BROOKINGS — Each summer, the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station system showcases its research stations with field days.

The days include guided tours of each facility and presentations from SDSU and SDSU Extension researchers. Producers, industry professionals and members of the general public can see how winter wheat varieties are tested, or take a trip through a high tunnel.

From the wide-open ranges of central South Dakota to the gently sloping farmland east of the Missouri River to the Black Hills in the west, the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station sites showcase the diversity of production opportunities across the state.

SDSU’s South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station System includes six strategically located sites:

• Dakota Lakes Research Farm, near Pierre
• Cottonwood Field Station, west of Philip
• Northeast Research Farm, west of South Shore
• Oak Lake Field Station, near Astoria
• Southeast Research Farm, southwest of Beresford
• West River Research Farm, near Sturgis

The South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station’s research mission is one of the cornerstones of a land grant university. In addition to enhancing the quality of life in South Dakota, the research directly supports the teaching programs offered by the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, the College of Education & Human Sciences the College of Natural Sciences and the educational program delivered by SDSU Extension.

Reid Christopherson, executive director of the South Dakota Wheat Commission, said field days are a valuable showcase of the innovative work being done. What he most appreciates is the candid look at what works, what doesn’t, and what is coming.

“They tell it like it is,” Christopherson said. “As we look at the future of the wheat industry, we are totally committed to soil health and sustainable agriculture. This is kind of where it starts.”

Christopherson was one of the attendees of the Dakota Lakes Research Farm Field Day on June 29, along with Pierre-area producer Mark Weinheimer.

Weinheimer, who farms no-till crops including wheat, corn and sunflowers, said he studies the latest research deeply and has been attending the field day since about 1993. The events are valuable to stay up-to-date on best practices.

“I always learn something down here,” he said.

At the July 11 field day on the Southeast Research Farm, Beresford-area farmers Terry and Andy Dolan agreed field days are educational —a and an enjoyable way to gather with other producers.

“It’s a chance to visit with neighbors and to gain knowledge,” Terry Dolan said.