PULLMAN, Wash. – “Bioenergy Cropping Systems Research” will be the theme of the USDA-Agricultural Research Service Palouse Conservation Field Station field day set for Thursday, June 26. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m.with field tours scheduled from 8 a.m. to noon. The Palouse Conservation Field Station is located 1.5 miles north of Pullman on Highway 27, turn west and go one-half mile on Albion Road.
Field stops will highlight oilseed variety trials including 18 spring camelina lines; economics, energy, and rotation analysis of canola; residual herbicide effects on canola and weed control options for canola and other potential oilseed crops; greenbridge and sprayout herbicide timing effects on Rhizoctonia and other root diseases; added value from oilseed crops; canola and mustard meal profiles and marketing opportunities; and wheat/straw composition and amount of residue needed to maintain soil quality.
In addition, research of the USDA-ARS Land Management and Water Conservation Research Unit, located at the WSU-Pullman campus (which oversees the field station), will be showcased throughout the field day.
The Land Management and Water Conservation Research Unit was not included in President Bush’s 2009 Fiscal Year budget recommendations to Congress and as a result is targeted for closure. Unit representatives will address past, present, and future directions. A wind tunnel demonstration is also planned to show its use in testing tillage, cover, and other treatment effects on wind-blown dust and improving air quality.
The morning field tour will be followed by a hosted lunch program paying tribute to Dennis Roe, long-time NRCS conservationist and agronomist who retired last June after 41 years of service in the Inland Northwest.
The field day is free and open to the public.
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