View from the Cab: A tour worth seeing

By: Kent Casson

Farmers will have the chance to virtually tour farms with conservation practices in July and August.

The Conservation Technology Information Center’s 14th annual Conservation in Action Tour is planned for this summer, featuring four different one-hour stops with an on-farm video followed by a live panel discussion.

Certified Crop Advisers can earn 12 CEU’s for participating in the entire Sustainable Agronomy Conference.

Videos include interviews with farmers, crop consultants and researchers and are followed by live panel discussions and opportunities for questions and answers.

Carbon farming is the theme for July 20, phosphorus management will be discussed August 3, pollinator habitat is the topic for August 17 with connecting for conservation presented on August 24. These Tuesday sessions start with a presentation by the American Society of Agronomy at 11 a.m. followed by the tour starting at noon.

The virtual 2021 event is held in partnership with the American Society of Agronomy Sustainable Agronomy Conference. This year’s sponsors include Syngenta, Mosaic, Bayer Crop Science, John Deere, Case IH, Simplot and the Nature Conservancy.

To register for the event, go to https://www.agronomy.org/meetings/sustainable-agronomy.

You may recall the CTIC tour was in our own backyard back in 2013 with record attendance. In July of that year, over 270 producers, agribusiness partners, media representatives and government officials from 20 states toured the Indian Creek Watershed in Livingston County.

CTIC teamed up with the Livingston County Soil and Water Conservation District to spotlight “Community 4 Conservation” which included tours of a soil pit, aerial seeding area, equipment and tiling.

These crop tours are always very informative and the perfect way to learn about conservation practices and the benefits to the environment. I suggest you put this one on your “virtual” calendar for later this summer.