The University of Nebraska -Lincoln’s Panhandle Research Extension and Education Center (PREEC) awarded a family and an individual its 2024 Outstanding Service to Panhandle Agriculture award on Aug. 22, at the annual Panhandle Agriculture Research Technology Tour.

Michael Ann Relka

Relka has been the agriculturist at Western Sugar Cooperative since 2009. She has the largest growing area and runs the largest sugarbeet receiving station in the cooperative.

“Her growers respect her opinions on their crop and ask her for advice on raising sugarbeets,” said Jerry Darnell, vice president of agriculture, south region for Western Sugar.

As an agriculturist for Western Sugar Relka has many opportunities to educate others about sugarbeets and to work with the community to promote agriculture. Relka has been a part of ag in the classroom for several years, teaching kids in other areas about sugarbeets. She led the Beet Sugar Development Foundation AG school at Scottsbluff High School last year. Her pursuit to bring agriculture to the public doesn’t stop at the classroom or with the growers. She has been integral to research at the Panhandle Research Extension and Education Center in Scottsbluff.

“Over the last few years, I have placed a couple on-farm trials locally, and Michael Ann has been great at finding growers willing to work with me. And this is really hard to do. As a weed scientist, if I am going to be putting a trial out in a farmer’s field, I will be leaving a substantial mess,” said Nevin Lawrence, Nebraska Extension integrated weed management specialist. “We can’t just test what works, we need to compare weed control programs to the standard to see if it does better. Most of the time, when a trial ends, I am leaving the grower with quite a few six-foot-tall weeds and diminished yields on the part of the field they allow me to use.”

Relka has also worked with PREEC faculty on the Yonts Conference and other sugarbeet projects.

She grew up on a farm outside of Scottsbluff participated in 4-H and helped with tractor work and setting water growing up. After graduating high school, Relka majored in ag business and added soil and crop sciences.

“In the spring of 2010 my dad was beginning to downsize his farming operation, which provided me the opportunity to rent 80 acres and start doing some farming and working at Western Sugar,” Relka said. “My husband and I have grown the farming operation to his full-time occupation, where we now raise our family on some of the same farms I grew up on. I’ve always appreciated being able to see agriculture from both the industry and production perspectives and feel that it helps inform my decisions and the recommendations I give others.”

Steve, Trent and Carl Benzel

The brothers were born and raised in Box Butte County and have farmed all their lives. On the 900 irrigated and 500 dryland acres. The Benzels have grown corn, sugarbeets, dry beans, winter wheat, yellow peas, oats and garbanzo beans. They also work with various cover crops to improve soil conservation and health.

“They are outstanding supporters and contributors to the Nebraska Extension On-Farm research program,” said Gary Stone, Nebraska Extension educator, water and integrated cropping systems. “Along with irrigation water management utilizing ET gages and crop water use, they participate in Nebraska Extension and dry bean industry variety trials and implementation of new products.”

Steve has served on the Nebraska Dry Bean Commission and Nebraska Sugar Beet Growers Association and is on the Box Butte County Extension Board. Trent has served on the Nebraska Dry Bean Growers Association.

The Benzel brothers strive to improve their farming operation by innovating and implementing ideas by collaborating with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension On-Farm Research program.

“I was looking for growers to do on-farm research, and I had met the Benzels, and they were quite interested in doing on-farm research,” said John Thomas, Nebraska Extension cropping systems extension educator in Box Butte County. “They are progressive and want to learn and do new things.”

The Benzels have participated in more than 15 years of on-farm research with a heavy emphasis on dry beans. Where they have done variety trials, inoculant studies, and fertility in relationship to inoculants on dry beans.

“They have just been great cooperators for many years with on-farm research,” Thomas said.

The research is published every year in the annual Nebraska On-Farm Research book, which is available for growers everywhere.

New dry edible bean varieties are always something the Benzel brothers are interested in participating with on-farm research.

“They see the new varieties and test them right there on their farm to see how they do with their soils, farm equipment and climate,” Thomas said.

“I'm always looking for a better way to grow crops,” Steve Benzel said.