The Kansas Health Institute is excited to announce the launch of a new annual convening dedicated to exploring the many factors shaping and influencing health and quality of life in rural Kansas.  

A Beer Tasting Event featuring Breweries along the Kansas Watershed & Kaw River to benefit Friends of the Kaw, a 501 c(3) organization.

How does environmental inequity show up in rural communities? Join partners of the Heartland Environmental Justice Center to learn how environmental justice issues affect the quality of life for rural residents and learn about the impact of federal, state, and local policies on rural areas. Presenters will highlight resources to engage elected officials and share tactics that grassroots organizations can use to advocate for environmental resources and support in rural and remote communities.

Bring your friends and family to explore the land, animals, and practices of 39 farms in the 20th annual Kaw Valley Farm Tour. Discover amazing Kansas products, and meet the farmers behind everything. From pumpkins and poultry to wildflowers and wine!

Join Growing Growers for a night of delicious food, great company, and celebration at the K-State Olathe Horticulture Research & Extension Center. Since 2004, Growing Growers has graduated over 220 apprentices, many of which are still actively involved in food and farming. Don't miss out on this special evening as we commemorate our journey and look forward to the future. Event begins at 4:30pm with drinks & music, followed by a program over dinner, and will conclude with a raffle to raise some money to support the continued growth and success of the program.

Q39 is partnering with Cultivate KC, and the farmers at Juniper Gardens to put on a fall harvest dinner. This will be a 4 course farm to table dinner with beverage pairings, kicked of with appetizers, cocktails and a interactive farm tour. You will have a chance to meet the farmers, Chef Philip of Q39, and tour the farm where the produce for dinner is grown, before settling in at the table under Juniper Gardens brand new farm pavilion.

Join KAWS us for a continuation of our Conservation Easement Essentials (CE2) Workshop series. Building upon the foundation of the 2023 workshops, conservation partners will take a deeper dive into easement monitoring, stewardship, landowner perspectives, and easement misconceptions.

Midtown Hoedown is a family friendly, farm-centered folk dance + so much more! This event is perfect for farming and food enthusiasts of ALL ages. The highlight of the party is the gender-inclusive square dance with music by Halfsider, an old time string band featuring Tricia Spencer, Howard Rains, Isaiah Sibi, and Rachel Krause with dance steps called by Lisa Harris-Frydman. The dances are all taught on the spot – no experience is necessary.

Create small ruminant operations as highly profitable ventures with expert insights. Instructors: Greg Christiansen and Dale Strickler

• Access land without going into debt

• Build fence that works and doesn’t cost a fortune

• Economically and effectively control internal parasites

• Protect from predators with guardian dogs

• Convert weeds from an expense into a profit center

• Avoid buying the wrong kind of breeding stock

This course is designed for Extension professionals, economic developers and other resource providers who support rural grocers and rural community vitality across the country.

The Rural Grocery Transition Specialist course includes seven self-paced online modules covering key topics for supporting rural grocers through business transition.

Field day will include: soil pit, rainfall simulator, and cover crops in a cash crop system

Registration begins at 8:30 AM, at the Osage City Community Center followed by the field portion of the day. The day will wrap up with lunch at the community center.

Registration is free but RSVP is needed by August 28th to guarantee a meal.

This webinar is useful for new economic developers just getting to know the basics of the industry, as well as experienced economic developers seeking to be re-energized with new and innovative.

Join Kansas Farmers Union as they tour The SAVE Farm, A&H Farm, Kansas Department of Agriculture Laboratory, and Highland Vineyards & Winery to learn more about the unique crops grown and processed in northeast Kansas, plus the importance of food safety in food production. Lunch will be provided at A&H Farm at no cost to attendees.

The 2024 Commercial Vegetable Field Day features current research updates from OHREC and K-State Olathe. Field Day content will be of interest to all fruit and vegetable growers. Research project presentations will be followed by a cookout meal and Growing Growers KC apprentice recognition. $15.00 per person.

It's that time of year again for the Commercial Fruit and Vegetable Field Day at the Olathe Horticulture Research and Extension Center! 

Come enjoy an evening on the farm learning about the most recent fruit and vegetable research projects happening at OHREC and K-State Olathe. Then, join us in recognizing this year's Growing Growers apprentices with a graduation cookout! 

Cost is $15

Are you concerned with pesticide drift? Many Kansans, particularly specialty crop producers, have been negatively impacted by chemical spray drift, causing monetary damages to crops and impacting personal health.

Join Kansas Rural Center over the lunch hour on August 9th to hear from Roger McEowen, Professor of Agricultural Law and Taxation at Washburn University School of Law, about drift; your legal rights, how to protect yourself, and possible avenues for compensation. We'll also cover additional tools, such as the DriftWatch registry and how to submit a complaint to the Kansas Department of Agriculture through their Pesticide Complaint Form.

Lunch will be provided. The field day is free; however, pre-registration is needed to accommodate lunch numbers.

The field day will feature Doug Steffen, a regenerative farmer and grazer from Nebraska and graduate of the Elaine Ingham Soil Food Web course. Doug has been making and applying compost on his operation for the past few years, and has many lessons learned to share with participants.

They will discuss making compost, utilizing compost, and compost’s effects on local soil microbiology. Activities include building a compost pile, observing soil microorganisms under the microscope, viewing local compost field trials and compost equipment. Field day hosts will have microscopes available, and participants are encouraged to bring a soil or compost sample for the experts to analyze.

Join OCIA for a day of learning about transitioning to organic production. Enjoy presentations from experts in the industry about the specifics of organic production, marketing, certification, and much more! There will also be a tour of the Geiger’s mixed grain and livestock operation. 

Lunch will be included for all who RSVP. Rain or shine, we’ll be there!

K-State's Urban Food Systems Initative, in collaboration with KC Black Urban Growers (KC BUGS, Growing Growers, & Flagship Books, is excited to host an evening with local author Dr. Chhaya Kolavallito discuss her book "Well-Intentioned Whiteness."

During this event, Chhaya will share about what the research looked like will give a solid foundation about the history of how our region has treated Black folks in relation to urban agriculture projects. She will discuss some high-level impacts of these historical practices, and will leave plenty of time for faciliated community conversation. Please come eager to listen, learn, and engage.

Interest in organic grains continues to grow, but there can be a lot of uncertainty for farmers, and they often look to their ag advisors for guidance. This workshop will teach participants about organic certification, the transition process, and organic agronomy. You’ll also hear from a panel of Kansas organic farmers. Tour the Farmer Direct Foods grain handling facility and speak with their manager to understand the perspective of organic grain buyers, how farmers can increase their grain quality in order to increase profits, and to hear about the different certification options available. This event is designed for ag professionals like NRCS, Extension, CCAs, agronomists, and farmers who want to increase their knowledge of organic grain.

The Consortium for Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability (CESAS) at Kansas State University and its partners will host the Nineteenth Annual Dialog on Sustainabilityon “Ecosystem Restoration -  The Use of Biochar”.

This dialog will focus on ecosystem restoration with an emphasis on the use of biochar for ecosystem restoration to improve soil quality and improve carbon sequestration and productive value of brownfields. This is the United Nations decade on ecosystem restoration because of the global need to improve soil health and the production of food and other products using vegetation. Carbon sequestration is very important in the efforts to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions. Ecosystem restoration of Native American lands and lands impacted by military operations will be included.

Kansas Agriculture and Kansas viticulture and farm wineries especially, are in for a significant,
long awaited and welcome surprise, like a well-aged wine, years in the making.

The Kansas Viticulture Summit is your chance to learn about the positive economic impact the newly designated
'Kaw Valley American Viticulture Area' (AVA), will have on growing a strong, regional Grape and Wine Industry.