- 8 Lifestyle Tips for a Healthy Brain [31]
Legal
- Adverse Possession [32]
- Agricultural Labor Mistakes to Avoid [33]
- Buying and Selling Farmland [34]
- Crop Insurance Programs for 2018 [35]
- CSA Operators [36]
- Deciding on a Business Structure [37]
- Divorce and Farming [38]
- Energy Leases, Legal Considerations [39]
- Estate and Transition Planning Success [40]
- Estate Planning [41]
- Farm Bill Update [42]
- Farm Bill Update 2019 [43]
- Farm Lease Agreements [44]
- Farm Liability Insurance and Farm Business Structures [45]
- Farm Transition Taxes and Medicaid Estate Recovery [46]
- Food Safety and Liability [47]
- How to Avoid the Probate Process [48]
- How to Build a Professional and Personal Landlord-Tenant Relationship [49]
- Land Titles [50]
- Learning From Other's Mistakes: Estate Planning Mistakes and Solutions [51]
- Legal Resources Available in the Mid-Atlantic Region [52]
- Managing Legal Risks [53]
- Managing Your Forested Farmland [54]
- Operating a Women Owned Farm Business [55]
- Preparing for the Transition: Farm Transition and Estate Plans [56]
- Procrastinator's Farm Bill Update [57]
- Protecting yourself and others on the farm [58]
- The Legal Side of Pesticide Drift [58]
- The Produce Safety Rule of the Food Modernization Act & The Records You Need to Keep [59]
- Understanding Buying and Selling Farmland [34]
- Using an LLC to Strengthen Your Farm Operation [60]
Marketing
- Advocating for Agriculture [61]
- Agvocacy [62]
- Analytics [63]
- Basics of Creating and Using Infographics [64]
- Blogging (So You Want to Start a Blog) [65]
- Boost Your Email Newsletter Open Rates [66]
- Can I Use This Picture? Media Law [67]
- Creating a Farm Marketing Kit [68]
- Creating Effective Videos Using iMovie via iOS Device [69]
- Customer Service - Keys to Successful Rention [70]
- Decision Tools for Selecting Marketing Outlets [71]
- Developing a Farm Strategy [72]
- Digital Tools [73]
- Digital Tools (Advanced) [74]
- Editorial Calendars [75]
- Email Newsletters, Tips and Tools [76]
- Essentials of Google Analytics and Webmaster Tools [77]
- Food Marketing Trends [78]
- Helping Customers Find You [79]
- Infographics - Basics of Creating and Using Infographics [80]
- Market Research [81]
- Marketing Campaigns- Start Small to Grow Tall [82]
- Meals on Wheels- Food Trucks, Pop-up Markets, Home Delivery [83]
- Newsletters [84]
- Optimizing your Website for Google [85]
- Preparing your Marketing Efforts for the Holidays [86]
- Prezi - The Basics of Presenting Prezi Style [87]
- Risk Management for Food Entrepreneurs [88]
- Selling Your Farm Eggs to Retail Outlets [89]
- Starting a Specialty Food Business in Maryland [90]
- Super Market Vendor [91]
- This Just In. Your Ag-Role for Media Requests [92]
- Why Value-Added Products Fail [93]
- WordPress Blog - How to Create [94]
Social Media
- Can I Use This Photo? Media Law [67]
- Creating a Social Media Plan for your Business [95]
- Facebook Business Page [96]
- Facebook Promotions [97]
- Facebook Strategies [98]
- Figuring Out Facebook Pages [99]
- flickr [100]
- Holy Hashtag [101]
- HootSuite [102]
- How to Create Social Media Memes & Other Photo Apps [103]
- Instagram [104]
- Keep it Legal!: Legal Considerations for Marketing Your Farm Social Media [105]
- LinkedIn [106]
- Live Streaming for Advocating and Direct Marketing [107]
- Personal or Professional Branding on Social Media [108]
- Social Media Privacy [109]
- Thought Leadership and Branding on Social Media [110]
- Twitter for Newbies [111]
- Twitter Tricks of the Trade [112]
- What Social Media Platform is Right for You? [113]
- Smart Phone Movies [114]
- Snap It, Then App It [115]
- Yes, It's Time for Twitter. Really. [116]
Production
- An Overview of the Resource Stewardship Evaluation Tool [117]
- Beef Basics: Things to Consider Before Starting Your Small Herd [118]
- Bugs that Bite [119]
- Caring for your septic system and water wells [120]
- Cover Crop Mixes [121]
- Designing a Successful Pasture and Grazing System [122]
- Designing cover crops to work for your farm [123]
- Drones as a Scouting Tool [124]
- Drying Food Safely [125]
- Farm Diversification [126]
- GMO [127]
- Got Milk? Are Dairy Goats a Good Fit For Your Farm? [128]
- Grain Marketing 101 [129]
- Growing Healthy Soil [130]
- Introduction to Integrated Pest Management [131]
- Intro to Organic Production and Certification [132]
- Invasive Insects: Impacts in Agriculture [133]
- Managing Your Small Flock [134]
- Matching Forage Quality with Small Ruminant Nutrition [135]
- Micro Nutrient [136]
- NCBA CLUSA Farmer-to-Farmer: Your Key to International Agriculture [137]
- Predator Control for your Small Flock [138]
- Putting All Your Eggs in One Basket [139]
- Resources for New and Beginning Farmers [140]
- Season Extension [141]
- Soils and Salts: From Fertilizer to Tidewater [142]
- Soil Maps for Production Agriculture [143]
- Soil pH, Liming Rates and Fertility [144]
- Thoughts on Animal Welfare [145]
- Urban Soil Quality [146]
- Water and Water Reuse in Agriculture [147]
- Water Testing Basics and Understanding Water Test Results [148]
- What is Urban Agriculture [149]
- What Specialty Crop Enterprise is Right for you? [150]
- What to grow in an urban market garden [151]
- What you need to know about the Food Safety Modernization Act [152]
