Progression at Progress City

Monday the 20th saw some major progress at the site! Several new demonstrations were planted, including a seed treatment plot, a row spacing/plant population demo, and a ‘Refuge in the Bag’ concept plot.

In addition, several treatments were infested with fall armyworm (photo below), so we should be seeing some feeding damage soon, along with a good visual demonstration of the protection against this insect that VT3Pro and SmartStax will bring to growers.

We also brought along a big crew to help out with cutting back the rows to make the plots look nice and neat. The new triangle design is really taking shape!

Tyne Morgan also stopped by for a visit, so be on the lookout for some video footage from the show site coming soon.

Special thanks to interns Ben Brown and Genessa Cox along with TDRA’s Stephanie Smith, Brian Hogendorp, and Felipe Zabala for all of the help they provided Monday (photos below).

We’re nowhere near done yet, so stay tuned!

Moisture Measuring Madness

The folks from Aquaspy came last week to install the moisture probes. These probes monitor moisture levels in the soil profile to a 5’ depth and send that information in to our database every 15 minutes. The data will then be mapped to show where water is being removed by the roots within the soil profile and confirm the depth of rooting. This type of technology helps us in our research on Genuity SmartStax and that data will show how those plants are better able to mine for water and nutrients.

Photos of the moisture probes are below, both of it being set up and the finished product.

Next week will be extremely busy as yet more demos will be planted and construction will begin on some of the showcase structures. Keep checking back for updates, and don’t forget you can see it all from the comfort of your own home on our webcam!

The show is getting closer and so much is left to do; stay tuned to the blog for the latest updates!

Veggies Get Some Love in Plot

Who says I don’t know beans? Last Thursday, July 2nd, the next portion of the Seminis demonstration area was planted with two varieties of green beans. Within the next couple of weeks, the demo should be completed with the addition of pepper plants transplanted from the Monmouth Learning Center greenhouses.

In addition to planting veggies, we also applied some nitrogen to the corn inbred demo and sugarbeets, and added a couple other little goodies that you’ll hear more about later! The storm damage to the fence was also repaired last week, so the site is looking sharper every day (as you can see below)!

Thanks again to Larry Weller for his help with site maintenance - he's pictured below working hard, as always.

Keep checking back, as the next couple of weeks should be busy at the site!