OSU Extension Darke County
Upcoming Training Meetings
By Sam Custer 

Darke County Private Pesticide Applicator Recertification Training – February 27 

If you need to be recertified and have not registered yet, start first at the OSU Extension Pesticide Safety Education Program website at www.pested.osu.edu website.  You will be able to register on line for one of our re-certification meetings at the site. If you do not have the ability to log in to the site contact our office for a hard copy of the registration. 

We will be conducting the Pesticide Recertification Training for Core and categories 1, 2 and 6 on February 27, 2013, at the VFW Hall, 219 N. Ohio St., Greenville OH. We are hosting two sessions at 1:00 and 6:00 p.m. All registration can be completed at the website listed above. No registrations will be accepted at the Darke County office. Letters for the recertification training were sent out by OSU Extension, Columbus.  The Ohio Department of Application sent out the license renewal letters.  If you need recertification in the other areas please contact the office to be scheduled for a session on March 13, 2013. 

If your license is expiring you need to register for the recertification training with The OSU Extension AND renew your license with the Ohio Department of Agriculture. 

Livestock Mortality Composting Certification Training – February 21 

The Darke County OSU Extension and the Darke County SWCD offices will be hosting a Livestock Mortality Composting Certification Training Session. The session will be held on Thursday, February 21st, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., at the Darke County Extension Office. The office address is 603 Wagner Avenue in Greenville. 

This training session will certify an operator to compost all approved livestock species and is available to all Ohio livestock producers. Composting is a natural process where bacteria and fungi decompose organic material in a predominantly aerobic environment. During the composting process, microorganisms break down organic materials into a stable mixture called compost. The compost resembles humus, and is spread on farming fields. 

Composting, rendering, incineration and burial are the four most common ways to dispose of livestock mortality. To legally compost dead livestock in Ohio producers must attend a certification program. 

For producers who utilize composting, sawdust is the most commonly used carbon source for composting livestock mortality in Ohio. Surveys indicate farmers utilizing composting find it a cost effective and convenient method to dispose of livestock mortality. 

All who are interested in attending are asked to pre-register at least 2 days prior to the session they wish to attend.  The fee is $20.00 per person and is payable at the door.  To register, please contact the Darke County OSU Extension office at 937-548-5215 or Sam Custer at custer.2@osu.edu.

For more detailed information, visit the Darke County OSU Extension web site at www.darke.osu.edu, the OSU Extension Darke County Facebook page or contact Sam Custer, at 937.548.5215.