CAHNRS News > Admin > CAHNRS News – May 17, 2013

CAHNRS News – May 17, 2013

May 16, 2013

Open Forum to Meet Candidates for Director of Marketing, News, and Educational Communications

Please plan to come meet the finalists for the position of Director, WSU CAHNRS and WSU Extension Marketing, News, and Educational Communications. Joshua Paulsen will make a brief presentation and participate in an open question-and-answer forum on May 22, 10:15 – 11:15 a.m. in Hulbert 409 (AMS 5705614 and archive. Phone bridge: 335-9445 ID: 05614). Denise Czuprynski will make a brief presentation and participate in an open forum on May 23, 2:30 – 3:30 p.m. in Hulbert 409 (AMS 5705615 and archive. Phone bridge: 335-9445 ID: 05615). The next day, May 24, Christopher Schwarzen will also make a brief presentation in an open forum format from 2:30 – 3:30 p.m. in Hulbert 409 (AMS 5705616 and archive. Phone bridge: 335-9445 ID: 05615).

Kudos

Sarah Brewer, a junior who has been doing research in Dr. Norman Lewis’ lab since high school, has been selected to receive the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, a highly prestigious national award for undergraduates. See On Solid Ground for the complete story.

Michael Lege, a Ph.D. student in Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences, advised by Lynne Carpenter-Boggs, was awarded a Borlaug Fellowship. He leaves in July to spend a year in Uganda studying distribution channels of bean seeds and agricultural information. For his Master’s degree he traveled to Uganda for 3 months to study the social and ecological impacts of a bean research project in Kamuli. He said, “Two of the barriers I found were poor access to seed and poor access to information about farming technologies. This project hopes to look at two broadly defined types of seed distribution systems and identify differences in the movement of seeds and information, and the sustainability effects of both systems.”

4-H’er Elise Dunning was recently awarded first place in the National 4-H beekeeping essay contest. Dunning, 14, has a thirst for knowledge and a passion for writing. To address the topic of “Reducing the Usage of Bee-Killing Pesticides in my Community,” she learned about the declining population of honey bees worldwide and how toxic chemicals may be contributing to their demise. Learn more here: http://bit.ly/18IBRCx.

4-H’er Clarissa Henry is adamant about taking care of the earth. So when she heard the local farmers market would toss out remaining produce in advance of a holiday break, the Seattle 10-year-old sprang into action. She gathered the excess and made candied ginger. That idea, along with a proposal to Warren Buffett’s “Grow Your Own Business Challenge,” earned Henry and her partner, fellow fifth-grader Esai Prescod, a spot as finalists in the national competition. Learn more here: http://bit.ly/YTAy1G.

Dr. John Fellman was an invited speaker at the EU COST 1104 (http://www.cost.eu/about_cost) “Sustainable production of high-quality cherries for the European market” executive meeting held at the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania, Greece, where he presented an informational research seminar entitled “Sweet cherries in Washington: Acreage, Production Trends and Research Efforts.” He is currently a Fulbright Scholar and Visiting Professor at the Cyprus University of Technology, Limassol.

Dr. Amit Dhingra was awarded the outstanding Honors thesis advisor award by the Honors College. Ryan Christian, an Honors student supervised by Dhingra passed his Honors thesis with distinction. This distinction is in recognition of the undergraduate thesis research being of graduate level. The title of Christian’s thesis is “Identification, Cloning, and Characterization of a Novel Nucleobase-Ascorbate Transporter in Apple (Malus x domestica).”

Upcoming Events

Trout Fillet Taste Panel

May 22 and 23 in Food Science & Human Nutrition Building, Room 146. The food science sensory analysis team are looking for volunteers to evaluate the sensory quality of poached trout fillet. Receive a Ferdinand’s Gift Certificate for participating. Plan to arrive within 10 minutes after the start of one of the following serving times so the fillet will be hot and fresh. Limit 6 panelists to each time block, limit 36 panelists per day. You must be 18 years of age to participate. The test will take abut 10 minutes. Available times:

May 22: 11:50-12:00; 12:30-12:40; 1:10-1:20; 1:50-2:00
May 22: 10:30-10:40; 11:10-11:20; 11:50-12:00; 12:30-12:40; 1:10-1:20; 1:50-2:00

Please reserve your space by sending an email to beata.vixie@email.wsu.edu. Questions? Contact Carolyn Ross at cfross@wsu.edu.

Winter canola the focus of upcoming tours

WSU/USDA-ARS Douglas Co. Winter Canola Field Tour
Tuesday, May 21, 10:00 a.m. – noon, Wade Troutman farm near Bridgeport
A winter canola variety trial with 12 entries will be one topic of discussion at this tour. There will also be presentations about the agronomic and economic benefits of oilseeds in rotation, effects of recent temperature extremes, oilseed research updates from WSU/ARS, pest identification and management, and an update from the WA Canola Commission. A box lunch is provided with RSVP.
Contact: Dale Whaley, WSU Douglas Co. Extension; (509) 745-8531 or dwaley@wsu.edu

WSU/USDA-ARS Winter Canola Field Tour
Thursday, May 23, 5:00-7:00 p.m., Beau Blachly farm south of Pomeroy
This research site is located at 4,000’ elevation and provides an opportunity to see winter canola variety development and varietal differences (11 varieties) in a cooler environment. Discussion topics include crop and chemical rotation, the effects of recent temperature extremes on crop development, particularly during flowering, economics of oilseeds in rotation, and more. Dinner will be provided with RSVP.
Contact: Karen Sowers, WSU Crop & Soil Sciences; 808-283-7013,or ksowers@wsu.edu

AgVentures NW Winter Canola Variety Trial Tour
Wednesday, May 29, 9:00-11:00 a.m., Paul & Lorri Williams’ farm northwest of Reardan.
This tour will begin with learning about canola production from Paul and Lorri’s perspective, including discussion of seeding dates and harvesting methods. Other agenda items include disease and pest management strategies by John Merkel of AgLink, an oilseed research and outreach update from WSU/USDA-ARS, and walking tours of both the large scale winter canola variety plots and the University of Idaho winter canola variety trials.
Contact: Paul Porter, AgVentures NW; 509-348-0060, paul@agventuresnw.com

WSU Tour of Fresh Wheat Stubble Management for Irrigated Winter Canola
Thursday May 30, 7:00-8:30 p.m., Jeff Schibel farm near Odessa
This twilight tour will feature an update about a winter canola research trial WSU established last fall to look at four winter wheat stubble management treatments, including direct-seeding winter canola into fresh winter wheat stubble. Jeff will share his experiences with 15 years of irrigated winter canola production, and Roy Andrews from Wilbur-Ellis will discuss winter canola fertilizer, herbicide and disease management strategies. The evening will conclude with a tour of the University of Idaho winter canola variety trials at the same location.
Contact: Karen Sowers, WSU Crop & Soil Sciences 808-283-7013, or ksowers@wsu.edu

Oregon State University Pendleton Agricultural Research Center Field Day
June 11, 7:45 a.m. – 2:30 p.m., Pendleton, OR
Registration begins at 7:45, and tours begin at 8:35 a.m. Presentations during the tours will be by university and ARS scientists, including one stop at an early-planted, biennial winter canola study investigating nitrogen fertilizer application timing, and the potential for forage production. Other stops feature quinoa, barely, winter field peas, winter wheat, wheat diseases, and more. A hosted lunch is provided, and tours conclude at 2:30 with an ice cream social.
Contact: 541-278-4186 or complete program is posted at www.cbarc.aes.oregonstate.edu

Oregon State University Sherman Co. Agricultural Research Center Field Day
Wednesday, June 12, 7:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., Moro, OR
Biennial canola production (early-seeded canola) will be one of several stops on the bus tour at the field day. Wheat diseases and management, winter wheat breeding and variety trials, and transitioning CRP ground to wheat production will also be discussed at other stops on the tour. A hosted lunch at the Sherman Co. fairgrounds will be provided following the tours.
Contact: 541-278-4186 or see complete details at www.cbarc.aes.oregonstate.edu.

Croplan Genetics/Winfield Solutions cereal grain and canola Answer Plot® tour
June 27, 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., Carothers Rd. west of Pullman
Winfield Solutions established this long-term cropping systems trial in 2011-12, and it is the first Answer Plot® location in the Pacific Northwest, near Pullman. The test plots serve as an outdoor classroom to provide those attending with production results and help make planning decisions for their next crop. Please RSVP for the tour and lunch.
Contact: Beau Blachly, (509) 843-7334 or bpblachly@landolakes.com

University of Idaho Parker Farm Field Day
Tuesday, July 9, 8:00 a.m., Parker Farm, Moscow, Idaho.
The PSES Department at University of Idaho is hosting a field day that will include tours of canola, mustard and rapeseed research trials as well as other agricultural research. The field day concludes with a hosted lunch at noon.

Hort Club Plant Sale

May 17, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.: Tomato, pepper and flowering plants will be sold by the Horticulture Club in the greenhouses near Ferdinand’s Ice Cream Shoppe at Washington State University.

WSU Organic Farm on the Mall

Fresh-picked organic produce from WSU’s Organic Farm will be offered for sale at a farm stand on WSU’s Terrell Mall from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesdays, beginning May 8th. Due to many requests for the farm’s produce, the farm stand will be open starting in May and running through early October. The first weeks will include fresh greens from the hoophouses and organic vegetable and flower starts for sale. The farm accepts cash and checks only.

Seminars

May 20, 8:30 a.m., Johnson Hall 343: Dr. Jianjun Hao, Department of Plant Pathology, Michigan State University. “Microbial Communities: The Causes of and Solutions to Soilborne Diseases.”

May 22, 2013, 8:30 a.m., Johnson Hall 343: Dr. Melanie Lewis Ivey, Department of Plant Pathology, The Ohio State University, Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center. “Developing Advanced Research Tools Strengthens Plant Disease Management.”

In eNews

The May 8 issue of On Solid Ground citrus greening disease, “superfruit,” and the Goldwater Award winner. Read all about it at http://bit.ly/10VH9Tq.