OSU Mid-Valley Small Farms Program

OSU Extension recommends testing your dial gauge annually to ensure accuracy and safe processing. Bring your pressure canner lid or remove the dial gauge prior to testing on Saturday June 20th at the Salem Saturday Market from 9am-2pm.

We offer testing for Presto, Mirro and Granite Ware dial gauges (either on the lid or the gauge alone). Note: We are unable to test All American lids.

TOMORROW! Join the Marion Soil and Water Conservation District to learn more about the composting process! Reserve your spot here:https://www.marionswcd.net/event/conservation-club-recology-organics-compost-facility-tour/

🌱 FREE Field Day - Scenic Valley Farms in Oregon | June 16

Join , and fellow agricultural professionals in the field to explore conservation practices that strengthen pest control, improve water quality, and build climate resilience on western farms. s

Scenic Valley Farm is committed to conserving water resources through dry-farming their vines and hops. They also support biodiversity through cover cropping and providing songbird nest boxes and bat houses.

The event will feature sessions on beneficial birds and pest management, beneficial insects for vineyards, cover crops, dryland farming, habitat installation and a guided farm tour.

📍Gervais, OR in the Willamette Valley 📅 June 16, 2026 | 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM PST 🍽️ Lunch provided!

Register Here: https://www.wildfarmalliance.org/scenicvalley

Willamette Community Lamb Farm Tour - Insights to AMP Grazing
Wednesday, June 3rd
5:30pm - 7:30pm
Albany, OR
$5 *Veterans attend free!
Register Here: https://beav.es/fq4
Join Willamette Community Lamb, a 30-acre Veteran owned farm in Albany, as Jacob Mogler shares his ”Insights from AMP Grazing" and pasture lambing.
He is implementing portable fencing, rotational grazing, sustainable methods, and is working to connect & grow the local sheep industry.
This is a Regional Small Farm tour, open to all!
Questions or accommodations? Contact [email protected] or (541) 730-3539.

Our June edition of the Mid-Willamette Valley Small Farms Newsletter is LIVE!

Check it out and subscribe here: https://mailchi.mp/273e94f5e34f/mwvsmallfarms-10346229

DONT FORGET! Join us tomorrow to learn the basics of leasing out your farmland!

Thinking of leasing out your farmland?

Join us at the Jefferson Community Center on June 2 to learn about evaluating your land, building relationships with farmers, contract writing and more.

Find additional details and registration information at: oregonagtrust.org/events/2026/4/28/thinking-of-leasing-your-farmland

Did you know if you are on a domestic well you should be testing your water every year? Stop by the Marion County office next week to get your well water screened for Nitrate for FREE!

Our well and septic educator will be on hand to answer questions while your water is screened. It just takes 10 minutes.

Interested in other testing? We have a list of certified labs that can provide these services for a fee, and can help you figure out what you contaminants you want to ask for.

Can't make the clinic? The office can accept samples and provide screening for nitrate anytime during business hours (they just won't be able to answer anything more than basic questions).

📢 Last call! AgWest New Producer Grant applications close May 31, 2026.

This is a one-time $15,000 grant designed to support new and beginning agricultural producers as they grow their agricultural operation.

You’re eligible if you’re:
✅ A full- or part-time agricultural producer with two years or less of operational experience, or planning to start within two years
✅ Located within AgWest Farm Credit territory
✅ Not a current AgWest lending customer
✅ 18 or older
✅ A U.S. citizen or eligible foreign national or permanent resident (or certain visas)
✅ An individual producer (nonprofits are not eligible)

Learn more and submit by May 31. Link in the comments.

New Episode of For the Love of Farming! https://beav.es/fPZ

Some lives reveal how extraordinary they are, the moment you start listening. Mary Eichler of Green Gate Farm in Corvallis has lived one of those lives. Her story sounds like a legend or a movie script, not because it’s embellished, but because it is rooted in courage and a rare clarity of purpose.

Mary turned eighty years old the day we recorded this. Mary’s life shows how much one person can change the world around them, and far beyond. As she says, “there’s always a better way… you just have to be willing.” Like the time she and her husband, simply helping a neighbor and trusting what they saw, unwittingly set in motion an international agricultural trade and industry - turning a waste product into a global export, improving environmental outcomes, and helping change Oregon law (more than once). Her story preserves a piece of Oregon history that isn’t captured elsewhere.

This episode honors a woman who has spent her life solving problems others accepted as inevitable, caring for animals others passed by, and spreading seeds of impact everywhere she stepped. I am grateful for everything about Mary.
This episode was recorded in March of 2026

June is quickly approaching, don't forget to register for our upcoming class! Register today!

Register here: https://beav.es/fU9