Image
Missouri 4-H Foundation awards $101,000 in scholarships
COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Missouri 4-H Foundation has awarded 78 scholarships totaling $101,000 to 4-H youths across the state for the 2025-26 academic year.
Image
Making pizza in the garden
ALBANY, Mo. – University of Missouri’s Hundley-Whaley Extension and Education Center will soon help gardeners learn how to grow their own pizza toppings, says MU Extension field horticulturist Gwen Funk. The idea comes from thinking outside of the pizza box, and it delivers taste and fun, Funk says.
Image
Veteran R.E.A.D.S. hosts Jason Kander
INDEPENDENCE, Mo. – University of Missouri Extension’s Veteran R.E.A.D.S. Signature Speaker Series will feature Jason Kander, Afghanistan veteran, best-selling author and the 39th secretary of state of Missouri. On June 17 in Independence, Kander will discuss his memoir, “Invisible Storm: A Soldier’s Memoir of Politics and PTSD.” The discussion will be followed by a book signing.
Image
MU Extension shares research on spray drones at field day
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Attendees at the July 10 University of Missouri Crop and Pest Management Field Day in Columbia will hear updates on how spray drones are modernizing agriculture and what to expect when using these devices for weed control.
Image
MU RaFF releases policy brief on changes to Federal Milk Marketing Orders
COLUMBIA, Mo. – A new policy brief by the University of Missouri Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center (RaFF) weighs in on changes to the Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMOs).
Image
Replant or roll with it? MU guide weighs costs, payoffs
COLUMBIA, Mo. – When faced with a sparse or failed stand, crop producers have to ask themselves a difficult question: Should I replant?
Image
MU Extension offers free webinar series on virtual fencing
A free webinar series will introduce graziers to technology that uses GPS collars on livestock to create invisible fences. Monthly sessions run June through October.
Image
CEC Conference keynote to explore combating small-town apathy
Urban planner and author Jeff Siegler will talk about “Civic Apathy and Civic Pride” at the 2025 Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference, Sept. 30-Oct. 2 in Excelsior Springs, Mo. Siegler, whose work focuses on restoring civic pride and reversing community disengagement, will deliver the closing keynote address at the conference.
Image
Learn how to grow, market mouthwatering watermelon
University of Missouri Extension offers a free evening workshop on growing and marketing watermelon July 15 at the MU Southwest Research, Extension and Education Center in Mount Vernon. The free event includes an hour of classroom time followed by a tour of the center’s watermelon demonstration site and an early variety taste test, says MU Extension horticulturist Matthew Huchteman.
Image
Cover crop, silvopasture incentive funding available
The University of Missouri Center for Regenerative Agriculture has opened a third round of funding for fall cover crop planting in Missouri. About $3 million is available for Missouri producers interested in using cover crops on their cropland through the Missouri Conservation Crop and Livestock Project. Payments are also available for planting trees under the silvopasture option.
Image
Severe weather resources from MU Extension
Prepare for Missouri's tornadoes, floods, and late-season winter storms with expert guidance, emergency kits, evacuation routes, and communication plans.
Image
Scout deep into fields for tar spot
Good scouting is the best way to identify tar spot in corn, says University of Missouri Extension state plant pathologist Mandy Bish. Tar spot was confirmed in June of 2023 and 2024 in Missouri, which is earlier than in previous years, when the disease showed up in August or September. This earlier appearance is likely to continue because Missouri’s spring air temperatures are favorable for the disease, says Bish.
Image
MU Extension offers online NRUP applicator training June 18
University of Missouri Extension will offer online noncertified restricted-use pesticide (NRUP) applicator training on June 18. The course comes in response to new Environmental Protection Agency guidelines on training for loaders, mixers and handlers of restricted-use pesticides working in a commercial application business under the supervision of a commercial licensed operator.
Image
MU Management Intensive Grazing School set for June 16-18 in Arcola
Efficient forage management and utilization are crucial to the profitability of a livestock operation. MU Extension, the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), Missouri Forage and Grasslands Council, and the Dade County Missouri Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) will host a Management Intensive Grazing School June 16-18 at the Arcola Community Building at First Street and Highway 39 in Arcola.
Image
St. Louis workshop will help small food, farm businesses market with purpose
To help St. Louis area food and farm entrepreneurs market their businesses, MU Extension will host “Marketing With Purpose To Build Sales and Loyalty,” a free hands-on workshop, 5-7 p.m. Thursday, July 24, at the St. Louis metro area MU Extension center.
Image
Free Birding and Habitat Walk at Prairie Fork on June 14
MU Extension and the Missouri Department of Conservation will hold a Birding and Habitat Walk 8:30-11 a.m. Saturday, June 14, at the Prairie Fork Conservation Area near Williamsburg. During the free event, participants will learn about birds and their habitats such as prairies, woodlands and forests.
Image
Greater marketing prospects, premium value for Missouri-produced heifers
University of Missouri Extension’s Show-Me-Select (SMS) Replacement Heifer Program offers increased marketing prospects and premium value, according to an analysis by Thiago Martins, state extension beef reproduction specialist, and Adauto Rocha Junior, assistant extension professor of agricultural business and policy.
Image
Learn about new and old pests at July 10 field day
COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri Extension specialists will share the latest pest management research July 10 at the Crop and Pest Management Field Day, says MU Extension state weed scientist Kevin Bradley. The annual event will be at Bradford Research Farm in Columbia. Presenters include MU Extension state crops entomologist Ivair Valmorbida, who will show how to scout and sample for pests and discuss thresholds.
Image
Ozark Empire Fair Hay Contest deadline is July 14
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – University of Missouri Extension agronomist Tim Schnakenberg urges forage growers to participate in the 41st annual Ozark Empire Fair Hay Contest, July 24 to Aug. 2 in Springfield.
Image
SW Missouri Show-Me-Select sale sets new records
STOCKTON, Mo. – “People are enjoying high cattle prices, and the 57th Southwest Missouri Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifer Program sale on May 16 at Joplin Regional Stockyards near Carthage was no different,” says Patrick Davis, University of Missouri Extension livestock field specialist. Eight consignors sold 124 heifers for a record average price of $4,010 per heifer.
Image
Tax preparers can stay sharp with MU Extension's Summer Tax School
MU Extension's 2025 Summer Tax School, July 1 in Columbia, provides critical updates and continuing education for tax professionals.
Image
CEC invites community builders to recharge, reconnect and reimagine local impact
University of Missouri Extension invites economic developers, chamber of commerce directors, nonprofit professionals and community leaders from across the state to attend the 2025 Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference, Sept. 30-Oct. 2, in downtown Excelsior Springs.
Image
Three days to hay with a minor change
LINNEUS, Mo. – May’s precipitation has made haymaking challenging when rain is frequent and sometimes unpredictable, but University of Missouri Extension state forage specialist Carson Roberts has a tip to help hay dry down quicker. Roberts turns the knob to set the swath boards on the swather to the widest setting.
Image
Private, public cooperators reduce Missouri feral hog numbers
SALEM, Mo. – Feral hog occupancy of Missouri watersheds has fallen 84% since 2016, when the state’s Feral Hog Elimination Partnership began. Funded by the U.S. Farm Bill and managed by the Missouri Department of Conservation, the partnership comprises 18 federal and state entities work together to eliminate feral hogs on public and private lands.
Image
Poppy: Remembrance of fallen heroes
The red poppy symbolizes remembrance of soldiers who died in combat, inspired by John McCrae's 1915 poem "In Flanders Fields." More than a century later the poppy still symbolizes Memorial Day and is used to honor our fallen military heroes.