Farmers and ranchers are invited to participate in the third annual Eastern Kansas Grazing School at the Lyon County Fairgrounds in Emporia on September 12 – 13, 2012.  The two-day management intensive grazing (MIG) school will be a hands-on learning experience preparing participants to start their own rotational grazing system with forages adapted to eastern Kansas. 

Topics to be covered include the science behind grazing, graziers arithmetic, matching livestock and forage needs, pasture layout and design, grazing economics, and fencing and watering designs.  Hands-on field exercises and two farm tours will be included.  Speakers will include experts from Kansas NRCS, Missouri NRCS and Extension, and Kansas State University.  This school is appropriate for both beginner and experienced graziers and is targeted at adult learners. 

The school will begin at 8 AM and end at 5 PM both days at the Lyon County Fairgrounds located at 2632 West U.S. Highway 50 in Emporia, KS.  A fencing demonstration workshop will be held the evening of September 12 at the Lyon County Fairgrounds, which will be open to the public.

The grazing school is sponsored by K-State Research and Extension, NRCS, and the Kansas Rural Center.  The maximum limit is 35 farms, and is on a first-registered basis.  Registration is $50 for the first person from a farm, which includes lunches, snacks, and handouts.  Additional persons from the same farm are $25, which includes lunches and snacks.

Registration for the school is due by August 22.  For more information and to receive a flyer with the schedule and registration information, contact Brian Rees, Lyon County Extension Office at 620-341-3220, or brees@ksu.edu.  Or go to the KRC website for a registration form at www.kansasruralcenter.org/calendar.html.