Virginia Tech Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center

Virginia Tech Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center Learn about research and extension programs conducted by the faculty and staff For the full non-discrimination statement, please visit ext.vt.edu/accessibility.

Virginia Cooperative Extension is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and local governments, and is an equal opportunity employer.

๐ŸŒฑ Specialty Crop Field Days โ€“ Southside Native Seed Project ๐ŸŒฑToday was a great day of learning and exploring at the Spec...
09/04/2026

๐ŸŒฑ Specialty Crop Field Days โ€“ Southside Native Seed Project ๐ŸŒฑ

Today was a great day of learning and exploring at the Specialty Crop Field Days highlighting the Southside Native Seed Project!

The group kicked things off with Phoebe Judge, who shared insights on the Southside Native Seed Project and the importance of native seed initiatives.

Russell Schmidt, Agricultural Specialist at SPAREC then highlighted several specialty crop projects, including:
๐ŸŒพ Native seeds
๐ŸŒฐ Hazelnut experiment
๐ŸŒถ๏ธ Peppers
๐Ÿฅฌ Cabbage

It was a wonderful opportunity to learn more about innovative specialty crops, ongoing research, and the work being done to support agriculture and local producers. ๐ŸŒฑ๐Ÿ‘

๐ŸŒˆ A perfect way to wrap up irrigation week! ๐Ÿ’ง๐ŸŒฑAs we finish up irrigation in our to***co entomology plots, the field gave...
09/04/2026

๐ŸŒˆ A perfect way to wrap up irrigation week! ๐Ÿ’ง๐ŸŒฑ

As we finish up irrigation in our to***co entomology plots, the field gave us a pretty great view to go along with the hard work. A rainbow stretching across the sky while the irrigation water moves through the plots feels like a fitting reminder of how much goes into keeping a crop growing and supporting our research in the field.

Ending the week with a little color in the sky and plenty of water on the ground! ๐ŸŒˆ๐Ÿ’ฆ

The crew is busy harvesting a State Corn Silage Variety Trial! ๐ŸŒฝ๐Ÿšœ Once harvested, the samples will undergo additional te...
08/25/2026

The crew is busy harvesting a State Corn Silage Variety Trial! ๐ŸŒฝ๐Ÿšœ Once harvested, the samples will undergo additional testing as part of our ongoing research. Weโ€™re excited to see what the results reveal and continue learning more about corn silage varieties and their performance in the field.

Excitement is stirring here in anticipation of the 21st annual Family and Farm Day 2026 on September 12th. Join us for a...
08/18/2026

Excitement is stirring here in anticipation of the 21st annual Family and Farm Day 2026 on September 12th. Join us for a day packed with farm fun, local flavor, and a celebration of Virginia's rich agricultural roots. ๐ŸŒฑ๐ŸŒพ๐ŸŒฝ๐Ÿ„

https://www.facebook.com/share/1SYSUH6q17/

08/07/2026

The To***co Build-Your-Own Budget Webtool was introduced during the 2026 To***co Field Day at the Virginia Tech Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center on July 29.

The tool was developed to help Virginia flue-cured to***co producers create customized enterprise budgets and evaluate the financial performance of their operations.

The webtool allows users to build a personalized budget by entering information such as field size, expected yield, contract price, and their own production costs. Costs for plants, fertilizer, chemicals, labor, machinery, and other inputs can be adjusted to reflect individual farming operations. The tool then calculates total variable and fixed costs, net returns, breakeven price and yield, and allows users to explore how changes in yields or prices may affect profitability.

Designed as a practical decision-support resource, the webtool can help growers plan for the season, compare production scenarios, evaluate contract opportunities, and make informed management decisions. Users can also download a PDF summary of their budget to save for their records or share with lenders, crop consultants, or Extension personnel.

All information entered into the webtool remains confidential. Data are used only to generate the downloadable PDF and are not stored or collected.

Check it out: https://enterprisebudgets-vt.shinyapps.io/Flue-curedTo***coBudget/

Questions: Contact Shourish Chakravarty, Assistant Professor, Southern Piedmont AREC https://aaec.vt.edu/people/faculty/chakravarty.html

We enjoyed a beautiful evening for the Southern Piedmont AREC Row Crop Field Day on Wednesday and we thank everyone who ...
07/31/2026

We enjoyed a beautiful evening for the Southern Piedmont AREC Row Crop Field Day on Wednesday and we thank everyone who participated. Your involvement and support help sustain the collaborative work our faculty, staff, students, and Extension teams bring to Virginia agriculture.

We also extend our sincere appreciation to Altria Group for their ongoing support of our agricultural research and Extension programs, and for their recent $2 million endowment that strengthens longโ€‘term innovation and outreach across the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

Virginia Cooperative Extension

Dr. Joshua Mottโ€™s field of sunflowers and sunn h**p. Sunn h**p is a fast growing, tropical legume native to India. It gr...
07/28/2026

Dr. Joshua Mottโ€™s field of sunflowers and sunn h**p.

Sunn h**p is a fast growing, tropical legume native to India. It grows 6 to 9 feet tall in just 8 weeks and generates a great amount of nitrogen and organic matter for the field. It also shades out aggressive weeds, and suppresses harmful plant-parasitic root-knot nematodes in the soil.

Sign up today for the 2026 Row Crop Field Day! You are invited to join us for dinner and an evening of field tours, begi...
07/17/2026

Sign up today for the 2026 Row Crop Field Day!

You are invited to join us for dinner and an evening of field tours, beginning at 4:30 PM on Wednesday, July 29th. Spread the word and pre-register here:
https://bit.ly/RowCropFieldDayReg26
Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Virginia Tech School of Plant and Environmental Sciences
Virginia Cooperative Extension

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2375 Darvills Road
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