Playing in the dirt isn’t just a summer-time activity for kids. It can be a great tool for youth to learn about the soil that Indiana farmers rely on, and Purdue Extension’s 4-H educators accomplished that at the new event “Experience 4-H: Crop and Soil Science.”
The free event, which took place in early June, invited youth who had just completed grades 3-12 to participate in hands-on learning about crop and soil science. Educators explained a range of topics, which included determining fertilizer needs through soil sampling and test interpretation, identifying corn and soybean growth stages, using high-tech tools like sensors and drones, and understanding and following pesticide labels. About 40 students attended the event.
One of the participants, Jonathan Wallpe, said that it was the best youth ag-related event he’s attended.
“My favorite thing I learned that day was probably how to check soil health and how to see if it has good structure. Also, how different types of tillage can both be good and bad,” Jonathan said. “If anyone were thinking about going, I would strongly recommend it. I learned 10 times or more than what I thought I was going to. All the people were amazing, and I really enjoyed it.”
Registration — which included lunch, snacks and water — was free, thanks to sponsorship from Channel Seed and Peterson Seed of Williamsport.
Marty Huseman, an extension educator for White County, demonstrates how to one might use a chute to help save someone trapped in a grain bin. 
An action figure shows why it’s important to follow safety precautions when working in grain bins. 
High school students learn why it’s important to follow safety precautions when working in grain bins with a fun activity. The idea for the workshop came from Keith Johnson, recently retired Purdue forage specialist. Johnson knew that he wanted to volunteer his time to help youth learn about agronomy and to mentor Extension educators.
“I really got my interest in agronomy as a youth — about the same age as students at the event,” Johnson said. “It was a crop judging activity that made me think I really wanted to have some agronomic involvement in a career. Because of that very good interaction that I had with a county Extension agent in Nebraska as a youth, I did 4-H crop judging for many, many years and that led me to my career in the realm of agronomy.”
Johnson knew he wanted Extension educators to lead the event, so he reached out to Jon Charlesworth, senior Extension educator of agriculture and natural resources (ANR) in Warren and Benton counties. Johnson and Charlesworth had worked together on past events, and it seemed like a natural fit.
“I thought he would be an excellent leader, and he certainly was,” Johnson said.
Jon Charlesworth goes over the soil makeup before a soil sampling activity. 
Youth learn how to use a soil probe. 
A sample is removed from the soil probe. Before long, more people volunteered to help with the event: Marty Huseman, ANR educator for White County; Tricia Herr, ANR educator for Montgomery County; Jamie Reed, ANR educator for Newton County; and Andrew Westfall, field operations manager for Purdue’s Crop Diagnostic Training and Research Center.
“A couple of meetings, and we had things in place,” Johnson said. “The topics were visual, and there were some good takeaway messages related to agronomy.”
The day of the event, Extension also had help from Jason Adams, the facility manager of the Corn and Soybean Innovation Center; Dan Ritter, the regional agronomist for Dairyland Seed and Bryan Overstreet, conservation agronomist for Purdue Extension and the Conservation Cropping Systems Initiative.
Charlesworth also was pleased with how the event went, and he’s excited to repeat and expand the event in the future.
Kids learn how a drone controller works. 
Jason Adams, facility manager for the Indiana Corn and Soybean Innovation Center, captivates kids with a drone demonstration. 
One of the drones from the Indiana Corn and Soybean Innovation Center flies for a demonstration. We are very fortunate to have Purdue’s Crop Diagnostic Training and Research Center located in what is practically our backyard. This facility provides a great backdrop for hands-on agronomic instruction for students of all ages. The group of Purdue Extension educators who organized this training are hopeful that it will become an annual event for youth at the DTC as well as provide a blueprint for educators to hold similar events at the other Purdue Agricultural Centers across the state.”
- Jon Charlesworth, senior Extension educator for ANR in Warren and Benton counties