Streamside Honeybees and Native Shrubs Agroforestry Video

The Murray family woodlot has released a video describing their integrated riparian management system near Slocan

Streamside Honeybees Agroforestry Tour, September 7

Streamside Honeybees Agroforestry Tour,
Saturday September 7, 2013 13:00 - 14:00
8875 Martens Rd, Slocan City, BC

Beekeeping with native stream-side shrubs is the topic of a free tour being offered near Slocan City on Saturday, September 7. The tour will highlight the results of a demonstration project at the Murray Family Woodlot where a riparian area is newly planted with three native shrubs well-suited to the region. The Murray Family, with funding from the British Columbia Agroforestry Industry Development Initiative (AIDI ), are showcasing the benefits of integrating honey bees in riparian plantings for both conservation benefits and economic diversification.

The Kootenays are replete with small private land parcels endowed with streams. These riparian corridors are rarely utilized, yet can provide multiple benefits to land owners when managed with care. Many native shrubs grow products like berries and bark which are in demand for food and medicinals. When beehives are nearby, flowering shrubs benefit from honey bee pollination services while also benefiting bees with pollen and nectar for producing honey. Riparian buffers further complement hives by providing both a windbreak and surface water required by bees. Thus, sensitive riparian systems can be managed for economic benefit while protecting drinking water and wildlife habitat.


Directions to Tour: From Hwy 6, turn on to Martens Rd (1.3 km south of Slocan City exit).  Drive past the 'White Pines Dojo' sign and continue uphill to the corner.  There is a driveway on left side of road just before this corner, and 8875 sign.  (If you miss, you'll simply come to dead-end).

Please park along road.  (Parking space is limited up the driveway).  If you arrive late, you can simply walk up driveway about 100 meters and give a holler.

For additional details on the tour, please contact Michael Murray at 250-354-1412.

Agroforestry Tour at the 85th Annual BC Cattlemen's AGM

The BC Cattlemen's Association (BCCA) will be hosting it’s annual convention in Vernon this year from May 23 -25th.  The annual education day portion of the convention is one of the highlights of this event as it offers a great opportunity for ranchers and industry representatives to gain a better understanding of ideas that may assist with their operations becoming more economically and environmentally sustainable.

With funding from the BC Agroforestry Industry Development Initiative, the BCCA is pleased to offer an agroforestry tour as part of this year's education day. The theme for the education day is management for integrating grass, trees and water.  The tour will showcase the success and opportunities that the agroforestry sector provides to addressing forage development, water quality concerns, riparian management and economic diversification from a southern interior prospective.

The tour will visit agroforestry-related demonstrations and research sites in the north Okanagan and will provide education about agroforestry opportunities and practices, building awareness about agroforestry within the ranching community.

The BCCA has been the official voice of cattle ranchers throughout British Columbia since 1929.  For more than 80 years, the Association - whose membership is close to 1,200 ranchers - has represented the interests of beef cattle producers in the Province of BC.  BCCA is proud to work on behalf of approximately 72% of the provincial cattle herd to maintain and strengthen the sustainability of the BC beef industry.

To attend this tour you must register for the BCCA education day. For additional information or to register for the BCCA education day and tour please visit www.bccaagm.com/

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Funding for this work has been provided through the BC Agroforestry Industry Development Initiative (AGF1303)

Agroforestry at the Ninth Annual BC Interior Stewardship Workshop

The Farm Riparian Interface Stewardship Program, with funding from the BC Agroforestry Industry Development Initiative, is pleased to provide support for an agroforestry information session at the upcoming Ninth Annual BC Interior Stewardship Workshop, in Vanderhoof, May 7 and 8, 2013.

This event is part of the extension series: Riparian Stewardship through Agroforestry 

For more information on the Annual BC Interior Stewardship Workshop, locally hosted by the Nechako Environment and Water Stewardship Society, please visit the Fraser Basin Council website.

Register for the workshop and tour at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/P56YNS6

Workshop is at full capacity - registration is now closed. 

Extension Series: Riparian Stewardship Through Agroforestry

Photo courtesy of D. Trotter, BC Ministry of Agriculture

The Farm Riparian Interface Stewardship Program (FRISP), with funding from the BC Agroforestry Industry Development Initiative (AIDI), will be delivering a series of agroforestry education and outreach sessions in British Columbia throughout 2013.  These sessions will provide information and build awareness about agroforestry beneficial management practices (BMPs) within the agricultural community, and will deliver details on how agroforestry practices can contribute to responsible riparian stewardship.

FRISP, a partnership led by the BC Cattlemen's Association, is designed to help the agricultural sector to protect and enhance water quality, to protect and enhance riparian vegetation, and prevent and mitigate agricultural impacts on streams, rivers and lakes.  This is accomplished by:

• Increasing understanding and cooperation between the provincial and federal agencies responsible for resource management in BC and the agricultural community regarding farmland development and use;
• Promoting the joint planning of habitat restoration and farmland activities between landowners, resource management agencies and community groups;
• Increasing awareness of interactions between land use and habitat values; and,
• Resolving conflicts that may arise between resource agencies and landowners.

Working directly with the landowners to supply technical services or workable advice has enabled FRISP to provide the reasoning behind the regulations, which brings about understanding, cooperation and stewardship through action.

Proper land stewardship requires that landowners understand riparian functions and the negative impact that riparian mis-management can have on agricultural operations, fisheries, and watershed health.  These information sessions will provide attendees with access to agroforestry-related BMP information and resources to understand their full range of management options, and with that information, help plan and implement sustainable agricultural production integrated with riparian stewardship and watershed values.

Details on specific events in this extension series will be announced through the AIDI website (www.agroforestry.info) and social media, and will be included in the Agroforestry BC Event Calendar listings (www.agroforestry.info/p/events.html).

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Funding for this work has been provided through the BC Agroforestry Industry Development Initiative (AGF1304)