MoSARE Plan of Work 2025-2026

Commodities

Practices

1. Sustainable Crop Production
2. Sustainable Livestock Production
3. Sustainable Communities
4. Regional Initiative - Paths to sustainability with farm labor

The four big picture initiatives for the Missouri SARE program in this funding cycle are:

1. Sustainable Crop Production

   Activity A. Commercial Composting and Waste Management 2025

   Lead Organizers:  Debi Kelly & Juan Cabrerra

   Issue:  Field Specialist in Horticulture are encountering increased soil test results from gardeners with high, very high and excess phosphorus and potassium levels.  These levels of nutrients are detrimental to plant growth as well as the environment.  After investigating, field specialists have discovered that gardeners are purchasing compost from the same commercial composters in their area.  After complaints to the commercial composters by gardeners a few have reached out to MU Extension for assistance in determining the best management practices for composing. A related but significantly different issue is the area of agricultural waste disposal.  Options for waste minimization, re-use, and disposal will be also be presented.

   Event: This train-the-trainer professional development will provide a 2 day training for extension educators on commercial composting and waste management.  Experts from Cornell University as well as the US Composting Council will assist in the training. 

   Outcomes: Participants will be able to provide guidance to commercial composters on best management practices for composting and selling their product and waste management.  An additional outcome could be the creation of a Master Composter Program that could be implemented in communities.

   Resources:

   https://www.compost.css.cornell.edu/

   https://www.compostingcouncil.org/

   Master Composter Manual - https://ecommons.cornell.edu/items/16e6f683-2477-490e-aaad-8843ed3df646

    

    

   Activity B. Digital Technology Applications and Updates for use in Agricultural Production 2025

   Lead Organizers – Kent Shannon – Assistant Teaching Professor and Field Specialist, Agricultural Engineering

   Time Frame: This proposal is for a two day, in person training during 2025.

   Target audiences:  Extension Agronomist, Horticulturalists, Ag. & Natural Resource Engineers, Ag. Business Specialist, Innovative Small Farm Outreach Workers, Other Agricultural Educators

   Potential Topics Include:

   1. Emerging sensory technology and potential applications
   2. Drones, imagery, and sensors
   3. Robotic applications
   4. Virtual fencing
   5. Other emerging Technologies

The planning team has suggested the following potential presenters:

Presenters: will potentially Include Jianfeng Zhou, Jasmine, Neupane, Charles Ellis, Kent Shannon, and others.

Outcomes:  An estimated 60 participants including 20 Extension personnel will participate in the event, increasing their knowledge and awareness of digital technologies available to farmers. At least 75% of the participants will demonstration knowledge gain and 50% will incorporate the new knowledge into their existing programming. 

Evaluation Plan: A pre/post, post training evaluation will be administered to participants to gain understand of what information was most beneficial, knowledge gained, what additional information attendees would like to learn, and how do they plan to incorporate it into their programming.

Activity C:  Growing Through Leadership - 2026

Issue: In 2023, the Missouri Extension Master Gardener Program had 56 local Master Gardener Chapters, 3,937 Extension Master Gardeners who volunteers 149,156 hours for a total of $ 4,635,768—Value to Missouri (independentsector.org).  In 2024, there are now only 50 chapters in Missouri, a decline of 6 chapters.  Over the years, there has been a dwindling of volunteers willing to take on leadership roles within their chapters do to the lack of training on leadership.  The Extension Master Gardeners provide education teaching gardening techniques for food production and environmental stewardship to adults, school children, donate produce grown from their chapter demonstration gardens to local food pantries and are active in community gardens in food insecure communities. 

Event:  This 2 day train-the-trainer professional development for extension educators, particularly those that are Extension Master Gardener Coordinators.  Experts from Purdue University will provide their Growing Through Leadership program which entails

• Understanding Personality Types
• Leadership and Communication
• Working Together
• Leading Boards & Communities
• Managing Conflict
• Running Effective Meetings and Leading Groups

Outcomes: Participants will be trained that can then provide training to Extension Master Gardener Chapter members to edify their understanding of how to be productive leaders.

Resources:

https://www.purdue.edu/hla/sites/master-gardener/media/  It is difficult to project two years into the future what will be the current /p/p/T/p>

The Issue - Emerging Issues.  It is difficult to project two years into the future what will be the current"hot topics" in the realm of sustainable agriculture.  In order to address these emerging needs two PDP will be budgeted for rapid response to emergent needs.  One will be budget allocation will be set aside for each year of the two year SARE budget cycle.