SERA-IEG-6 [June 5-7 2023 Event]
The conference will take place at Ag Heritage Park Pavilion (click to view directions to the Pavilion on Google Maps) located at 620-A S Donahue Dr, Auburn, AL 36832 from June 5-7, 2023. The Hotel at Auburn University & Dixon Conference Center located at 241 S College St, Auburn, AL 36830, will be the "hub" where we will all meet (click to view directions to the hotel on Google Maps)
We are planning on touring our soil lab, the old rotation and the new rooftop gardens in our Rane Hospitality Center. We are hosting several discussion sections and will likely be getting a historical tea demonstration from one of our wonderful outreach coordinators.
Schedule
Monday, June 5th - Dinner at Hotel at Auburn 5:00 PM Check-in: Pick up name tag and programs 5:10 PM Reception 5:30 PM Introductions 6:00 PM Welcome Dinner at The Hotel at Auburn University 7:00 - 9:00 PM State Reports Tuesday, June 6th - Ag Heritage Park 7:45 AM Travel to Ag Heritage Park 8:00 AM Breakfast- Sponsor Leco 8:45 AM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk - Ametek (SpectroAnalytical) Tom Bloomer 9:00 AM - 35 mins - Dr. Gerson L. Drescher "Soil Sampling Position on Raised Beds Influences Soil-Test Results and Fertilizer Recommendations" 9:40 AM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk- Elementar - Chase Migliore "Excellence in Elements" 10:00 AM - 30 mins - Dr. Nathan Slaton "Update on FRST" 10:30 AM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk - Scott Schroeder FiaLabs 11:00 AM - 35 mins - Dr. Simerjeet Virk - "Investigating Different Soil Sampling Grid Sizes for Site-Specific Nutrient Management in Georgia" 11:40 AM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk - BlueSun Rachael Glenister "Innovations in Rapid Soil, Forage, and Feed Analysis" 12:00 PM - 1 hour - Lunch - Soilkit Sponsor 1:00 PM - 30 mins - Dr. Bryan Hopkins - "NAPT Update and Analytical Precision and Accuracy" 1:30 PM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk - Texas Scientific Doug Keene - "Optimizing Productivity For ICP Analysis of Agronomic Samples" 2:00 PM - 45 mins - Keynote Speaker Dr. Frank Sikora "Experiences on Rebuilding a Soils Lab" 2:45 PM - 35 mins - Dr. Brenda Tubana - "Silicon in Crop Production: Updates on Testing and Fertilizer Guidelines" 3:20 PM - 35 mins - Dr. Kristin Hicks "Simplified Approach to Developing Tissue Nutrient Reference Ranges with Cannabis sativa as a Model" 4:00 PM Travel to Soil Lab: Soil Lab Tour and Discussions - Includes Old Rotation and Cullars Rotation - Dr. Charles Mitchell will host discussion sections 5:00 PM Travel to Tour Hotel Garden 6:00 PM Free Time - Tourist Tuesday Wednesday, June 7th - Ag Heritage Park 8:00 AM Breakfast and Historical Tea with Tia - Breakout discussion sections determined on Tuesday, schedule meetings with vendors 9:00 AM - 30 mins - Nancy Bohl Bormann- "ManureDB: Creating a nationwide manure test database" 9:30 AM - 30 mins - Bob Miller ALP - "Soil carbon sequestration and measurement uncertainty" 10:00 AM - 30 mins - Discussion Section - Hosted by Dr. Frank Sikora and Dr. David Butler "Significance of high tunnels - tomato" 10:30 AM - 15 mins - Dr. Nathan McKinney "Administrative Advisor Update" 10:45 AM - 15 mins - Dr. Manjula Nathan - "Updates on North Central Extension and Research activities (NCERA-13)" 11:00 AM - 20 mins - Dr. Charlie Mitchell - "History of SERA 6" 11:30 AM SERA-6 Business Meeting: Future of SERA 6 12:00 PM Goodbye and Depart
Registration
Visit this link to register.
Hotel Reservation
Rooms can be reserved up to May 1, 2023 at The Hotel at Auburn via the following link ($149/night). For transportation from the airport to The Hotel at Auburn University please consider Groome Transportation and make sure to note in the registration that you will need transport to the conference location.
Local Tourism
The site of our meeting this coming year, Auburn AL, is considered “the loveliest village on the plains” with an emerging foody reputation and outdoor leisure opportunities. Check https://www.aotourism.com for more details.
Traveling by Air
If you fly to Auburn, you can travel to either the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (Atlanta, GA) or the Birmingham International Airport (Birmingham, AL). The distance from either airport to Auburn University campus is approximately 100 miles. There is also a small airport located in Auburn Auburn University (https://auoairport.com/) (which is about 4.5 miles away from the conference location).
Note: There is a one-hour time change (Eastern Time to Central Time) when driving across the Georgia-Alabama state line.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) is located 100 miles from the Auburn University campus. Average travel time between the airport and campus is 1.5-2 hours. There is a scheduled ground shuttle service between Hartsfield-Jackson and various points in Auburn via Groome Transportation. For more information or to make a reservation, please contact Groome Transportation: www.groometransportation.com, (706) 612-1155. The cost for a one-way shuttle service from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport to Auburn University is US$43.00. The shuttle schedule can be found here. For information regarding all other ground transportation from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, please visit: this link.
Birmingham International Airport (BHM), 5900 Airport Hwy, Birmingham, AL 35212 is 114 miles from Auburn University campus. Please visit the airport web site for a list of airlines and lists of cities with daily direct flights to BHM. Rental cars available at BHM can be found here. Uber also services BHM and information on booking a ride can be found here.
Traveling by Bus
The closest Greyhound: Bus Station to Auburn University is located at 300 Columbus Pkwy, Opelika, AL 36801, which is about 10 miles from the meeting. Please contact Greyhound Tel: 1-800-231-2222 for more information.
Local Transportation
Bus Service: Tiger Transit, servicing Auburn University and Auburn, has several bus stops in the area of the meeting. For a map and schedule, please use this link.
Taxi Service: Licensed, metered taxis are available in Auburn through Tiger Taxi; (334) 444-4444; www.auburntaxi.com.
TNCs: Both Lyft and Uber also operate in the Auburn area.
