Dryland Soil Health Network meeting set for Feb. 18 in Hays

HAYS, Kan. – There’s no teacher like experience, and like any profession, farmers learn from their own experiences plus those of fellow growers and researchers.

With that in mind, K-State Research and Extension is launching the Dryland Soil Health Network to help facilitate information sharing and more. A kickoff meeting is set for Feb. 18 in Hays.

The meeting runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at K-State’s Agricultural Research Center, located at 1232 240th Avenue. The meeting is free to attend and a complimentary lunch will be served.

K-State soil scientist Augustine Obour said the goal of the network is to advance soil management strategies and prioritize conservation, cover crops, and no-tillage systems to improve soil health and productivity of dryland cropping systems through participatory research and learning.

The network’s objectives include providing farmers and researchers with a platform to share information; conducting on-farm research trials to investigate new and proven soil management strategies to improve soil health; and to facilitate farmer-researcher feedback to identify soil health challenges, plus refine recommendations and guidelines for dryland systems.

Those interested in attending can reserve a spot at the meeting by contacting Obour at aobour@ksu.edu or Joe Kimzey at jgk5335@ksu.edu, or calling 785-625-3425.