As part of a new program to build relationships with prospective students, the University of Wisconsin-Madison Dairy Science Department held a raffle drawing during the Wisconsin State Fair junior dairy show. The Andis Company co-sponsored the program. Jordan Dorn of Green County and Trent Styczynski of Shawano County each won a set of Andis? Cattle Clippers. Other winners of UW-Madison Dairy Science apparel included Nick Jens, Sheboygan County; Tyler Jauquet, Kewaunee County; Nate Kringle, Barron County; Jacob Cramer, Jefferson County; Joel Barlow, Jefferson County; and Danielle Brown, Iowa County.

Prospective students have until Oct. 1 to register for the 2005-2006 Farm and Industry Short Course at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences.

Dane County, Wisconsin is home to more than 120,000 dairy cows and some of the most productive farmland in the state. It’s also home to some of the hottest house-building in the state, thanks to a thriving job market in and around Madison, the capital city. And it’s home to some thorny urban/rural problems, as dairy farmers try to manage manure in a countryside that’s filling up with houses and commuters.

Junior dairy exhibitors showing the top producing cow in each of the six dairy breeds were recognized at the 2005 Wisconsin Junior State Fair. The breed production champion with the highest 305-day combined butterfat and protein production record received the award sponsored by AgSource Cooperative Services.

On Saturday, Sept. 10, the Wisconsin Agricultural and Life Sciences Alumni Association will hold its 30th annual Football Fire-Up at the Stock Pavilion. The Fire-Up will start at 8:30 a.m. and run to 10:30 a.m., prior to the 11 a.m. Badger football game against Temple. The WALSAA annual meeting will be held at 8 a.m.

The Wisconsin Agricultural and Life Sciences Alumni Association Scholarship Golf Tournament is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 9 at the Bridges Golf Club in Madison, with a shotgun start at noon.

Fifteen Wisconsin dairy youth received James W. Crowley Leadership Awards at the 2005 Wisconsin Junior State Fair for their outstanding dairy project work. Each award winner received a plaque provided by the James W. Crowley Dairy Management and Extension Fund.

Wisconsin junior dairy exhibitors gave fairgoers an excellent view of the state’s dairy industry at the 2005 Wisconsin Junior State Fair. County exhibits featuring elite groups of cattle and incorporating dairy promotion themes were judged in the herdsmanship competition. Dairy youth exhibitors from 44 Wisconsin counties competed for the title of champion herdsmen.

The Marshfield Agricultural Research Station’s second annual Twilight Garden Meeting will be held Wednesday, Aug. 24. Following a welcome at 6 p.m. by assistant station superintendent Mike Bertram, presenters will cover a variety of gardening and produce-management topics.

Vampires will have a miserable time at this year’s Horticultural Field Day, Aug. 20 at the West Madison Research Station. Eleven cultivars of roasted garlic will be available for taste-testing, and the station’s Allium vegetable collection – onions, leeks and shallots – will be highlighted for the first time at a field day. Visitors will also find sweet corn, salsas, melons, cucumbers and a wide variety of peppers and tomatoes to sample.