Pesticide credits have been awarded for upcoming field days in Sidney and Froid on June 20 and June 27 respectively. First up is the joint dryland field day with MSU’s Eastern Ag Research Center and USDA’s Northern Plains Ag Research Lab at their adjoining research farms near Sidney on Thursday morning, June 20th, from 9 am to 12:30 pm. The event has been awarded 2 private and commercial pesticide credits.
Featured tour talks include a special weed identification workshop, along with an update on winter and spring cereal variety trials using drones to characterize performance. The latter presentation will include a demonstration of the drone, weather permitting. Other talks include a study to control pea root rot caused by Fusarium avenaceum from scabby grain, along with strategies to enhance pea N fixation and improve protein content. Additional talks include discussion of means to improve native plant establishment in CRP, an update of a white top biocontrol study, and a soil acidification sampling demonstration.
The tour begins at the ARS dryland farm located about 4 miles north of Sidney on MT Highway 16. Coming from Sidney, take a left on County Road 129 and a second left on County Road 346. The turn into the farm will be marked. The event ends with a free lunch sponsored by the Richland County Extension Office.
Up next is the 2019 Froid Research Farm Field Day on Thursday afternoon, June 27th, from 1 – 5 pm. That event has been awarded 3 private and commercial pesticide credits. Categories include dealer, ag plant pest control, and demonstration and research pest control.
The Froid Research Farm is located 8 miles north of Culbertson on MT Highway 16.
The tour features a special weed workshop, incorporating weed ID exercises, chemical control options and discussion of how to avoid plant injury from herbicide carryover, and concludes with a sprayer calibration demonstration. Additional tour talks include discussions of pulse crop diseases; pest and beneficial insects found in oilseed and cover crop forage rotations, and cover crop yield and quality in a 2-year rotation with durum. Several straightforward testing methods for soil acidification, infiltration, and compaction are also being demonstrated, with a special soil pit showing compaction impacts underground. A soil respiration demonstration, with a discussion of carbon dioxide emissions as a potential indicator of soil health, is also being offered.
The day concludes with a free steak dinner at 5:00 pm sponsored by the Sheridan and Roosevelt County Conservation Districts. Other event sponsors include the Sheridan and Roosevelt County Extension offices, and the USDA-ARS Northern Plains Ag Research Lab in Sidney.
For more information on either event, contact Beth Redlin at 406-433-9427.
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