SDSU Extension to Host Soil Management Conference in December

 SDSU Extension will host the 2023 Managing Soil: Maximizing Profit conference on Dec. 12. 

Registration starts at 8:15 a.m., and the conference lasts from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Taopi Community Hall in Colton, South Dakota. Lunch is provided. The Southeast Research Farm, part of the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station at SDSU, will hold its annual business meeting from 3 to 3:30 p.m.

Managing Soil: Maximizing Profit is an annual conference for crop producers and industry professionals. Continuing education credits for certified crop advisors will be available. Anthony Bly, SDSU Extension Soils Field Specialist said the speakers are the event’s highlight, with this year’s group focusing on regenerative row crop production practices and pest control. 

“This meeting has always been a great event because it doesn’t focus on products but how to try different soil management methods on the farm,” said Anthony Bly, SDSU Extension Soils Field Specialist. “Our soil resources are the foundation for producing food and fiber, and we need to focus on practices that will protect it from degradation and build it up for future generations.”

Conference speakers include Adam Varenhorst, associate professor and SDSU Extension Field Crop Entomologist, on managing soybean pests like the dectes stem borer and gall midge; Peter Sexton, associate professor, SDSU Extension Sustainable Cropping Systems Specialist and Southeast Research Farm supervisor, with an overview of crop production ecosystems; and SDSU Extension Plant Pathology Field Specialist Connie Strunk and SDSU Extension Plant Pathology Specialist Madalyn Shires, on plant disease. 

Lee Briese, who has a doctorate in plant health from the University of Nebraska Lincoln and is a longtime crop advisor with Centrol Crop Consulting of Twin Valley (Minnesota), will lead an open discussion on agronomy and soil health. In the afternoon, local producers will participate in a panel discussion on crop interseeding, or planting cover crops into a standing crop, such as seeding clover into corn.

“Dr. Lee Briese has a lot of experience working with producers and assisting them with trying new ways to grow crops. He really speaks to the producers and understands their issues,” Bly said. 

Registration is required. Southeast Research Farm members can register for free; tickets are $25 for non-members. To register, visit the SDSU Extension Events page and search “soil”.