News & Events

Since 2011, University Minnesota Extension has conducted a small grains pest and disease field survey in western Minnesota as part of a collaboration with North Dakota State University. This effort has been funded by the Minnesota Wheat Research and Promotion Council through wheat check-off dollars to inform producers and the research community of the presence of disease and pests.

In late July, the reported weather data on NWROC’s website modernized thanks to a new weather station from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA). The NWROC joined several other ROCs in partnering with the MDA to join and collect data for the Minnesota Ag Weather Network (MAWN). This project upgrades the ROCs’ current weather stations with advanced technology that is standardized across the MDA’s network and provides current weather updates every 15 minutes.

To help Minnesota soybean producers understand their risks and management options, the MN Soybean Research & Promotion Council is sponsoring the fall 2024 SCN Sampling Program, which will pay for the first 500 samples received.

Preliminary yield results from the 2024 variety trials are now available at varietytrials.umn.edu for the following crops: spring wheat, winter wheat, winter rye, winter triticale, barley, and oats. The annual report including all crops and finalized data will be published later this year.

On July 17th, the Northwest Research and Outreach Center (NWROC) welcomed over 100 producers and industry professionals to their location near Crookston, MN for the annual Crops & Soils Day. The event showcases recent research in two key areas that are important to the region: sugarbeets and small grains. The faculty and staff at NWROC research a variety of questions related to the production of these main regional crops, as well as typical corn and soybean crops.

An update on Minnesota’s long-lasting drought came Thursday morning and the news is looking good! For the first time since 2020, the vast majority of Minnesota is no longer in a drought at all. That news came just before Gov. Tim Walz is to announce the air quality forecast for this summer at 2 p.m.