Location
The 2023 Roadside Conference is hosted by the UNI Tallgrass Prairie Center; it will be held at the Hilton Garden Inn Cedar Falls.
Accommodations
We have a block of hotel rooms at the Hilton Garden Inn Cedar Falls. If you would like to reserve a hotel room, the rate is $115/night + tax under "Annual Roadside Conference." The hotel's number is (319) 266-6611. The deadline to get a room in the block at the conference rate is September 4, 2023.
Alternative hotels in the area:
Comfort Suites, 319-273-9999
Super 8, 319-553-6868
Registration
The deadline to register is September 22, 2023.
Draft Agenda
Wednesday, October 4, 2023
Noon-4:15 p.m.: Choice of golf tournament at Pheasant Ridge Golf Course ($25 per person) or fishing tournament
5 p.m.-6 p.m.: Association for Integrated Roadside Management business meeting
6 p.m.: Dinner on your own
Thursday, October 5, 2023
8-9 a.m.: Registration opens / morning refreshments / exhibits
9 a.m.: Welcome. Laura Jackson, UNI Tallgrass Prairie Center.
9:15 a.m.: What's a Weed Anyway? Communicating Conservation Amid Varied Values and Perspectives. Adam Janke and Bob Hartzler, Iowa State University.
10:15 a.m.: Break and exhibits
10:30 a.m.: Soil First — The Long Road to Rebuilding Our Lost Ecosystems. Bob Wubben, Blooming Prairie Nursery.
11:30 a.m.: Lunch and exhibits
12:30 p.m.: Board bus for afternoon bus tour of Tallgrass Prairie Center and Irvine Prairie.
5:00 p.m.: Social hour at Hilton Garden Inn
6:00 p.m.: Evening banquet and awards ceremony
Friday, October 6, 2023
7:00 a.m.: Breakfast and exhibits
8:00 a.m.: Living Roadway Trust Fund updates. Tara Van Waus, Iowa DOT.
8:15 a.m.: Roadside program updates. Kristine Nemec, UNI Tallgrass Prairie Center.
8:30 a.m.: Will Prairie Plug My Tile? That and Other Practical Questions about Prairie on Farms. Andy Olson, UNI Tallgrass Prairie Center.
9:00 a.m.: Q&A Panel on Herbicide Use with Herbicide Experts.
10:00 a.m.: Break and exhibits
10:30 a.m.: Lessons from Prairie Restoration Experiments: Effects of Cover Cropping, Seed Additions, Mowing, Herbicide, and Other Management Strategies to Increase Plant Species Diversity. Andrew Kaul, University of Minnesota.
11:00 a.m.: Open Burning Rules and Regulations. David Knoll, Iowa DNR.
11:30 a.m.: Luncheon and door prizes
Updated: July 18, 2023