Events
January and February 2023: Webinar Series on Practical Training for On-Farm and Collaborative Plant Breeding
Join us for a series of six webinars in January and February 2023. on organic plant breeding for independent plant breeders, farmers interested in selection, regional seed companies and plant breeding students. The webinars will be led by the Organic Seed Alliance and collaborators on a NIFA OREI funded project on collaborative plant breeding project in the Upper Midwest. Although the content will be targeted to the Upper Midwest, much of the material will be relevant to other regions as well. Participants will benefit from online interaction with independent breeders, seed company breeders and farmer breeders from around the U.S. Webinars will be interactive and accompanied by an online resources section. All presentations will take place at 11AM Pacific, 12 Mountain, 1 Central and 2 Eastern Time. Registering just once will allow you to attend all the webinars in the series! Learn more and register at https://eorganic.org/node/35654
August 24, 2022 Collaborative Plant Breeding Field Day at UW Madison
Are you interested in variety trialing and selection, seed saving, and getting involved in collaborative breeding projects in the Midwest? Us, too! You’re invited to join OSA’s Michael Lordon for the Midwest Collaborative Plant Breeding Field Day in Madison, WI on August 24th. The field day will include a farm tour of University of Wisconsin-Madison’s West Madison Agricultural Research Station featuring Seed to Kitchen Collaborative projects involving tomatoes, peppers, and other crops. The event will also include educational presentations and discussions for farmers, gardeners, and students interested in regional seed adaptation and plant breeding for organic systems.
Read an article about highlights of the event here!
August 21, 2022: Organic Plant Breeding on Display at Farm to Flavor
Join the Culinary Breeding Network, the Seed to Kitchen Collaborative and the Artisan Grain Collaborative for an engaging evening of conversation, learning, and tasting. This public event will bring together plant breeders, farmers, chefs, bakers, and beverage manufacturers to discuss and demonstrate the benefits of participatory plant breeding. The evening will provide the opportunity for researchers, growers, and end-users to play an essential role in guiding the development of new crop varieties. This year's "Farm to Flavor" will have a special emphasis on culinary grains including wheat, rye, oats, barley, and corn. Several NIFA OREI projects will be showcasing their breeding work, including Value-added Grains for Local and Regional Food Systems II, led by Mark Sorrells of Cornell University; Developing Multi-use Naked Barley for Organic Systems, led by Patrick Hayes and Brigid Meints at Oregon State University; and Collaborative Plant Breeding Network Development for Organic Systems in the Upper Midwest, led by Julie Dawson of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Read an article about the event here!
September 1, 2021: Midwest Regional Seeds Field Day: Selecting, saving, and selling regionally adapted varieties on your farm.
Join us for the Midwest Regional Seeds Field Day on September 1, 2021! Learn how seed saving farmers make selections to improve or maintain crop varieties, and how working with seed companies and universities can strengthen your farm operation. Topics and demonstrations will include regionally specific seed saving techniques, useful tools for both small-scale and wholesale seed growers, and more to be determined. See how regionally adapted seed varieties are bred by and for organic farmers. Hosted by Organic Seed Alliance and Greg Reynolds of Riverbend Farm, in collaboration with Koby Jeshkeit-Hagen of Seed Sages, and Dr. Julie Dawson of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This field day is being offered free of charge, though pre-registration is required.
Click here to register
Questions? Contact Michael Lordon.
The Collaborative Plant Breeding Network Attended these Events in early 2021:
| 1/16/21-1/23/21 | NOFA-NY Seed track | https://nofany.org/2021-winter-conference/seed-conference/ |
| 1/21/21-1/23/21 | Practical Farmers of Iowa | https://practicalfarmers.org/events/annual-conference |
| 1/25/2021 | Wisconsin Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Growers | https://freshfruitvegetable.wildapricot.org/ |
| 2/12/21-2/13/21 | Great Plains Growers Conference | https://www.greatplainsgrowersconference.org/ |
| 2/13/21-2/15/21 | OEFFA | https://www.oeffa.org/conference2020.php |
| 2/17/21-2/21/21 | Northern Michigan Small Farm Conference | http://www.smallfarmconference.com/about-1 |
| 2/22/21-2/27/21 | MOSES Conference |
https://mosesorganic.org/conference/ Join us for one or more of our seed round tables on February 23, 24, 25, and 26 from 3:00 - 4:00 PM CST! |
| 3/4/21-3/6/21 | Indiana Small Farms Conference | https://www.purdue.edu/dffs/smallfarms/small-farm-conference-2021/ |
| Thursdays 1/7/21 through 1/28/21 | Minnesota Organic Conference | https://www.mda.state.mn.us/environment-sustainability/minnesota-organic-conference |
Funding
This project was funded in 2014 by the Organic Research and Extension Initiative grant, part of the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Grant number 2020-51300-32176.
