Compost management is essential during disease emergencies, but its principles are equally relevant for day-to-day mortality management.

A workshop May 24 will cover the basics of compost management; explore challenges in downstream compost usage and disposal; and discuss tools for improving compost consistency, quality and value.

Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in in-person demonstrations near active compost piles, with provided protective gear and transportation to ensure biosecurity.

Learn from Penn State experts Elizabeth Hines and J. Craig Williams at the free five-hour event about composting principles to apply for effective mortality management.

This event is being offered at no charge to participants and is made possible because of grant funding by the Center for Poultry and Livestock Excellence.

It will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Romana 4-H Center, 1841 Horseshoe Pike, West Brandywine, Pa.

For more information and to register, visit extension.psu.edu.

NJ ManureLink events set

The New Jersey Department of Agriculture and the New Jersey Composting Council are collaborating on two free events in July to inform composters and farmers about NJ ManureLink and the benefits of sharing resources and information at njmanurelink.rutgers.edu.

The site is designed to help farmers, composters and users connect with local manure or compost handlers.

The first event is a composting webinar from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. July 10 that will teach composting basics, manure handling and stockpiling, nutrient management, and provide an introduction to local technical and financial resources.

The second event is a composting field day from 5 to 8 p.m. July 17 at Copper Creek Landscape Management and Nursery in Kingwood, N.J. The event will provide hands-on demonstrations of composting techniques, and discussion of recipes for horse-stall waste and how to incorporate compost into pasture, crop and nursery operations.

The field day demonstration stations will include siting a composting or storage location; developing a compost recipe; taking measurements of important criteria, including moisture content, temperature and bulk density; reviewing curing time and how to know when your compost is finished; and an overview of nutrient management and soil and compost sampling.

Livestock farmers and composters, and producers across all agricultural sectors, are invited to attend the webinar and field day. While webinar registration is unlimited, field day registration is limited to 45 attendees.

The NJ ManureLink website launched earlier this year and lists manure and compost availability by geographic location in New Jersey. It also allows users to sign up for notifications when the resource they are looking for becomes available. The project provides an opportunity for farms with limited land capacity to distribute their manure to composters and farmers who can use it to benefit their operations.

Funding for NJ ManureLink is made possible through a Natural Resources Conservation Service Conservation Innovation Grant.

For more information and to register, visit eventbrite.com.

Sponsors wanted for no-till events

The Pennsylvania No-Till Alliance is planning two summer soil health field days in July.

The first field day will be July 23 at Reskovac Farms, 157 Ruane Road, Uniontown Pa. The second field day is July 25 at Future View Farm, 13 Radcliffe Road, Willow Street, Pa.

A “Meeting of the Minds” dinner will be held the evening before each field day. Speakers and a full schedule will be released soon.

There will be an 8-foot display table available for use at each field day, and there will be designated times in the program for participants to meet with vendors and view displays. At both events, there will be signage acknowledging your support, and time during the program for you to make a few comments to attendees about your business.

Exhibitors at each event are welcome to set up the evening before, but they may do so the morning of the event, if more convenient. Sponsors and exhibitors are automatically provided two free meals for each of the events.

The fee for a display is $300 for a single day, $500 for both days. There is no charge for annual sponsors of the alliance.

Reserve your spot by emailing [email protected].