Southwestern Ohio Fruit, Vegetable and Specialty Crop Conference Is Feb. 2

LOVELAND, Ohio – Fruit, vegetable and specialty crop growers can learn how to do everything from increase sales using social media, control pests in their greenhouses, produce barley for malting and understand food marketing regulations during a day-long conference offered by horticulture, entomology and local foods experts from the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at The Ohio State University.

The Southwestern Ohio Fruit, Vegetable and Specialty Crop Conference is Feb. 2 at the Oasis Conference Center, 902 Loveland-Miamiville Road, in Loveland, Ohio. The conference is offered by Ohio State University Extension, which is the outreach arm of the college.

OSU Extension has organized a grower school for more than 30 years in southwestern Ohio, but this conference will be different and bigger than in previous years, said Greg Meyer, an OSU Extension educator.

“In addition to focusing on more topics, we’ve moved the event location to a conference center which allows us the space to offer more class options, including sessions on fruit, vegetables, greenhouses, specialty crops and marketing,” he said.

Ohio Private Pesticide Applicator Credit will be available for Core, Category 3 and Category 5, Meyer said.

Fertilizer certification is required for growers who apply fertilizer to more than 50 acres of agricultural production grown primarily for sale.

“This conference will include a three-hour fertilizer training class which will meet the requirements to obtain your fertilizer certification,” he said. “Participants must attend the entire three-hour class.

“A fertilizer certification class focused on fruit and vegetable production will also be offered.”  

Workshop topics include:

• New Apple Rootstocks for Ohio.
• Pumpkin Integrated Pest Management: An Update on Research and Management of Pumpkins.
• Biological Control of Insects in Greenhouses and High Tunnels.
• Super Berry Production and Marketing.
• Fertilizer Applicator Certification Training.
• How to Decide the Amount of Insecticide and Water to Use on Tree Fruits.
• Managing Bacterial Diseases in Vegetable Crops.
• Management of Soil-borne Diseases in High Tunnel Vegetable Production.
• Collective Marketing: The Co-op Model.
• New Apple Variety Selections for the Midwest.
• Bio-control of Cucumber Beetles.
• How to Develop an Integrated Pest Management Program for Your Greenhouse and High Tunnels.
• Understanding Food Marketing Regulations.
• Blackberry and Raspberry Season-Extension Methods.
• Managing Worms on Vegetable Crops.
• Hops Production in Ohio.
• Increasing Sales Using Social Media.
• Protecting Pollinators from Pesticides.
• From Traps to Trends: Spotted Wing Drosophila and Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Management.
• Squash Vine Borer Control.
• Producing Barley for Malting.
• Pricing Your Food Products for Direct to Consumer Marketing.
• Mixing Pesticides: Avoiding Mistakes that Reduce Effectiveness.

Registration for the conference is $50 by Jan. 22 and includes a continental breakfast, buffet lunch and a USB memory stick containing all of the conference handouts. Registration is $60 by Jan. 31.

Online registration is available at regonline.com/swfruitvegconf. A schedule of workshop presentations can be found at go.osu.edu/swohfvsc. For more information, contact Meyer at 513-695-1311 or meyer.213@osu.edu.