LINCOLN – When winter ultimately lifts its yearly siege of battering winds, it seems always to be relieved by equal trouble: the floods and soil erosion of early spring, the greatest sufferers of which tend to be the trees.
Those especially worn down might be the windbreaks; after all, such trees are planted to keep the harsher elements at arm’s length. Repairing, replanting, or expanding a windbreak can be costly and overwhelming, especially if a producer is unfamiliar with the process, or which trees to plant.
The Nebraska Extension Office will be offering a traveling class throughout Central Nebraska to help farmers and ranchers with the pesky problem of windbreaks: where to plant, how to plant, and controlling invasive plants in windbreaks.
Nebraska Extension Livestock Educator Randy Saner and Nebraska Extension Horticulture Educator David Lott will instruct the class 5 times in the upcoming months, beginning in February and going into April. The pair will also discuss windbreak design for optimal feed and input savings on livestock operations, utility expense savings, and wildlife habitat enhancement.
The first class will be in Cozad at the Wilson Public Library on Thursday, February 9 at 6:30 p.m., with the second planned for the following Thursday, February 16 at the Upper Loup NRD in Thedford at 6:30 p.m.
The pair will offer the class once in March, on Wednesday the 22nd at the Lincoln County Extension in North Platte at 6:30 p.m., and twice in April: once on the 8th at the Chase County Extension in Imperial, and on the 11th at Mid-Plains Community College in Ogallala. Both April classes will take place at 6:30 p.m. Mountain Time.
A nominal registration fee will be payable on the evening of each program, though participants are encouraged to pre-register to ensure the availability of the educational materials. A registration link can be found here, and questions about the workshops can be directed to either Randy Saner or David Lott at the Nebraska Extension in North Platte by phone at (308) 532-2683. A flyer is attached.
