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Agronomy topics for crops of all kinds will be the focus of the 2025 South ��ֱ���� State University ��ֱ���� Lakes Research Farm Field Day. Oats, winter wheat, field peas, chickpeas and corn will all be discussed by university experts as part of the June 26 event from 3 p.m. until dark at 21310 308th Ave., Pierre.

The university’s top small grain breeders will be on hand to share their work and talk with attendees. Sunish Sehgal, SDSU associate professor and leader of the university’s winter wheat breeding program, will talk about his latest variety trials research and how it pertains to winter wheat management for South ��ֱ���� farmers. Melanie Caffe, SDSU associate professor and leader of the university’s oat breeding program, will cover similar topics from an oats angle. Agronomy associate professor and agronomy extension specialist Chris Graham will also be on hand to talk about field pea and chickpea genetics.

“Field days like this one at ��ֱ���� Lakes give farmers the opportunity to hear from our experts firsthand about the cool research they’re doing and what it means for South ��ֱ���� production,” John Blanton, associate dean of research for the college and director of the South ��ֱ���� Agricultural Experiment Station, said. “Likewise, for our researchers, it gives them the opportunity to talk with farmers, to hear what challenges they’re having in the field and what research would benefit them. We look forward to these days every year because of those interactions.”

Plant disease, a challenge all crop farmers face regardless of variety, will also be covered during the field day. Madalyn Shires, manager of the SDSU Plant Diagnostic Clinic and SDSU Extension plant pathologist, will present the previous year’s wheat and corn disease surveys. Tying Shires’ presentation to the earlier talks will be a discussion about the impact of crop rotation on weed, disease and soil activity.

is available. While not required, registration is encouraged as dinner will be provided for attendees.

The ��ֱ���� Lakes Research Farm is a South ��ֱ���� Agricultural Experiment Station. This field day is one of six hosted by SDSU’s College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences taking place across the state of South ��ֱ���� this summer, with each presenting research conducted locally and of interest to local farmers. A full list of the 2025 field days is available.