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Cover crops were the theme at this year’s summer events.

Curt Arens, Editor, Nebraska Farmer

September 9, 2019

6 Slides

For 21 years, Nebraska Extension Soybean Management Field Days have been a crucial component of soybean field research in the state and across the Great Plains. The 2019 version took place in August at four locations, including the Don Fellows farm near Sargent, Tim and Angie Labenz’ farm at Pilger, Ross and Judd Boekner’s farm at Plymouth, and Lynn Neujahr’s farm at Waverly.

The research and presentations at the four-day event are sponsored each year by Nebraska Extension, the Nebraska Soybean Board and the soybean checkoff.

Research at the on-farm sites this year included production costs and policy; cover crops and hail, insects and weed management; cover crops and seed, planting and irrigation management; soybean gall midge updates and cover crops and soil microbial communities. Learn more online at extension.unl.edu.

Click on the slideshow for six takeaways from this year's programs.

About the Author(s)

Curt Arens

Editor, Nebraska Farmer

Curt Arens began writing about Nebraska’s farm families when he was in high school. Before joining Farm Progress as a field editor in April 2010, he had worked as a freelance farm writer for 27 years, first for newspapers and then for farm magazines, including Nebraska Farmer.

His real full-time career, however, during that same period was farming his family’s fourth generation land in northeast Nebraska. He also operated his Christmas tree farm and grew black oil sunflowers for wild birdseed. Curt continues to raise corn, soybeans and alfalfa and runs a cow-calf herd.

Curt and his wife Donna have four children, Lauren, Taylor, Zachary and Benjamin. They are active in their church and St. Rose School in Crofton, where Donna teaches and their children attend classes.

Previously, the 1986 University of Nebraska animal science graduate wrote a weekly rural life column, developed a farm radio program and wrote books about farm direct marketing and farmers markets. He received media honors from the Nebraska Forest Service, Center for Rural Affairs and Northeast Nebraska Experimental Farm Association.

He wrote about the spiritual side of farming in his 2008 book, “Down to Earth: Celebrating a Blessed Life on the Land,” garnering a Catholic Press Association award.

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