South O’Brien has had a lot of success in the area of soil judging over the years. Many experienced judgers have graduated over the past couple of years, so many new young members have stepped up and put many hours of studying in to prepare.
To prep for the contests held in the fall, the young team attended a soils judging workshop held at the Allee Iowa State Research Farm by Newell, Iowa.
“It was a really windy day to be outside, but the members handled it well. It was a great opportunity for those who have never been in a soils pit to finally get in one, hear what the soil scientist had to say about filling out the score card, and start to become familiar with what we’re looking for in the contest.” said South O’Brien FFA Advisor Eric Kumm
The team consists of Will Stout, Makenna Wallin, Abby Woodall, Nathan Harms, and Reagan Plagge. They all said it really improved their knowledge and was a good kickstart to their upcoming competitions.
Stout said, “Soil judging is new to me, but I already enjoy it and am looking forward to competing in the future. Even though I’m new to a lot of competitions, I am taking advantage of the learning opportunities like everyone should.”