WINTER WHEAT VARIETY recommendations have changed for our area.  Last week I provided some information on the varieties that are recommended for our area.  It is a short list.  The only variety (Darrell) is very new and the seed supply is very limited.

I had a chance to visit with Thandiwe Nleya and get more information on what she would recommend for our area.  In general the varieties of Alice, Expedition, and Mellennium are well suited to crop adaptation areas from about the James River Valley and west.  Alice is the new hard white winter wheat variety.

Jagalene, Wendy, and Wesley are more adapted to crop adaptation areas west of the Missouri River.

Alliance, Arapahoe, and Wahoo are still on the acceptable/promising list for our area.

Growing and Marketing Winter Wheat will be the main topic of discussion on the next “Today’s Ag” program this Friday, September 15.  The program is on SDPB-television at 9:00 pm.  Hope you can tune in that evening.

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THE REGIONAL RURAL WOMEN Conference will be held in Spearfish on September 29-30.  The 2-day conference will focus on women who are involved in their rural communities and agriculture development.  The program focuses on areas of family life, agriculture production, starting a business, and professional development.

Stop in or give me a call at 589-3531 for more details on the conference.

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APPLIED REPORDUCTIVE STRATEGIES for beef cattle production is the name of a conference to be held in Rapid City next month (October 3-4).  Registrations that are turned in by September 15 will get the reduced rates.

Topics of discussion include estrus synchronization protocols, management considerations to improve fertility, nutrition reproduction interactions, heifer development, cow supplementation, and more.  Give me a call for more details.

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September is NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS Month.  There is a new web site from SDSU Extension that provides information that can help individuals, families, and communities prepare for events such as natural disasters or pandemic flu.  The National Preparedness site is http://sdces.sdstate.edu/prepare.

The site is part of the national campaign the Extension Disaster Education Network is launching to focus on family preparedness.

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FRUIT VARIETIES for South Dakota 2006-2007 is a publication we just received at our office.  It has variety characteristics and recommendations for apples, pears, apricots, cherries, plums, raspberries, currants, gooseberries, and other cold-hardy shrub fruits.  Stop in or call for a copy.

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SARE GRANTS for farmers and ranchers are available through the North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program.  The purpose of the grants is to assist farmers and ranchers with projects that help them and their neighbors solve specific economic, environmental, and social impact problems.

Download a proposal form from the web at http://www.sare.org/ncrsare/prod.htm.  The deadline is December 1.