- Author: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles
- Contributor: Brenna J. Aegerter
The meeting showcased the UC Davis wheat and triticale variety testing program for the Delta, and presentations were given by UC Cooperative Extension and USDA-NRCS scientists. UCCE Grains Specialist, Mark Lundy, demonstrated a soil nitrate quick test and how it can be used in small grains fertility programs. UCCE Cropping Systems Specialist, Jeff Mitchell, described tillage research taking place at the UC Westside Research and Extension Center and demonstrated how no-till plots had better soil aggregation and tilth than conventionally tilled plots. USDA-NRCS Director, Margaret Smither-Kopperl, described winter and summer cover cropping trials at the Plant Materials Center in Lockeford, CA.
Additionally, Brenna Aegerter and I described an upcoming cover cropping trial that we will conduct on Staten Island. We were awarded a CDFA Healthy Soils Program grant with our farm advisor colleagues in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys – Sarah Light, Amber Vinchesi, and Scott Stoddard – along with Jeff Mitchell and Will Horwath at UC Davis. On Staten Island, we will trial legume cover cropping versus no cover cropping treatments for soil health properties, greenhouse gas emissions, and grain yield from 2018-2020.
The trial will take place in a field that is in small grains (wheat and triticale) rotations, with soil classification Valdez silt loam. Cover cropping will take place in the summer months following the small grains harvest. Initial soil sampling will take place after wheat harvest and subsequent tillage. We will take baseline soil samples, measuring bulk density, pH, salinity, total C and N, aggregate stability, infiltration, and active C (a measure of the carbon available as an energy source for soil microbial communities) in the top foot of soil. At deeper depths, we will also test bulk density and total C. We will soil sample each fall, at the end of the cover crop season, to evaluate changes in soil properties over the three years. Greenhouse gas (N2O and CH4) monitoring will allow comparative evaluations of cumulative emissions between the soil management systems. Small grains yields will also be determined.
We look forward to this trial and will share results as we have them. We want to thank Dawit Zeleke and Morgan Johnson at The Nature Conservancy's Staten Island, Margaret Smither-Kopperl and Valerie Bullard at the USDA-NRCS Plant Materials Center, and Tom Johnson at Kamprath Seed for their collaboration on this trial.
For more information on UCCE or USDA-NRCS programs, please visit the following blogs and websites:
UC Sacramento Valley Field Crops Blog
- Author: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles
On Friday, January 12th, I hosted the annual SJC and Delta Field Crops Meeting in Stockton, CA. The presentations from that meeting have now been posted to my website and are available here. Also available from my website are full reports of local research trials, including the Delta sorghum seeding rate trial and field corn variety trial.
UC statewide specialists make their research results available through the Agronomy Research and Information Center (RIC) website. At the meeting, we had a presentation that referenced the small grains variety selection tool, which was developed using trial data from across the state.
We hope you will find this information useful, and we hope you will share your feedback with us so that we may best serve your interests for research and outreach.
- Author: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles
UC Cooperative Extension will host the SJC and Delta Field Crops Meeting on Friday, January 6, 2017 from 8:00am to 12:00pm. The meeting location is the Cabral Agricultural Center in Stockton (2101 E.Earhart Ave., Stockton, CA 95206).
The agenda is as follows:
8:00am Doors Open, Sign In, and Welcome
8:10am Sorghum Seeding Rates for Optimum Productivity, Michelle Leinfelder-Miles, UCCE, San Joaquin/Delta Counties
8:35m New Pest Advisory: Sugarcane Aphid in California Sorghum, Larry Godfrey, UC Davis
9:05am The Do's and Don'ts of Planting Grain and Forage Sorghum – Why Sorghum is not Corn!, Jeff Dahlberg, UC Kearney Research and Education Center, Parlier
9:30am Update on New Herbicide Options for Established Alfalfa, Mick Canevari, UCCE, San Joaquin County
10:00am BREAK
10:10am Tools for Selecting Small Grain Varieties from UCCE Statewide Trials, Mark Lundy, UC Davis
10:35am Comparing Methods for Estimating Crop Consumptive Water Use in the Delta: Background and Preliminary Results, Kyaw Tha Paw U, Eric Kent, Jenae' Clay, UC Davis
11:00am Nitrogen Mineralization in Soils from the Delta and the Valley, Daniel Geisseler, UC Davis
11:25am Managing Gophers in Alfalfa Fields, Roger Baldwin, UC Davis
11:55am Wrap-up and evaluations
Continuing education (DPR and CCA) will be available. Our programs are open to all potential participants. If you require special accommodations, please contact UCCE San Joaquin County at 209-953-6100. Thank you, and hope to see you at the meeting.
- Author: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles
The annual Delta field meeting will be held on Tuesday, October 4th starting at 10:00am. This year, the agenda includes topics on both field corn and sorghum. The meeting location is at the UCCE field corn variety trial plot off of Brunk Road on Tyler Island. Please see the attached flyer for more information. The agenda is as follows:
Agenda
10:00am Field corn variety evaluation – preliminary results
10:15am Variety traits for the Delta
10:30am Sorghum seeding rates for optimum productivity – preliminary results
10:45am Viewing of field plots
We have requested CCA continuing education credits; light refreshments will be provided. Please contact Michelle Leinfelder-Miles, Delta farm advisor (209-953-6100) with questions.
2016 UCCE Corn and Sorghum Field Meeting Agenda
- Author: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles
UC Cooperative Extension in San Joaquin County will host the SJC and Delta Field Crops Meeting on Friday, January 8, 2016 from 8:00am to 12:00pm. The meeting location is the Cabral Agricultural Center in Stockton (2101 E.Earhart Ave., Stockton, CA 95206).
The first half of the meeting will focus on pest management and the new regulations and permit conditions for chlorpyrifos, including results from an industry project to evaluate its critical uses and IPM decision-support tools for insecticide recommendations and stewardship. The second half of the meeting will focus on crop fertility and soil resource management.
The agenda is as follows:
8:00am Doors Open, Welcome and Introductions
8:10am Seed Treatments for Wireworm Control in Field Corn: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles, UCCE, San Joaquin/Delta Counties
8:30am Alfalfa Project Overview Addressing Critical Chlorpyrifos Use: Pete Goodell and Lori Berger, UC IPM, UC Kearney Research and Education Center, Parlier
9:10am Science Behind New Chlorpyrifos Regulations: Randy Segawa, California Department of Pesticide Regulation, Sacramento
9:25am Local Permit Conditions and Restrictions on Chlorpyrifos Use: Barbara Huecksteadt, Agricultural Commissioner's Office, San Joaquin County
9:40am NRCS Conservation Planning and Pesticide Hazard Mitigation: Ora Van Steyn, USDA-NRCS, San Joaquin County
9:55am Local Impacts and On-Farm Management – Panel Discussion: Mick Canevari, UCCE Emeritus, San Joaquin County; Bob Ferguson, Grower, San Joaquin County; Larry Godfrey, UC Davis; Dan Putnam, UC Davis; Mike Wackman, San Joaquin County and Delta Water Quality Coalition
10:25am BREAK
10:40am Using Dairy Manures as Fertility Sources of Silage Corn: Martin Burger, UC Davis
11:00am Use of Online Resources for Nutrient Management Decisions and Nitrogen Budgeting: Daniel Geisseler, UC Davis
11:20am Salinity Management in Alfalfa Fields: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles, UCCE, San Joaquin/Delta Counties
11:40am Wrap-up and evaluations
Continuing education (DPR and CCA) will be available. Our programs are open to all potential participants. If you require special accommodations, please contact UCCE San Joaquin County at 209-953-6100. Thank you, and hope to see you at the meeting.