Plan Now to Attend the MU Pest Management Field Day on July 7

Published: June 20, 2011

The annual Pest Management Field Day will be held this July 7th at the Bradford Research and Extension Center near Columbia, Missouri. As in recent years, we have expanded the focus of this field day to include a variety of pest management topics that are of interest to agricultural industry representatives, agrichemical dealers, Extension specialists, and producers throughout Missouri and surrounding states.

Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m. and will include guided wagon tours with stops that feature presentation of results and talks by university weed scientists, entomologists, plant pathologists, and agronomists. There will be a $10 registration fee collected at the time of check-in. This will cover costs associated with lunch and will provide each attendee with a tour booklet that describes the layout and location of each experiment.

Some of the weed management research topics and trials that will be discussed at this year's field day include: herbicide plus fungicide plus fertilizer combinations in corn; weeds and herbicide programs common in Missouri corn and soybean fields (initial results from a two-year survey); utility of pre-emergence herbicides in soybeans (results from a four-year research project); considerations of future herbicide-resistant crop offerings like dicamba-resistant and 2,4-D resistant soybeans; specific results and recommendations for the control of glyphosate-resistant waterhemp and giant ragweed; movement of herbicide resistance through johnsongrass pollen; and as usual periodic stops along the guided tours to preview new herbicides and herbicide programs that will be available in 2012 and beyond.

Dr. Laura Sweets, state extension plant pathologist, will provide an update on nematode seed treatment products as well as an update on the status of rust diseases in field crops. Dr. Jason Weirich, new extension weed scientist located at the Delta Center, will also discuss the economic advantages of implementing resistant weed management programs.

As usual, after lunch attendees will have the opportunity to view plots that showcase a wide variety of herbicide treatments and weed management systems for use in corn, soybean, or grain sorghum on their own. This year we have more than 45 trials and 600 separate weed management treatments on display at the research and extension center.

For certified crop advisors, 2 CEU credits for the field day are pending. If you plan on attending the field day, you must pre-register before July 5th by calling 573-884-7945 or by sending an e-mail to chismt@missouri.edu. The Bradford Research and Extension Center is located 7 miles east of Columbia, off of highway WW. For more complete directions call 573-884-7945 or visit http://aes.missouri.edu/bradford/index.stm.