           |
|
- Great Lakes Vegetable Convention
January 9-11
The 34th annual Great Lakes Vegetable Growers Convention and Farm Market Show will be held Jan. 9-11, 2001, at the Grand Center in Grand Rapids, Mich. These dates are a week earlier than the convention dates have been in recent years.
Registration and program information for this year’s convention were mailed out this month. If you are interested in this information and did not receive it in the mail, contact Dave Smith at the office of the Michigan Vegetable Council at (734) 848-8899 or e-mail: miveggies@wnol.net
A comprehensive education program for vegetable growers and farm marketers has been planned for this year’s convention. More than 175 exhibitors in two exhibit halls are expected at the convention’s trade show. A wide range of products and services used by vegetable growers will be on display. There will also be an area for farm market exhibitors in one of the exhibit halls.
The education program for vegetable growers includes sessions for a number of crops. Many of these sessions will offer recertification points for private or certified (vegetable production) pesticide applicators and a continuing education unit for certified crop advisors. On Tuesday, sessions will be offered for asparagus, pickling cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots, peppers and vine crops (melons, cucumbers and summer squash). On Wednesday, there will be vegetable crop sessions covering onions, potatoes, sweet corn and pumpkins and hard squash. And on Thursday, a celery session is planned.
There will also be a number of other sessions for vegetable growers covering topics of special interest. On Wednesday, there will be morning and afternoon sessions on growing and marketing cut flowers for anyone interested in this specialty crop. On Wednesday afternoon, there will be special sessions on marketing Michigan grown vegetables and on developing sustainable, eco-friendly and organic practices in vegetable production. On Thursday, there will be a session covering integrated crop management (ICM) practices for vegetables. Also on Thursday, a full-day workshop on plasticulture systems will be offered.
For farm marketers, there will be morning and afternoon sessions on Wednesday and Thursday covering a number of topics and featuring several people involved directly in retail farm marketing.
For more detailed information on the educational sessions visit www.msue.msu.edu/vegetable/Projects/Convention2001/2001.htm
|
|
