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Lex Robertson | Crop and Soil Science Undergraduate | Soil Science Option | 2024 CSS Outstanding Senior Award Receipient

About Lex:


Lane Marsh | Crop and Soil Science Undergraduate | Agronomy Option | Crop and Soil Science Club Secretary

About Lane:


Food Hero logo

Get a garden growing with the Grow This! Oregon Garden Challenge! Michelle Markesteyn, Oregon State University Extension’s Farm to School Coordinator, joined KATU to share more about the statewide seed giveaway,


Naked barley. Photo: OSU

Efforts to develop new markets for naked barley recently crossed the $10 million mark with the award of a $3.5 million grant from USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture.


yakun zhang in soil pit

We are pleased to announce that Dr. Yakun Zhang has joined the Department of Crop and Soil Science as Assistant Professor of Soil Science - Pedology effective November 16, 2023.  


Following a comprehensive search, Oregon State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences has named Dr. Lauren Gwin as its new Director of the Center for Small Farms and Community Food Systems (SFCFS).


Naked barley team members and stakeholders gathered in Cold Spring, NY in October 2023 to strategize next steps for the project

A national project focused on organic naked barley for multiple end-uses, led by Dr. Brigid Meints of Oregon State University, has been re-funded after two successful iterations.


Refugio Sanchez scoops potatoes at the head of a conveyor system that delivers tons of potatoes to waiting trucks at the Amstad storage facility in Hermiston, Oregon. Photo by Lynn Ketchum.

“The organic potato industry cannot depend on traditional chemical anti-sprouting treatments since synthetic chemicals are banned in certified organic,” said Valtcho Jeliazkov of OSU’s College of Agricultural Sciences.


Image of beer product shots from Oregon State University Fermentation Science Pilot Brewery

“One of the strategies that we’re going to have to employ, I believe, is to have more barley, and more diverse barley, grown in more places,” says Patrick Hayes, professor of barley breeding and genetics at Oregon State University. 


Navneet Kaur (left), assistant professor and Extension entomologist, and Silvia Rondon, director of the Oregon IPM Center, are conducting research to identify chlorpyrifos alternatives for controlling pests in Oregon crops.

OSU Extension researchers are endeavoring to find an alternative to chlorpyrifos which was banned by the EPA in 2020.


OSU professor Markus Kleber, left, and graduate student Drew Childs collect soil samples from a crop field near Boardman, Ore., in March 2023. Photo: Cassandra Profita / OPB

New funding aims to help landowners sequester carbon in the soil of working farms and ranches.


Udayakumar Sekaran in field

Capital Press - As Oregon State University researcher Udayakumar Sekaran sees it, soil-moisture sensors help farmers irrigate more efficiently but are limited by the wires to which they are attached.


james cassidy

James Cassidy has worn many hats as a rock star, farmer and soil scientist. On a recent Tuesday in July, he wore a lime green fedora with a single avocado earring and dirt-stained jeans.


Judit Barroso holds onto cheatgrass a common weed in Oregon - Photos by Yasser Marte/East Oregonian

For years, Judit Barroso, associate professor in weed science at Oregon State University, has been helping farmers fight back against both stubborn and invasive weeds by working at the Columbia Basin Agricultural Research Center near Adams.


When researchers in Oregon studied the impact of heat and drought on hops two years ago, the results were “an eye-opener,” says John Henning, a USDA hop geneticist. 


Late planting is associated with lower weed pressure because mechanically harrowing beds before crop seeding takes out much of the first generation weeds, said Joel Felix, an Oregon State University weed scientist


Jennifer Kling is a Professor (Senior Research) with the Crop and Soil Science Department. She will retire on June 30, 2023 after 23 years of service.


onions

“That’s an advantage in the summer when it’s hot,” said Gabe Flick, who farms there and is a weed scientist and Oregon State University instructor. “But it can cause a challenge in the spring, when you need to dry out enough to plant.”


field of lontra barley

Hoping this title caught your attention, we’ll make try to make this story simpler with some up-front definitions.


James Cassidy member of Information Society

A camera crew, fresh from Los Angeles, runs through a cornfield north of Corvallis.


Chickens. Photo by Chris Branam.

The record-breaking price of eggs has encouraged some people to consider raising chickens in the backyard, but it’s important to do some research before buying those cute little chicks.


udayakumar sekaran

Dr. Udayakumar Sekaran joined the Department of Crop and Soil Science at the Malheur Experiment Station as Assistant Professor with research and extension responsibilities in irrigation and soil fertility.


meg mobley

The Center for Teaching and Learning is pleased to announce that Meg Mobley, Senior Instructor of Crop and Soil Sciences (CSS), has been named the 2022-23 Blended Faculty Fellow.


Nicole Anderson conducts research in a field outside of Silverton in 2020. Photo by Mitch Lies

Longtime Polk County Extension agronomist Nicole Anderson has moved to the Oregon State University campus in Corvallis to become the new statewide Extension Seed Production Specialist.


Dr. Pete Berry Named Assistant Professor of Weed Science Crop and Soil Science, OSU


KOIN — Some days, Dr. Bob Zemetra is surrounded by pot plants all day.


Most people connect cannabis with recreational use. But the plant can do quite a bit for people and their communities, as researchers at Oregon State University are proving.


UMAPINE — What a difference a year made to dryland wheat growers.


The list of components in a dairy cow’s ration includes forages, nonfiber carbohydrate feeds (grains and by-products), rumen degradable and by-pass proteins, fat, minerals, vitamins, and other feed additives.


CSS is pleased to announce that Adam Fund has been named as the new Soil Health Lab Manager, effective June 6, 2022.


Staci Simonich at the Hyslop Field Day, , , , , , , ,

Oregon Seed eUpdate  - Growers, researchers and others came to the 2022 Hyslop Farm Field Day in record numbers May 25 in Corvallis, the first such field day in three years.


harvesting of strata
        by Shaun Townsend, Ph.D.

        Associate Professor, Senior Research

 


Organic Nutrient Management for Vegetable Production: a new online course for farmers and other professionals


NMPAN is very pleased to introduce our new Program Manager David Zarling.


Oregon Wheat Magazine - February 2022 edition: Three trials conducted on herbicide alternatives to glyphosate that help control or prevent glyphosate-resistant weeds.


A new pest guide, Pocket Guide to Grass Seed Pests and Beneficials: Identification, Monitoring, Management, is available to help identify pests and formulate management practices.


Work Hard, Play Hard: This saying captures the essence of an approach to life that unreservedly embraces challenges both at work and at play.


Central Oregon hay farmers have faced challenges this year with water shortages, drought conditions and supply chain issues.


CORVALLIS – It’s a simple equation: If you want to grow better plants, you first need to understand the soil.


Dr. David Myrold passed away on July 15, 2021 in Corvallis.  Dave was a Professor of Soil Science in the department from 1984 until his retirement in July 2021.  He is survived by his wife Jackie, sons Alan and Kirk, and a daughter, Becky.


Cicada killer wasp next to ruler

In her 17 years working as an extension entomologist in Eastern Oregon, Silvia Rondon has never received more reports, emails, phone calls and texts with questions asking what type of wasp they just saw.


Extreme heat and drought are expected to take a major toll on Oregon’s signature seed crops, though the extent of the damage won’t be known until after harvest.


PENDLETON — The wheat harvest started early this year on Starvation Farms, named for the frequently harsh growing conditions on the 7,000-acre plot of land roughly 10 miles north of Lexington.