FEEL - Crop Diagnostic Clinics 2008

 

July 14-15 and July 21-22

• Day 1
  • Registration 8:30 am
  • Program 8:45 am - 5 pm
• Day 2
  • Program 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
• Cost: $250
• CCA: 12 credits total. Categories depend on sessions selected by attendee.
• Class size limit: 100
• Registration is now open.

Crop Diagnostic Clinics stress accurate diagnosis of common crop management problems. More than 40 acres of demonstrations are used to reinforce management topics and build diagnostic skills. These intensive two-day clinics focus on hands-on in-field education and interaction with Iowa State University Extension specialists.

The program has expanded to include over 20 different topics in corn, soybean, soil fertility, soil management, tillage and pest management. Each day students attend a combination of full sessions (60 minutes) and mini-sessions (30 minutes). You choose which sessions to attend, building an educational experience that fits your needs.

FEEL is all about getting out of the classroom and into the field where the problems are. Join ISU Extension for two days of sharpening and honing your agronomic skills.

 

2008 Program

Attendees will select from the topics below the day of the clinic and develop their own program. Sessions are grouped by CCA credit categories below. Each session is either 1 credit (60 minutes) or 0.5 credit (30 minutes) as indicated.

We are continuing to add and adjust sessions based on current growing conditions and events affecting Iowa crops for 2008. The sessions below are currently scheduled to appear.

Crop Management Sessions

Managing corn in a new era - Investigate numerous management strategies for corn following corn and soybean. Determine how early season factors influence growth and development in these systems and what decision tools are available to aid in maximizing yield. Lori Abendroth, Roger Elmore, Matt Boyer, Wade Kent (1 credit)

Corn Calendar: How and when yield is made - A hands-on workshop developed to increase understanding of the five yield components of corn. Participants will work with real-life examples to learn corn physiology principles and improve diagnostic skills. Lori Abendroth, Roger Elmore, Matt Boyer, Wade Kent (0.5 credit)

Soybean Management: It's all about growth and development - Soybean growth and development is a critical component to maximize yield. In this session we will go through basic growth and development and how it impacts yield but also how management can be help maximize our yield potential. Palle Pedersen (1.0 credit)

Decreasing Soybean Seeding Rate and/or Using a Seed Treatment - With increasing seed cost and earlier planting dates seed treatments may be as common on soybean as it is on corn in the future. During this session we will go through the pros and cons of using a seed treatment and discuss how it may influence your seeding rate. Palle Pedersen (0.5 credit)

Pest Management Sessions

Disease risks in corn following corn - As producers consider switching to more continuous corn they should be aware of potential crop disease risks. This session will explore those risks using seed treatment demonstrations and hands-on diagnosis of other in-field disease problems. Alison Robertson (1.0 credit)

Diagnosing soybean stem diseases - Learn how to diagnose early- and late-season stem diseases of soybean. Inoculated micro-plots will be used to show identifying characteristics. Alison Robertson (1.0 credit)

Update on soybean rust activity in Iowa - After the first soybean rust discovery in Iowa during September 2007 and in consultation with our counterparts in the southern states, we have made several adjustments to our soybean rust efforts. Learn of these changes and how we monitor sentinel plots in Iowa. Daren Mueller (0.5 credit)

Diagnosing herbicide injury - Mike Owen, Bob Hartzler (1.0 credit)

Effectiveness of reduced rates of glyphosate - Mike Owen (0.5 credit)

Weed identification contest - Bob Hartzler, Brent Pringnitz (0.5 credit)

Corn rootworm management - Rotation-resistant corn rootworms continue to be a significant problem for Iowa corn producers. Techniques for determining if rotation-resistant rootworms could be a problem when planting corn after soybean and management options will be discussed. View a comparison of Bt and non-Bt corn rootworm resistant hybrids and learn how to rate roots for rootworm injury. Marlin Rice, Jon Tollefson (0.5 credit)

Insect idenfitication contest - Marlin Rice, Jon Tollefson (0.5 credit)

Soybean aphid-host plant resistance - The soybean aphid research team is studying two new tools for combating the soybean aphid-host plant resistance and exotic parasitoid wasps from China. This session will demonstrate a current test of host-plant resistance and discuss how it can be employed to prevent soybean aphid outbreaks in the future. Matt O'Neal (0.5 credit)

Research update on using natural predators for soybean aphid control - The soybean aphid research team is studying two new tools for combating the soybean aphid-host plant resistance and exotic parasitoid wasps from China. This session will demonstrate the parasitoid wasp program and discuss how it can be employed to prevent soybean aphid outbreaks in the future.Matt O'Neal (0.5 credit)

Gone with the wind: Wind speed and nozzle effects on drift distances - It can be challenging to find times when wind velocity is less than 10 mph. View drift in higher wind conditions and discuss equipment operation to minimize problems. Mark Hanna (0.5 credit)

Nutrient Management Sessions

Dealing with potassium deficiency in corn and soybeans - Potassium management continues to be challenging in corn and soybean production. This session will cover management practices and demonstrate potassium deficiency in no-till and the interaction of potassium and nitrogen fertilization. Antonio Mallarino, Matt Clover (1.0 credit)

The signs are there: Understanding the symptoms of crop nutrient deficiencies - A review of agronomic crop nutrient deficiency symptoms encountered in Iowa, and factors enhancing deficiency development and expression. John Sawyer (0.5 credit)

Soil, Water and Tillage Management Sessions

Tread lightly: Managing soil compaction during wet spring weather - Wet spring soil conditions can affect crop growth and development. View and measure effects of different compaction levels and discuss grower management schemes. Mark Hanna (1.0 credit)

How do in-field tillage decisions affect down-stream water quality? - Does what we do in-field have an impact on downstream water quality? We will use the Conservation Systems Portable Rainfall Simulator to demonstrate the impacts of various in-field management practices on surface water runoff and sediment loss. Matt Helmers (1.0 credit)

Managing crop residue and soil carbon - This session will cover principles of residue and soil carbon management under different tillage systems. It will include class room presentation and hands-on field measurements/demonstration of how different tillage and residue management practices affect soil organic matter loss. Mahdi Al-Kaisi, Jamie Benning (1.0 credit)