CAIA Testbed: Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center

The CAIA testbed at the Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center engages in collaborative research, Extension, and teaching activities with public and private partners.  Activities focus on agronomic production and management, plant pathology, precision agriculture, and entomology.  Programs are conducted on numerous crops including tobacco, wheat, corn, soybeans, sorghum, strawberries, hazelnuts, forages, cover crops, beef cattle, and emerging specialty crops.  The 1,180-acre station has 130 acres of crop research plots, 120 acres of research MaxQ grazing, 40 acres of silvopasture area, greenhouses, high tunnels, and an experimental pond facility with 12 square 0.1 acre ponds.  The station has a UAV with various camera sensors, an autosteer capable tractor, and high clearance sprayer.  Laboratory equipment includes an NIR, GC/MS, real-time PCR, Elementar, and growth chambers.  RTK GPS technology is being installed.  The Southern Piedmont AREC is about a 3-hour drive from the Blacksburg campus and is about 1 hour southwest of Richmond.