Agronomy

I want a job that is not monotonous and requires problem solving. Will agronomy provide this? I do not enjoy doing the same thing constantly and get bored. I enjoy a deep dive into biological issues.

Also how does the relationship work with farmers? Do they value you or think you are treading on their toes and telling them what to do.

Quit my sales/crop consultant job at the co-op and back farming again. These 12-14 hour days feel shorter than the 8-10 hour days spent doing sales and being on the damn phone all day.

Feels really good to be a night showerer again and get back in the cab of a tractor. I actually want to get up and get to work again.

Pay cut but huge life improvement. That's all I got to say. I'm happy. It's about making a life not just making a living.

Hi I am interested in working in agriculture. For people all ready working in this área of the sub what do you do?

You have to have a pretty good understanding of botany, horticulture, microbiology, ecology, the environment (also meaning, weather, climate change), plant pathology, agriculture both as a practice and an industry, food supply chains, the mechanical aspects and impacts of farming equipment, pedology and soil formation/ morphology, math and stats, nutrient yield and fertilizer science…

When I tell people what I’m in I feel like it’s a bit glazed over as “the technical side of agriculture” when in actuality it covers such a wide scope of interconnected cause and effects that it takes a lot of constant learning and adept thinking to communicate. Anyone else feel the same?

it sounds like 10+ cars honking, like some sort of protest maybe? Writing this at 11:20 pm.

Anyone hear this too or know what in the world it is?

Hi! I’m Melody Bomgardner, Senior Business Editor for C&EN. I write about food and agriculture for the magazine, in addition to other topics like advanced biofuels and other environmentally-friendly technologies. Earlier this year I wrote an extensive cover story about plant-based protein sources [link “plant-based protein sources” to and got the idea to write about hemp. Before I began research for the hemp feature, I didn’t know very much about this crop, but I ended up learning much more than would fit in the story. I look forward to your questions.

Hi, I’m Anndrea Hermann, M.Sc, B.GS, P.Ag., and I’m the President of Hemp Technologies, Sales and Business Development Officer of Hemp Production Services, Principle The Ridge International Cannabis Consulting and Founder/Host iHempRadio. I am the lead instructor of Oregon State University’s course on Industrial Hemp, as well as a Health Canada Authorized Hemp THC Sampler and Canadian Hemp Licensee who has advised Health Canada on a wide spectrum of Cannabis projects (from 2001 to the present). I am a current board member of the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance, President Emeritus and current board of the National Hemp Industries Association and special committee member for the European Industrial Hemp Association. I have assisted with creating and reviewing hemp regulations in Canada, the European Union, South Africa, Uruguay, Australia, New Zealand, India, Vermont, Virginia, Tennessee, North Dakota, Missouri, Colorado, California, Oregon and Michigan, for example. These regulations govern the hemp industry.

While state initiatives have legalized two main types of Cannabis, marijuana for medical or recreational uses has gotten a lot of attention lately while the effort to revive industrial hemp production in the U.S. is much less well known. This ancient crop traveled with the colonists to North America and was a staple of agricultural production in the U.S. up to the 1930s. Since then it has been largely illegal to grow hemp in the U.S., though it was legalized in Canada in 1998.

Now, though, the 2014 Farm Bill allows some controlled plantings of hemp in any state that has an agriculture department willing to oversee production for research purposes. Many vegetarians and vegans know the hemp seed – called grain – is rich in essential amino acids and fatty acids. For more about the potential for a hemp resurgence in the U.S., check out: Hemp, No Longer Illegal, Is Poised For A Comeback In The U.S. [

Update! I'm pleased to report that analytical chemist and hemp variety expert Jace Callaway will also be joining us today.

We'll be back at 11 am EST (8 am PST, 4 pm UTC) to answer your questions, ask us anything!

Hey all - it's now 12:07 and our official live hour is over. But I invite our experts to continue answering questions as they have time available. Please give a hemp-hearty thank you to Anndrea and Jace!

Hi y’all! My new job pays us to go to conferences, and I have never attended any of them!

My boss basically said I can pick whichever ones I want to attend, and I feel like a kid in a candy store. I’d love to hear your suggestions on which ones are the best. Bonus points if it will help me get better at my job (we conduct a variety of research trials such as variety trials, fungicide/pesticide/herbicide, biologicals, etc., on all different kinds of crops like peaches, soybeans, corn, cotton, strawberries, blackberries, hops, wheat and many, many more).

The ones we are already considering attending are: NAICC, SWSS, ASTA, ASA/CSS/SSS

Hello,

I'm a student that is highly interested in agronomy. In researching this field I'm noticing many agronomists grew up on farms or have family links to farming. I'm from the city, and have grown vegetables at home and picked fruit for work.

Was there any hindrance or difference from being from the city and working in this field? Were there things to catch up on starting with zero farm experience?

There are volunteer opportunities I will pursue but I suppose having experience from a young age with farms may make a difference.

Let me know if there is a better subreddit to ask this question!

Hi,

I am exploring the options of analyzing satellite data in order to analyze crops. Primarily, I would like to analyze NDVI index and soil moisture. Besides that, if possible, I would include hyperspectral images and additional data that might help to assess (directly or indirectly) presence of humus, nitrogen, and other important parameters.

For NDVI 2, I guess Sentinel-2 can be used. For humidity, I noticed that the resolution of Sentinel-1 is 1km, which is not enough.

I don't know if data from Landsat 8 is available for free.

In general, I would like to compose a list of freely accessible data sources that might be useful for agronomy.

I would appreciate if anyone suggested any free service or a helpful resource to get more info about the various satellite imagery providers.

I'm currently studying agroecology and need help deciding between an Agronomy vs a Soil Science MS. The thing is, both degrees are exactly the same (same courses) under the hood because my particular program is a where the major itself is Soil, Agronomy, or something else of the student's choosing.

The reason I'm having trouble deciding is because I'm worried about the possible advantages / disadvantages of having the degree say "Agronomy" or "Soils" when it comes to job-hunting. I hope to work in outreach / consulting or aid work specifically related to sustainable agriculture, so agronomy seems like a sensible choice. But I also realize the vast importance of soils and might like to work on say soil restoration of a damaged site. In that case my thinking is it may be better for the degree to be in Soils. Ultimately I'd like to keep my options as flexible as possible career-wise.

Also, the advisor I plan to work with is in the Agronomy department, so things would be logistically simpler if I just did Agronomy. But it would be foolish to make a choice that could potentially affect what career options are available to me for the sake of short-term expedience.

So, my questions to you lovely Agronomy folks are:

1. Do you think it matters much for careers in agricultural consulting / land management whether the degree says Agronomy or Soils?

2. Do you think either option is especially disadvantageous compared to the other for certain types of jobs?

So I've been told before, I think by y'all here on this sub, how important data analysis is to agronomy. My college offers 3 data analytics courses in Excel, Tableau and SQL. Which of these do y'all find are in demand? Is there some other software you recommend I learn? I'm a crop science major. Thanks!

I am 15. I thought of majoring in agronomy since it seems like everything I like about nature is contained in one 4-year major. Is there some kind of a book that sums up all of agronomy that I could read and understand. I want to know, in short, if agronomy is what I want to pursue as a career. What would you recommend ?

I am planning on returning to school for a Master's degree in Agronomy (with a concentration in Agroecology) next fall and as such I have been researching different programs. Quite a few of the programs offer a thesis vs a non-thesis master and I am not sure which is the better one to do. Does anyone have any advice in regards to deciding between the two?

I am leaning towards the non-thesis option as it is shorter and really want to get started working as soon as possible. Additionally, I have no intention of going for my PhD. My end goal is to work in sustainable agriculture for an NGO. Thanks in advance for all of your help!

She said we could talk about vegetarianism / veganism because she has " things to say about it"

Come pick me up I'm scared

I finished high school this year and I will be studying agronomy this year. I didn't go on vacation because of covid and decided to get my hands dirty so I helped out on two different farms with livestock (poultry, cows, horses and pigs) for about a month. Thing is, I hated the experience. The work was extremely boring and I really hated it. I got a bit afraid, because I don't know anymore if agronomy is the right path for me. Has someone had similar experiences? I would also just like to hear from people who studied agronomy how life is and what they do for a living.

If anyone remembers, please shoot me a DM to help my roommate file insurance for their bike! Thank you very much, below is the message from my roomie:

Hi everyone, just wanna ask if anyone have seen the license plate of a white car at the intersection of Agronomy road and engineering road (next to Hugh Dempster Pavilion) today around 1:53-1:56pm. I was cycling to my midterm and and as I was trying to turn left at the intersection, I got hit by a white car, I believe a pair of asian was in the car. I was in a rush to my midterm so I didn't take time to record the license plate. I remembered the car was trying to pass me through my left side by driving to the opposite lane from behind, and as I was turning left, it hit me on the left side on my thigh, I'm currently fine but my bike isn't, so any help will be much appreciated for me to contact them, thank you