WESLACO — South Texas growers currently deciding which crop to plant this fall are invited to attend the Sesame, Soybean and Sunflower Field Day from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. June 24 at Rio Farms’ Samuel R. Sparks Auditorium.
Rio Farms is located at 25601 Farm-to-Market 88, some 10 miles north of Expressway 83 in Weslaco. The program begins at 9:30 a.m. and ends after lunch.
Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units and Texas Certified Crop Advisors continuing education units will be available.
“We’ll have experts on hand to discuss current crop conditions as growers prepare to harvest,” said Brad Cowan, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agent for Hidalgo County. “We’ll also have information on the market outlook for the fall, as far as deciding whether to plant soybeans or sesame.”
Cowan said the area’s sesame crop is looking especially good, with harvest about 30 days away.
The field day’s welcome will be provided by Andy Scott, director of research at Rio Farms.
Other topics and speakers include:
— Field tour of research and demonstration studies, Cowan.
— Sesame, spring crop observations and fall crop contracts, Jerry Riney and Brannon Lyssy, Sesaco Corporation, Austin.
— Soybeans, spring crop observations, Octavio Garcia, Garcia Grain Trading, Progresso, Texas, and selected growers.
— Sunflowers, spring crop observation, Cowan and selected growers.
After the field tour, the group will return to the auditorium for lunch, Cowan said.
The field day is presented by Rio Farms in cooperation with AgriLife Extension, Sesaco Corporation and Garcia Grain Trading.
For more details, go to http://hidalgo.agrilife.org/home/agriculture/ or call 800-638-8239.