This is a follow up to the in person Basic Pest Management Concepts training sessions that were held in January, 2024. Courtney Cheever, NRCS State Water Quality Specialist and TSP Coordinator discusses the certification/check out process for Integrated Pest Management Systems (CPS 595) as well as explains the relationship between NRCS, the producer, and the TSP. Adam Reed, Regional Agronomist, demonstrates the Excel worksheet tool that helps document IPM techniques and conservation practices for reducing pesticide environmental risk using a MN specific WIN-PST scenario.

Melissa Carlson, lead researcher and coordinator of Minnesota Wheat's On Farm Research Network, provides an overview of how they work with growers in northwest Minnesota to successfully implement replicated on farm research trials. Learn about helpful hints on how to move a trial from the first phone call to the final data report, as well as lessons learned as the network evolved over the last 11 seasons of conducting field scale research trials.

This session provides an overview of Minnesota's Seed law, one of the oldest consumer protection laws in Minnesota, which is in place to ensure a fair marketplace. The law requires certain content on seed labels so that the customer knows what they are buying. The Minnesota Seed Regulatory Program inspects seed labels and takes samples of seed lots at all sites where seed is produced, labeled, or available for sale. Samples are tested by the MN seed lab using American Official Seed Analysts (AOSA) rules and the result is compared to the label to see if they are truthful.

In this webinar, we will provide an introduction to and overview of silvopasture for any level. Learn more about what it is, who should do it, and the advantages and disadvantages of the system. In addition, listen to a producer using silvopasture discuss their experiences on the ground. This is the first webinar in a six part series targeted towards landowners, farmers, producers and natural resource professionals.

During this session Courtney Cheever (NRCS), Mark Wetlauffer (MDH), Aaron Meyer (MRWA), and Katie Breth (MRWA) provide an introduction to the wellhead protection rule, Drinking Water Supply Management Areas (DWSMAs), and Source Water Protection (SWP) priority areas, including examples and success stories from existing plans. Conservation practices, planning tools, and financial assistance programs are also be discussed.

This course covers the structural, vegetative, and management conservation practices used to reduce all five types of soil erosion.

Joshua Gamble, ARS Research Agronomist, discusses the role alfalfa roots play in mediating yield, stand persistence, and ecosystem services. Joshua will also discuss how root systems can be managed for improved outcomes, and highlight some of the current ARS research in breeding and root architecture. Craig Shaeffer, UMN, provides an overview of alfalfa fertility with particular attention to K, S, and pH.

The new version of the seeding spreadsheet has the ability to do seeding checkouts based on seed tags listing a Pure Live Seed (PLS) applied column. This method streamlines the checkout data entry to just one number per species. The spreadsheet still accommodates doing a checkout with a seed tag using the traditional purity and germination data entries. It also provides for a two step process whereby a seed tag utilizing purity and germ data can be combined with a PLS style tag to get a single efficient printout to document  the seeding meets standards and specs.

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture has put together this presentation to help retailers understand the requirements for labeling and selling seed in Minnesota. It provides basic information that seed retailers should know regarding the Minnesota seed law, seed inventory management strategies, and seed label requirements. Please contact seed.mda@state.mn.us with any questions or if you would like further information.