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Western Iowa No-till Field Day set for June 21st

Ag/Outdoor, News

June 3rd, 2016 by Ric Hanson

The Western Iowa No-till (WIN) Demonstration Field Day, scheduled for June 21st at the Carstens 1880 Farmstead south of Shelby, Iowa, will address a wide variety of topics for local producers interested in learning more about the practical management of soil heath, fertility and alternative crop rotation systems. Registration opens at 8-a.m., with coffee and rolls provided by Farm Credit Services of America. Local agribusinesses will also be on hand beginning at 8-a.m., to visit with producers in the morning and showcase their services/equipment.

(File photo) Western IA No Till Day at Carstens 1880 Farmstead

Western IA No Till Day at Carstens 1880 Farmstead (photo from the Carstens Farmstead website)

The field day program begins at 9-a.m., with rotating breakout sessions. John Sawyer, Iowa State University Agronomy Department, will cover nitrogen application timing and rates, while Rick Bednarek, State Soil Scientist with USDA-NRCS discusses maintaining and managing soil health. The breakout sessions will be followed at 11-a.m., by an overview of 2016 Iowa Weather & Long-Term Trends, presented by Harry Hillaker, State Climatologist with IDALS.

At 11:45, the program will break for lunch, with a barbeque lunch available on grounds for $5. After lunch, Matt Liebman, Iowa State University, will discuss the benefits of diversifying corn-soybean rotations by adding a non-traditional crop. To wrap up the program, Tim Youngquist, Iowa State University Ag Specialist, will give an overview of the STRIPS Trial project- Science-based Trials of Row-crops Integrated with Prairie Strips- and discuss project implementation in a row-crop setting.

Anyone with an interest in the practical application and impact of soil conservation practices, whether looking for ideas to begin adopting no-till practices or a long-time producer looking to improve production results, is encouraged to attend this field day.  There is no charge to attend this event, but pre-registration is requested by June 15th to ensure a lunch will be available.

A barbeque lunch, with sides, dessert and a drink, will be available for $5 the day of the event. Registration can be completed by e-mailing csgorham@iastate.edu or by calling the Harrison County Extension Office at 888-644-2105. More information is available at many local ISU Extension and NRCS offices, or can be found online at www.extension.iastate.edu/cass.

The field day is brought to you by NRCS, ISU Extension and the Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCD) in Harrison, East & West Pottawattamie, Cass and Shelby Counties, along with many local supporting agribusinesses. 2016 Business Sponsors include Farm Bureau in East & West Pottawattamie, Shelby & Harrison Counties, Avoca Seed, Cyclone Seed, HTS Ag, Farmers and Merchants State Bank, Heartland Ag, Iowa Soybean Association, Iowa Corn Growers Association, Sorensen Equipment Co. and United Bank of Iowa.