Virginia Tech breaks out at Nat'l Collegiate Soil Judging Contest
Virginia Tech University dug deep to ace almost two dozen other collegiate teams from across the nation on Friday (Mar. 26) to win the National Collegiate Soil Judging Contest in Lubbock. Texas Tech's Department of Plant and Soil Science hosted the 50th annual gathering of the grueling undergraduate competition.
Other finishers in the 'Top 5' were the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, University of Rhode Island, University of Maryland and Northern Illinois University. As the host university, Texas Tech was not allowed to compete at nationals this year. Jillian Phillips of the University of Rhode Island won honors as the event's leading individual winner.
In preparation for the event, contestants spent four days in practice where teams used so-called practice pits to get to know the local soils and the rationale behind how professional judges have described, classified and interpreted the soils.
The actual contest had two events: individual judging and group judging. Practice and contest soils were pre-judged by professional soil scientists from Texas Tech, USDA's National Resources Conservation Service and a retired Texas state soils scientist.
Texas Tech Emeritus Professor B. L. Allen, who helped organize the national soils contest and who was actually at the first contest, was a featured guest at this year's contest.
Soil science careers range from soil survey and resource management to agricultural production and environmental consulting, research and teaching, said Wayne Hudnall, Texas Tech's soils judging team coach and the university's B.L. Allen Endowed Chair for Pedology.
In addition to Tech's Department of Plant and Soil Science, this year's event is co-sponsored by the Soil Science Society of America, American Society of Agronomy, USDA-NRCS, The Golden Spread Chapter of the Soil Water Conservation Society of America, and the Professional Soil Scientist Association of Texas.
Written by Norman Martin
CONTACT: Wayne Hudnall, B.L. Allen Endowed Chair for Pedology, Department of Plant and Soil Science, Texas Tech University at (806) 742-4490 or wayne.hudnall@ttu.edu
0406NM10 / Photo Credit: Norman Martin / TTU-CASNR
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