The Butler County Cattlemen are again helping us at Butler County Ohio State University Extension plan and conduct a tour of beef facilities and farms.

We have found one of the best ways to get ideas that work is to visit research centers and farms that test innovative practices.

This year our tour will visit Lawrence County, Ind., home of the Feldun Purdue Ag Center and the Indiana Bull Test. We will leave OSU Extension in Butler County at 7 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 17, and we should be back about 7:30 p.m.

David Redman, extension educator in Lawrence County, has set up an excellent bus tour for us.

The first stop is the Double “O” Farm. This registered Angus farm routinely participates in the winter Bull Test. The 80-cow herd is considered one of the best in the county.

The next stop takes us to a 200-head commercial cow-calf operation. Stan Armstrong retains ownership of some of his calves and sells the remainder through the Springville feeder auction.
Stan keeps outstanding records on his herd. He calves in both the spring and the fall to spread income and labor.

The Springville feeder calf auction is the third stop on the tour. The auction is farmer owned and handles about 10,000 head each year. The calves are weighed as soon as they arrive. They are then sorted by weight, sex, color and feeder grade. The market is an institution in the community since it has sold cattle for over 50 years.

The last stop will be at the Feldun Center. The bull test is now conducting the summer test with 80 bulls on feed.  Purdue also operated at 250 cow commercial herd at the center. They do outstanding research on intensive grazing and beef cattle here.
The cost of the tour this year is $30 if you register by Aug. 10 and $35 after the 10th.  Send your name, address, phone number and check for $30 per person so it arrives at: 1810 Princeton Road, Hamilton, OH 45011. Make checks payable to: OSU Extension, Butler County.

We welcome anyone who wants to go on the tour with us. You don’t need to be a cattlemen member, or even live in this county to participate. Call 513-887-3722 if you have questions.

Readers with questions or comments for Steve Bartels may write to him in care of this publication.