Missouri State University
Agriculture Blog

Durango Boot Sales Will Benefit FFA

Posted on by Christi Sudbrock

Written by: Laura Wolfe

A group of student leaders from the William H. Darr School of Agriculture has been traveling to FFA area banquets to debut a new partnership with PFI Western Wear to support the Missouri FFA Association.

The opportunity to show support for agricultural education at the high school and university levels began with a campaign by Durango Boots.

With every sale of the Durango Rebel and Lady Rebel FFA boots, Durango will donate $5 to the National FFA Organization.

FFA Area 11 Officers pose with with student leaders from the William H. Darr School of Agriculture.
FFA Area 11 Officers pose with with student leaders from the William H. Darr School of Agriculture.

Southwest Missouri is fortunate to be the home of PFI Western Wear, the largest western wear store in Missouri. The store’s owner is Randy Little, a longtime supporter of the William H. Darr School of Agriculture and of agricultural education in Missouri.

When his store started carrying the Durango boots, complete with the pledge of money to the National FFA Organization, Mr. Little approached the Darr School of Agriculture to express the company’s interest in supporting agricultural education from the store’s profits on the Durango Rebel and Lady Rebel FFA boots.

PFI Western Store has pledged $5 of their profits on the boots to be split between the William H. Darr School of Agriculture and the Missouri FFA Association.FFA Area Officers from Areas 10 and 12 show off their new boots with with student leaders from the William H. Darr School of Agriculture.

To showcase the partnership and encourage people to support agricultural education through the purchase of the Durango FFA boots, PFI Western Wear donated several pairs of the boots to be given to Area FFA Officers in Areas 9, 10, 11, and 12 in Missouri.

Students from the Darr School of Agriculture made the presentations at area FFA banquets in Carthage and Cassville, and will soon travel to the other areas to promote the partnership and build up excitement for the opportunity to give back to agricultural education with Durango and PFI.

So how can you get your hands on a pair of the Durango FFA boots and support National FFA, your Missouri FFA Association and agricultural education?

Learn more about the Durango partnership with National FFA at http://www.durangoboot.com/FFA.

You can purchase the boots from PFI Western Store at

http://tinyurl.com/DurangoMensFFABrown OR

http://tinyurl.com/DurangoLadiesFFABrown

Beginning April 1, the boots will also be available in black.

The incredible generosity and support shown by Durango and PFI Western Store is appreciated by agricultural education across Missouri.

Area 9 FFA Officers pose with with student leaders from the William H. Darr School of Agriculture.
Area 9 FFA Officers pose with with student leaders from the William H. Darr School of Agriculture.
Posted in FFA, student achievement | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Dr. John Schatz Passes Away, Former Department Head and Lifelong Supporter of Education

Posted on by Christi Sudbrock

 

By Family of John Schatz, reprinted from Springfield News-Leader March 17, 2013

John Dewey Schatz
John Dewey Schatz

John Dewey Schatz was born February 15, 1921, and passed away February 3, 2013. A Cape Girardeau native, John studied at the University of Toledo for a year before joining the US Navy. After World War II, he completed his education and taught at UMC.

In 1950 John came to SMS, now MSU, where he taught for 37 years and was head of the Agriculture Department for 12 years also. John enjoyed teaching and is remembered fondly by many of his students.

Because of his love of nature and the outdoors John maintained a tree nursery while teaching and in his retirement years.

A celebration of John’s life will be held on March 23, 2013 at 3 pm at the Greenlawn South Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the John D. Schatz Scholarship at MSU. 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Comments Off

Collegiate Farm Bureau Attends Young Farmers and Ranchers Conference in Phoenix

Posted on by Christi Sudbrock

By: Izabella Michitsch

MSU Collegiate Farm Bureau members pose for a picture with American Farm Bureau President, Bob Stallman, and Missouri Farm Bureau President, Blake Hurst.
MSU Collegiate Farm Bureau members pose for a picture with American Farm Bureau President, Bob Stallman, and Missouri Farm Bureau President, Blake Hurst.

Phoenix is a great place in the wintertime, 70 degrees, manicured lawns, palm trees and not to mention the desert and cacti. Now imagine Phoenix overrun with cowboy boots and hats, farmers and ranchers, Farm Bureau members, Young Farmers and Ranchers, and Collegiate chapters all gathered at the J.W. Marriott Desert Ridge for the 2013 National Young Farmers and Ranchers Conference.

The National Young Farmers and Ranchers Conference was also linked with the National Leadership Conference for a day. The Conference had numerous opportunities from speakers, to sessions ranging from leadership, the 2013 Farm Bill, how to manage expenses on the farm, learning about social media, and numerous other topics.

I was fortunate enough to attend with the Missouri State University Collegiate Farm Bureau Club with 11 classmates. We arrived Thursday afternoon and were able to explore the resort, swim in the heated pool and lazy river, and walk to a nearby mall before the National YF&R Conference started on Saturday. It was exciting to have the sun on our faces and to enjoy the warm weather after a Missouri winter!

Saturday marked the start of the National Young Farmers and Ranchers Conference and the end of the National Leadership Conference. Saturday we attended the Welcome Address by the American Farm Bureau President Bob Stallman and saw the Class 6 Graduation from the Partners in Agricultural Leadership program.

After, we broke out into different sessions and were able to choose from a wide variety of topics. The first one we choose to attend was to learn more about the Farm Bill and how it affects everyone across the nation, farmer or not. The second was how to use social media to tell our story and to be an advocate for agriculture. We learned techniques for reaching all types of demographics and variety of people.

Following the second session, we had a luncheon followed by a speaker. The speaker was a former Navy Commander and Leadership expert, named Michael Abrashoff. He talked about how he unwilling to boss his crew around but instead lead the crew by encouraging them make the right decisions on their own. He gave a lot of ways to lead without being bossy and only being there to serve the crew.  That night we went out to dinner with the Missouri Farm Bureau board and members. After dinner, we were able to relax and rest up for the next day.

FBPhoenix group
Missouri State Collegiate Farm Bureau Members Snap a Picture at the 2013 National Young Farmers and Ranchers Conference in Phoenix

Sunday was an early day. We were up by seven to watch the Collegiate Discussion meet contest. Justin Mauss represented Missouri State by competing in the meet. Justin did a great job competing in 2 rounds of the meet but did not make it to the Sweet 16 round. After the luncheon we went to listen to another speaker named Dr. Bernie Erven who was a professor at The Ohio State University on farm management. Following this talk, we attended a session on advocating for agriculture. We learned how we could advocate to all ages but focused more on the younger generation, kindergarten through high school. We were able to bring back information from the session to advocate to others.

Next, we went to watch the Final Four Round of the discussion meet. I thought it was very interesting to see how competitive the contestants get with each other to win. We were served a delicious meal that evening before someone pulled the fire alarm and we had to evacuate the resort! It was very comical because everyone was unsure of what was going on and we all thought it was a joke. We were fortunate to be able to get picture with the American Farm Bureau President, Bob Stallman, and the Missouri Farm Bureau President, Blake Hurst.

For me the weekend was an exciting, learning experience. I was able to take a trip with a great group to learn more about Missouri agriculture and agriculture across the nation. I learned of how hard it is for farmers and what the agriculture industry is doing to help. I was able to bring back what I learned from the conference and share my experience. I hope to be able to attend the 2014 National Young Farmers and Ranchers Conference in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Posted in Conference, student achievement, workshop | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off

Survey of Sustainable Animal Agriculture to be Offered this Summer.

Posted on by Christi Sudbrock

Written by: Katelyn McCoy

The William H. Darr School of Agriculture in cooperation with Northwest Missouri State University and the University of Central Missouri will launch a new course offering this coming May, “Survey of Sustainable Animal Agriculture”.

This travel class will entail a four day trip with tours of agricultural research facilities and operations across four states. This unique opportunity will give students the chance to learn about sustainable practices and the specialized research that is going on in the animal science field. Dr. Elizabeth Walker will be accompanying Missouri State students on this trip and will be joined by faculty and students from the cooperating universities.

Dr. Elizabeth Walker engages students through hands on learning opportunies in the classroom
Dr. Elizabeth Walker engages students through hands on learning opportunies in the classroom

The tour will make stops in Kansas, Nebraska, and Colorado with site visits such as the USDA Meat Animal Research Center in Clay Center, Nebraska to learn about breeding practices. Other stops will include producers in eastern Colorado as part of the sustainable agriculture practices that the class will focus on.

Another major aspect of the class will include students from each of the universities collaborating to create popular press resources and presentations that will preview the different stops that will be made on the trip. The class will gain public speaking experience and will learn to collaborate through presentations and their joint efforts with students from the partnering universities through social media or email. Through these publications, students will be able to shed light on the practices of agriculture that are advancing technology in this field.

If students are interested in going on the tour, contact Dr. Elizabeth Walker at EWalker@missouristate.edu to be put on the waiting list as registration has already filled.

This class is part of a cooperative grant through the United States Department of Agriculture that aims to educate agriculture majors as well as the public about agriculture advocacy and sustainable practices in the agriculture industry.

Posted in animal | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off

Staff service awards

Posted on by Marilyn Odneal
Justin Carrie
Justin and Carrie hold up their certificates of service they received from President Smart.

Justin Sissel and Carrie Crews recieved their awards for 5 years of service to Missouri State University. Both work at the Darr Center for the School of Agriculture.

Posted in small farm | Comments Off

First Missouri State Ride with the Bears Horse Show

Posted on by Christi Sudbrock

 

The Missouri State Horsemen’s Association and the Missouri State Ranch Horse Team show off their prizes at the first Ride with the Bears Horse Show!

Written by Alison Bos

The Missouri State Horsemen’s Association and the Missouri State Ranch Horse Team hosted the first ever Ride with the Bears Horse Show at the Darr Center’s Pinegar Arena.

Several riders competed at the event including members from the Missouri State Equestrian Team and Ranch Horse Team, Missouri State Alumni, Northeastern Oklahoma Equestrian Team and members of the community. The show consisted of several classes including jumping, equitation, hunter under saddle, western pleasure, western horsemanship, reining, ranch pleasure and ranch trail. Organizers of the show wanted to demonstrate how the shows are ran, as well as give community members the opportunity to compete.

Along with demonstrating what the competing teams do, the show was also designed to give new members the opportunity to practice in a show setting before riding at other shows this semester. Missouri State team members were given the option of showing the school’s horses or showing their own. The equitation and western horsemanship classes were organized using Intercollegiate Horse Show Association rules meaning riders had to draw for the horse they rode.

Dr. Gary Webb and Sue Webb, along with the help of Jessica Boyts and members of Horsemen’s Association and the Ranch Horse Team planned and organized the show. Prizes were generously donated by PFI Western Store and Gordon’s Feed and Pet Store.

“I am grateful for all the help we received, in particular from Horsemen’s Association and the Ranch Horse Team, as well as prize sponsors,” said Jessica Boyts. “It would definitely not been possible without any of them and all the hard work every person put in.”

The Missouri State Western Equestrian Team kicks of the 2012-2013 show season this weekend at Truman State University in Kirksville. The Hunt Seat Team and Ranch Horse Team will begin their season next month.  More information regarding the competing teams can be found on the Missouri State William H. Darr School of Agriculture website, as well as Campus Link.

Members of the Missouri State Horsemen’s Association and the Missouri State Ranch Horse Team get ready to compete at the first Ride with the Bears Horse Show

 

Posted in animal, student achievement | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off

Soils Team Earns 3rd Place Award in Group Pit Judging

Posted on by Christi Sudbrock
From left to right: Zack Straatmann, Shanee Ross, Shawn Massey, Shannon McClintock (holding the trophy), Jason Mefford (MSU hoodie), Dillon Washam, Nolan Rapp, Jordan Henderson, Advisor Tom DeWitt with 3rd place trophy from Group Pit Judging.

By Nolan Rapp, Agronomy Club President

The soils team competed September 17 to the 21st at Northwest Missouri State University.  We drove all over Atchison, Holt, and Nodaway counties on practice soil pits and for the real contest pits.

Our overall placing as a team was 6th place.  We were 2 points as a team behind 5th place and 10 points behind 4 th place.  In the ASA Regional soil contest, the top four teams go on to nationals, so we were extremely close to making it.

Posted in Soils, student achievement | Tagged , , , | Comments Off

Trail Ride at Journagan Ranch, Sept. 22

Posted on by Christi Sudbrock

The 2nd annual Trail Ride at Journagan Ranch to support the Craig Arnett Scholarship Fund will be held on September 22nd.  Registration begins at 11 am and will last until noon with the ride starting at 1 pm. Slow and fast rides will be available as well as a hay ride for those who are not able to ride on horseback.  Afterwards a benefit BBQ and auction will be held to fund the Craig Arnett Scholarship Fund.  For more information on the trail ride including cost, contact Dr. Gary Webb at GaryWebb@MissouriState.edu or Sue Webb at SueWebb@MissouriState.edu. An RSVP is requested by Friday so an accurate food count is available.

Posted in animal, student achievement, workshop | Tagged , , | Comments Off

Congresswoman Jo Ann Emerson Visits Fruit Experiment Station

Posted on by Christi Sudbrock
Dr. Anson Elliott & Congresswoman Jo Ann Emerson examine a cross of Norton and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.

Congresswoman Jo Ann Emerson recently paid a visit to the Missouri State Fruit Experiment Station in Mountain Grove, Mo.  Dr. Wenping Qiu and Susanne Howard accompanied the Congresswoman through the vineyards to showcase the current research being conducted at the Station.

Dr. Wenping Qiu & Congresswoman Jo Ann Emerson discuss the current plant genetics research occurring at the Station.

In 2005, Dr. Qiu crossed the Missouri state grape, Norton, and a European wine grape, Cabernet Sauvignon.  Cabernet has long been heralded for producing superior wines, whereas Norton, while also producing quality wines, is better known for its high levels of resistance to several major grape diseases and cold hardiness.

A vine is marked for propogation in the hopes that it carries the desired traits from Norton and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.

The seeds resulting from this cross were planted in 2006 and today are finally producing fruit.  While both wine grape varieties are red, roughly one quarter or 25% of the vines bear white fruit!  As the research progresses the hope is that a vine can eventually be selected and propagated that produces a high quality wine while being highly disease resistant.  This would supplement the limited number of suitable wine grape varieties currently available to the Missouri Grape and Wine Industry.

 

 

Posted in fruit, grapes, Horticulture, wine | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off