AMES – Landowners, tenants and other agri-business professionals with an interest in farmland ownership, management and leasing agreements can plan to attend one of more than 50 farmland leasing meetings scheduled for July and August. The workshops are facilitated by Iowa State University Extension farm management specialists and held all across the state.

“I’ve had numerous contacts this year from persons who have questions about farmland values and rental rates,” said Melissa O’Rourke, ISU Extension farm and agribusiness management specialist. “Due to the increases in land values and cash rents, there is definitely a heightened interest in farm leasing arrangements.”

In July the meeting dates and locations in Farm News’ coverage area include:

July 18: 9 a.m. to noon at Forester Community Center, Rock Rapids in Lyon County; 1:15 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Osceola Community Hospital Education Room in Sibley in Osceola County; 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Sioux County Extension office, lower meeting room, in Orange City.

July 19: 9 a.m. to noon at the Iowa State Bank in Sheldon in O’Brien County; 1:15 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. at the Dickinson County Extension office in Spirit Lake; 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Plymouth County Extension office in LeMars.

July 20: 9 a.m. to noon in the Estherville Public Library in Estherville in Emmet County; 1:15 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Water’s Edge Nature Center north of Algona in Kossuth County; 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the at the Palo Alto County Extension office in Emmetsburg.

July 21: 1:15 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Sergeant Bluff Community Center in Woodbury County; 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Clay County Fairgrounds, 4-H Auditorium, in Spencer.

In August the meeting dates and locations in Farm News’ coverage area include:

Aug. 1: 9 a.m. to noon at the Boone County Fairgrounds in Boone.

Aug. 3: 9 a.m. to noon at the Adel Public Library in Dallas County; 9 a.m. to noon at the Hamilton County Extension office in Webster City; 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Webster Count y Extension office in Fort Dodge; 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Polk County Extension office in Altoona.

Aug. 4: 9 a.m. to noon at the Story County Extension office in Nevada; 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Ellsworth Community College, Hamilton Auditorium, in Iowa Falls.

Aug. 8: 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Sac County Extension office in Sac City;

Aug. 9: 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Iowa Trust and Savings Bank, Laurens, in Pocahontas County.

Aug. 11: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Marshall County Extension office in Marshalltown.

Aug. 17: 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Wright County Extension office in Clarion; 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Faith United Methodist Church in Humboldt in Humboldt County; 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Center 1, 5 1st St., SW, Hampton, in Franklin County.

Aug. 18: 9 a.m. to noon at North Iowa Area Community College, Muse Norris Hall, Mason City in Cerro Gordo County.

Aug. 23: 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Garner Education Center in Hancock County; 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Western Iowa Tech, Cherokee, in Cherokee County.

Aug. 24: 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Carroll County Extension office, in Carroll.

Aug. 25: 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Buena Vista County Extension office in Storm Lake.

O’Rourke said ISU Extension research indicates that the average age of farmland owners continues to rise; with 55 percent of Iowa’s farmland owned by people over the age of 65 and 28 percent of the land owned by individuals over age 75.

The research also indicates that children and surviving spouses of farmers are less likely to continue operating the farm themselves. That’s a major reason why farmland leasing continues to increase, O’Rourke said.

The workshops are approximately three hours in length and provide each workshop attendee with a set of useful materials about farm leasing arrangements. The topics to be covered during the 2011 workshops include:

• Cash rental rate survey and land values survey.

• Comparison of different types of leases.

• Lease termination.

• Impacts of yields and prices.

• Calculating a fair cash rent.

• Use of spreadsheets to compare leases.

• Available Internet resources.