WIU Ag Mech Farm Expo Begins Feb. 8

Feb 07, 2025

The Western Illinois University Ag Mech Farm Expo is back for its 53rd year, running Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 8-9 at Western Hall, presented by the WIU School of Agriculture - Agricultural Mechanization Club.

One of the largest student-run events in the country, The WIU Ag Mech Farm Expo will include displays of farm tractors, machinery, agricultural sales and service, emerging ag technology, livestock and crop supplies, conservation and agriculture structures. There will also be a variety of craft vendors upstairs in Western Hall, as well as free children's activities, including a bouncy house, face painting and glitter tattoos.

The show runs from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 8 and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 9.

Exhibitors can register for the event until 9 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6 at this link.

Rows A1-F1, west of the west gate, in Q Lot will be closed for the Ag Mech Farm Expo, through Sunday, Feb. 9. All other areas of Q Lot will be open for normal use.

Source : wiu.edu

Video: Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes | Field Talk Friday

Field Talk Friday | Dr. John Murphy | Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes

Most of us spend our time managing what we can see above ground—plant height, leaf color, stand counts, and yield potential. But the deeper you dig into agronomy, the more you realize that some of the most important processes driving crop performance are happening just millimeters below the surface.

In this episode of Field Talk Friday, Dr. John Murphy continues the soil biology series by diving into one of the most fascinating topics in modern agronomy: root exudates and the role they play in shaping the microbial world around plant roots.

Roots are not passive structures simply pulling nutrients out of the soil. They are active participants in the underground ecosystem. Plants constantly release compounds into the soil—sugars, amino acids, organic acids, and other molecules—that act as both energy sources and signals for soil microbes.