Nebraska

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln soil judging team placed second in group judging among seven teams competing this fall at the regional level in the Black Hills.

South Dakota State University won the competition in overall scoring, Kansas State University placed second and the University of Missouri was third. Kansas State University placed first in the group judging portion of the competition, UNL was second and Missouri State University was third.

Other teams competing in the North Central Region were Iowa State University and the University of Minnesota.

The competition was Sept. 26 to 30 in South Dakota's Black Hills area.

The contest is a chance for students to gain valuable field experience, apply classroom learning, meet students and faculty from other universities and see other parts of the country, said Mark Kuzila, director of UNL's School of Natural Resources and team coach.

Soil judging is an intercollegiate competition sponsored nationally by the American Society of Agronomy and the Soil Science Society of America.

Competitions are scored two ways: by individual performances of four members from each team and by the performance of teams working as a group.

In soil judging, students enter pits dug to reveal the soil profile and describe soil structures and features. They then describe the landscape setting, classify the soil and evaluate the site for potential land uses.

Scores are determined by how close individual students and teams can come to descriptions made by local soil scientists.

This year's UNL team members were Mike Bergen, Henderson; Mike Burgert, Pawnee City; Grant Jackson, McCool Junction; Sarah Reece, Harrison; Tyler Smith, McCool Junction; Shelly Taylor, Taylor; and Heath Vogt, Elmwood.

The team is in its fifth year since being revived by School of Natural Resources soil scientist Bill Zanner following a nine-year hiatus.

The UNL team received partial support from UNL's College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, School of Natural Resources, Ward Labs of Kearney and the Nebraska office of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.