406 Grazing Academy
3-day, hands-on workshop for ranchers wanting to sharpen their skills for solving grazing management challenges on their ranch. The event will feature a ranch tour, educational speakers, and hands-on learning opportunities.
Registration
REGISTRATION IS CLOSED
The workshop will be held June 6-8, 2023. Classroom activities will occur in Anaconda, MT at The Forge Hotel with field activities held on working ranches in the Deer Lodge Valley, MT. A block of rooms is available at a reduced rate at The Forge Hotel, ask for DNRC 406 Grazing Academy to receive the reduced price. Both registration and the room block close May 15th. Space is limited, and early registration is encouraged. (Block code: 406 Grazing)
Registration is $200/person and covers educational materials including a range monitoring kit valued at over $200, as well as noon and evening meals.
Participants are responsible for travel and lodging expenses.
Ranchers wanting to hone their grazing management skills are encouraged to register for this year’s 406 Grazing Academy. The 3-day, hands-on workshop is offered by the Rangeland Resources Program in the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC), Montana State University (MSU) Extension Range Management, and MSU’s Dan Scott Ranch Management Program. Montana Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative has helped by graciously sponsoring this year’s Academy.
Participants will gain practical information to help them make strategic decisions for their ranch. Topics include economic optimum stocking rates, diverse grazing strategies, range monitoring, extending the grazing season, livestock-wildlife relations, targeted grazing, and coping with drought, wildfire and poisonous plants. Successful Montana ranchers and other range managers from across the state will share their expertise and complement presentations by the educators. It is recommended that workshop participants bring a laptop to be able to practice with Web Soil Survey and other online tools. Participants may also wish to bring a map of their ranch to be able to better engage instructors with ranch-specific questions. The workshop also includes an optional follow-up ranch visit by an instructor later in summer or fall.
For more information, contact any of the following: Stacey Barta at sbarta@mt.gov or 406-594-8481; Jeff Mosley at jmosley@montana.edu or 406-994-5601; or Rachel Frost at frost@montana.edu or 406-994-3724.