The annual High Plains Irrigation Conference will be Feb. 7 in the North Exhibit Hall of the Amarillo Civic Center, 401 S. Buchanan St., Amarillo.
The program, hosted by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas Agricultural Irrigation Association, will address a wide variety of topics of interest, said Dr. Charles Hillyer, program coordinator and AgriLife Extension irrigation specialist in Amarillo.
Registration begins at 8 a.m. with the program starting at 8:30 a.m. and concluding at 5 p.m. Cost is $30 and includes breakfast burritos and lunch.
Continuing education units for Texas Department of Agriculture pesticide applicators and certified crop advisers as well as Agricultural Irrigation Association certified irrigation designer units are pending.
Topics and speakers on the agenda are:
– Precision Mobile Drip Irrigation, Recent Results in Kansas – Dr. Isaya Kisekka, University of California, Davis assistant professor of agricultural water management and irrigation engineering.
– Irrigation Scheduling Technologies and Center Pivot Sprinklers in the Texas High Plains, Dr. Susan O’Shaughnessy, U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agriculture Research Service agricultural engineer-irrigation automation, Bushland.
– Soil Moisture Sensors – Dr. Saleh Taghvaeian, Oklahoma State University assistant professor and extension specialist in water resources, Stillwater, Oklahoma.
– Update from the Texas Water Development Board, Kathleen Jackson, Texas Water Development Board member, Beaumont.
– Revisiting Chemigation for Insect Pest Management – Dr. Ed Bynum, AgriLife Extension entomologist, Amarillo.
– Irrigation in the Crop Profitability Analyzer – DeDe Jones, AgriLife Extension risk management program specialist, Amarillo.
– Insurance Changes from Recent Fusarium Issues – Rachel Myers, Myers Crop Insurance Agency, Claude.
– Water Laws and Regulations, Tiffany Dowell Lashmet, AgriLife Extension agricultural law specialist, Amarillo.
– Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) Update – Keith Sides, Lubbock, USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service.
– Variable Frequency Drives Panel Discussion – Greg Sokora, USDA-NRCS zone engineer, Lubbock; Cody Ash, Amarillo Industrial Electric Inc., Amarillo; Dr. Paul Colaizzi, USDA-ARS research agricultural engineer, Bushland; and Wayne Winget, Winget Pump and Irrigation Inc., Hereford.
A concurrent trade show will provide opportunities for attendees to see new products and technologies and to visit with experts from industry, non-profit organizations and agencies.
For more conference information, go to the Texas Agricultural Irrigation Association website, http://www.taia.org/.
Questions about the program can be directed to Hillyer at 806-677-5600 or charles.hillyer@ag.tamu.edu. Sponsor and exhibitor questions should be directed to Kern Stutler at 806-786-5644.