Producing our food is a year-round proposition for Nevada’s agricultural producers. Even as they are wrapping up this season’s harvest, they start making plans for next year’s. Can they tweak their irrigation methods or use new technologies to stretch our scarce water supply? How do they safely manage those pests affecting their crops? What should they do to prepare for hoop house production?
·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ is providing the latest research-based information to Nevada’s producers in a series of workshops this month and next, in Reno, Lovelock and Tribal communities across the state.
It’s about water
It’s always about water in Nevada, the country’s driest state. The University’s is hosting a Water and Irrigation Management Workshop on practical water stewardship and irrigation management in Nevada’s arid agricultural systems, sharing the latest research and uses of new technologies.
“It’s definitely the thing I get the most questions and concerns about – managing irrigation and water,” said Andrew Waaswa, Extension agriculture educator who is based in Fallon and consults with agricultural producers across the state. “We’re always looking for ways to help our producers most efficiently manage their water supply, and this workshop is aimed at helping them explore various options.”
Participants will learn how irrigation scheduling, soil moisture monitoring, infrastructure improvements, salinity management and applied technologies can support more efficient water use and informed on-farm decision-making.
There will be presentations in the morning, and hands-on, show-and-tell field demonstrations in the afternoon. The all-day session is free, with refreshments and lunch provided, and runs 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Oct. 7, at the University’s , 1000 Valley Road in Reno. Topics in the morning will be held at the property’s Knudtsen Resource Center, Room 104, and include:
- irrigation infrastructure challenges, modernization options, technical assistance, and producer-support and cost-share pathways
- basin-level water realities, Nevada water policy, water-right considerations and voluntary water-right retirement options in Nevada
- irrigation management in hay and forage systems
- irrigation management in horticultural systems under arid conditions
- irrigation, forage productivity and whole-system decision-making
- horticultural irrigation applications and field-based experiential learning
- drone-supported and remote approaches for moisture assessment and their potential application to irrigation decision-making
Experts from Extension; the Experiment Station unit; and the Department of Agriculture, Veterinary & Rangeland Sciences – all part of the University’s College of Agriculture, Biotechnology & Natural Resources – will share their expertise and latest work. They’ll also be joined by representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and its Natural Resources Conservation Service, Nevada State Office and the Nevada Division of Water Resources.
Those who plan to attend need to in advance. For more information on the workshop, email Andrew Waaswa or call him at 775-423-5121, Ext 4. Persons in need of special accommodations or assistance should email Paul Lessick, civil rights and compliance coordinator, or call him at 702-257-5577 at least five days prior to the scheduled event with their needs or for more information.
This workshop is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 2022-38640-37490-WS3SI through the Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program under project number WNV23-001.
And then, there are always the pests
Growers or those helping growers and others to manage pests need to be certified in safe application of pesticides. Extension and the Nevada Department of Agriculture are teaming up to offer their annual fall
Certified Applicators Pesticide Safety Education Workshop designed for certified applicators on Oct. 27.
Extension and Nevada Department of Agriculture experts will give updates on integrated pest management strategies, emerging insect pests, drone operations, and current regulatory and licensing requirements.
The program begins at 8 a.m. with morning classroom sessions offered in person at the Extension office in Lovelock, 810 6th St., and also offered via Zoom. After a lunch break, those attending in Lovelock will see field demonstrations of drone pesticide application and insect pest scouting, concluding at 4 p.m. Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available for both online and in-person participants.
The workshop is free, but advance registration is required. Participants can or join if they plan to participate in the online morning session. For more information or those in need of special accommodations or assistance, email Carrie Jensen or call her at 775-336-0249 at least five days prior to the event.
This material is based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 2022-38640-37490-WS3SI through the Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program under project number WNV23-001 and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under Award No. 2024-70006-43499.
Extension tailoring on-site workshops for Nevada producers in Tribal communities
Extension is holding a series of free Fall Growers Workshops at Tribal communities across the state. Topics are tailored to specific community needs, such as fall and winter preparation for hoop house growing and gardens, guidance for larger producers growing hay and other crops, and how to prepare to start raising bees in the spring. Information will also be available on Extension’s 4-H Youth Development Program. A few sessions have already been held, and upcoming sessions include:
- 17 at Pyramid Lake, 208 Capitol Hill, Nixon
- 21 at the Ely Shoshone Tribe, Tribal Council Chambers, 505 S. Pioche Hwy., Ely
- 29 at the South Fork Reservation, Tribal Community Building, 21 Lee, Unit B13, Spring Creek
- 30 at the Battle Mountain Band Administration Building, 37 Mountain View Drive, Building B, Battle Mountain
- 1 at Duck Valley, the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes Headquarters, Council Chambers, 2711 Agency Road, Owyhee
All workshops except the Sept. 17 will be held 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., and lunch will be provided. The Sept. 17 workshop will be held 4 – 9 p.m. Advance registration is not required. Some of the workshops are supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and its Natural Resources Conservation Service, as well as The Nature Conservancy. For more information or those in need of special accommodations or assistance, email Dan Coen or call him at 706-877-0197 at least five days prior to the event.
