Growers in North Platte Valley Face Critical Water Loss with Canal Damage July 18, 2019
Surface-water irrigators in the North Platte River Valley south of the river in western Nebraska and eastern Wyoming have lost their water supply due to a washout in the main supply canal early Wednesday morning (July 17). The Bureau of Reclamation is assessing the damage.
UNL TAPS Receives Outstanding Extension Program Award July 15, 2019
The Western Agricultural Economics Association (WAEA) recently honored the UNL-TAPS program with the Outstanding Extension Program Award for demonstrably impacting the mindset and management practices of irrigators while engaging and educating a much broader audience.
Soil Water Content- and Soil Matric Potential-Based Irrigation Trigger Values for Different Soil Types July 11, 2019
Keeping a close eye on soil water content in individual fields can help optimize irrigation efficiency. This article explores how to use research-based trigger points for various soil types using soil water content-based sensors or soil matric potential-based sensors. Nebraska research has shown that having 25% more water than needed in the maize root-zone reduced grain yields as much as 15 bu/ac.
Study: High Crop Yields Are Compatible with Prescribed Irrigation Levels June 18, 2019
New research from University of Nebraska researchers has found that one-third of studied fields achieved high crop yields without surpassing prescribed irrigation levels.
Workshops Focus on Irrigation Scheduling to Save Money, Water Even in Wet Years June 14, 2019
Installing soil water monitors and making irrigation scheduling decisions based on sensor data will be the focus of two luncheon workshops this month in central Nebraska.
Hybrid Selection Sets TAPS Contests Up for a Unique Year May 30, 2019
Competitors in the three divisions of this year's UNL-TAPS contest have selected their seed and seeding rate. Additional research was added this year to look at production functions such as seed selection.
NET Awards Grant for Subsurface Drip Irrigation System with Feedlot April 26, 2019
The Nebraska Environmental Trust has awarded a grant to construct a subsurface drip irrigation system that uses feedlot effluent to irrigate crop fields. The practice will be evaluated as a potential means to better manage the state's limited water resources, an ongoing research priority of the University of Nebraska.
UNL-TAPS Participation Increasing in 2019 April 3, 2019
Over 100 participants in 49 teams will be competing in this year's UNL-TAPS competitions for irrigated corn, irrigated sorghum, and Subsurface Drip Irrigation (SDI). Based on program success in the first three years, Oklahoma State University has started OSU-TAPS.