Ohio State University to host 24th Fertilizer Science Review this August

LONDON, Ohio — The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences will host its 24th annual Fertilizer Science Review for farmers, crop consultants, soil conservation workers and others on Aug. 6 at the Molly Cullen Agricultural Center, 135 State Route 38 in London, Ohio.

Fertilizer Science Review will feature presentations and on-site demonstrations by educators from Ohio State University and agriculture-related companies and organizations.

The event will kick off with presentations from representatives of the Ohio Department of Agriculture, who will share updates from H2Ohio and fertilizer application best practices from Francis Springer, and Will Osterholz from the Natural Resources Conservation Service will speak about the impacts of fertilizer application on subsurface drainage.

Springer’s talk will be followed by a panel discussion about 360 Rain units for liquid fertilizer application, featuring Justin Koch of 360 Yield Center, Taylor Pulver of Rooted Agri Services, Andrew Klopfenstein of the Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, and Ryan Schmitmeyer of Owl Creek Dairy.

Additionally, there will be demonstrations from OSU faculty, starting with fertilizer runoff mitigation strategies from Springer and OSU Extension Professional Glen Arnold. FABE Professor and Chair Scott Shearer and Klopfenstein will demonstrate an autonomous tractor, and OSU Extension Educator Amanda Douridas will show a simple way to calibrate a dry fertilizer spreader.

The final two demonstrations are collaborations between Ohio State University, ODA and the 360 ​​Yield Center and will show how seasonal animal nutrient and water application is a way to reduce nutrient losses while increasing crop yields and profitability.

The equipment used in these demonstrations is from 360 Rain Hardware, which supports traditional irrigation methods by delivering water, nutrients and fungicides directly to the base of plants.

Shearer, Koch and Schmitmeyer will display 360 Rain base stations, wells and injection sites, and Klopfenstein and Pulver will conclude the day with an on-site demonstration of a 360 Rain unit.

Tickets for the 2024 Fertilizer Science Review are $25 per person through July 19 and $30 per person after July 19. The program includes coffee, doughnuts and lunch.

To register, visit go.osu.edu/msr-2024 If you have any questions, please contact Mary Wicks at wicks.14@osu.edu.