Released December 9, 2009
URBANA, Ill. – The Illinois Specialty Crop, Agritourism, and Organic Conference will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Springfield January 6 through 9.
The conference will include special interest tracks of presentations on fruits, vegetables, herbs, agritourism/marketing, irrigation/business management, and two new tracks devoted to information on organics.
"The organic tracks will feature speakers who have blazed the trail for organic vegetable production, marketing, and season extension," said University of Illinois soil scientist Michelle Wander, who is director of the U of I Agroecology/Sustainable Agriculture Program and one of the conference presenters.
Pete Johnson of Pete's Greens and Steve Pincus of Tipi Produce open the organic session on Thursday. "Pete is a leader in the 'locavore' movement and a serious innovator in winter production and the use of moveable greenhouses on his Vermont farm," Wander said. "Steve Pincus has developed creative marketing channels in Madison and Chicago including Homegrown Wisconsin and a fabulous CSA."
Johnson and Pincus will also speak in a session on integrated production along with Matt Kleinhenz from Ohio State University. Kleinhenz will discuss organic greenhouse production, composting, grafting and irrigation.
"One of Friday's sessions will feature a farmer panel and a presentation by USDA scientist Gene Lester on organic production and food quality, and by Val Beasley of the U of I on why agriculture needs to keep it clean," Wander said.
The afternoon will include an "Organic Research Roundup" with presentations on resources, weeds, transition, disease management, and soils by Deborah Cavanaugh-Grant, John Masiunas, Dan Anderson, Ed Zaborski, Darin Eastburn, and Michelle Wander, all from the U of I.
Visit http://www.specialtygrowers.org/ for a complete agenda and information about how to register.
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http://www.aces.uiuc.edu/news/stories/news4969.html
Source: Michelle Wander, (217) 333-9471, mwander@illinois.edu
Writer: Debra Levey Larson, 217-244-2880, dlarson@uiuc.edu
