Hello Boilermakers!

Just thought I'd share some information about on of my favorite courses I am taking this semester, HORT 360 or Flower Arrangement and Indoor Plant Management! I highly recommend this course if you want something that challenges your creativity and is all around fun. HORT 360 is thought my Professor Mary Lou Hayden and she's a gem! She loves what she does and encourages all of her students to dive into the art of Flower Arranging. It is actually a lot more technical than it looks. The lectures are pretty easy to follow along and bring in some concepts from agronomy courses like essential nutrients for plant growth (N, P, and K). At the beginning of the course in one of the first labs you get to take a questionnaire to choose a plant you will care for the rest of the semester. The questions are about the environment where you will keep your plant (sunlight, temperature, etc.) and how much of a caretaker you are (do you like to coddle and check on it everyday or forget to water things). I tend to forget to water but already have too many cacti so I chose the Madagascar Tiger Fern! We also have a whole lab dedicated to taking cutting of different plants to grow in the greenhouse throughout the course and take home at the end. The cuttings range from succulents, Benjamin Fig, and vines like Baby Tears.

One of the best parts is all of the flowers we take home in the arrangements we create ourselves! So far we have created a bud vase, triangle design and a round design. My favorite so far is the round design!

If you have the chance take HORT 360!

Best,
Olivia Lake

Hello Everyone!!

Purdue University offers an assortment of benefits for students but one that I have appreciated in the last two semesters is the opportunity to take graduate level classes as an undergrad. Not only is it allowed but it is also encouraging by advisors and faculty mentors. This gives junior and senior students to opportunity to learn in a more in-depth classroom setting and see if grad school is something that they would enjoy.

My favorite class since attending Purdue has been AGRY 525 Crop Physiology and Ecology. This is a graduate level course taught by Professor Jeffrey Volenec. This class covers the study of the physiological basis for growth, yield, and adaption of crop plants. The topics emphasized include carbohydrate assimilation and partitioning, nitrogen metabolism, crop growth and development, water relations, stress tolerance and crop improvement using physiological genetics. Even though this was one of the most challenging classes I have taken since being a Purdue student it was also the most rewarding. I felt like I left this class with a better understanding of plants and a more detailed picture of the field of agriculture. The workload was not easy but since it covered something that I was interested in it made the class fun. I challenge everyone to look into this class along with other classes taught through the agronomy department.

I am still trying to decide if graduate school is something that I would be interested in. But even if it is not these graduate level courses has helped me grow as both a student and person. I encourage and challenge you all to explore all the academic options Purdue University has to offer. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me!!

Julia Fibbe

jfibbe@purdue.edu

USDA Crop Lock-Up, Washington DC

Hello Everyone,

As the semester begins to ramp up with exams and such I’d like to take some time to reflect on a recent trip to Washington D.C. I was able to go on with Collegiate Farm Bureau. The main point of the trip was to visit D.C. for the USDA Crop Lock-up. While in D.C. we were able to tour many memorials, learn about the American Farm Bureau, and visit with industry professionals and those working in the government. A highlight of the trip for me was the time we got to spend with the undersecretary of agriculture for trade and foreign agricultural affairs, Ted Mckinney. He was eager to meet us and tell us about his career story through the industry and then into public service. He also shed some light on the current trade issues and gave us assurance that we are making much-needed strives to create better deals for our hard-working American farmers

Talking with Ted Mckinney

During the Crop Lock-up, we learned about the data and statistical methods that are used to create the USDA crop reports each month. My eyes were opened to the importance of the crop report for markets and trade. This being said, they take many precautions to keep their information safe until it is time to release so it gives everyone in the market fair access to the report. When we went into lock-up we couldn’t take any kind of transmitting devices and the people working on the report are not able to leave the facility from 1am when they begin formulating the report until after the report is released at noon. 

USDA Crop Lock-up visit

Opportunities like this are what bring so much extra value to the Purdue experience. There are many opportunities to travel and learn about more than just what is taught in class when you get involved with clubs and organizations. I’m blessed to have had so many great experiences while in college.

Best wishes,

Andrew Chupp

If you have any question feel free to email me!

chupp1@purdue.edu

Greetings,

     As nice as this summer has been, it feels good to be back and with my friends here at school. Many people back home tell me Junior year is the best year of college, whether or not it is I spose I will soon find out. I am looking forward to my last two years of school now that most of my general education classes are out of the way and I am finally into the meat and potatoes of Purdue Agronomy. For any perspective or new students out there I strongly encourage getting involved at Purdue outside of your classes. Yes school is important, but I have learnt so much more from my experiences on the Purdue Crops and Soils Judging teams I would not trade for the world. I also have made good friends in the clubs I have took part in here at school too.

     Upon graduation from Purdue, I plan to return to the family farm. I never had to go to college upon graduating high school, but as I look around at some of the more successful and competitive farmers in my area, I realize that a college education is a good tool to have as that's what they posses, in addition to good ambition and work ethic. This past summer I got to spend my time on the farm, I was excited to apply some of the skills I have learnt from school such as creating a comprehensive budget when we started considering going to a wean-to-finish operation for our hog enterprise. I also made varying nitrogen recommendations across different soil types on our farm when we went to side dress nitrogen. Has college taught me everything, not by a long shot and I hope college freshman realize that college is good for throwing ideas at you. However, you do not truly learn until you combine those ideas with real world experience, and in my case, some of my family's common sense to see what is really applicable or not. Good luck to all at school, and best of luck wherever life takes you!

Troye Hook

Purdue Agronomy 2020

Part of the pleasures of our farrow-to-finish operation.

Some of the scenic rolling ground we farm.