The National Agricultural Genotyping Center, Fargo, N.D., received a $51,000 grant from the state of North Dakota to enhance a genetic test for identification of herbicide resistance traits in Palmer amaranth and related pigweed species.

The 2019 Legislature approved $500,000 for the grant program for the 2019-21 biennium.

“Advances in bioscience have already transformed many sectors including agriculture and medicine,” according to Doug Goehring, North Dakota agriculture commission. “These grants will help North Dakota stay on the forefront of bioscience innovation.”

SDSU professor leads ASA

David Clay, a distinguished professor of soil science at South Dakota State University, was recently elected as the incoming president elect of the American Society of Agronomy.

Clay was selected as a fellow of the American Society of Agronomy in 2007 and has served as the editor of the Agronomy Journal since 2018. The Agronomy Journal is the premier journal for the American Society of Agronomy and has been publishing papers for the last 110 years.

Clay is the first editor from South Dakota. Last year, 1,000 papers were submitted and of those papers, 40% were accepted for publication. He works with a team of eight technical editors and 125 associate editors.

Several years ago, Clay obtained funding from USDA to create a national team focused on workforce development in precision agriculture. This resulted in two books: “Precision Agriculture Basics” and “Practical Mathematics for Precision Farming.” The American Society of Agronomy and the Soil Science Society of America published both books.

The books present practical precision farming information targeted to agronomists, soil scientists and producers with a goal of helping them reduce production cost and environmental impact. 

Wine grants

North Dakota’s wine industry recently received $80,000 in grants from the state of North Dakota. Grant recipients were:

North Dakota Grape and Wine Association. The association received $11,500 to develop a winery passport app to promote awareness of the grape and wine industry, strengthen North Dakota agritourism and stimulate economic development across the state.

North Dakota State University. NDSU received $50,000 to research fermentation tactics for elite grapes and promising cider apples.

NDSU North Central Research and Education Center, Minot. The center received $18,500 to research best management practices for the NCREC vineyard.

“The research and promotion funded by these grants will help keep that industry advancing,” according to a statement from Goehring.

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