Sarah Farley, University of Illinois Extension
Katie Parker, University of Illinois Extension

This session will cover how soil plays an important role in growing specialty crops. Extension Local Foods and Small Farms Educators, Katie Parker and Sarah Farley will cover soil management basics, including soil testing and amendments, fertilizing, mulching, and more.

Janna Beckerman, Purdue University

In Cannabis, successful disease management is a joint effort between cultivar choice, diagnostics, and cultural management due to the dearth of labeled pesticides. The goal of this talk to is review how to identify key diseases; how to manage these pathogens with a focus on cultural controls; and clarify what products have data to support their use to control diseases safely and effectively.

Bronwyn Aly, University of Illinois Extension
Grant McCarty, University of Illinois Extension

Strawberry production is a viable opportunity for new growers in Illinois. Whether you are looking to compliment your vegetable farm or start a strawberry u-pick, this small fruit has great potential. Depending on where you live, there can be different ways to grow, market, and sell this crop. Bronwyn Aly, Local Foods and Small Farms Educator, will explain how Southern Illinois strawberry production looks with a focus on a plasticulture production system while Grant McCarty, Local Foods and Small Farms Educator, will give the Northern outlook on field-grown and day-neutrals.

Ajay Nair, Iowa State University

Given the challenging weather conditions in the Midwest, season extension strategy using high tunnels is valuable to all vegetable farms. A large number of growers grow tomatoes in their high tunnels without rotating crops and run the risk of diseases build up and deteriorating soil health. This presentation will focus on specialty melons (aromatic, enhanced flavors, 1-3 lbs. fruits) production in high tunnels and highlight cultivars, types, and management practices that can lead to a successful crop rotation option in high tunnels.

Jim Jasinski, Ohio State University

This presentation will focus on the 2020 and 2021 Pumpkin and Squash hybrid trial results from the Western Ag Research Station in South Charleston, OH. Pictures of the fruit along with yield and size data plus any PMT or PMR disease packages will be noted. Most hybrids are commercially available but some are unreleased experimental hybrids.

Jim Jasinski, Ohio State University

Utilizing new technology to capture more than a snapshot of a field or hybrid by using a 360 camera for stills or video. These images can be stitched together to make a model or tour of the field for either historical, marketing or educational purposes. Models for either 2020 or 2021 will be shown as examples.

Alan Walters, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale

Specialty head lettuces are a high value crop that can easily be grown in late winter to spring high tunnels in Illinois, although a shade covering will probably need to be utilized at some point to reduce inside temperatures and light. A study was conducted at SIUC during the late winter to spring growing season in 2021 to evaluate four butterhead lettuce cultivars and four planting densities to maximize productivity in a high tunnel environment. Our results indicated that about 1000 heads can be effectively grown in a standard 26' wide by 48' long high tunnel, but markets must be ready to accept the product once they reach marketable size. We have found that this type of high-quality lettuce can be sold anywhere from $3 to $5 per head in local markets.

Nathan Johanning, University of Illinois Extension

Join us for an interactive group discussion where we share our own challenges and successes with raising and marketing pumpkins. Learn from the farm experiences of others to help innovate solutions on your farm!

Jerry Costello, Illinois Department of Agriculture

Erika Vanessa Guevara Rodriguez, Consulate General of El Salvador

Hugh McPherson, Maize Quest

Peter Hirst, Purdue University

When do you keep feathers, when do you start all over as a whip? Tips for training the best form.

Peter Hirst, Purdue University

For old trees that are overgrown but are still producing, how much can you remove in one season to maximize production?

Zack Grant, University of Illinois Extension

Learn about important site assessment and water access factors for urban agriculture projects. Educator Zack Grant will share lessons from urban ag projects in Cook County to highlight critical considerations for planning an urban agriculture project.

Alan Walters, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale

Hollow heart is a major quality defect in seedless watermelons that has been attributed to many different production practices, including poor pollination, excessive nitrogen and over-watering, although the development of this quality defect is still poorly understood. Therefore, a study was conducted at the SIUC Horticulture Research Center during the 2020 and 2021 growing seasons to determine the influences of these three production practices on the incidence of hollow heat development in seedless watermelon. Research results will be presented and discussed.

Hugh McPherson, Maize Quest

Ticketed admission is great for the general public, but parties and groups like packages. Using examples from the flagship operation, attendees learn package pricing, activity choices, and activity balance for profitability.

Alicia Nesbary-Moore, Herban Produce
Randy Graham, Illinois Specialty Growers Association
Ken Johnson, University of Illinois Extension

New Micro Farm Crop Insurance
Doug Yoder, Country Financial

This session will cover a Micro Farm crop insurance option, new for 2022, specifically for agricultural producers with small farms who sell locally. The new Micro Farm policy simplifies record keeping and covers post-production costs like washing and value-added products. The new policy is offered through Whole-Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) and it has distinct provisions that can provide more access to the program, including: no expense or individual commodity reporting needed which simplifies the record keeping requirements for producers, revenue from post-production costs such as washing and packaging commodities and value-added products, are considered allowable revenue. The Micro Farm policy is available to producers who have a farm operation that earns an average allowable revenue of $100,000 or less, or for carryover insureds, an average allowable revenue of $125,000 or less.

Climate Change: Impacts and Opportunities for the Illinois Specialty Crop Sector
Trent Ford, Illinois State Water Survey

Changes in the global climate have had implications here in Illinois, from extreme precipitation to warmer summer nights. Model projections show these changes, and associated impacts for specialty crops in Illinois, will continue and possibly accelerate toward the middle to late part of the 21st century. However, as domestic and global demand for food production increases over the next several decades, it is crucial the Illinois specialty crop industry is resilient to climate change impacts. We'll review the impacts we have seen and are likely to see to specialty crop production in Illinois and will discuss strategies and opportunities to build climate resilience in the specialty crop industry.

Greg and Mariah Anderson, Triple M Farm; Mariah’s Mums and More

The key to producing profitable mums is ensuring that crops finish at optimal size and quality. In this session you’ll learn what key factors impact mum quality and the proactive cultural management practices for growing stellar-looking mums to sell in the fall.

Marty Williams, USDA-ARS

The overall goal of the Williams lab is to develop crop and weed management systems that are economically viable and environmentally sound. Recent research on sweet corn will be presented, including historical changes in yield trends, yield variability, and plant density tolerance.

Lyn Falk, Retailworks
Suzanne Rafenstein, Retailworks

Learn best practices for setting up a successful farm market. Topics covered will be development of name/brand, store layout, design/décor. display. setup, and visual merchandising signage and lighting.

Lyn Falk, Retailworks
Suzanne Rafenstein, Retailworks

Learn how to create product categories, assess type and quantity of inventory needed on the selling floor, and competitive price points and profitable mark-ups.