September 8, Bozeman
US (MT): MSU agriculture faculty to host evening tour and talks
The MSU Twilight Farm Tour will be held at the MSU Horticulture Farm, located on the Bozeman Agricultural Research and Teaching Farm, 730 W. Garfield. It is free and open to the public and will include local agricultural producers, Extension specialists and FSA representatives on hand, and tours of MSU’s Towne’s Harvest Garden.
A free public twilight tour hosted by MSU agriculture faculty is set for Sept. 8 and will include information about Farm Service Agency programs for specialty crop growers, small-acreage producers and others. Shown are cucumbers and celery growing in a high tunnel greenhouse at the MSU Horticulture Farm. Photo courtesy of David Baumbauer.
The event is organized by Shannon Arnold, associate professor of agricultural education and Mac Burgess, assistant professor of plant sciences and plant pathology, both in MSU’s College of Agriculture. The tour is targeted to current and future operators of small-scale agricultural enterprises, a growing interest in the Gallatin Valley, according to Arnold.
“We’re seeing an increased interest in small-scale agriculture locally, and there’s a lot of opportunity for expanding partnerships between producers and consumers and even for those who are looking to get started, who may not have a traditional agricultural background,” Arnold said. “We wanted to provide a forum for local people to come and learn about the diverse ways they can be supported.”
Information about current production trends, production practices, variety selection, pest management and agricultural loans will be highlighted as well. Event activities will also include discussion tables and a question-and-answer panel of local producers.
“Small farms producing food for sale locally are a growing part of Montana’s agricultural economy,” Burgess said. "MSU is pleased to partner with FSA to help new producers get started and help owners of established operations identify opportunities to become more productive and efficient and to manage production risk."
Burgess and Arnold, along with Dustin Perry, assistant professor of agricultural education, are partnering on a federal grant from the USDA Farm Service Agency to increase awareness of FSA programs to new and non-traditional agricultural producers over the next year.
FSA’s Farm Loan Program and non-insured crop disaster assistance program offer opportunities and risk-management with special terms for beginning and socially disadvantaged farmers. FSA also offers loans for young people actively involved in agricultural youth organizations needing financial assistance for income-producing educational agricultural products; urban farmers and rooftop producers; and to operations using alternative farming methods, such as hydroponic, aeroponics, vertical farming and freight container farming, among others. Loans are also available to start, improve, expand, transition, market and strengthen family farming and ranching operations.
MSU’s College of Agriculture and Montana Agricultural Experiment Station own and operate six off-campus teaching and research farms and seven remote, statewide research centers within its Department of Research Centers. MSU, staff, students and faculty conduct basic and applied research problems at the stations that address Montana’s agricultural and natural resource economies.
Source: Montana State University