Upcoming Grey County SCIA Crop Walk

Jul 05, 2024

Come for the walk; stay for the fun and information about soil, seeds, and crops.

By Andrew Joseph, Farms.com; Image by Pexels from Pixabay

The Grey County Soil & Crop Improvement Association will be holding a Crop Walk on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, in Proton Station, Ontario, at Highland Custom Farming Inc.

Components of the tour include guided stops looking at wheat planted in 15-inch rows, new corn herbicides, biological treatments, soybeans, cranberry beans, oats, crop biosecurity protocols, cutting-edge equipment, and an elevator tour.

The event will run from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and includes lunch and refreshments. Special thanks go to Holmes Agro, Sprucedale Agromart, and Pioneer Seeds for their sponsorship of the lunch and refreshments.

All are welcome to join in on this fun and informative day. The cost is free for Soil & Crop members and $10 for non-members.

Please register by July 11, 2024, by emailing georgiancentralscia@ontariosoilcrop.org or by calling 519-986-3756.

Video: Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes | Field Talk Friday

Field Talk Friday | Dr. John Murphy | Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes

Most of us spend our time managing what we can see above ground—plant height, leaf color, stand counts, and yield potential. But the deeper you dig into agronomy, the more you realize that some of the most important processes driving crop performance are happening just millimeters below the surface.

In this episode of Field Talk Friday, Dr. John Murphy continues the soil biology series by diving into one of the most fascinating topics in modern agronomy: root exudates and the role they play in shaping the microbial world around plant roots.

Roots are not passive structures simply pulling nutrients out of the soil. They are active participants in the underground ecosystem. Plants constantly release compounds into the soil—sugars, amino acids, organic acids, and other molecules—that act as both energy sources and signals for soil microbes.