2023 Southern SARE PDP Model State Program for Oklahoma

The learning, outcomes and impacts of these trainings are following.

1. The Organic Field Day was held on June 28th in Fairview, Ok on John and Kris Gosney's 1800 acre certified organic and Centennial farm.  Dr. Warren presented an overview and discussion of organic grain production.  It was attended by 23 Educators.
2. The 2023 OSU Winter Crop School was held on December 19th and 20th in Stillwater, Oklahoma.  There were approximately 180 in-person attendees with 20 on-line participants.  The topics delivered included: Soil and Water Conservation, Crop Production and Management, Nutrient Management, Nutrient Cycling and Innoculation, Advancements in Crop Technology and Integrated Pest Management.
3. The 2024 Oklahoma Local Ag Summit took place from February 28th to March 1st in Edmond, Oklahoma.  There were approximately 250 in attendance.  There were several tracks for attending breakout sessions.  These tracks were Support Organizations, Market Managers, Agritourism, and Producers.  Additionally, there were two Farm Tours offered to visit production sites around central Oklahoma. 
4. The 2024 OKC Farm Show was held on April 4, 5, and 6th in Oklahoma City.  During this show, Joshua Campbell made a presentation for Veterans and Young and Beginning Farmers on obtaining financing and grant writing. 
5. The First Annual Muscogee Creek Nation Conservation District Small Farms Conference was held May 3, 2024 in Okmulgee, Oklahoma.  OkSARE was able to help support this initiative by providing educational materials and some private consultations with prospective cooperators to promote sustainability.  There were 49 people in attendance.
6. The Oklahoma Farmer Veteran Field Day was held on May 7th in Slaughtervile, Oklahoma.  This special event, aimed at uniting and educating veteran farmers, promises an enriching day of learning, networking, and exploration of the vast opportunities within the agriculture sector. The Farmer Veteran Field Day is designed to cater specifically to the unique intersection of military service and agriculture, providing veterans an opportunity to discover and deepen their knowledge in various agricultural practices and how they can leverage their skills for success in this field. The event will cover a range of pertinent topics including Beekeeping and Bee Removal (An Introduction to the world of beekeeping, including the basics of starting and managing a hive, as well as safe practices for bee removal.) and a discussion of the resources available for veterans through the OSU Extension Service and other government agencies.

The learning actions and impacts of these activities are as follows:

1. There were two food preservation workshops held in partnership with the Muscogee Creek Nation.  These programs were designed to promote the safe handling and preservation of fresh produce.  The trainees were representatives of the various tribal housing units.  The first workshop was held on February 8th and the subsequent meeting was on February 29th, 2024 in Okmulgee, Oklahoma.  A total of 57 people attended the two events.
   

   

    

2. The Oklahoma Master Preserver Initiative represents a collaboration between Langston University,   Oklahoma State University and The College of the Muscogee Nation with initial training input from Clemson University.  The impetus for this multi-year multi-institution project comes from a need for increased food security.  It has been identified from discussions held at planning events that there is a knowledge gap in taking a fresh product from the garden and SAFELY storing it for future use.  The Oklahoma Master Preserver project was developed to meet this need.  Trainees will study the latest best management practices for canning (pressure, water bath and steam), fermenting and dehydrating.  The program began with OkSARE facilitating three FCS professionals participating in the nine week course (online study) and then attending an intense two day practicum in person held at Clemson University in December of 2023.  The Food Specialists have now returned to establish a multi-disciplinary committee for the purpose of identifying the curriculum and will then work to train key personnel at the area, county and tribal group levels.
3. On October 17, 2023, the OkSARE sponsored the Oklahoma Local Ag Collaborative Fall Farm Tour.  The tour hosted 50 people to visit 4 production sites (both Organic and Conventional)  in and around Oklahoma City. 
4. On March 1, 2024, the OkSARE sponsored the Oklahoma Local Ag Collaborative Fall Farm Tour.  As with the fall farm tour, the group consisted of 50 attendees and visited 4 farms in and around Oklahoma City.
5. On July 14, 2023, A Container Gardening Conference was held for coordinators of school gardens.  It was attended by 25 individuals who were instructed in the best management practices for school gardens.  This event was held at the Oklahoma County Extension Office in Oklahoma City.
6. A Community Garden Coordinators Training was held on July 20th and 21st in Oklahoma City.  It was attended by 68 attendees interested in developing and working with a community gardening program.  This program was held at the Oklahoma County Extension Office.
7. The OkSARE PDP provided support for two Urban Gardening workshops through the Muscogee Creek Nation.  These workshops were held at the CMN Tribal complex in Okmulgee on June 9th and the Yardeka Indian Community Center on June 27th.  A total of 37 individuals attended to learn the basics of constructing and maintaining a container garden.
8. The 2023 Elderberry Research and Production Conference was held at the University of Missouri.  A representative from OkSARE attended to learn about the latest research and effective management practices for elderberry production. 
9. The 2024 Oklahoma Homestead Exposition was held March 22nd and 23rd in Pryor, Oklahoma.  The OkSARE program enabled a presentation on Grantsmanship and Programs available for Veterans/Young and Beginning Farmers.
10. The Langston University Master Grower School has been developed and supported by OkSARE to parallel the historically popular Master Gardener and Market Grower programs.  It has been discovered that there is a disconnect for lower socio-economic backyard/small scale producers in participating in the MG and MG programs due to the required time commitments for volunteerism and travel.  The LU Master Grower program is an attempt to provide the under served communities with opportunities for training in these areas.  It is an intensive 10 week program to prepare trainers to serve their local communities in growing fruits and vegetables.  Topics included in the course curriculum include Soil Health, Regenerative Agriculture, Controlled environment Growing, Disease and Pest Management, Vegetable and Fruit Growing and Annual/Perennial Landscape Plantings.It is hoped  that eventually this program will dovetail nicely with the Master Preserver program (previously mentioned) and meet the food security needs of at-risk communities.
11. The Cleveland County Backyard Homestead Conference was held in January of 2024.  OkSARE sponsored a presentation on drip irrigation and the efficient use of water in vegetable irrigation.  There were 50 participants present.

The learning activities and impacts of these programs are as follows:

1. A series of 5 OSU Emergency Preparedness Workshops will be held beginning on June 5, 2024.  The first meeting will be held in Guymon, Oklahoma.  The trainees at these meetings will consist of emergency response, extension, city/county managers, NRCS and tribal personnel.  More on these meetings will be included in the 2025 Annual Report.  These trainings will include drills and practice for several different natural disaster scenarios including fire, flood, tornado and hazardous materials spills and subsequent efforts required to mitigate and reduce long term toxic situations.
2. A series of instructional videos are being produced and will be posted on monitoring soil health for the small scale producer.  Topics which will be covered include determing soil pH, composition and other thumb nail type testing that the consumer can conduct with basic materials found around the home. 
3. The 2023 Master Composter Program was held over 6 weeks from September to October of 2023 in Oklahoma City.  There were 26 participants in this intensive program designed to train in the best management practices for small scale composting. 
4. A USDA Climate Smart event will be held on June 8th in Clearwater, Oklahoma.  OkSARE will be participating in this event with a presentation on Composting.
5. The 2024 OSU Master Irrigator Program was held in January and February in Woodward, Oklahoma.  This training provides advanced training on irrigation water management, irrigation system and equipment maintenance, energy conservation, water conservation and quality, and the economics of irrigated agriculture. The program includes classroom training, peer-to-peer exchange of information between producers, field demonstrations, and free-of-charge services such as energy audits through mobile irrigation laboratories. Instructors include extension specialists, irrigation specialists, and economists from OSU and adjoining states, producers, crop consultants and NRCS personnel.
   This program covers the use of irrigation scheduling technologies and tools, such as soil moisture sensors and/or crop growth model based irrigation schedulers, require advanced knowledge to apply effectively. The overall goal of the program is to facilitate improved water use efficiency and farm income via increased farmer adoption of advanced water management strategies and technologies.
   Prior research in the High Plains region found that using precision irrigation scheduling increased water productivity by 25% compared to conventional irrigation application. This was achieved with a 10% reduction in water use and a 13% yield increase. This suggests that adoption of precision irrigation management could reduce water demand by 76,000 acre-feet/year statewide while potentially increasing productivity. Program size is limited to 25.

The learning and impact of this initiative is as follows:

1. The 2023 Small Farm Loan and Grant Workshop was held in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on September 11.  There were 15 attendees presented information on the loan and grant programs available to them and the basic steps involved in navigating those programs. 
2. The 2023 women in Agriculture and Small Business Conference provides risk management education in the areas of production, marketing, financial, legal and human risks inherent to women owned operations. Four general sessions and 24 concurrent workshops focusing on educational information and resources to mitigate and manage risks through implementation of new methods and tools.  This conference continues to be quite popular with our Educators.  It was held August, 2023 in Edmond, Oklahoma with 285 in attendance.
3. The Tulsa County Small Acreage Meeting was held on March 18th in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  OkSARE assisted with a presentation on resources for beginning farmers and ranchers.  This included information on  financial programs and grants available for their assistance.
4. The 2024 Cow/Calf Boot Camp was held in Claremore, Oklahoma on April 22.  There were 50 people in attendance. The Cow/Calf Boot Camp is designed for both new and experienced cattle producers who are serious about increasing their level of management and their bottom line. OkSARE provided support for a session discussion resources for beginning farmers and ranchers.  This session provided information on financial programs and grants available to them.

The description of outcomes and activities associated with this objective are as follows:

1. The following is a summary of the projects, meetings, funding and publications that have been directly (or as a result of) the OkSARE funded OSU Bee Project.  This program is in it's third year with plans to continue this effort long term.

   Demonstration Hives

   • OkSARE has provided funding for eight demonstrational hives across Oklahoma. The first set of hives that were purchased in 2020 absconded or lost due to various reasons (swarming, infestations, etc.). The decision was made to replace the absconded hives with fresh NUC’s in the spring of 2024 for seven of the hives. The eighth hive was repopulated with a captured swarm in the summer of 2023. Also, three of the hives were moved to different locations. The eight hives are in Oklahoma City, Stillwell, Kellyville, Hobart, Walters, Ada, Poteau, and Marietta. The NUC’s were placed in the hives the first week of May 2024 and are doing well.

     Educational Materials

     Several reference books and educational materials have been purchased. Reference books include The Lives of Bees, Honeybee Democracy and Honeybee Basics. The books have been made available to the educators hosting the demonstrational bee hives. Two sets of educational beehive frames with color pictures of various bee production stages have been purchased for use in educational programming. The materials allow for more engaging educational opportunities without having to have live bees.

     Educational Meetings

     As a result of the increased bee interest and demonstrational hives there has been an increase in educational bee production meetings. The following is a list of these meetings with attendance numbers in parentheses.

     • What honeybees and beekeepers do, and the importance of record keeping. Oakridge Elementary School Ag Day. (100)
     • Beekeeping Considerations for Small Acreage Beginners. Carter County Small Acreage and beginning farmer webinar. (13)
     • The Cost of Beekeeping. Eastern Oklahoma Ag Trade Show. Poteau Oklahoma. (20)
     • Cost of Beekeeping and Honey Harvest, Beginning Bee Keeping Class. Osage County. (45)
     • Costs of beekeeping and honey harvest. Beekeeping Workshop. College of the Muscogee Nation. Okmulgee OK. (36)
     • Beekeeping- the costs of getting started. Women in Agriculture and Business Conference. Oklahoma City OK. (22)
     • Developing Your Program Beehive. For Teachers, By Teachers- FFA instructor in service. Stillwater OK. (24)
     • Harvesting honey- associated costs and product pricing. Beekeeping Workshop. Oklahoma City Oklahoma. (56)
     • Beginning Beekeeping- The Process and Costs. Beekeeping Workshop. Oklahoma City Oklahoma. (56)
     • Costs of Beekeeping. Beekeeping workshop. Stillwater OK. (15)
     • Livestock Production-Honey Beehive Management and Inspection. Stakeholder meeting on campus. (7)
     • Beekeeping Basics. OKC Farm Show. (25)
     • Beekeeping Equipment 101. OKC Farm Show Booth. (250)

     Publications

     The following OSU fact sheets have been generated since the start of the SARE bee project.

     • Disaster Assistance for Honeybee Producers. AGEC 277.
     • Beekeeping Multiproduct Costs and Break-even Calculations. AGEC-273.
     • Beekeeping- Honey Harvest Methods, Costs, and Breakeven Calculations. AGEC-272.
     • Beginning honey beekeeping equipment and associated costs. AGEC-2002.
     •  
   • Internet Programming Efforts

     An OSU Honeybee website has been created to showcase and promote programming efforts and educational fact sheets. Total views of website were 7,946 with downloads of fact sheets totaling 2,394.

     An online beekeeping course was developed for participants that wanted to learn at their own pace. To date 27 people have completed this course.

     Other Funding

     Due to the demand for educational programming other outside funding has been obtained to help further the educational programming efforts.

     • • • Southern Risk Management Education Center – Financial and Production Risk Minimization for Beekeepers, $41,957
2. On May 22nd and 23rd, the 224 Blueprint for the Future Cattleman's Conference was held in Stillwater, Oklahoma based around building and crafting the right kind of cattle..  It offered panel discussions and presentations on gene editing, breeding systems, regenerative ranching and sustainability. Presenters included cattle industry professionals from OSU, TransOva Genetics, the American Angus Association, Kansas State University and the American Hereford Association.  OkSARE proudly sponsored 12 beginning Educators to attend.  These educators are in the first 3 years of their careers. 
3. The Backyard/Small Flock Poultry Meat and Egg Sales Programs were held at several locations in 2024.  These included LeFlore County which was attended by 7 participants and held on March 15th.  The Washington County meeting was held on April 5th and attended by 12 producers.  The Haskell County meeting was attended by 5 individuals on April 22nd.  On May 23, there was a program held in Cleveland County and attended by 18. The Backyard Poultry Program is dedicated to providing up-to-date, researched and unbiased information to individuals wanting to raise and produce poultry on a small scale either for their own personal use or for public consumption. 
4. OkSARE is currently providing support for the development of an Oklahoma Egg Law/Marketing and Sales online Extension course.  It is expected that it will be made available within this next year.