Wheat Wisdom to Improve Planting Success on Field Crops Virtual Breakfast Series

By Monica Jean

Join Dennis Pennington, wheat systems specialist with Michigan State University (MSU) Extension, and the MSU Extension field crops team on the Field Crops Virtual Breakfast Series on Aug. 29 to hear wheat wisdom for planting time. Pennington will cover variety selection, calibration, planting date goals, residue management, seed placement accuracy and on-farm testing.

MSU Extension climatologist Jeff Andresen will present a 15-minute weather summary and forecast. A question-and-answer period will follow until 8 a.m. Other MSU Extension specialists and educators will be available for discussion.

The Michigan State University Extension Field Crops Virtual Breakfast Series is live via Zoom every Thursday morning from 7 – 8 a.m., March 21 through Sept. 19. Topics are flexible and loosely established at the beginning of the season and can change to address rapidly changing concerns such as flooding and drought. Each year brings different challenges, and this series is designed to meet the needs of our field crop producers no matter what the conditions may dictate.

Each week, restricted-use pesticide recertification (RUP) credits and certified crop advisor (CCA) continuing education unit credits will also be available. To receive recertification credits, participants must be on the live Zoom session.

After RUP and CCA credit information, attendees can leave or stay on for a less formal Q&A discussion with farmers, educators and specialists that lasts until 8 a.m. In addition to the scheduled speaker for the day, other MSU Extension campus specialists and educators with field crops responsibility are frequently part of the call and are available to answer any question related to relevant circumstances happening in their area of expertise.

Participating is easy and free! Participants must sign up to receive an email notification with instructions for joining the Virtual Breakfast Series. You only need to do this once to receive the Zoom link and call-in phone number in the weekly email reminders that are sent every Wednesday and Thursday. Participants receiving emails can opt in or out at any time.

If you cannot participate in the live session at 7 a.m., you can view the recorded version at any time. However, only the live session will be eligible for RUP and CCA credits. Recordings will be closed-captioned and available at the Field Crops Virtual Breakfast webpage and the MSU Extension field crops team social media platforms: Facebook, Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcasts and Twitter. 

If you are unable to sign up online, call the Lapeer County MSU Extension office at 810-667-0341.