Virginia Cooperative Extension - Montgomery County

08/21/2026

Now's the time, folks! 🌾🌾🌾

Now is the time to apply 40 to 50 pounds of Nitrogen per acre to your pastures and any grazeable hay fields to make fall grass. Nitrogen applied over the next month to cool season grass will boost tonnage for grazing over the winter and most of the nutrients will flow through the cow and be there to create more pasture or hay yield in the spring. Good sources of nitrogen include chicken/turkey litter, Class A Biosolids (usually granulated), Class B Biosolids (which needs a permit to spread), Fertilizer and several other kinds of manure.

The Picture shows Jesse Clark's Spreader truck full of broiler litter shortly prior to spreading on some needy pastures. Thank you to Jesse (and many other custom applicators) for spreading crop nutrients on many needy fields across the region.

08/21/2026

Due to the weather forecast, the Pollinator County Event at the Hale Community Garden has been canceled. 🌧⛈🌧

08/20/2026

𝐖𝐞'𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐑𝐕 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐨 Seed Peace- 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐲'𝐬 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐅𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬!

Farmers regularly experience stressors outside of their control: drought, flooding, high input costs, isolation, plant/animal diseases, injuries, health issues themselves, etc. This contributes to the fact that farmers are 3 times more likely to take their own life than the general population.

𝐅𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞, 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞. 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩!

Seed Peace is a local non-profit that connects farmers to physical and mental health resources in Pulaski, Montgomery, Giles, Floyd, and Wythe counties.

If you are a farmer in need of care, please visit their website: www.seedpeace.org to apply for benefits or email them at [email protected].

𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬?
-Watch and share this post and their video!
🎥 https://tinyurl.com/SeedPeaceIntro
-Ask Seed Peace to speak with your club, church, or at an event!
-Introduce a farmer friend to Seed Peace! 👨🏽‍🌾👩🏽‍🌾
-Donate!

If you are a healthcare provider (primary care provider, dentist, eye doctor, therapist, etc.) in the NRV who would like to join their community provider network offering services to farmers, please reach out: [email protected].

We count on farmers 3 times a day! They should be able to count on us, too.

𝐅𝐀𝐑𝐌 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐆- 𝐈𝐓'𝐒 𝐎𝐊 𝐓𝐎 𝐀𝐒𝐊 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐏 ❤️

08/18/2026

𝐉𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐮𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟓𝐭𝐡 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝟖𝐚𝐦-𝟐𝐩𝐦 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔 𝐊𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐚𝐫𝐦 𝐃𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐅𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐝 𝐃𝐚𝐲! 🍅🐂🌾

This event is actually two separate events this year: livestock-focused versus horticulture-focused! Spend more time diving deeper into your area of choice! This event will also offer an optional wagon ride tour of the farm. Speakers included VT faculty, extension agents, and industry leaders!

𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐜𝐤 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐓𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞:
-Drought Management of Beef Cattle Nutrition
-Virtual Fencing
-Alfalfa & Small Grains Research
-Alternative Forages for Managing Drought
-W**d Science Update

𝐇𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐓𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞:
-Planting Preparation: Plastic Laying and Irrigation Setup Demonstration
-Pest Management Research in Vegetables
-Composting for Soil Health Demonstration
-On-Farm Sanitation
-Beekeeping, Pollination, and Honey Production as Part of the Farm

Cost is $15/person. Lunch and ice cream are included along with door prizes!

To register, contact the Pulaski County Extension Office at 540-980-7761 or [email protected].

Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and local governments, and is an equal opportunity employer. For the full non-discrimination statement, please visit ext.vt.edu/accessibility.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact Morgan Paulette at 540-980-7761 during business hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations 5 days prior to the event.

08/14/2026

Hands-on canning workshop for the whole family! Join us on Sunday, September 13th to learn about water bath canning. Go home with a canned jar of berry jam and a jar of salsa that you made with your family. It's a family affair. Register @ https://bit.ly/VCEJamCan

08/13/2026

🐃“𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐎𝐍𝐄'𝐒 𝐂𝐎𝐖𝐒 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐎𝐔𝐓!!”🐄

Whether we’ve had a storm that has resulted in trees on fences or there’s that one Houdini animal that has a reputation for slipping out, livestock can end up getting out of their usual pastures.

“𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈 𝐝𝐨 𝐢𝐟 𝐈 𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐜𝐤 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐧𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲 𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐠𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐲, 𝐕𝐀?”
--Note the location, ear tag color, species (cattle, goat, horse, etc.), and number of animals you see.
--Call the non-emergency number to the NRV911 Regional Dispatch Authority: 540-382-4343. This is the quickest way to receive help. They have a program, in cooperation with Montgomery Co. Animal Control, where they keep an active log of landowners and animals to make identification of the owner and contact easier. They will also contact Animal Control via radio if they are out of the office. The Sheriff's Department also has this list and can help in finding the owner. When in doubt, or if you are in another county, state, etc., call the local Sheriff's Department.

“𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐈 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐟 𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭?”
No. Calling this number is in the best interest of the animals, the farmer, and the citizens in the area. The quicker the owner can be notified, the quicker the animals can be safely returned home. Owners that repeatedly have animals out can get in trouble, but they WILL be in trouble if livestock get out and a vehicle strikes one of their animals.

“𝐈’𝐦 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫. 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨 𝐈 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐈’𝐦 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭?”
Call Montgomery Co. Animal Control (540-382-5795 ext.2) and ask to be added to their livestock log.

08/12/2026

Mark your calendars! The 2027 Montgomery County 4-H camp will be June 14 - 18th. Once again we will be joining Botetourt County at the W.E. Skelton 4-H Center. You don't want to miss out on the adventure and fun!

08/10/2026

𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐋𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐲?

There is 𝐧𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐠𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐲, 𝐏𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐢, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 as they have already been reported to VDACS. To learn more about the spotted lanternfly distribution and updates in Virginia, visit: https://ext.vt.edu/agriculture/commercial-horticulture/spotted-lanternfly.html

While there's no need to report them, go ahead and squish 'em! 💥

🍇While a threat to grape and fruit production, they do not pose a health threat to people and serve as a nuisance. If you are a grape producer, you can find more information on control methods in vineyards here: https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/ENTO/ENTO-323/ENTO-323.html

Learn more about these insects and what you can do individually in VCE's publication, "Homeowner Suggestions for Managing Spotted Lanternfly" as pictured or here:
https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/ENTO/ento-586/ento-586.html

08/05/2026

🐝Join us on August 21st at the Hale Community Garden (215 Maywood St, Blacksburg) at 2pm to learn how to identify the pollinators you might find buzzing around your garden and how to support them! 🦋

🔬You'll also get to become a citizen scientist and help in collecting data for the Great Southeast Pollinator Census! You'll use the information you learn about different pollinators to observe a plant for 15 minutes and identify the pollinators that visit it! 🌸

Registration is NOT required! We hope to see adults and youth participate!

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact Meredith Hoggatt, Montgomery Co. Extension Office at 540-382-5790 during business hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations 5 days prior to the event. *TDD number is (800) 828-1120.

07/30/2026

Calling all horse owners, barn managers, 4-H'ers, or equine enthusiasts!

🐴🌱 PastureWise Equine🌱🐴
Are you looking to improve your horse’s health, pasture productivity, and grazing management practices? Join us PastureWise Equine, a hands-on educational program designed to help horse owners understand how soil, forage, and horse management work together to create healthier horses and more sustainable farms.
This year, we are bringing the program to three locations across Virginia:
1. Thursday, August 27 at Hoge Farm Stables - Blacksburg
2. Friday, September 18 at Oakdale Equestrian Center- Powhatan
3. Friday, October 23 at Rapidan Equine Sanctuary - Fredericksburg

⏰ 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
💲 $20 per person (includes lunch)

Explore the connection between soil health, forage production, and grazing success through:
🌾 Plant Management: pasture evaluation and conservation practices you can implement on your own farm
🐎 Equine Management: Equine nutrition fundamentals, how to evaluate hay, metabolic health and body condition scoring
🌱 Soil Management: Soil health principles and management practices

📝 Registration is open! Visit https://tinyurl.com/PastureWise for more details!
📞 Questions? Contact Mackenzie Gunn at [email protected] or 804-561-2481.

This program is supported by a grant through Virginia Horse Industry Board - VHIB with support from the Virginia Forage and Grassland Council.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact Mackenzie Gunn, Amelia Extension Office at 804-561-2481 during business hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. to discuss accommodations 5 days prior to the event. *TDD number is (800) 828-1120. See less