School of Agriculture

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WIU Allison Organic Farm Field Day

Friday, August 9, 2019

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“Coping with extreme weather: strategies for survival and revival” is the theme of Western Illinois University’s 2019 Allison Organic Research and Demonstration Farm Field Day, slated for Friday, Aug. 9. According to WIU School of Agriculture Associate Professor Joel Gruver, the daylong event will feature presentations in the morning and field tours and equipment demonstrations in the afternoon. Visiting with vendors and sign-in will start at 8:30 a.m. and presentations will begin at 9 in the Dakin Farm shop - 0.7 miles south of the Allison/WIU Organic Research Farm in southwest Warren County. A complimentary lunch, featuring local farm products, will be served at noon. 

Seth Smith of Nemaha, IA, will share the keynote presentation at 11 a.m. Seth is a 6th generation farmer who farms with his dad, wife and 3 kids. The Smith farm, SFI, Inc., is a highly integrated grain and livestock operation (> 200 cow-calf pairs and >2000 head feedlot) with a mix of conventional (1300 acres) and organic (700 acres) crops that has won multiple awards including the IA Cattleman Association’s Environmental Stewardship Award in 2017. 

In addition, Grant Curtis, president of the IL Land Improvement Contractor’s Association, will discuss strategies for optimizing drainage, Gary McDonald will discuss farming system strategies for weather resilience and Joel Gruver, Director of the WIU Organic Research Program, will provide an overview of recent research at the Allison Farm and moderate a panel discussion about farming with extreme weather. Panelists will include Grant Curtis (conventional farmer and land improvement contractor), Gary McDonald (organic farmer and consultant) and Curt Forde (organic farmer and inventor). 

Between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m., Joel Gruver will lead a walking tour of the Allison Farm's research and demonstration plots - featuring corn (yellow, blue and popcorn), soybeans, sunflowers, diverse cover crop mixes, tillage systems, fertility programs, interseeding in solar corridors and cultivation practices. There will also be equipment demonstrations if weather permits. 


Registration and Contact

To pre-register or obtain more information about the Field Day, contact Andy Clayton - WIU Organic Program research technician and farm manager - at AW-Clayton@wiu.edu, (217) 322-2639 or the WIU School of Agriculture at (309) 298-1080. Advance registration by Wednesday 8/7 is strongly encouraged to facilitate event planning. Please register online using the form below.

Directions to the Dakin Farm shop - 130 20th St., Roseville, IL 61473

If arriving from the north, travel on U.S. Rt. 67 five miles south of the U.S. Rt. 67 and IL Rt. 116 intersection in Roseville to County Rd. 20th Ave. N, then turn west and travel four miles on 20th Ave. to the southeast corner of the Allison Farm (intersection of 20th Ave. and 20th St.). Turn left and proceed south 0.7 miles on 20th St. to the Dakin Farm shop located on the west side of the road.

If arriving from the south, travel on U.S. Rt. 67 seven miles north of the U.S. Rt. 67 and IL Rt. 9 intersection in Good Hope to County Rd. 20th Ave. N (2 miles north of the McDonough/Warren County line), then turn west and travel four miles on 20th Ave. to the southeast corner of the Allison Farm (intersection of 20th Ave. and 20th St.). Turn left and proceed south 0.7 miles on 20th St. to the Dakin Farm shop located on the west side of the road.

Contact Information

Dr. Joel Gruver
Office: Knobluch Hall 302
Phone: (309) 298-1215
Email: J-Gruver@wiu.edu

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