West Central Research and Extension Center

Corn field
The West Central Research, Extension and Education Center is scheduled for 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 5. Attendance is free, but participants are encouraged to register for meal planning purposes.

Water, Crops and Soil Health Field Day Set for Sept. 5

August 5, 2024
West Central Research, Extension and Education Center's 2024 field day will feature keynote speaker Dale Strickler, a Kansas-based ag consultant with more than 30 years of experience in agronomy, pasture management, and soil and crop advising.

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Woman operating drone in wheat field
An educational discount is available to students and educators interested in attending two upcoming drone workshops from Nebraska Extension. See details below.

Nebraska is the Epicenter for Agricultural Drone Conferences in August 2024

August 2, 2024
Two days of conferences hosted mid-month in North Platte will feature insights from drone industry experts and practitioners across the world, with live demos and exhibit booths.

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Woman operating drone in wheat field
Stay tuned for more information on the 2nd Annual Drones in Ag Conference and Nebraska Spray Drone Conference — coming soon to CropWatch.

Nebraska Extension Offers Dual Meetings on Agriculture Drones in August 2024

June 20, 2024
Two back-to-back drone conferences in August will give producers the opportunity to see live demos and hear important information about regulations, spray drone applications and more.

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Wheat variety trial plots
For producers who are unable to attend the Wheat Variety Tour dates this year, demonstration plots will be labeled approximately a week before the scheduled tour and remain in place until harvest.

UNL Wheat Variety Tour Coming to Grant June 12

June 7, 2024
The next stop for the 2024 UNL Wheat Variety Tour will be the Henry J. Stumpf International Wheat Research Center in Grant, featuring research updates on wheat stem sawfly, winter peas, water stress-tolerant wheat hybrids and more.

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Man stands at water tank holding hose

UNL-TAPS to Host Summer Field Day on June 19

May 22, 2024
This year's annual field day will include new contests in the Agronomic Olympics, live demos, guest speakers and a four-man golf scramble.

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TAPS soybean logo banner
The 2024 TAPS program will include sprinkler corn and continuous corn competitions in North Platte, Nebraska, the sorghum competition in Grant, Nebraska, and a new soybean competition near Mead, Nebraska.

Learn, Launch, Interact Event to Kick Off 2024 TAPS Competitions

February 29, 2024
The March 21 Kickoff Event is open to the public and will usher in the 2024 TAPS Competition, which features a new soybean contest at ENREEC.

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Julie Peterson mugshot
Julie Peterson has been named the associate director of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s West Central Research, Extension and Education Center in North Platte. The appointment took effect Sept. 1, 2023.

Peterson Named Associate Director of West Central Research, Extension and Education Center

October 27, 2023
An entomologist and extension specialist, Peterson also leads the Agroecosystems Entomology Lab, and her research focuses on practical applications for integrated pest management of field crops.

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Vesh Raj Thapa stands near soil sample display
Vesh Raj Thapa, UNL post-doctoral research assistant, stands behind root samples from the plots at WREEC in North Platte. (Photo by Chabella Guzman)

Roots, Another Important Aspect of Cover Crops

September 19, 2023
Researchers involved in a UNL-USDA NRCS study on cover crops highlight the importance of species selection, as each type of cover crop has a unique root system that contributes differently to soil health.

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