ENGELHARD — Agricultural officials are gearing up to give farmers a look at what practices are working best in the region.

The Blackland Farm Managers Tour kicks off as farmers come together to learn about new techniques, products and research that will serve them best in the region. The Blacklands are considered the region stretching across four counties — Beaufort, Hyde, Washington and Tyrrell, according to Andrea Gibbs, an ag agent at the Hyde County Extension.

The event brings the extension agencies, area farmers and the Blackland Farm Managers Association together to hear North Carolina State University agricultural specialists and their findings related to research in the region, Gibbs said.

Dawson Pugh, owner of Middle Creek Farms, has attended the event in years past and said it decreases the trial and error farmers would have to go through in order to get information like that which is provided at the event.

“We’re always looking to try something different and hopefully it works better,” Pugh said. “I know I appreciate the work that our county agents do, and I think all the rest of the farmers in the area would say the same thing.”

Wednesday, those in attendance will attend small seminars that illustrate various techniques and practices used to maximize yields and provide for a better crop. Throughout the sessions, test plots for corn, soybeans and sorghum created by the specialists and ag agents will show how chemical treatments and planting depths, for example, can benefit crops, according to Gibbs.

“We just show different production practices so farmers can see what works best in the Blackland region,” Gibbs said.

The farm managers association was started to help farmers in the region learn how to farm more effectively in the Blacklands, Gibbs said.

Gibbs said the event also gives farmers an opportunity to bounce ideas off one another and share what has worked best for them in their farming experiences.

“It’s so different in this area versus the rest of the state,” Gibbs said. “That’s how it came about. They put out test plots to see what works best for this area. It’s a good time for farmers to get together and talk about what they’re doing. It’s a good time for them to learn from the test plots and from each other.”

“It’s really good that we all work together with this because we reach so many people, and it helps everyone learn how to farm in the Blacklands and which practices work and which don’t, Gibbs said.”

Middle Creek Farms in Engelhard is hosting this year’s event Wednesday. Registration will begin at 7 a.m., where breakfast will be served. Field sessions will begin at 8 a.m.

Middle Creek Farms is located at 396 White Plains Road, Engelhard.

 

2016 Blackland Farm Managers Tour Schedule

Stop No. 1:

-Dr. Ron Heiniger – Emergence Study and High Yield Systems Test

-Scott Tilley – Sorghum Varieties

-Dr. Sriyanka Lahiri – Worm Control in Soybeans

-Dr. Alejandro Del Pozo-Valdivia – Seedling Insects in Corn

Stop No. 2:

-Dr. Jim Dunphy – Maximum Yield Tests and Non-Foliar Test

-Dr. Carl Crozier

-Dr. David Hardy – Soybean Potassium Research

-Anna-Beth Williams – Potassium Studies

Stop No. 3:

-Dr. Chad Poole – Drainage

-Dr. Wes Everman – Resistance Management

-Rod Gurganus – Various agent test plots

Stop No. 4:

(9:30-10:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. to noon only)

-LaMarr Graft – Grain Bin Safety

8-9 a.m. – Session No. 1

9-9:30 a.m. – Break – Look at test plots, talk to specialists and travel to next stop.

9:30-10:30 a.m. – Session No. 2

10:30-11 a.m. – Break – Look at test plots, talk to specialists and travel to next stop.

11 a.m. to noon – Session No. 3

12–12:30 p.m. – Break – Look at test plots, talk to specialists and travel back to the shop for presentation.

1 p.m. – Welcome from the BFMA, introductions and Dr. Chad Lee (Grain Crops Extension Agronomist, University of Kentucky)

Pesticide credits (N, D, X, and O) and CCA credits (1 Nutrient Management & 3 Crop Management) will be available.