Educational Seminar Offered to Wheat Growers

A web-based grower education seminar (webinar) on World Wheat Supply, Demand, and Prices hosted by the Idaho Wheat Commissions will held Thursday, April 26 at 8:00 a.m. MDT, 7:00 a.m. PDT.

Vince Peterson, Vice President of Overseas Operations for U.S. Wheat Associates will discuss global factors behind this year’s exports, review world stock supplies and give his perspective on world plantings, production and prices. The webinar will be approximately one hour.  Participation is simple and free!  Log onto the website at http://connect.cals.uidaho.edu/wheat (requires Adobe Flash Player which is installed on most computers) and enter your name as a participant.

Peterson is an active leader in the grain industry, having served on the board of directors of both the Portland Merchants Exchange and the Pacific Grain Export Association. He speaks internationally on the world wheat market and has presented expert witness testimony before Congress and served on a CFTC investigative subcommittee. Before joining USW, Peterson gained a dozen years of practical trade and commercial experience through working as an export grain merchandiser with Garnac Grain and as a domestic grain procurement manager and merchandiser with General Mills.

Peterson earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial administration and economics from Iowa State University.

Stripe Rust Webinar Tomorrow -- Wednesday, April 4

The Idaho Wheat Commission will be presenting a web-based grower education seminar (webinar) on Stripe Rust on Wednesday, April 4 at 7:30 a.m. MDT. The webinar will be approximately one hour. Participation is free! Log onto the website at http://connect.cals.uidaho.edu/wheat (requires Adobe Flash Player which is installed on most computers) and enter your name as a participant. Guest presenter Juliet Marshall, Associate Professor of Agronomy and Cereals Cropping Systems at the University of Idaho, Department of Plant, Soils and Entomological Sciences will look at the stripe rust epidemic in 2011 and how the disease reduced yields and increased production costs in both winter and spring wheat. Marshall will review the life cycle of the disease, the unusual environmental conditions that allowed the epidemic to develop, and examine the potential for a repeat performance in the upcoming year. We will look at various control recommendations, including the selection of resistant varieties, fungicide applications, and various production practices that can reduce the infection and spread in the upcoming cropping season.

Falling Numbers Webinar Tomorrow

On Thursday, March 15, 7:30 a.m. MDT, 6:30 a.m. PDT, Juliet Marshall, Associate Professor of Agronomy and Cereals Cropping Systems at the University of Idaho, Department of Plant, Soils and Entomological Sciences will address Falling Numbers, in a one-hour webinar. She will specifically look at questions surrounding the 2011 crop. Participation is simple and free! Log onto the website at http://connect.cals.uidaho.edu/wheat (requires Adobe Flash Player which is installed on most computers) and enter your name as a participant.Wheat quality last harvest was called into question with some varieties showing low values in the falling numbers test. In this webinar, Marshall will explore the potential causes and the methods producers may be able to use to reduce the discounts associated with the expression of low falling numbers.

Webinars Offered to Wheat Growers

A web-based grower education seminar (webinar) on healthy soils, sponsored by the Idaho, Oregon and Washington Wheat Commissions will held Tuesday, March 13 at 8 a.m. MST, 7 a.m. PST.

Ray Archuleta, a conservation agronomist with the Natural Resource Conservation Service, will address how healthy soils save money. The webinar will be approximately one hour. Participation is simple and free! Log onto the website at http://connect.cals.uidaho.edu/wheat (requires Adobe Flash Player which is installed on most computers) and enter your name as a participant.

Archuleta believes that farming for the 21st century requires producers to follow nature’s template and that doing so will allow soils on the ranch or farm to function better. Healthy functioning soils managed as an ecosystem filtrate water and cycle nutrients and organic material more efficiently. This webinar will teach principles on how to improve soil function so landowners can save money on petroleum based inputs.

On Thursday, March 15, 7:30 a.m. MST, 6:30 a.m. PST, Juliet Marshall, Associate Professor of Agronomy and Cereals Cropping Systems at the University of Idaho, Department of Plant, Soils and Entomological Sciences will address falling numbers, specifically looking at questions around the 2011 crop. .

Wheat quality last harvest was called into question with some varieties showing low values in the falling numbers test. In this webinar, Marshall will explore the potential causes and the methods producers may be able to use to reduce the discounts associated with the expression of low falling numbers.

Low Falling Number Webinar

Wednesday, February 29 at 7:30 AM (MST)

The Idaho Wheat Commission will be presenting a web-based grower education seminar (webinar) on low falling number 7:30 AM (MST). The webinar will be approximately one hour. Participation is simple and free! Log onto the website at http://connect.cals.uidaho.edu/wheat (requires Adobe Flash Player which is installed on most computers) and enter your name as a participant.

Wednesday, February 29 – “Unraveling the Falling Numbers Questions of 2011” Guest presenter Juliet Marshall, Associate Professor of Agronomy and Cereals Cropping Systems at the University of Idaho, Department of Plant, Soils and Entomological Sciences.
Wheat quality in the 2011 harvest was called into question with some varieties showing low values in the falling numbers test. In this webinar, we will explore the potential causes and the methods we may be able to use to reduce the dockage associated with the expression of low falling numbers.

For those who cannot view the webinar in real time, it will be recorded and available at: http://www.idahowheat.org/.

Controlling Wire Worms in Cereal Grain Production.

The webinar presented by Mr. Esser focuses on how to improve grain yield and profitability under wireworm pressure and reduce wireworm populations in the soil.
Esser discusses his research on a series of large-scale on-farm tests (OFT) which were initiated in 2008 examining varied rates of Cruiser insecticide and a series of OFT examining a very high labeled rate of Gaucho insecticide to reduce wireworm populations in the soil. A series of small plot insecticide treatments have also been initiated examining multiple products with potential for control.

Controlling Wire Worms in Cereal Grain Production.

Direct Seed Workshop slated for March 8 in Idaho Falls

The South Idaho Direct Seed Workshop will be hosted by the Idaho Wheat Commission (IWC) on Thursday, March 8 at the Hilton Garden Inn, 700 Lindsay Blvd, Idaho Falls.

Registration will begin at 9:00 am. The workshop will run from 9:30 am to 2:30 pm.

One of the featured speakers this year will be Richard Smiley, professor of plant pathology at Oregon State University. Dr. Smiley focuses his research on methods to control root diseases of wheat and barley caused by soilborne plant-pathogenic fungi and plant-parasitic nematodes.

“Dick Smiley is one of the leading voices on methods to control root diseases,” says IWC chairman Gordon Gallup, who has been direct seeding for many years. “We can all benefit from hearing about soil health,” says Gallup. “You never know where you’ll find the next idea that will increase profits.”

Presentations will address a variety of timely topics. Earl Creech, PhD, Extension Agronomist, Utah State University will cover chemical fallow. Kate Painter, PhD, Ag Economics and Rural Sociology, University of Idaho will discuss her research on the economics of direct seeding. Additional topics covered will include available government programs. A yearly favorite is local growers sharing their experiences in direct seeding.

The Workshop provides a great opportunity to network and hear what others are doing. Advanced registration is recommended. Registration fee is $10, payable at the door (cash or check only). Lunch is provided.

To register or for more information contact Tereasa Waterman at ts@idahowheat.org, or call the Wheat Commission office at (208) 334.2353.