The Dixon Water Foundation’s own Robert Potts spoke on April 21 at the USO Building in Marfa, Texas for the 2018 West Texas Water Symposium.
More information: www.facebook.com/events/1216798995124265/
EVENTS
Land Stewardship Workshop Oct. 27 at Leo Unit
The Dixon Water Foundation is hosting with Upper Trinity Conservation Trust, Texas A&M AgriLife, Upper Trinity Regional Water District a workshop about land stewardship practices that benefit landowners and water quality in nearby water sources. The workshop will be held from 8am to 1:30pm on Oct. 27 at Dixon Ranches Leo Unit near Decatur (PDF: directions to Leo Unit and the pavilion). Presentations include: feral hog control, grazing management, NRCS cost-share programs, conservation easements and a tour of a grazing demonstration area. The workshop costs $10 and includes lunch, as well as 1 hour CEUs (Laws and Regs).
For more info, contact Blake Alldredge at balldredge@utrwd.com or RSVP to Marty Morgan, Cooke County AgriLife: 940-668-5412 or Marty.morgan@ag.tamu.edu.
Allen Williams workshop presentations now online
Allen Williams, Ph.D., recently shared his experiences as a consultant, rancher and pioneer in grass-finished beef production during a workshop at Dixon Ranches Leo Unit, co-hosted by the Noble Foundation. Williams offered his perspectives on soil health, adaptive multi-paddock grazing and forage management, high attribute pasture-based meat production, and alternative marketing systems. Presentations from this workshop are now online:
- Grass Fed Beef Genetics & Finishing [ PDF ] [PowerPoint]
- State of Grass Fed Industry [ PDF ] [PowerPoint]
- Adaptive Grazing and Relationship to Soil Health [ PDF ] (36MB)
Williams is a 6th generation family farmer and founding partner of Grass Fed Beef LCC and Grass Fed Insights LLC, and a partner in Joyce Farms, Inc. He has consulted with more than 4,000 farmers and ranchers in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and South America on operations ranging from a few acres to more than one million acres. Williams pioneered many of the early grass-fed protocols and forage finishing techniques, and has spent the last 15 years refining them.
Allen Williams workshop at Leo Unit on May 31
Allen Williams, Ph.D., will provide insight and share his experiences as a consultant, rancher and pioneer in grass-finished beef production at Dixon Ranches Leo Unit from 9am to 4pm on May 31. During an in-field discussion, he will also share his perspectives on soil health, adaptive multi-paddock grazing and forage management, high attribute pasture-based meat production, and alternative marketing systems.
The workshop is co-hosted by Dixon Water Foundation and the Noble Foundation. Registration is $15. To register and view the complete schedule for the workshop, visit the Noble Foundation’s website.
Williams is a 6th generation family farmer and founding partner of Grass Fed Beef LCC and Grass Fed Insights LLC, and a partner in Joyce Farms, Inc. He has consulted with more than 4,000 farmers and ranchers in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and South America on operations ranging from a few acres to more than one million acres. Williams pioneered many of the early grass-fed protocols and forage finishing techniques, and has spent the last 15 years refining them.
Leo hosts Hunter & Rancher Field Day on Oct. 20
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension is hosting a Hunter and Land Owner Field Day on Thursday, Oct. 20, from 8:15 am to 3 pm at Dixon Ranches Leo Unit near Decatur. For more information, contact Marty Morgan, Cooke County Ag Extension Agent, at 940.668.5412.
Riparian workshop at Alamito Creek on April 13
The first Chihuahuan Desert Riparian and Pond Management Workshop will be held at on April 13 at the the Dixon Water Foundation’s Alamito Creek Preserve. This workshop is a collaboration between the foundation and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Sul Ross State University, Borderlands Research Institute, U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Nature Conservancy.
Registration is set from 8:30-9 a.m. at the Marfa National Bank, 301 S. Highland Ave. in Marfa. At 9:15 a.m. participants will caravan to the Alamito Creek Preserve for the remainder of the workshop.
“This workshop will be fast-paced and held in the field on rough terrain and walking to various sites will be required,” said Jesse Lea Schneider, AgriLife Extension agent in Presidio County and a workshop coordinator.
She said proper dress, for example sturdy shoes and a hat, are a must.
“Please bring your own lunch and plenty of water,” she said. “In the event of inclement weather, the workshop will be rescheduled.
“Our Chihuahuan Desert Riparian areas are some of the most misunderstood and underappreciated of the ecosystems. Our hope is to make this an annual event to bring educational opportunities to landowners and enthusiasts across the area.”
Individual registration is $10. RSVP by April 11 by calling 432-295-0342.
Topics and speakers include:
– Introduction to Dixon Water Foundation, Alamito Creek Preserve, Robert Potts, Dixon Water Foundation president and CEO, Presidio County.
– Pond Ecology and Fish Stocking, Peter Woods, AgriLife Extension fisheries program specialist, Bay City.
– Riparian Vegetation and Best Management Practices and Ecohydrology of Streams and Springs, Jeff Bennett, National Park Service physical scientist and hydrologist, Big Bend National Park.
– Linking Pasture to Stream, Dr. Alyson McDonald, AgriLife Extension range specialist, Fort Stockton.
– Grazing Riparian Zones, Dr. Bonnie Warnock, Sul Ross State University professor, Alpine.
– Water and Wildlife, Benefits and Nuisance Control, Dr. John Tomecek, AgriLife Extension wildlife specialist, San Angelo.
– Waterfowl and Wetland Management in Desert Landscapes, Dr. Ryan O’Shaughnessy, Sul Ross assistant professor.
– Farm Bill Programs, Carrie Koennecke, Natural Resources Conservation Service district conservationist, Marfa.
– Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Landowner Incentive Program and U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service, Arleen Kalmback, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department landowner incentive program coordinator, Austin.
– Experiences From a Land Manager, Chase McRory, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department district biologist, Sanderson, and Casey Wade, Dixon Water Foundation manager, Presidio County.
For more information, call Russell Martin, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department natural resource specialist, Alpine, at 432-837-2051, ext. 228 or Schneider at 442-295-0342.
Register for Southern Soil Health Conference
The Southern Soil Health Conference is coming up on January 12-13 in Ardmore, Oklahoma.
This conference for producers and land owners focuses solely on Soil Health, Cover Crops and Grazing. At least 75% of registrants are people directly involved with the land—production agriculture (crops and/or livestock) and land owners. This conference will also be producer driven with almost all the speakers and presenters being farmers. Keynote speakers will include: Dr. Allan Williams, Steve Tucker, John Heerman, and Darin Williams.
In addition, we will have 8-10 Texas and Oklahoma producers sharing about their individual experiences with Soil Health and how it has affected their farming operations. Some of these speakers are Jimmy Emmons, Craig Watson, Yates Adcock, Max Martin and more…
This conference is about knowledge and learning and not selling products. We will not be having a commercial trade show to promote individual companies or products.
The Southern Soil Health Conference is sponsored in part by the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Farm Foundation, No-Till on the Plains, Southern SARE, Texas Grazing Land Coalition, Dixon Water Foundation, Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts, Oklahoma Conservation Commission, Sand County Foundation, and the Natural Resource Defense Council.
Learn more and register on the Green Cover Seed website.
National Conference on Grazing Lands on Dec. 13-16
The sixth National Conference on Grazing Lands, a unique conference for livestock producers by livestock producers, is coming up December 13-16 in Grapevine, Texas. The program lineup includes a tour of Dixon Ranches Leo Unit and soil health presentations by ranch manager Robbie Tuggle and science advisory board members Dr. Lisa Bellows and Dr. Richard Teague.
Learn more about or register for the conference on the National Grazing Lands Coalition website or in this article by Hugh Aljoe, foundation board member and Noble Foundation producer relations manager.
Soil Talk on financial sustainability on Nov. 13
Both drought and intense rain storms are here to stay. What can you do to reduce risks in the years to come? A series of free Soil Talks presented by the National Center for Appropriate Technology this fall will help landowners cope with these conditions through grazing management.
On November 13, Sechrist and Walt Davis, a rancher and Dixon Water Foundation board member, will discuss how agricultural enterprises can manage for improved soil function and greater profit at the same time. Learn about financial sustainability at this talk from 9 am–5 pm at the Hill Country University Center, 2818 E. U.S. Hwy 290, in Fredericksburg.
All Soil Talks are free and open to the public, but please RSVP to soilforwater@ncat.org.
Landowners will find information from previous Soil Talks about grazing planning and ecosystem function and monitoring are online, along with presenter biographies.
Soil for Water is a project of NCAT in collaboration with the Hill Country Alliance with support from the Dixon Water Foundation.
Josey Pavilion tour with USGBC on October 17
Come see the Josey Pavilion during a tour with the U.S. Green Building Council and North Texas Living Building Collaborative this Saturday, Oct. 17, from 9 to noon. Corey Squire with Lake|Flato Architects will lead the tour. The pavilion is located on Dixon Ranches Leo Unit near Decatur and is on track to be the first building in Texas to meet the Living Building Challenge.
Register for the tour through Eventbrite.
The tour will include coffee and breakfast at the pavilion.
Participants are encouraged to carpool to the tour site. For those who wish to join a carpool, we will meet at a predetermined location near Vista Ridge Mall in Lewisville. More information will be emailed to registered participants closer to the tour date.
We have applied for 3 CEUs to be available from Living Future and from USGBC.
