University of Maine Cooperative Extension
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Piscataquis & Penobscot   

Farming Newsletter             

Volume 10 Number 4

 April 2012 

Goal  
The goal of the Piscataquis & Penobscot Farming Newsletter is to provide timely information on the production and marketing of crops and livestock grown in central Maine.  Upcoming events and programs of interest will also be included.
Mission
University of Maine Cooperative Extension is the major educational outreach program of the University of Maine, with offices statewide.  UMaine Extension provides Maine people with research-based educational programs to help them live fuller, more productive lives.
Local Weather Anytime
Many farming activities are driven by the weather. Our local National Weather Service in Caribou has meteorologists on staff 24 hours a day. They are willing to talk with you about rain predictions for your town. Give them a call at 492-0180. Or check out their online detailed maps at Weather
Quick Links
  
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Need Hay? Got Hay or silage to sell? Maine Hay Directory 

 

Underlined
Please note that underlined words and phrases link to webpages with more information.  If you are unable to access these pages contact your local Extension Office for assistance.

Farm Marketing & Image Building

 

 Tips for Developing Your Farm Logo

  1. Work on your logo until you are completely satisfied. It's better to do it right once than to create something that will need to be changed year after year. To your customers that would be like starting a new business annually-confusing, chaotic and a waste of time in building your identity in the market place.
  2. Choose type styles that are easy to read and match the overall feel of your logo. For example, if you have a whimsical logo, choose a fun font (like Comic Sans, etc.) to match. Never pick a font that forces someone to ask, "What does that say?" At that point you've already lost them.
  3. Try not to use more than 3 fonts. It's fun to play with typefaces, but make sure you choose ones that work well together, offering a strong contrast and balance. Script fonts look nice as a counter to Serif fonts, Serif fonts can work as a counter to Sans serif fonts. Don't overload the eye with too many typefaces or typestyles especially with ones that don't work well together. This will make your logo look muddy and hard to read.
  4. Make sure your image looks good in black and white and color. You won't always print in color; your budget at first may only allow for b/w printing. Often you'll advertise with your logo in publications that only print in b/w-newspapers, for example.
  5. Try to avoid clipart and generic images
  6. Your logo should look professional even if it's homegrown. It should say to your customer that you care about your business, your product and about serving them.

Marketing Materials- Using Your Logo to Promote Your Farm Business

Once you've created a logo you are happy with, it's time to use it in all your promotional endeavors. Think about your marketing strategy. What types of Promotion do you plan to use? There are hundreds of promotional materials available to you: Farm signs, product signs, business cards, brochures, flyers, posters, web sites, labels, packaging, displays, t-shirts, etc... What promotional materials will you need and why? What will each piece be used for? How will they reach customers? How will they benefit customers? How do they figure into your overall promotional strategy? What is your budget for each piece? Get estimates for design, illustrating, printing, etc. Determine costs for each promotional item then estimate your annual/seasonal budget. Add this to you other promotional costs, such as advertising, in order to develop an affordable promotional strategy. Use the chart below to help plan the promotional materials you will need.

  

Type of Promotion

Materials Needed

Goal for Each Piece

Timeline

Budget

EXAMPLE Dress in carrot suit and hand out flyers about farm stand fall sale at next week's farmers' market

250 one color black flyers, single-sided 5.5x8.5", printed on cream colored card stock -good size because I can get 2 to a page Big enough though to hold all the info w/o looking cluttered

Include: farmstand name and logo, products, special promotion prices, location, hours, contact info Goal: Make sales with at least 10 new target market customers by the end of this season. How I will know they came to the farmer stand because of the flyer? A: Flyer says to mention seeing the "Carrot Man" at the farmers' market in order to take advantage of special prices Get names and contact info of new customers for mailing list Keep track of them to see if they come back and if so, how often

Need flyers in hand by this Friday Drop off hard copy at printers no later than Tuesday Distribute 1 time only

+/-$100

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

Source: McPhail, G, Farm Marketing & Image Building, Piscataquis Farming Newsletter, February & March 2007.    

Workshop on Thinning and Woodlot Enhancement

The Piscataquis County Soil and Water Conservation District (PCSWCD) and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and Maine Forest Service (MFS) are hosting a free forestry workshop on May 19th, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. The workshop is open to the public. The workshop will start with an indoor session at the Greenville High School. The topic of discussion will be Thinning and Woodlot Enhancement for the small woodlot owner. NRCS District Conservationist Dave Power will speak about NRCS' financial and technical assistance programs and Best Management Practices as they relate to enhancing your woodlot. Following the indoor session the group will move to Peter Kliem's Black Forest on Harford's Point Road on Moosehead Lake for a walking tour of the property. The participants will be able to see the results of good forest management including thinning, trails, erosion control, and tree planting. This talk will be led by Maine District Forester and PCSWCD board member Gordon Moore and Maine Forester Gary Morse, who has helped Kliem implement the practices.

If you are a small woodlot owner, camp owner, lake or road association, logger, or forester, and interested in learning about programs and services available to help you help your forest, then you may be interested in attending this workshop. You will have the opportunity to learn and ask questions about USDA programs, through which you may be eligible to receive technical and financial assistance, and to see conservation practices at work. Financial assistance is available to help plan and implement conservation practices that address natural resource concerns to improve soil, water, plant, animal, air, and related resources on agricultural land and non-industrial private forestland.

Additional partners include Maine Central Small Woodlot Owners Association of Maine, the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, and Leader Evaporator. Preregistration is required. The outdoor sessions is not handicap accessible. There will be a shuttle available to bring people from Greenville High School to the outdoor workshop, if need be. This is the first in a three workshop series. For more information check our website at www.piscataquisswcd.org. To preregister, and if you need special accommodations, please contact the office at [email protected] or call 564-2321 extension 3 and ask for Shelia or Lynn, Monday through Friday, 8 am - 4:30 pm. You can also stop in at the USDA building in the Pine Crest Business Park, 42 Engdahl Drive, Dover-Foxcroft.

PCSWCD, USDA/NRCS, and MFS are equal opportunity providers and employers.

 

 

Preconditioned Feeder Calf Sale

Grass has started to grow and backyard beef producers looking for beef calves to turn out on pasture this spring have an opportunity to buy healthy calves. The Maine Beef Producers Association (MBPA) is sponsoring a preconditioned feeder calf sale at the Northeast Livestock Expo on Saturday, May 19th at 11 am at the Windsor Fair Grounds, just off Route 32 in Windsor www.northeastlivestockexpo.com . Cow Calf producers have taken the time to precondition their calves for this sale. Preconditioning reduces the incidence of respiratory disease, enteritis and pinkeye by increasing the immunity of the calf in preparation of the stress of weaning and shipping. Dehornings and castrations are healed. "This is a great opportunity to purchase high quality calves for your summer pasture," says Dick Brown MBPA Director and auctioneer for the sale.  Some cow calf producers consigning animals to the sale have also signed affidavits attesting that their animals have been raised under the MBPA Natural Meats program protocol of never having received hormones, antibiotics, or feeds or feed supplements containing animal-by-products. And/or their animals are 100% grass (forage) fed, no grains, grain-by-products, grain crops, grain crop silages, or other prohibited feeds under the USDA grass fed guidelines have been fed. The MBPA are expecting about 100 calves weighing from 400 to 900 pounds to be sold at the May 19th sale at 11 am. If you are interested in buying a few or a lot of animals or have questions contact Sale Manager, Pete Dusoe at 207-948-3233, 207-416-5441 or [email protected] or Bob Dusoe at 207-322-5609.

 

 

Sorrel yearling and paint mare Survey of Educational Needs of Equine Enthusiasts

The University of Maine Cooperative Extension and the University of Maine Department of Animal and Veterinary Science are looking for ways to improve educational programming in Maine that will support the equine industry. An EQUINE SURVEY has been developed to identify the health concerns of horse, pony and other equine owners as well as the extent of the equine industry and where educational information is needed for those involved in the equine industry.

Survey participants include breeding stock owners, trainers, farriers, riding instructors, feed store owners, veterinarians, 4-H Horse Leaders, backyard horse owners and others. Questions have also been included on preferred methods of getting information either through face to face meetings, virtual meeting, newsletters, etc. The results of the survey will be used by UMaine Extension and the Department of Animal and Veterinary Science to develop educational programs that will help equine owners meet their goals.

Those interested in completing the survey can go to http://conta.cc/equinesurvey , or contact Donna Coffin at 165 East Main St., Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426, phone 207-564-3301 or email [email protected] and ask for a survey to be mailed to them.

 

No Late Blight in Maine Certified Seed Potatoes
Dr. Steven Johnson, UMaine Extension Crop Specialist reports, this year, Maine potato seed has been planted down the Mississippi, into Texas, across the Deep South, and back up the Eastern Seaboard without issue.
We have had no late blight in seed screenings or plantings from Maine seed for at least the past 3 years, more likely the past 10 years, owing to proactive efforts.
This year, over 170 lots of potato seed have been screened for the presence of late blight and, yes, the pathogen has been found in few lots. These lots have been voluntarily culled out (although they still passed certified seed laws and requirements). We are being proactive in trying to deal with the problem in the most effective and economical method, namely, controlling the initial inoculum that comes from infected seed. 
 For more details contact Steve Johnson at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension,  57 Houlton Road,  Presque Isle, Maine 04769,  1-207-764-3361   [email protected]   

 

 

 

Items of Interest  

Featured UMaine Extension Publications / Store  

The following agriculture related Extension publications are available or can be ordered at the Extension Office nearest you.  You will notice that some publications are free and some have a cost recovery charge.  Many other publications are available for free online or may be purchased at our secure publications web site     

Beef Housing and Equipment Handbook, Item #1001, Publisher: Midwest Plan Service 

Information on cow-calf, cattle handling, and cattle feeding facilities; feed storage, processing and handling; water and waterers; manure management; farmstead planning, building construction, materials, ventilation and insulation; fences; gates and utilities. 133 pages with index, 1986.

$15.00.

Swine Production Manual, Item #2185, Publisher: UMinnesota Extension 

34-page book discusses swine program; animal selection; boar and gilt selection; feeding and caring; swine health; boar, gilt and sow management; baby pig management; fitting and showing; housing and equipment; and end products. 1992.

$2.50

Managing Insect Pests of Sweet Corn, Item #5101, Publisher: UMaine Extension 

8-page Sweet Corn IPM fact sheet describes monitoring, scouting, and pest control procedures for the three major insect pests of sweet corn in New England: European corn borer, corn earworm, and fall armyworm. Includes insert with 12 color photographs as well as sturdy chart with spray thresholds to post near your sprayer. 1996.

Download it for free, or buy a printout. $1.75  

 

Upcoming Events                                                              

  • May 5, 2012 Beef Basics, 11 am to 3 pm, Bartlett Farm, 46 Hatch Road, New Gloucester. $10 per person (no lunch or refreshments). Hands-on seminar that will include: halter making, cattle behavior, bio-security, injection techniques, chute side training. Due to the size of the animals being used in the class, it is not recommended for youth under the age of 9. Will be held rain or shine. Washing of your boots with disinfectant will be required, so appropriate footwear is recommended. Pre-registration by May 2nd is required. Please send name, address, email, phone and number attending with check payable to Maine Beef Producers to Cindy Kilgore, Dept. of Agriculture, 28 SHS, Augusta, ME 04333-0028.   
  • May 13, 2012 Dr. Temple Grandin. Maine Grass Farmers Network, Pinelands Farms Natural Meats, Maine Beef Producers Association, University of Maine Cooperative Extension and the Northeast Hearing & Speech are teaming up to bring her to Maine.  This will be a free clinic to hear one of the most amazing minds in all of cattle handling history.  It will take place at Pineland in New Gloucester from 9:30 am to noon. Pre-registration is required - space is limited. This is a free program. For more information and to register go to http://www.umaine.edu/waldo/programs/ag/temple-grandin/    
  • May 18, 19 & 20, 2012 Northeast Livestock Expo. at the Winsor Fair Grounds. Marketing, selling, and educational opportunities to local livestock producers and educate the public on the connection between local farms and their products. Species planning activities includes beef, horse, sheep, rabbit, alpaca and goat. For more information contact  Jess Strout, 207-399-9268, [email protected] or http://www.northeastlivestockexpo.com/  
  • May 18th, 2012 Calves weighed and tagged at Winsor Fair Grounds for preconditioned feeder calf sale 9 am to 5 pm. at NELE. 
  • May 19th, 2012 Preconditioned Feeder Calf Sale 11 am at NELE, Winsor Fair Grounds at NELE.  
  • May 23rd, 2012 Maine Highlands Farmers Meeting.  Aaron Hoshide, UMaine Technology Transfer Alliance will show his Excel spreadsheet for Beef Budgeting. Bring your laptop and see how you can estimate your costs and returns. Maine Highlands Farmers regular business meeting to follow. All interested farmers are welcome to this free meeting that starts at 7 pm at the Piscataquis County Extension Office in Dover-Foxcroft. FMI  www.mainehighlandsfarmers.com 
  • June 27th, 2012 Maine Highlands Farmers Meeting Donna Coffin will lead a Weed ID Walk at the Stutzman's Farm on Douty Hill Rd., in Sangerville. 2 hours of pesticide recertification credits have been  applied for. Walk starts at 7 pm a short Maine Highlands Farmers Meeting will follow. All interested farmers are welcome to attend this free meeting. FMI www.mainehighlandsfarmers.com
  • December 1, 2012 Beef Conference in the Bangor area. Focus will be on marketing. Stay tuned for more information.     

Beginning Women's Farmers Classes  Classes are offered for free, and include lunch. There is a mentor for the class who will keep in touch with you and will visit your farm once within the year.
For more information contact:
Gail Chase, Community Development Manager, Kennebec Valley Council of Governments, 207 453-4258 ext. 218, Director, Maine WAgN -Women's Agricultural Network,  207 453-4258  ext. 218, [email protected]     

May 20, 2012:           Grazing planning (on-farm session, with farm tour) 
June 10, 2012:          Soil fertility (on-farm, with farm tour)

 

Need Pesticide credits? Check out the Maine Board of Pesticide credit calendar, many approved pesticide applicator recertification programs are listed.  You can view the calendar on their web site at: Pesticide Recertification Credit Calendar  

 

Contact Info
Donna Coffin, Extension Educator
207-564-3301 or in Maine 1-800-287-1491
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A member of the University of Maine System
Information in this newsletter is provided purely for educational purposes. No responsibility is assumed for any problems associated with the use of products or services mentioned in this newsletter. No endorsement of products or companies is intended, nor is criticism of unnamed products or companies implied. 
   

SURFACE MAIL RECIPIENTS CAN CONTACT THEIR COUNTY EXTENSION OFFICE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION WHEN WEB LINKS ARE INCLUDED IN AN ARTICLE.

 

Piscataquis County Office 207-564-3301 or 800-287-1491

165 East Main Street Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426

 

Penobscot County Office 207-942-7396 or 800-287-1485

307 Maine Avenue Bangor, ME 04401