Grassland center announces fall seminar series

The 20th annual fall seminar series offered by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Center for Grassland Studies will include lectures on topics ranging from supplemental programs for forage-fed growing cattle to grassland-related programs in the 2014 Farm Bill to an autopsy on a century-old sod house to turfgrass winter injury.

The seminars, which may be taken for academic credit and are also free and open to the public, are held most Mondays during the fall semester from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Nebraska East Union (see kiosks for location).

The series features David Bohnert, this year's Frank and Margaret Leu distinguished lecturer. Bohnert is a ruminant nutritionist and extension beef cattle specialist at Oregon State University and director of the Eastern Oregon Agriculture Research Center. He will address nutritional strategies for beef production in a rangeland environment.

"We are pleased to have someone with David Bohnert's background and experience present the Leu Distinguished Lecture this year," said Martin Massengale, director of the center and instructor of the seminar course. "Dr. Bohnert is located in eastern Oregon, which has many similarities in its livestock enterprises and environmental components to Nebraska. With the current emphasis on the beef cattle production in Nebraska, his presentation will be most timely," Massengale added.

Below is the complete schedule for the remainder of the seminar course:


Sep. 15 - Dirac Twidwell, Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, UNL, "Grassland to juniper woodland regime shift: Easier to prevent than reverse"

Sep. 22 - Bruce Anderson, Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, UNL, "China's roller-coaster forage history"

Sep. 29 - Mary Drewnoski, Department of Animal Science, UNL, "Considerations for designing supplemental programs for forage-fed growing cattle"

Oct. 6 - David Bohnert, ruminant nutritionist and extension beef cattle specialist at Oregon State University and director of the Eastern Oregon Agriculture Research Center, Burns, OR, "Nutritional management: Strategies for efficient beef production in a rangeland environment"

Oct. 13 - Daren Redfearn, Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, UNL, "The truth and trade-offs of common grassland management strategies"

Oct. 20 - No seminar (Fall Break)

Oct. 27 - Jay Parsons, Department of Agricultural Economics, UNL, "Accounting for variable production in decision making"

Nov. 3 - No seminar (Professional Meetings)

Nov. 10 - Marty Schmer, USDA-Agricultural Research Service, "Comparing the bioenergy potential and greenhouse gas emissions of switchgrass and continuous corn"

Nov. 17 - Richard Grey, Nebraska Department of Roads (retired), "It won't grow in the bag"

Nov. 24 - Eric Zach, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, "2014 Farm Bill conservation programs: Will they keep grasslands green side up?"

Dec. 1 - David Wedin, School of Natural Resources, and the sod house team, "A sod house autopsy: Insights into prairies and homesteading a century ago"

Dec. 8 - TBA



Videos of the seminars will be available a few days after each seminar. Contact the Center for Grassland Studies for more information at 402-472-4101, e-mail grassland@unl.edu, or visit http://www.grassland.unl.edu.

The schedule is subject to revision. Any changes will be noted on the center's web site.

More details at: http://go.unl.edu/y2c0