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Several standing people take notes as an instructor demonstrates a crop pest.
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Alicia Harstad
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Winter Meeting Season: Advanced Crop Advisers Workshop Coming Soon

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It’s the height of Winter Meeting Season! I hope you’re planning to attend the Wild World of Weeds Workshop January 20, 2026 at the Fargo Dome. The keynote speaker this year is Aaron Hager from the University of Illinois, discussing all things waterhemp. For more details read here: https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/weeds/wild-world-of-weeds.

The Soil Water Workshop is the next day, January 21, also at the Fargo Dome For meeting details and registration read here: https://www.ndsu.edu/agriculture/extension/events/2026-soil-water-workshop.

Next week, plan to attend the Advanced Crop Advisers Workshop January 27 and 28, 2026. This is a comprehensive workshop for agricultural professionals, agronomists, Extension agents, agribusiness representatives, and farmers. This workshop will provide high quality, in-depth information on many topics:

Back by popular demand will be the Pest Identification Quiz. Prizes will be awarded to the top three participants.

Three general sessions are:

  1. A panel discussion entitled, Make Every Input Count in 2026. Moderated by Sam Markell, NDSU Broadleaf Crops Pathologist and Miki Miheguli, North Dakota Soybean Council Director of Agronomy and Research, panelists include Lynn Paulson, Senior Vice President and Director of Agribusiness Development with Bell Bank; Bryon Parman, NDSU Extension Agricultural Finance Specialist; Tom Peters, NDSU Extension Sugarbeet Agronomist; Janet Knodel, NDSU Extension Entomologist; and Chris Johnson, Centrol Consultant from Horace, ND. The panel will interact with the audience, discussing how to keep the farm profitable in 2026 while managing pests and fertility appropriately.
  2. Necessary and Recommended Herbicide Adjuvants will be delivered by Bryan Young, Professor of Botany and Plant Pathology from Purdue University. Bryan will discuss the importance of using the correct adjuvant at the correct quantity to maximize herbicide activity.
  3. Staying Grounded: Managing Stress and Supporting Mental Wellness in Agriculture will be delivered by Monica McConkey, Minnesota Rural Health Specialist. Stress is always present in agriculture, but especially today. Learn how to build resiliency, maintain balance during peak seasons, and create a healthier work-life mindset.

Tuesday’s 1.5-hour breakout sessions include:

  1. Alternative Weed Management Technologies by Mike Ostlie, NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center Director and Noel Anderson, Technical Advisor for Grand Farms. Noel and Mike will talk about current and upcoming weed management technologies including robotic weeders, weed seed destructors, and new technology.
  2. Fertilizer Facts and Myths Brady Goettl, NDSU Extension Soil Fertility Specialist. Brady will discuss nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur cycling and whether fertilizer products live up to their claims.
  3. Buckle Up! 2026 Crop Market and Trade Outlook by Frayne Olson, NDSU Extension Crop Marketing Specialist. Frayne will help us understand the current crop markets situation and sort out how and when to sell 2025 and 2026 crops.

Wednesday’s 1.5-hour breakout sessions include:

  1. Emerging and Resistant Insect Pests in Soybean, Wheat, and Corn Fei Yang, University of Minnesota Extension Entomologist and Janet Knodel, NDSU Extension Entomologist. Janet and Fei will talk in-depth about armyworms, corn rootworm, bean leaf beetles, and corn borers.
  2. Soil Compaction and Soil Health by Jodi DeJong-Hughes, University of Minnesota Regional Extension Educator. Jodi will discuss soil compaction and how to mitigate soil compaction.
  3. Field Crop Diseases and Disease Forecasting Tools by Wade Webster, NDSU Extension Soybean Pathologist and Sam Markell, NDSU Extension Broadleaf Crops Pathologist. Sam and Wade will discuss the latest information on soybean and other broadleaf crop diseases and how effective and important disease forecasting tools can help manage certain diseases.
  4. What It Takes to Improve Weed Management by Tom Peters, NDSU Extension Sugarbeet Agronomist, and Jeff Stachler, NDSU Extension Cropping Systems Specialist at the Carrington Research Extension Center. Jeff and Tom will talk about the importance of properly choosing and applying herbicides to improve weed management.

The Advanced Crop Advisers Workshop will be held at the Fargo Holiday Inn. For additional meeting details visit https://www.ndsu.edu/agriculture/ag-hub/events/2026-advanced-crop-advisers-workshop.

Jeff Stachler, Ph. D., CCA
Jeff.Stachler@ndsu.edu
Extension Cropping Systems Specialist