The Best of the Best in Wheat and Soybean Meetings will be held on Feb. 7, at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota, and on Feb. 8, at the Courtyard by Marriot in Moorhead, Minnesota.

Each day the programs begin at 8:20 a.m. and will conclude at 3 p.m. The agenda includes information on wheat disease management, pigweed control, spring wheat variety selection, Phytophthora root rot in soybean, on-combine protein mapping in spring wheat, ag equipment prices and a commodity market update.

“We are pleased to continue the Best of the Best meeting series in 2024,” says Clair Keene, NDSU Extension small grain and corn agronomist. “We have some new names on our program as well as some long-time speakers. We’re excited to have Wade Webster, the new NDSU Extension soybean pathologist speak about Phytophthora in soybean as well as long-time speakers Dave Franzen, NDSU Extension soil science specialist and Frayne Olson, NDSU Extension crops marketing economist.”

Melissa Carlson, vice president of research for the Minnesota Association of Wheat Growers will speak about her on-farm research using combine-mounted sensors to measure protein in spring wheat.

“There has been a lot of interest in the potential for this technology to show farmers in real time what the protein of their crop is at harvest,” says Carlson.

The popular hands-on demonstrations will again be offered. These small group sessions allow participants to interact with presenters while seeing up-close plants and other specimens to increase learning. Demonstrations include cover crop roots, insect defoliators, soil salinity effects on wheat and soybean, IDC in soybean and pigweed identification.

Certified crop advisor continuing education units will be offered in the following categories: 0.5 nutrient management, 1.5 pest management, 1.0 crop management and 2.0 professional development.

These programs are free to attend but pre-registration is requested. Registration is available at https://mnwheat.org/growers/2024-best-of-the-best/ or over the phone by calling 218-253-4311, Ext. 4.

The Best of the Best in Wheat and Soybean Research meetings are a joint effort of NDSU Extension, University of Minnesota Extension, Minnesota Association of Wheat Growers, Minnesota Wheat Research and Promotion Council, Minnesota Soybean Research and Promotion Council, North Dakota Soybean Council, North Dakota Grain Growers Association and the North Dakota Wheat Commission.

NDSU Agriculture Communication – Jan. 31, 2024

Source: Clair Keene, 701-231-7405, clair.keene@ndsu.edu

Editor: Kelli Anderson, 701-231-7006, kelli.c.anderson@ndsu.edu