By Mahdi Al-Kaisi
After a successful inaugural conference in 2016, the second annual Soil Health Conference will be held in Ames, Iowa, on Feb.16-17. This year’s event will consist of two full days of presentations on a wide variety of topics concerning soil health with invited guest speakers from around the country.
The theme for the 2017 Soil Health Conference is “Building Soil Health for Healthy Environment and Farm Profitability.” This theme is important given the current challenges farmers face with production and environmental issues, says Mahdi Al-Kaisi, professor and extension soil management specialist at Iowa State University and committee chair.
“The goal of this conference is to focus on management practices that influence soil health, sustain productivity and reduce agriculture’s footprint on the environment,” said Al-Kaisi. “Experts from across the country will provide needed resources to help farmers and agronomists not only in Iowa, but across the Midwest.”
The 2017 Soil Health Conference plans to build upon the foundation laid by the 2016 conference, expanding to a more extensive two-day program.
Speakers and Topics
More than 33 speakers from academia, USDA, agriculture industry, farmers, students and the private sector will present throughout the two-day conference. Some of the topics included in this year’s event are economics of soil health, linkage between soil health and water quality, field indicators or observations for quick soil health field assessment and soil assessment tools. There also will be a panel of farmers with a history of adopting conservation systems who will share their experiences in making such systems work economically.
CCA Credits and Poster Presentation
Soil and water continuing education credits will once again be offered to Certified Crop Advisers and the research poster presentation and display will continue to be a part of the event.
To register for the 2017 Soil Health Conference, visit register.extension.iastate.edu/soilhealth/registration. By registering online before or on Feb. 1, individuals will receive an early registration fee of $175. After Feb. 1, a late registration fee of $210 will take effect. Student registration is $85. Those who wish to submit posters must submit abstracts by Friday, Feb. 3, at 5 p.m. CST for consideration. More information on registration and poster submission guidelines can be found at register.extension.iastate.edu/soilhealth/call-for-posters.
Source:iastate.edu