Once housed in the MU College of Engineering, ownership of the MU Soil Characterization Lab is transferring to CAFNR. Lab space is being renovated at the college’s South Farm Research Center, located just minutes from the campus in Columbia to better serve its clients.
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Give It a Try
Results from MU taste tests help growers pick out crop varieties
Each year Bradford Research Center hosts taste-testing events, such as the popular Tomato Festival, to gather data on what people like to eat. They test dozens of varieties of tomatoes, peppers, sweet corn and melons and then share the results with farmers. This year’s results from several events are now posted.
A Trip to Dixie
Ag Research Center superintendents visit universities in Mississippi for annual meeting
Each year superintendents at CAFNR’s Agricultural Research Center meet to discuss annual business, plan for upcoming Field Days and work on planning collaborative projects. This year, the group visited research centers operated by University of Southern Mississippi and Mississippi State University.
Approved for Take Off
Wurdack gets authorization from FAA for drone research
With being granted a Certificate of Authorization (COA) from the Federal Aviation Administration, the Wurdack Research Center has become one of a few locations in the country approved to fly UAS for research.
Listening for Danger
Plants respond to leaf vibrations caused by insects' chewing
In a collaboration that brings together audio and chemical analysis, MU researchers have determined that plants respond to the sounds that caterpillars make when eating plants and that the plants respond with more defenses.
A Donation to Benefit Bovine
CAFNR Grad Bruce Loewenberg begins tradition of Salers cattle partnership
In early October, a donation of a herd of 18 Salers from CAFNR grad Bruce Loewenberg were delivered to South Farm Research Center. It is the beginning of a continuous collaboration with Loewenberg, as each spring and fall around two dozen weaned heifers will be given to CAFNR’s beef cattle program.
The Science of a Soil Test
MU Soil Labs help find out what is happening in your soil to help produce profitable crops
One way to start planning for next year’s growing season is to get a soil test and MU’s Soil Fertility Labs are there to help. A soil test is like taking an inventory of nutrients available to plants — which area is too high, too low or just right. While plant growth and prior yields may offer clues to nutrient availability, a producer won’t precisely know until they test their soil.
HARC: One Good, Charitable Apple
Volunteers collect more than 10,000 pounds of apples for donation to local food banks
Dozens of volunteers visited HARC this fall to pick more than 10,000 pounds of apples to be donated to The Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri and the Moniteau County Nutrition Center in California.
Planting Pollinators
Southern Boone students help with native seeding
On November 9 students from Southern Boone Elementary in Ashland joined researchers and other volunteers at Bradford Research Center for the planting of a new native pollinators plot.
Good Horses Looking for Good Homes
MU students prepare horses for auction and market to potential buyers
Each fall, the MU Equine Program hosts an annual horse auction in which students get to help lead marketing plans and gain experience in preparing sales portfolios. The auction is live online till Nov. 13.