The Coastal Bend Crop Symposium will be held Friday, Jan. 22, at the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center on Hwy. 44 just west of the Corpus Christi Airport. The focus of this symposium will be new ag technology and research that will enhance local farming operations.

Registration for the symposium will begin at 8:15 a.m., followed by a welcome at 8:30 a.m. by Dr. Juan Landivar, director of the AgriLife Research and Extension Center. Morning topics will include: Preparing for a TDA Audit, Update on Strategies for Boll Weevil Eradication, Sesame Production, Crop Management Tools and Insect Management Research.

Following a catered lunch, topics for the afternoon session will include: Managing Aflatoxin with AflaGuard, Crop Disease and Management Update, Decision Support System for Pest Management, Cropping Systems and Cotton Root Rot Research, Cotton and Sorghum Technology Update, and Insect Management Options for Upcoming Crop. The day will conclude with a presentation from the National Weather Service regarding the weather outlook in 2010.

Registration fee is $10 per person, which includes the catered lunch, and all those planning to attend should call the Nueces County Extension Office at (361) 767-5223 by Jan. 20 to aid in meeting preparations. Some 5.7 CEU’s will be offered for pesticide applicators and certified crop advisers.

This symposium is being sponsored by the Nueces and San Patricio County Office of Texas AgriLife Extension Service and the local Crops Committee.