AMES, Iowa -- If you plan to work as a crop scout for the 2005 crop season, you will want to attend the upcoming Field Crop Scout School offered by Iowa State University Extension. Hands-on sessions will cover identification and scouting methods for weeds, insects, and diseases. Workshops on plant growth and development of corn, soybean, and alfalfa will be included along with discussion of common field crop problems.

Field crop scout school will be held Saturday, March 5, in Agronomy Hall on the Iowa State University campus in Ames. Registration opens at 7:30 a.m. with sessions beginning at 8:15 a.m. and ending at 5:00 p.m. The scout school is limited to 100 participants and pre-registration is required. The program brochure and registration form are posted on the Web at www.aep.iastate.edu.

The cost is $70 for scouts and $40 for their managers. Registration and fees must be received by March 1, 2005. Registrations will not be accepted at the door for this program. The fees cover a scouting notebook for registered scouts and lunch for both managers and scouts.

New this year will be a follow-up session at the Field Extension Education Laboratory (FEEL) in Ames on June 2, 2005. This afternoon session will test your problem solving skills in actual field conditions and is only open to those attending the 2005 IPM Field Crop Scout School. This session is included in the registration fee.

Registration can be completed online with a credit card (MasterCard or VISA only) at www.aep.iastate.edu. Registrations may also be faxed with a credit card to (515) 294-1311 or be mailed along with a check or credit card information to: ISU Agribusiness Education Program, 2104B Agronomy Hall, Ames, Iowa, 50011-1010. For more information, contact the Agribusiness Education Program at (515) 294-6429 or email aep@iastate.edu.

This program is sponsored by the ISU Integrated Pest Management Program and the Departments of Agronomy, Entomology and Plant Pathology.