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Writer: Robert Burns (903) 834-6191, rd-burns@tamu.edu Source: Dr. Larry Redmon (903) 834-6191, l-redmon@tamu.edu

OVERTON - "I recently inherited 100 acres and I want to raise cattle. Where do I start?"

It's a common cultural phenomenon these days. After years of working in the city or town, a person inherits the family acreage and wants to know how to start a cattle ranch. They know they're greenhorns but may not realize just how much there is to raising cattle in the 21st century without breaking the bank along the way.

An upcoming East Texas ranching/grazing workshop, set April 30 through May 2, is designed to instruct these "absolute beginners."

"Unlike other Extension ranching programs, the focus of this program is not so much how to fine-tune an operation, but how to get started in ranching and pasture management the right way with research-based information," said Dr. Larry Redmon, forage specialist with the Texas Agricultural Extension Service.

"We will start the program with the assumption that our audience knows next to nothing about ranching except that they want to do it."

The program will be held at the Texas A&M University Agricultural Research & Extension Center at Overton in Rusk County, which is the regional headquarters for both Extension specialists and scientists with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station. A number of Extension specialists and Station scientists will be involved in the program.

Presenters will include specialists on forages, livestock and agribusiness, plus a plant breeder of annual ryegrass and small grains, a forage legume breeder, a forage management researcher and a forage physiology scientist.

Those attending the workshop will learn how to establish a business plan for the ranch, how to keep proper records, evaluate alternative agricultural enterprises, choose the appropriate forage species for East Texas, how to fertilize pastures, design forage systems that minimize winter feeding costs, how to set up pastures for cattle, how to set the correct stocking rates, choose the appropriate cattle breeds for East Texas, pick the optimum animal breeding/calving seasons, how to promote good animal health and how to market cattle.

In addition to the outdoor and hands-on activities, researchers will give tours of the various forage and grazing study sites, showing how theory is applied in practice. Demonstrations will be given on how to move livestock with stock dogs, and how to perform cattle implants, ear-tagging and castration. Participants will be shown how to take soil samples, how to set up electric fencing, how to calibrate planters for proper seeding rates in pastures, and how to calibrate sprayers for weed management.

Because the workshop involves so much hands-on and actual demonstrations, the enrollment will be limited to the first 40 who register. Cost of registration is $125 per person, a price that includes two evening meals, one lunch, break refreshments, and educational materials.

"This $125 will probably be the least expensive and wisest investment landowners ever make in the cattle business," Redmon said. "The registration fee basically covers the meals and educational materials. Having the opportunity to pick the brains of eight senior researchers and Extension specialists is basically free."

To register, send a check or money order to Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, Grazing School Registration, P.O. Box 200, Overton, TX 75684. Make the check or money order out to "TAES."

For more information, contact Redmon either by phone (903) 834-6191 or by email: l-redmon@tamu.edu.

The Overton Center is located one mile north of downtown Overton on Hwy. 3053.

Coming from south of Overton, take 135 into town. At Overton's single red stop light, take a left, go across the railroad tracks and turn right immediately after the Brookshires market. Look for the large white sign on the right side of the road identifying the Overton Center. The North Farm site is about five miles north on Hwy. 3053. Attendees should look for signs, or they may drop in at the Center headquarters for directions to the North Farm site.

Coming from the north, take the 3053 exit from I-20. Look for signs approximately four miles south of State Hwy. 31.

There are no hotel or motel accommodations in Overton. The nearest hotels are in Kilgore, approximately 15 miles to the northeast. For the Holiday Inn Express at Kilgore, call (903) 986-2966 or 986-3533. For the Ramada Inn, call (903) 983-3456. For Best Western, call (903) 986-1195.