Nebraska Extension and Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture will partner together to teach youth ages 9-18 years at the 4^th Annual Agronomy Youth Field Day in Curtis. The participants will have hands-on experiences to learn the science of agronomy and Nebraska crops. The educational event will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, August 7 at the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture (NCTA) Educational Center in Curtis.

A team of  seven Nebraska Extension educators specializing in cropping/water systems or 4-H youth development along with an NCTA agronomy professor will share research-based information with the students from across Nebraska.

The six-hour field day is a great opportunity for youth to gain important life skills while learning about careers in science and agronomy, irrigation, and mechanized agriculture. The hands-on field activities (for all ages) will focus on crop scouting, weed science and herbicide application, crop nutrition, plant breeding, irrigation scheduling, rooting depth and water movement, equipment technology, precision farming, and center-pivot irrigation technology.

The interactive sessions will be organized in two tracts: one for youth ages 9-11 years and one for youth ages 12-18 years. The sessions include field, laboratory, and classroom activities.

Register online by August 2 at https://go.unl.edu/agronomyyouthfieldday. For more information contact Nebraska Extension in Frontier County at 308-367-4424 or email Extension Educator Kathy Burr at kathy.burr@unl.edu.

Several of 2018 field day youth participants rated the day “excellent” and had these comments:

• “I learned different ways to check soil moisture.
• “I learned about no till and till.”
• “I learned the name of 17 weeds!”

A grandparent commented, “I just wanted to let you know how much my son and grandkids enjoyed the program in Curtis. One of the programs was on watering soybeans. When they got home, the kids went out to the field and got a soybean plant so they could count the nodes and see if it is getting enough water.  They told their dad the soybeans need more water!”

A parent participant said, “My son really enjoyed it. He was getting wiggly during the last session & I wondered if he was even listening to the lessons but he was able to tell his dad about every session! The educators did a great job of getting through to the kids!”