03/28/2005

AU to Host National Soil Judging Competition

AUBURN , Ala. — Some 150 students from 23 universities across the U.S. will be in Auburn April 3-8 for the 45 th annual National Soil Judging Contest.

The Department of Agronomy and Soils in AU's College of Agriculture is hosting the event, the first ever held in Alabama.

Sponsored by the Soil Science Society of America, the contest evaluates students' ability to describe and classify soils and to interpret how the soil properties would affect land use. Participants will be evaluating the soils in several pits that have been excavated throughout Lee County and will be competing both individually and as teams.

The 23 four- to eight-member teams, which hail from universities from California to New Hampshire , will practice the first part of the week, with the actual competition taking place Thursday and Friday, April 7 and 8. An awards ceremony will wrap up the national contest.

Under contest rules, the institution hosting the contest cannot compete. AU's soil judging team took first-place honors in the 2003 national contest.

For more information, contact AU agronomy and soils professor Joey Shaw (334) 844-3957.

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News from:

Office of Ag Communications & Marketing

Auburn University College of Agriculture
Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station
3 Comer Hall, Auburn University
Auburn, AL 36849
334-844-4877 (PHONE) 334-844-5892 (FAX)

Contact Jamie Creamer, 334-844-2783 or jcreamer@auburn.edu

For immediate release