Did you know that the K-State Agronomy department has several social media accounts and other digital resources available to everyone for free? These outreach tools include the Extension Agronomy eUpdate, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, in addition to our departmental website, www.agronomy.k-state.edu.
The Department of Agronomy is doing outstanding work in extension, teaching, and research. Our goal is to keep you up-to-date on all things K-State Agronomy including: faculty and student activities, our best recommendations for crop, forage, and soil management in Kansas, and current crop conditions. Our social media and electronic forums emphasize efficient agronomic practices, current research, student accomplishments within the department, new faculty hires and retirements, and much more.
Extension Agronomy eUpdate
The article you’re reading now is part of a regular weekly electronic publication called the Extension Agronomy eUpdate. The national award-winning Agronomy eUpdate provides timely information across a wide range of agricultural topics and agronomic issues. Contributors to the eUpdate include not only extension specialists and researchers in the Agronomy department, but also plant pathology, entomology, agricultural economics, and animal science.
“The Extension Agronomy eUpdate is an extremely valuable resource that targets a wide range of end users associated with Kansas agriculture. It represents a collaborative outreach effort between our outstanding agronomy specialists and other departments to provide up-to-date information on current agronomic issues affecting Kansas and the surrounding region and it’s free!” – Kathy Gehl, eUpdate editor.
The eUpdate is offered as a free resource to all individuals. You can subscribe to the eUpdate by visiting the homepage at https://eupdate.agronomy.ksu.edu/. All it takes to get subscribed is your name and email address.
The eUpdate homepage features the current eUpdate as well as access to detailed archives going back to 2013. On Thursday each week, the eUpdate is emailed to subscribers as soon as it is published. The reach of the eUpdate goes well beyond Kansas and the Midwest. Just in 2021 alone, the eUpdate website has had over 52,000 users from throughout the US and many countries around the globe (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Geographical location of web traffic associated with the eUpdate website from January 1, 2021 to December 3, 2021. Countries shaded in blue represent at least 1 visitor to the eUpdate website. Map provided by Google Analytics.
Twitter (@KStateAgron)
K-State Agronomy became active on Twitter in 2013 with the goal of reaching practicing professionals in agriculture with the latest crop and forage production practices and crop condition updates. Our Twitter postings have since gained a large base of followers, with over 8,200 Twitter followers and an average of over 70,000 tweet impressions each month.
You can follow the Agronomy department on Twitter at @KStateAgron.
Instagram (@ksuagronomy)
The Department of Agronomy uses Instagram to reach potential and current students, as well as alumni. Our Instagram posts provide a flow of images highlighting student activities, current research projects, and other various happenings in the department (Figure 2). With this target audience in mind, the department hopes to attract future K-State students to Agronomy and keep interested alumni members informed on what the department is doing - in picture form!
You can follow us on Instagram at @ksuagronomy.
Figure 2. Instagram post highlighting an updated classroom in Throckmorton Hall.
Facebook (@kstate.agronomy)
Our Facebook page has been providing current updates on the department since 2012. Facebook recognizes student and faculty accomplishments, as well as events hosted by the department (Figure 3). You can access our Facebook page at @kstate.agronomy
Figure 3. Example of a recent Facebook post highlighting one of the many accomplishments from the Crops Team.
YouTube (KStateAgronomy)
Last but not least, K-State Agronomy hosts a YouTube channel to reach producers, practicing agronomists, and other agronomy professionals. This is our newest platform and we are trying to grow our subscribers. In 2021, our videos generated over 7,000 views totally 766 hours of watch time. These videos vary in scope and topic, ranging from research spotlights to extension presentations. The most watched video in 2021 features Dr. DeAnn Presley exploring a soil profile and explaining the features of the different soil horizons – check it out!
Be sure to explore this resource and get subscribed (it’s also free!). Simply go to https://www.youtube.com/user/KStateAgronomy.
Additional online resources
Stay tuned to the eUpdate in the coming weeks as we highlight other valuable resources that can be accessed online. There’s a wealth of agronomic information out there if you know where to look!
Kathy Gehl, Agronomy eUpdate Editor
kgehl@ksu.edu
Tags: online resources social media