Officials with the ISU Extension Service say the 6th Annual Western Iowa No-till (WIN) Demonstration Field Day, scheduled for June 11th at the Carstens 1880 Farmstead south of Shelby, will address a wide variety of topics for anyone interested in learning more about practical application and trouble-shooting for no-till production. The day starts at 8-a.m., when registration and vendor displays open. A wide variety of local agribusinesses will be on hand to visit with producers in the morning and demonstrate their services/equipment.
The field day begins at 9-a.m., with breakout sessions covering common challenges of corn-on-corn no-till and an overview of recent Iowa Soybean Association trials on deep ripping and nitrogen placement. The breakout sessions will be followed by a weather outlook for the coming crop year, and a lunchtime discussion on the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy. After lunch, keynote speaker Neil Harl will present “A Look Ahead for Agriculture: Major Concerns on the Horizon”. Lunch will be provided free of charge to all in attendance, including steak sandwiches grilled by the Pottawattamie County Cattlemen. The day will wrap up with a presentation on achieving success in long-term no-till and cover crop usage from an Iowa producer perspective.
Anyone with an interest in the practical application of no-till production, whether looking for ideas to begin adopting no-till practices or a long-time no-till producer looking to improve production results, is encouraged to attend this daylong educational event. In addition to the educational sessions at the 2013 WIN Field Day, there will be plenty of time for farmers to visit informational displays, vendor exhibits and network with other producers. 4 hours of CCA Credits have been applied for, and will be available at no cost for Certified Crop Advisors needing additional continuing education units this year.
There is no charge to attend this event, but pre-registration is requested by June 6th to ensure a lunch will be available. 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.