Released November 11, 2009
LINCOLN, Neb. — An expanded Web site developed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension is making it easier for farmers to find comprehensive crop production information.
The site, http://cropwatch.unl.edu, is a central resource for crop producers looking for a vast array of information, said Gary Zoubek, extension educator in York. The new site, unveiled during Husker Harvest Days in September, is a "one-stop shop" for everything crops related, he said.
"Anyone interested in crop production should find the information they're looking for on CropWatch," said Zoubek, who has been working since January on the site with extension educator Jennifer Reese in Clay Center and other extension personnel.
CropWatch editor Lisa Jasa said the new site expanded UNL's CropWatch newsletter to provide more in-depth crop production information as well as online tools to assist with pest identification and treatment, soil nutrition questions, crop budgets and farm management decisions.
"The expanded site brings together a number of UNL crop production Web sites into a single, searchable location," Jasa said.
Information is organized into two key areas: the CropWatch newsletter, which contains ag and rural news stories, a calendar of ag events and programs, and extension resources; and crop-specific production and pest management information.
Viewers will find the new Web page organized by crop – corn, dry beans, forages, organic, potatoes, sorghum, soybeans, sugar beats, wheat and bioenergy.
Under each crop category, information is organized by topics, such as crop variety, soil management, tillage, marketing and weed, insect and disease management.
Previously people searching for such information had to gather it from various sites.
"Our clientele were asking for one place to go rather than have so many sites," Rees said.
The new site is making life easier for extension personnel as well, Rees said. When people call looking for crop information, they can now be referred to just one site rather than many.
"It's so much easier for all of us," she said.
UNL Extension is a division of the university's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
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http://ianrnews.unl.edu/static/0911110.shtml
Sources: Gary L. Zoubek, (402) 362-5508
Jennifer Rees, (402) 762-3600
Editor: Lisa Brown Jasa, (402) 472-7981
