Program Set for Agronomy Day 2008
Published: Jul. 9, 2008
URBANA-The final program has been set for Agronomy Day 2008. The event will take place on Thursday, August 21 at the Crop Sciences Research and Education Center on the Urbana campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The theme for this year's Agronomy Day is "Energizing Agriculture."
"Agronomy Day provides our faculty with the chance to discuss their latest research findings with clientele from Illinois and neighboring states," said Bob Dunker, superintendent of the South Farms and chairperson for Agronomy Day. "The major focus of this year's program will be the future of bioenergy in agriculture."
Besides tours and tent displays highlighting the latest developments in agricultural research, this year's program will include a special presentation at noon featuring Seth Snyder from the Energy Systems Division at the Argonne National Laboratories. He will discuss biomass systems and utilization and what it means to Illinois farms and the region.
This 52nd consecutive Agronomy Day is a partnership among several academic units in the U of I's College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES).
One tour will include stops on corn nematodes, maximizing returns on fertilizer investment, resistance genes to fight soybean diseases and pests, and pushing soybean yields. A second tour will focus on ethylene, managing wheat scab, soybean aphids, and managing pests in corn.
A third tour will focus on residual herbicides, waterhemp, managing giant ragweed in corn, and utilizing fertilizer value in manure. A final tour will feature presentations on several bioenergy issues. These include corn stover, effects of biofuel cropping systems on soil, biomass feedstock production, and alternative markets for bioenergy crops.
Agronomy Day will begin at 7 a.m. Hour-long wagon tours around the research plots will repeat every half-hour until noon as groups are available. Lunch will be available at a nominal charge.
The Crop Sciences Research and Education Center is located south of the U of I's main Urbana-Champaign campus off of St. Mary's Road on South Wright Street Extended.
Additional information about Agronomy Day 2008 is available at www.cropsci.uiuc.edu/agronomyday or by contacting Sharon Conatser, (217)333-4256.
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