The North Dakota State University Williston Research Extension Center (WREC), Montana State University Eastern Agricultural Research Center (EARC) and U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Northern Plains Agricultural Research Lab in Sidney, Mont., are partnering to showcase agricultural research in eastern Montana and western North Dakota.

The second annual MonDak Ag Research Summit will be held Nov. 14 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Mountain time at the Richland County Event Center in Sidney and is free to attend.

The summit is a collaborative effort among the three research stations to encourage interaction between farmers and researchers. It features scientists from all three facilities reporting on current research projects of interest to farmers, ranchers and residents of the MonDak.

In addition to the research talks, the event allows for one-on-one and small-group discussions with scientists, providing producers with the opportunity to share their questions, research needs and ideas directly with the scientists.

Morning topics and speakers are:

• Weed control of horseweed, narrowleaf hawksbeard, kochia, Russian thistle and others – Brian Jenks, NDSU North Central Research Extension Center, Minot
• Rangeland and aquatic weed update – John Gaskin, USDA-Agriculture Research Serve (ARS)
• Integrating biocontrol into your weed management plan – Natalie West, USDA-ARS
• A fungus bait formulation for grasshopper and Mormon cricket control – Stefan Jaronski, USDA-ARS
• The effect of tillage and rotation on rhizoctonia root and crown rot – Audrey Kalil, WREC

A morning poster session also will give attendees time to browse more than 20 additional research projects and speak with the scientists doing the work. After the poster session, the program will continue with the following presentations:

• Effect of tillage, irrigation and nitrogen on sugar beet yield and sugar content - Chengci Chen, EARC
• Tillage vs. no-till effect on corn, soybean, barley and sugar beet yield and water use efficiency under irrigated conditions - Bart Stevens, USDA-ARS
• Economics and soil health of sustainable cropping systems – Don Tanaka, WREC
• Dryland pea production and water use affected by tillage, crop rotation and cultural practices – Upendra Sainju, USDA-ARS

At the conclusion of the morning session, a free lunch sponsored by the Northern Pulse Growers Association (NPGA), will be served. Brian Gion, NPGA marketing director, will be the guest speaker.

Other sponsors for the event include the City of Williston, Sidney Sugars Inc., Montana-Dakota Beet Growers Association, Agri-Industries, Dawson County Implement, Cargill and Tri-County Implement.

The afternoon program will feature small-group discussions during which attendees can meet with scientists by subject area to discuss current industry topics. Attendees will be able to move back and forth between the afternoon talks and discussion group tables as desired. The discussion groups will run concurrently with another series of research talks of interest to area producers.

For those interested in horticulture, Kyla Splichal, WREC horticulture specialist, will present on high-tunnel use and construction.

For those interested in cover crops, Brett Allen, USDA-ARS, will discuss cover crops as replacement for fallow in semiarid durum cropping systems.

For those interested in variety selections, Yesuf Mohammed, EARC, will discuss pulse crop variety selection and performance, and Justin Jacobs, WREC will discuss spring wheat and durum irrigated varieties.

The summit is free, but preregistration is encouraged for determining meal counts.

Preregister online at https://tinyurl.com/mondaksummit18 or contact Beth Redlin at 406-433-2020 or by email at beth.redlin@ars.usda.gov.

Approvals for Montana pesticide applicator points and certified crop adviser continuing educator units are pending for this event.

NDSU Agriculture Communication – Oct. 18, 2018