Two of the state’s largest field days, the Northeast Ag Expo and the Blackland Farm Managers Tour, were held over the last few weeks and both were great successes.
The Northeast Ag Expo was held on July 26 and drew several hundred farmers to NC Spuds/Perdue Farms in Elizabeth City. The NCSPA was a major sponsor of the event and the focus this year was on soybeans. There is definitely the opportunity for significant yield increases in NC soybeans if we change how we think about and manage the crop so we were excited to see so many great presentations. Topics included optimum planting density at various yield targets by Dr. David Holshouser, soybean fertility by Dr. Carl Croizer, management of early maturity groups by Austin Brown, ways to maximize soybean yield by Dr. Ron Heiniger, and more!
The Blackland Farm Managers Tour was held on August 1 at 3B and Foxfire Farms in Pinetown. While the wet weather prevented tour attendees from getting in the field, the event was still a huge success with over 600 attendees. This year’s special guest was Dr. Fred Below from the University of Illinois and we thoroughly enjoyed his presentation on the “Six Secrets to Soybean Yield”.
Field days are some of our favorite events as they provide a wonderful opportunity to network with farmers and agribusiness leaders from across the state as well as simply catch up with old friends.
There is more field day fun to be had this year so don’t miss the following upcoming events:
Aug 23: Forsyth, Surry, Yadkin Soybean Field Day
Aug 28: Johnston County Soybean Field Day
Sept 6: Wake County Soybean Field Day
Sept 19: Bertie County Field Tour
Oct 3: Piedmont Soybean Field Day, Salisbury, NC
