Here's more on Mark Lundy...
Hello, I’m Mark Lundy, a new Agronomy Advisor in Colusa-Sutter-Yuba, based out of the Colusa office. With 2014 underway, I wanted to send out a brief note to introduce myself and give a brief sketch of some of the work I’ve initiated since I began in July of 2013.
Where are you from?
I’m from Arizona originally, but I’m starting my 9th year living here in California. For most of that time I’ve lived in or around Davis where I was a graduate student for 6 years and earned an MS in International Agricultural Development and a PhD in Horticulture and Agronomy. Prior to graduate school I worked on a fruit and vegetable farm in the Capay Valley as well as farms in Arizona, Michigan and Ireland.
What crops will you be covering?
Everything but rice and trees. As someone in the office put it: “Around here rice is Snow White, and Mark works on the seven dwarfs.” So that would be tomatoes, alfalfa, wheat, sunflower, corn, beans, fruit and veg. crops, etc. (I guess that’s more than 7). My graduate researched focused on soil fertility and weed management in rice systems. While I’m familiar with many of the crops I’m advising on, I still have a lot to learn about all of them. I’m looking forward to doing that with all of you!
What are you working on right now?
Wheat is the first crop that went in the ground since I started, and I have a few experiments running (a couple on some pretty dry fields!). I am testing some simple, low-cost tools that measure soil and plant fertility on-the-spot and in-the-field. Some of these are commercial products that are relatively new; some have been recently developed at the university or by other public entities. The goal is to be able to tell whether an in-season application of N would be beneficial in terms of yield and/or protein. I think that some combination of plant and soil sampling at key points in the season could be good predictors of whether and how much N to apply to achieve a yield or protein goal. I’m also hopeful that some of these same tools could be calibrated to some of the other crops that I’ll be working on. With increasing regulation of N coming at the state level, equipping growers and consultants with simple, low-cost tools and methods that demonstrate when N is or is not needed is a priority for me. I’ll be reporting back on which tools or combinations of tools are showing promise as soon as I start to figure it out. If you have experience using in-field diagnostic tools or are interested in learning more about this, please contact me. I’d love to meet interested folks to collaborate on this work. Also, if you’re web-inclined, there are more details about this on my blog (//ucanr.edu/blogs/SacValleyFieldCrops/), and I’ll be updating the progress of this work most frequently on the web.
Where can I find you?
At the Colusa office (100 Sunrise Blvd., Suite E, Colusa, CA 95932), on my phone (530-902-7295), or on the web via email (melundy@ucanr.edu), at the Colusa Extension site (http://cecolusa.ucanr.edu/), and at my blog (//ucanr.edu/blogs/SacValleyFieldCrops/). I’ve enjoyed meeting many good folks over the past 6 months. If I haven’t had the chance to meet you, please give me a call, stop me at a meeting, shoot me an email, or drop in some time. I’m looking forward to working with you and for you to continue the great agricultural tradition in the Sacramento Valley.
Original source (Sacramento Valley Field Crops newsletter, Winter 2014)
Lundy named agronomy advisor (UC Weed Science blog post, July 3, 2013)