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Great Lakes Cover Crop Project: 2025 results, more farmers needed for 2026

By: Bailey Tangen, Extension educator, and Etienne Sutton, University of Missouri How much biomass are your cover crops producing, and what does that mean for nutrient retention and soil health? Through the Great Lakes Cover Crop Project, Minnesota farmers are helping to answer that question using a simple protocol based on photos and height measurements. Results will help build practical, local data to guide better cover crop management and nutrient decisions. In this blog post, explore last year’s data from 133 Minnesota fields and how you can participate in 2026. The project and new method for farmers As part of the Great Lakes Cover Crop Project , farmers participate as community scientists by collecting cover crop measurements in their fields. Measuring cover crop growth, or biomass, has historically involved clipping plants within a defined area (e.g., using a quadrat) and then drying and weighing them, which can be time consuming. To simplify this process, we developed a new pro...
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Strategic Farming: Let's talk crops! session talks whether foliar corn diseases will continue to threaten MN yields

By Angie Peltier and Ryan Miller, UMN Extension educators, and Dean Malvick, UMN Extension corn and soybean plant pathologist Curvularia leaf spot in corn. Photo: Dean Malvick March 4, 2026’s Strategic Farming: Let’s Talk Crops session discussed whether foliar corn diseases are likely to threaten Minnesota yields in 2026. This webinar series runs through March and registrations are still being accepted: https://z.umn.edu/SF2026 To watch this episode visit:  https://z.umn.edu/SF2026  http://z.umn.edu/StrategicFarmingRecordings . There is a long list of leaf diseases that can negatively impact a corn crop’s yield potential. The diseases that have been of most recent concern in Minnesota include tar spot, southern rust, Northern corn leaf blight and Goss’s wilt and blight, the diseases that were of focus during this session. Tar spot Three things must be present for disease to occur, a virulent strain of a pathogen, a disease-susceptible hybrid and environmental conditions that ...
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Minnesota's Nutrient Reduction Strategy: Practices, progress & solutions

Today on the Advancing Nitrogen Smart podcast we speak in-depth about the recently-revised Minnesota Nutrient Reduction Strategy with Matt Drewitz from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. What are the goals of the MN Nutrient Reduction Strategy, and how are they being addressed specifically? Are we on track to meet our objectives? How have environmental changes over the years affected our progress? How have wastewater treatment plants contributed to the effort, and what have we learned from them? What kinds of other practices can be leveraged to meet the goals of the NRS, and how should farmers approach these ideas? Who's a farmer's point of contact with questions about adopting these practices? All of this on today's episode, recorded on the road from the recently held Nutrient Management Conference in Mankato, MN. Read the full transcript Guests: Brad Carlson, Extension educator (Mankato) Matt Drewitz Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, (St. Paul) Additio...
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MN CropCast: New crops for a new world with Matt Leavitt

This week, we are thrilled to feature Agronomist Matt Leavitt. Matt’s work focuses on integrating new crops that provide broad ecosystem services to our landscapes while helping to diversify and de-risk the economic portfolios of Minnesota crop producers. Originally from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, Matt completed his graduate work right here in the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics with Craig Sheaffer and Don Wyse. Currently, Matt serves as the Perennial Grains and Winter Annuals Agronomy Specialist for the Department and the Forever Green Initiative (FGI). In this episode, Matt dives into the most established crops in the FGI portfolio, including Kernza, camelina, winter barley, and hybrid winter rye. He shares his experience working one-on-one with farmers to identify alternative crop species that fit their unique operations, maximizing ecological and economic benefits while reducing overall risk. Beyond the field, Matt also writes extension publications for producers and lecture...
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Over-the-top dicamba use registered for 2026 on dicamba-tolerant soybeans

Eric Burkness, Research scientist, Minnesota Department of Agriculture, Sally Raymond, UMN Pesticide Safety and Environmental Education Extension educator & Tana Haugen-Brown, UMN Pesticide Safety and Environmental Education Extension educator Figure 1. Soybean field being sprayed with pesticide. Over-the-top dicamba use returns to Minnesota for the 2026 season. On Feb. 6, the EPA approved the federal registrations for the following dicamba products Engenia® Herbicide (EPA Reg. No: 7969-507) , Stryax™ with VaporGrip® Technology (EPA Reg. No: 264-1241) , and Tavium® Plus VaporGrip® Technology (EPA Reg. No: 100-1753) 1 .  The new registrations are for over-the-top (OTT) use on dicamba-tolerant (DT) soybeans for the 2026 and 2027 growing seasons (Figure 1). New mitigation measures are required for use to reduce drift, minimize volatility, and protect the environment. As in previous years, state-specific restrictions will be in place for OTT applications of dicamba in Minnesota. Th...
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Regional webinar reminder: Get the latest soybean gall midge updates on March 19

Join Extension entomologists and their graduate students from three Midwestern universities to get the latest updates on soybean gall midge (SGM). This free, live webinar  scheduled for March 19, 9:00 - 11:00 a.m.  will feature new research results and emerging management insights from ongoing field and laboratory studies across the region. There will be plenty of  time for discussion so bring your questions!  Updated information on SGM distribution and regional monitoring efforts Impacts on soybean production and yield loss under field conditions Biology and ecology updates, including cold tolerance and overwintering survival New insights into adult biology, including emergence timing and behavior Results from commercial soybean variety testing under SGM pressure Updates on biological control efforts Evaluation of new and emerging cultural control strategies, along with other management tools Certified Crop Advisors CEUs have been applied for for those that attend t...
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Strategic Farming: Let's talk crops! session talks pest management in an age of resistance

By Angie Peltier UMN Extension crops educator, Fei Yang, UMN Extension corn entomologist and Robert Koch, UMN Extension soybean entomologist February 25, 2026’s Strategic Farming: Let’s Talk Crops session discussed the status of the many pests that can limit Minnesota’s corn and soybean yield potential, how these pests have been able to overcome many of our most effective management techniques and how best to manage in 2026. This webinar series runs through March and registrations are still being accepted: https://extension.umn.edu/courses-and-events/strategic-farming. To watch this episode visit: http://z.umn.edu/StrategicFarmingRecordings . The status of soybean aphid resistance  Soybean aphid. Photo: Bob Koch Soybean aphids are the most yield-limiting insect pest of Minnesota soybeans, capable of causing up to 40% yield loss. Since its initial introduction in the early 2000’s into upper Midwest, soybean aphid infestations in states east of Minnesota have declined over time, but ...
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