SERA6: Methodology, Interpretation, and Implementation of Soil, Plant, Byproduct, and Water Analyses
(Multistate Research Coordinating Committee and Information Exchange Group)
Status: Active
Date of Annual Report: 08/04/2025
Report Information
Annual Meeting Dates: 06/09/2025
- 06/09/2025
Period the Report Covers: 06/01/2024 - 06/09/2025
Period the Report Covers: 06/01/2024 - 06/09/2025
Participants
Alford, Shannon sralfor@clemson.edu Clemson U; Atkins, Michael atkins2@clemson.edu Clemson U; Bourns, Megan mbourns@uada.edu NC St U; Chim, Bee bee@okstate.edu OK St U; Davis, Jessica Jld0084@auburn.edu Auburn U; Edralin, Don don.edralin@ncagr.gov NC DA; Finch, Bronc bfinch@uada.edu U of AR; Florence, Robert RFLOREN2@UTK.EDU U of TN; Gabitoni, Luke luke_gatiboni@ncsu.edu NC St U; Hardy, David david.hardy@ncagr.gov NC DA; Henderson, Kendal kendalt@okstate.edu OK St U; Herron, Cindy cherro@uark.edu U of AR; Kariuki, Solomon s.kariuki@uky.edu U of KY; Lessl, Jay jlessl@uga.edu U of GA; Majs, Franta fmajs@ufl.edu U of FL; Morris, Ashley aam009@uark.edu U of AR; Mylavarapu, Rao raom@ufl.edu U of FL; Osmond, Deanna deanna_osmond@ncsu.edu NC St U; Parvej, Rasel mrparvej@missouri.edu U of MO; Pena-Yewtukhiw, Eugenia Yewtukhiw@mail.wvu.edu WV U; Prasad, Rishi rzp0050@auburn.edu Auburn U; Reed, Vaughn vr401@msstate.edu MS St U; Sharma, Aakriti aakriti.sharma@sfasu.edu Stephen F Austin U; Shober, Amy ashober@udel.edu U of DE; Slaton, Nathan nslaton@uark.edu U of AR; Vieira, Leandro lvieira@agcenter.lsu.edu LA St UBrief Summary of Minutes
BRIEF SUMMARY OF MINUTES OF ANNUAL MEETING: Link to 2025 Minutes https://soillab.tennessee.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/129/2025/08/SERA-6-2025-Meeting.pdf
12:00 –1:00 PM Registration and Lunch
1:00 PM Dr. Franta Majs: “When Extractable P Becomes Law”
1:20 PM Dr. Rishi Prasad "PSR as a tool for P management for Alabama soils"
1:50 PM Break
2:00 PM Dr. Jessica Davis: “Building a Usable and Sustainable Customer Application”
2:20 PM Dr. Nathan Slaton: “Summary of the terminology and basis used for soil-test-based crop fertilizer recommendations in the South.”
2:45-5:00 PM Business Meeting and State Reports
- Multistate project discussion- Nathan Slaton (AR) provided presentation with suggestions for universal terms for soil test levels in the Southern region; Vaughn Reed (MS) agreed to spearhead the project
- Other business discussion
- Length of term for officers- decision for 2-year terms, as has been followed in recent years
- SERA6 website and listserv- currently hosted by UGA, offer from TN to update and host
- Register on NIMSS (scan QR code); updates coming to NIMSS site
- Passed around sign up for email listserv
- 2026 meeting site: Decided on West Virginia
- State Reports: AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, OK, PR, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV
- Group photo
Photos are available at: https://soillab.tennessee.edu/sera-6/sera-6-photos/sera-6-2025-photos/
Accomplishments
<p><strong>ACCOMPLISHMENTS</strong></p><br /> <p><strong>OUTCOMES</strong></p><br /> <p><strong>Agricultural Analysis for Stakeholders and Researchers:</strong> Twelve reporting laboratories (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, OK, SC, TN, & TX) provided routine soil analysis on 746,847 soil samples for clients and researchers including fertilizer and lime recommendations on a large percentage of the samples (stakeholder or non-research samples). Analyses were also completed on 46,761 water samples, 37,893 plant samples, 21,699 forage samples, and 17,877 byproduct/manure samples, facilitating sound nutrient management, animal health, and water quality (Appendix, Figure 1 & Table 2).</p><br /> <p> </p><br /> <p><strong>OUTPUTS</strong></p><br /> <p><strong>Manure DB</strong>: A project lead for the national Manure DB project (<a href="http://manuredb.umn.edu/">http://manuredb.umn.edu/</a>), Dr. Nancy Bormann, presented the effort to the SERA6 group in 2023 at Auburn University and sought collaborators. Since 2023, six state institutions from SERA6 (University of Arkansas, University of Georgia, North Carolina Department of Agriculture, Oklahoma State University, Clemson University, and Stephen F Austin University) have provided data for the national project. This project sought to partner with laboratories and universities that analyze manure to create a manure nutrient database in collaboration with the Minnesota Supercomputing Institute. The project is ongoing as datasets are requested for continuing years.</p><br /> <p><strong>FRST Project</strong>: The current NRSP-11 Project evolved from the FRST Project, which is composed of over 100 individuals representing 41 land-grant (40 states and one territory), two state universities, one private university, three USDA divisions (Agricultural Research Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service and Farm Service Agency), three not-for-profit organizations, and one State Department of Agriculture. Many of the FRST collaborators are members of one of the four existing multi-state soil testing projects: NCERA-13, NECC-1012, SERA-6, and WERA-103. (<em>From NRSP-11 Project Outline</em>). The four regional soil testing groups are represented on the FRST/NRSP11 executive committee. SERA-6 is represented on the NRSP11 executive committee by Dr. Luke Gatiboni (regional lead) and Nathan Slaton (Overall Project Lead). Official members of NRSP11 from the South Region include Gerson Drescher (University of Arkansas), Luke Gatiboni (North Carolina State University), David Kissel (retired, University of Georgia), Jay Lessl (University of Georgia), Rao Mylavarapu (University of Florida), Deanna Osmond (retired, North Carolina State University), Nathan Slaton (University of Arkansas), & Jim Wang (Louisiana State University), but many other members participate. The South Region has representatives on the Lime survey Committee [Nathan Slaton, Frank Sikora (retired, R), Deanna Osmond (R)], lime calibration committee [Shannon Alford, Luke Gatiboni, David Kissel (R), Deanna Osmond (R), Vaughn Reed, Nathan Slaton], Sulfur Minimum Dataset Committee (Luke Gatiboni, Deanna Osmond (R), Nathan Slaton] Calibration Committee, and Soil Test Survey Committee (Luke Gatiboni, Deanna Osmond (R), Nathan Slaton].</p><br /> <p><strong>Listserv</strong>: The SERA6 groups maintains an active listserv to support laboratory operations and personnel decisions. The listserv is hosted by UGA and updated annually to maintain current participants. In 2024, twelve topics were discussed amongst the laboratories using the listserv. (Appendix, Table 1)</p><br /> <p><strong>Website</strong>: SERA6 has maintained a website for its members and the public to access for decades, hosted by Clemson University and more recently by University of Georgia. Updates have been made in recent years, but to maintain relevance with the online presence, a new platform is being developed and hosted by the University of Tennessee. All publications, minutes, photos, and lab/member list are being migrated to the new platform. Event details and updates for the 2026 meeting will be posted on the website.</p><br /> <p>The website address for the new webpage is live at https://soillab.tennessee.edu/sera-6/.</p><br /> <p><strong> </strong></p><br /> <p><strong>ACTIVITIES</strong></p><br /> <ol><br /> <li>Vaughn Reed of Mississippi State University volunteered to lead a SERA6 project based on developing a proposal for universal soil test level terms for the Southern region. This project will involve representation from each of the 14 states and is in the beginning stages of development. Dr. Reed will form a committee to develop a unified suggestion for fertilizer recommendations and provide a proposal to the larger SERA6 workgroup at the 2026 meeting.</li><br /> <li>Soil Depth Study: Ten states (AR, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, OK, TN, VA, & WV) contributed 62 total soils for the Soil Sample Depth Project coordinated by NRSP11 and led by Dr. Steve Culman (Oregon State Univ). A manuscript is being developed with all contributors as co-authors.</li><br /> <li>Lime Calibration Study: Thirteen states (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, TX & VA) collected 40 soils (33% of total soils) for the national lime calibration trial coordinated by NRSP11 and led by Dr. Amy Shober, University of Delaware, & Bob Miller, ALP. The study is being coordinated and performed at the University of Arkansas’ Marianna Soil Test Laboratory. Several SERA6 laboratories are contributing to the effort to characterize the soil’s chemical and physical properties to ensure their state’s lime requirement procedures are represented in the final database and perform pilot trials to establish the protocol with preliminary data (see sub-bullet).<br /> <ol><br /> <li>Bee Chim (Oklahoma State Univ) and David Hardy/Don Edralin (North Carolina) led pilot trials to collect information comparing the effect of soil mass (scooped vs weighed soil samples) on soil pH and modified-Mehlich buffer pH, respectively. Results will be reported at the 2026 annual meeting.</li><br /> </ol><br /> </li><br /> </ol>Publications
<ul><br /> <li>Abiola, S.O., J. Lacasa, B.F. Carver, D.B. Arnall, I.A. Ciampitti, & A.d.O. Silva. (2024). Nitrogen uptake dynamics of high and low protein wheat genotypes. Front. Plant Sci. 15:1493901. Doi:10.3389/fpls.2024.1493901.</li><br /> <li>Adotey, N., Logwood, Sydney, F. R. Walker, S. A. Hawkins, L. A. Duncan, R. Florence, X. Yin, T. B. Raper, and J. McNeal. 2024. Converting Between Mehlich 1 and 3 Soil Test Values for West Tennessee Soils. UT Extension, W1223.</li><br /> <li>Antonangelo, J.A., S. Culman, & H. Zhang. (2024). Comparative analysis and prediction of cation exchange capacity via summation: influence of biochar type and nutrient ratios. Front. Soil Sci. doi:10.3389/fsoil.2024.1371777</li><br /> <li>Antonangelo, J.A., & H. Zhang. (2024). Assessment of portable x-ray fluorescence (pXRF) for plant-available nutrient prediction in biochar-amended soils. Sci. Reports 13, 20377. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-71381-8</li><br /> <li>Arkansas Department of Agriculture Plant Industries Division (2024). Arkansas Distribution of Fertilizer Sales by County. MP580. University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture <a href="https://www.uaex.uada.edu/publications/pdf/MP580.pdf">https://www.uaex.uada.edu/publications/pdf/MP580.pdf</a></li><br /> <li>Arnall, D.B. (2024). Cause and effects of soil acidity. Oklahoma Coop. Exten. Serv. PSS-2239. https://openresearch.okstate.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/2d955205-444c-4d7c-ae72-70e7e28d61c0/content</li><br /> <li>Arnall, D.B. (2024). Warm season perennial forage and hay quality result summary (2019-2024). Oklahoma Coop. Exten. Serv.PSS-2610. https://openresearch.okstate.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/79060612-c21e-4337-9fc2-4e81a245fa6b/content</li><br /> <li>Ballagh, A., E.K. Cox, J. Lofton, & D.B. Arnall. (2024). Impacts of soil pH and extractable aluminum on winter canola production in the southern Great Plains. J. Plant Nutri. 47(2):257–267. Doi:10.1080/01904167.2023.2275074.</li><br /> <li>Che, Y., B. Zhang, B. Liu, J. Wang, & H. Zhang. (2024). Effects of straw return rate on soil physicochemical properties and yield in paddy fields. Agron, 14(8), 1668. doi: 10.3390/agronomy14081668</li><br /> <li>Cho, W., B.W. Brorsen, & D.B. Arnall. (2024). When should wheat phosphorus recommendations be based on build-maintenance rather than sufficiency? An economic analysis. Agrosyst. Geosci. & Environ. 7(4): e70013. Doi:10.1002/agg2.70013.</li><br /> <li>Drescher, G. A., Slaton, N. A., Roberts, T. L., & Smartt, A.D. (2024). Soil texture and organic matter prediction using Mehlich-3 extractable nutrients. Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment, 7(1), e20461. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/agg2.20461">https://doi.org/10.1002/agg2.20461</a></li><br /> <li>Drescher, G.L., Slaton., N. A., Ahmad, U., Roberts, T. L., & Smartt, A. D. (2024). Soil moisture and probe characteristics affect core integrity and soil test results. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 88(4), 1216-1233, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20696">https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20696</a></li><br /> <li>Hillock, D., H. Zhang, L. Brandeberger, et al. (2024). Master Gardener’s manual. https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14446/343694</li><br /> <li>Lofton, J., & Arnall, D.B. (2024). Understanding soybean nodulation and inoculation. Oklahoma Coop. Exten. Serv. PSS-2169. https://openresearch.okstate.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/e1ecbba4-1657-4dc6-aad0-1fdf63ac4e94/content</li><br /> <li>Lyons, S.E., Arnall, D.B., Ashford-Kornburger, D., Brouder, S.M., Christian, E., Dobermann, A., Haefele, S.M., Haegee, J., Helmers, M.J., Jin, V.L., Margenot, A.J., McGrath, J.M., Morgan, K.T., Murrell, S.T., Osmond, D.L. Pelster, D.E., Slaton, N.A., Vadas, P.A., Ventera, R.T., Volenec, J.J., Wagner-Riddle, C. (2025). Field trial guidelines for evaluating enhanced efficiency fertilizers. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 89, e20787. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20787">https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20787</a></li><br /> <li>Provin, T. L., Wang, J. J., Keri, J., Davis, J., Florence, R. J., Alford, S., Sikora, F. J., Slaton, N. A., Majs, F., Reed, V., Tubana, B., Mowrer, J. E., Arnall, D. B., & Osmond, D. L. (2024) A Perspective of SERA 6 Members on the Needs of Public Soil Testing Laboratories-Soil Fertility Recommendations [Abstract]. ASA, CSSA, SSSA International Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX. <a href="https://scisoc.confex.com/scisoc/2024am/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/161744">https://scisoc.confex.com/scisoc/2024am/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/161744</a></li><br /> <li>Singh, R., S. Sawatzky, M. Thomas, S. Akin, W.R. Raun, H. Zhang, D.B. Arnall. (2024). Micronutrients concentration and content in corn as affected by nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium fertilization. Agrosyst. Geosci. & Environ. 7: e20568. Doi:10.1002/agg2.20568.</li><br /> <li>Slaton, N.A., Ahmad, U., Villines, C., DeLong, R., & Robinson, O. (2024). University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture database of dairy, poultry, and swine manure/litter chemical and physical properties Ag Data Commons. (Published dataset) <a href="https://doi.org/10.15482/USDA.ADC/25209035.v2">https://doi.org/10.15482/USDA.ADC/25209035.v2</a></li><br /> <li>Slaton, N. A., & Uthman, Q. (2024). Bermudagrass forage response to phosphorus and potassium fertilization. Ag Data Commons. (Published dataset) <a href="https://doi.org/10.15482/USDA.ADC/24978027.v1">https://doi.org/10.15482/USDA.ADC/24978027.v1</a></li><br /> <li>Slaton, N.A., Singh, R., Ahmad, U., Villines, C., DeLong, R., & Robinson, O. (2024). University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture database of dairy, poultry, and swine manure/litter chemical and physical properties [2025 release]. Ag Data Commons. (Published dataset) <a href="https://doi.org/10.15482/USDA.ADC/25209035.v3">https://doi.org/10.15482/USDA.ADC/25209035.v3</a></li><br /> <li>Slaton, N. A., Pearce, A. W., Gatiboni, L., Osmond, D. L., Bolster, C., Clark, J., Dhillon, J., Farmaha, B., Kaiser, Lyons, S., Margenot, A., Miguez, F., Moore, A., Ruiz Diaz, D., Sotomayor, D., Spackman, J., Spargo, J., & Yost, M. (2024). Models and sufficiency interpretation for estimating critical soil test values for the Fertilizer Recommendation Support Tool. Soil Science Society of America, 88, 1419-143. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20704">https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20704</a></li><br /> <li>Tang, Q., Duckworth, O.W., Obenour, D.R., Kulesza, S.B., Slaton, N.A., Whitaker, A.H., & Nelson, N.G. (2024). Relationships between soil test phosphorus and county-level agricultural surplus phosphorus. Journal of Environmental Quality, 53(6), 1127-1139. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/jeq2.20622">https://doi.org/10.1002/jeq2.20622</a></li><br /> </ul>Impact Statements
- • The most tangible short-term impact of the SERA6 workgroup to stakeholders is the collective service provided to the agricultural industry in the Southern region. Collectively, the twelve (12) reporting SERA6 laboratories provided soil testing for more than 746,000+ soil samples, 68,000+ water and forage samples, 37,000+ plant samples, and 17,000+ byproduct/manure samples. (Appendix, Figure 1 & Table 2). SERA6 members are major contributors to their institution/agency’s agricultural research, Extension, and service efforts. Many state labs provide additional testing for soilless media, feed, and other sample types such as fertilizer, nematodes, microbiological, soil health, and research.
- • The mid- to long-term impact of SERA6 is evident from its impact on the analytical methods used in scientific reporting. The 2014 publication entitled “Soil Test Methods From the Southeastern United States” has been cited 147 times in the past 10 years. (Soil Test Methods From the Southeastern United States - Google Scholar). Scientists routinely use the methods in this manual or use it to cite the methods used by the SERA6 service laboratories that provide analytical data on byproduct, plant, soil, & water samples. Likewise, another publication from 1994 “Reference Sufficiency Ranges for Plant Analysis in the Southern Region of the United-States” has been cited 269 times in the last 30 years (reference sufficiency ranges for plant analysis in... - Google Scholar). Both publications represent foundational work from research and Extension scientists participating in SERA6.
- • The faculty and staff working the SERA6 laboratories are highly collaborative, and the group collectively serves as resources for one another with interactions at the SERA6 annual meeting, SERA6 LISTSERV, and NRSP11 committees. The members help each other troubleshoot lab problems, communicate about equipment performance and durability, lab supplies & services, and position vacancies. Evidence of the impact is that 14 of the 15 (all except Puerto Rico) states in the Southern Region were represented at the annual meeting along with representatives from two additional states (Delaware and Missouri).
Date of Annual Report: 01/08/2026
Report Information
Annual Meeting Dates: 06/01/2023
- 06/01/2023
Period the Report Covers: 06/01/2022 - 06/01/2023
Period the Report Covers: 06/01/2022 - 06/01/2023
Participants
ANNUAL MEETING PARTICIPANTSAlford, Shannon sralfor@clemson.edu Clemson U; Atkins, Michael atkins2@clemson.edu Clemson U; Bormann, Nancy bohlb001@umn.edu U of MN; Davis, Jessica Jld0084@auburn.edu Auburn U; Drescher, Gerson gldresch@uark.edu U of AR; Florence, Robert rfloren2@utk.edu U of TN; Gamble, Audrey avg0001@auburn.edu Auburn U; Gonzales, Tia gonzats@auburn.edu Auburn U; Hardy, David david.hardy@ncagr.gov NC DA; Herron, Cindy cherro@uark.edu U of AR; Hicks, Kristin kristin.hicks@ncagr.gov NC DA; Lafex, Diane dlafex@uark.edu U of AR; Majs, Franta fmajs@agcenter.lsu.edu LA St U; McKinney, Nathan nmckinne@uark.edu U of AR; Mitchell, Charles mitchc1@auburn.edu Auburn U; Morris, Ashley aam009@uark.edu U of AR; Nathan, Manjula nathanm@missouri.edu U of MO; Nutifafa, Adotey nadotey@utk.edu U of TN; Obreza, Tom obreza@ufl.edu U of FL; Parvej, Rasel mrparvej@agcenter.lsu.edu LA St U; Pena-Yewtukhiw, Eugenia Yewtukhiw@mail.wvu.edu WV U; Provin, Tony t-provin@tamu.edu TX AMU; Reed, Vaughn vr401@msstate.edu MS St U; Saha, Uttam sahau@uga.edu U of GA; Sikora, Frank frank.sikora@uky.edu U of KY; Slaton, Nathan nslaton@uark.edu U of AR; Tubana, Brenda btubana@agcenter.lsu.edu LA St U; Villines, Cheri cvilline@uark.edu U of AR; Virk, Simerjeet svirk@uga.edu U of GA
Brief Summary of Minutes
BRIEF SUMMARY OF MINUTES OF ANNUAL MEETING: Hosts- Jessica Davis, Director of Soil, Forage, & Water Test Lab and Audrey Gamble, Associate Professor (Soil Fertility/Soil Conservation), Auburn University; Auburn, AL
Link to 2023 Minutes https://soillab.tennessee.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/129/2025/07/2023.pdf
Monday, June 5th - Dinner at Hotel at Auburn
5:00 PM Check-in: Pick up name tag and programs
5:10 PM Reception
5:30 PM Introductions
6:00 PM Welcome Dinner at The Hotel at Auburn University
7:00 - 9:00 PM State Reports
Tuesday, June 6th - Ag Heritage Park
7:45 AM Travel to Ag Heritage Park
8:00 AM Breakfast- Sponsor Leco
8:45 AM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk - Ametek (Spectro Analytical) Tom Bloomer
9:00 AM - 35 mins - Dr. Gerson L. Drescher "Soil Sampling Position on Raised Beds Influences Soil-Test Results and Fertilizer Recommendations"
9:40 AM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk- Elementar - Chase Migliore "Excellence in Elements"
10:00 AM - 30 mins - Dr. Nathan Slaton "Update on FRST"
10:30 AM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk - Scott Schroeder FiaLabs
11:00 AM - 35 mins - Dr. Simerjeet Virk - "Investigating Different Soil Sampling Grid Sizes for Site-Specific Nutrient Management in Georgia"
11:40 AM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk - BlueSun Rachael Glenister "Innovations in Rapid Soil, Forage, and Feed Analysis"
12:00 PM - 1 hour - Lunch - Soilkit Sponsor
1:00 PM - 30 mins - Dr. Bryan Hopkins - "NAPT Update and Analytical Precision and Accuracy"
1:30 PM - 15 mins - Sponsor Talk - Texas Scientific Doug Keene - "Optimizing Productivity For ICP Analysis of Agronomic Samples"
2:00 PM - 45 mins - Keynote Speaker Dr. Frank Sikora "Experiences on Rebuilding a Soils Lab"
2:45 PM - 35 mins - Dr. Brenda Tubana - "Silicon in Crop Production: Updates on Testing and Fertilizer Guidelines"
3:20 PM - 35 mins - Dr. Kristin Hicks "Simplified Approach to Developing Tissue Nutrient Reference Ranges with Cannabis sativa as a Model"
4:00 PM Travel to Soil Lab: Soil Lab Tour and Discussions - Includes Old Rotation and Cullars Rotation - Dr. Charles Mitchell will host discussion sections
5:00 PM Travel to Tour Hotel Garden
6:00 PM Free Time - Tourist Tuesday
Wednesday, June 7th - Ag Heritage Park
8:00 AM Breakfast and Historical Tea with Tia - Breakout discussion sections determined on Tuesday, schedule meetings with vendors
9:00 AM - 30 mins - Nancy Bohl Bormann- "ManureDB: Creating a nationwide manure test database"
9:30 AM - 30 mins - Bob Miller ALP - "Soil carbon sequestration and measurement uncertainty"
10:00 AM - 30 mins - Discussion Section - Hosted by Dr. Frank Sikora and Dr. David Butler "Significance of high tunnels - tomato"
10:30 AM - 15 mins - Dr. Nathan McKinney "Administrative Advisor Update"
10:45 AM - 15 mins - Dr. Manjula Nathan - "Updates on North Central Extension and Research activities (NCERA-13)"
11:00 AM - 20 mins - Dr. Charlie Mitchell - "History of SERA 6"
11:30 AM SERA-6 Business Meeting: Future of SERA 6
12:00 PM Goodbye and Depart
Photos are available at: https://soillab.tennessee.edu/sera-6/sera-6-photos/sera-6-2023-photos/
Accomplishments
<p><strong>ACCOMPLISHMENTS</strong></p><br /> <p><strong>OUTCOMES</strong></p><br /> <p><strong>Agricultural Analysis for Stakeholders and Researchers:</strong> Twelve laboratories (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, OK, SC, TN, & TX) provided oral reports at the annual meeting. Eight of those reported, via written reports, routine soil analysis on 692,635 soil samples for clients and researchers including fertilizer and lime recommendations on a large percentage of the samples (stakeholder or non-research samples). Analyses were also completed on 21,316 water samples, 23,000 plant samples, 18,490 forage samples, and 3,484 byproduct/manure samples, facilitating sound nutrient management, animal health, and water quality (Appendix, Figure 1 & Table 2).</p><br /> <p><strong>OUTPUTS</strong></p><br /> <p><strong>Manure DB</strong>: A project lead for the national Manure DB project (<a href="http://manuredb.umn.edu/">http://manuredb.umn.edu/</a>), Dr. Nancy Bormann, presented the effort to the SERA6 group and sought collaborators. The project will be ongoing as datasets are requested for continuing years. Several SERA6 labs have provided or committed to providing data for the ManureDb Project.</p><br /> <p><strong>FRST Project</strong>: The FRST Project is composed of over 100 individuals representing 41 land-grant (40 states and one territory), two state universities, one private university, three USDA divisions (Agricultural Research Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Farm Service Agency), three not-for-profit organizations, and one State Department of Agriculture. Many of the FRST collaborators are members of one of the four existing multi-state soil testing projects: NCERA-13, NECC-1012, SERA-6, and WERA-103. The FRST Project has applied with agInnovation for consideration as a National Research Support Program (NRSP) and this will be voted on by the Agricultural Experiment Station Directors in September 2023. The FRST Project is led by Deanna Osmond with an executive (founding member) committee of Nathan Slaton (Univ of Arkansas, SERA-6), John Spargo (Penn State Univ., NECC-1012), Pete Kleinman (USDA-ARS), and Josh McGrath (SERA-6, University of Kentucky). Other SERA-6 members who participate in FRST activities include Gerson Drescher (University of Arkansas), Luke Gatiboni (North Carolina State University), David Kissel (retired, University of Georgia), Jay Lessl (University of Georgia), Rao Mylavarapu (University of Florida), & Jim Wang (Louisiana State University), but many other members participate. </p><br /> <p><strong>Listserv</strong>: The SERA6 groups maintain an active listserv to support laboratory operations and personnel decisions. The listserv is hosted by UGA and updated annually to maintain current participants. In 2023, 11 topics were discussed amongst the laboratories using the listserv. (Appendix, Table 1)</p><br /> <p><strong>Website</strong>: SERA6 has maintained a website for its members and the public to access for decades, hosted by Clemson University and more recently by University of Georgia. Updates have been made in recent years.</p><br /> <p>The website address for the webpage is <a href="https://aesl.ces.uga.edu/sera6/">https://aesl.ces.uga.edu/sera6/</a>.</p><br /> <p><strong>ACTIVITIES</strong></p><br /> <ol><br /> <li>Soil Depth Study: Starting in 2022, ten states [AR (8), FL (4), GA (6) LA (5), MS (6), NC (6), OK (5), TN (8), VA (10), & WV (4)] contributed 62 total soils for the Soil Sample Depth Project coordinated by the FRST Project activity led by Dr. Steve Cullman (Oregon State Univ). The soils samples will be analyzed for selected soil chemical and physical properties (e.g., soil pH, organic matter, extractable nutrients, & soil texture) by various land grant university laboratories. The goal is to advance our understanding of the relationships among soil depths for estimating soil test data from soil depth increments, predicting soil test values at unsampled depths, and identifying the key drivers of soil stratification. One or more manuscripts and a dataset will be developed and published with all soil sample contributors as co-authors of the dataset.</li><br /> <li>Lime Calibration Study: The FRST project developed plans for a nationwide soil collection for a lime requirement calibration study. SERA6 states were recruited for this soil collection effort. The soil collection is coordinated by Bob Miller, ALP. The goal is to collect more than 100 acidic soils from around the USA to conduct laboratory incubations to examine soil pH response to lime rate for calibrating state lime recommendations.</li><br /> <li>SERA6 members participated in a lime requirement survey that was started in 2022 by providing lime rate recommendations using analytical data from 6 reference soils, soil pH method, and lime requirement determination method. This project was coordinated by FRST member John Jones (Univ Wisconsin), Bob Miller (ALP), and Nathan Slaton (Univ Arkansas). The survey intends to evaluate the variability of lime recommendations and evaluate changes in lab methods for soil pH and lime requirement determination (compared to 40 years ago), following a similar protocol as SERA6 members did in comparing soil-test-based phosphorus and potassium rate recommendations.</li><br /> </ol><br /> <p><strong>IMPACTS</strong></p><br /> <ul><br /> <li>The most tangible short-term impact of the SERA6 workgroup on stakeholders is the collective service provided to the agricultural industry in the Southern region. Collectively, the twelve (12) reporting SERA6 laboratories provided soil testing for more than 692,000+ soil samples, 39,000+ water and forage samples, 23,000+ plant samples, and 3,000+ byproduct/manure samples. (Appendix, Figure 1 & Table 2). SERA6 members are major contributors to their institution/agency’s agricultural research, Extension, and service efforts. Many state labs provide additional testing for soilless media, feed, and other sample types such as fertilizer, nematodes, microbiological, soil health, and research.</li><br /> <li>SERA6 members were co-authors of 2 datasets and 2 papers generated by the FRST Project summarizing a national survey on soil test recommendations (dataset, Spargo et al., 2023), a Mehlich-3 soil test correlation and calibration dataset for soybean from Arkansas (dataset, Slaton et al., 2023), a common method for calculating relative crop yield (Pearce et al., 2023), and developing a minimum dataset for soil test correlation and calibration research for developing soil-test-based recommendations (Slaton et al., 2023). These collaborative, multistate efforts align with objectives 3 and 4 and are aimed at developing better soil-test-based recommendations, enhancing data sharing and reuse among states to support soil-test-based recommendations, and standardizing recommendation development procedures among states. </li><br /> </ul><br /> <p>The faculty and staff working the SERA6 laboratories are highly collaborative, and the group collectively serves as resources for one another with interactions at the SERA6 annual meeting, SERA6 LISTSERV, and FRST activities. The members help each other troubleshoot lab problems, communicate about equipment performance and durability, lab supplies & services, and position vacancies. Evidence of the impact is that 13 of the 15 (all except Virginia and Puerto Rico) states in the Southern Region were represented at the annual meeting, along with representatives from two additional states (Minnesota and Missouri).</p>Publications
Impact Statements
Date of Annual Report: 01/08/2026
Report Information
Annual Meeting Dates: 06/01/2024
- 06/01/2024
Period the Report Covers: 06/01/2023 - 06/01/2024
Period the Report Covers: 06/01/2023 - 06/01/2024
Participants
ANNUAL MEETING PARTICIPANTS (SERA-IEG-6)Alford, Shannon sralfor@clemson.edu Clemson U; Davis, Jessica Jld0084@auburn.edu Auburn U; Florence, Robert rfloren2@utk.edu U of TN (virtual); Gan, Huijie huijiegan@vt.edu VA Tech U; Hardy, David david.hardy@ncagr.gov NC DA; Hicks, Kristin kristin.hicks@ncagr.gov NC DA; Jean, Yvens yjean@ufl.edu U of FL; Jones, Keri kkd1@msstate.edu MS St U (virtual); Lessl, Jay jlessl@uga.edu U of GA (virtual); Majs, Franta fmajs@agcenter.lsu.edu LA St U; Nathan, Manjula nathanm@missouri.edu U of MO; Adotey, Nutifafa nadotey@utk.edu U of TN; Osmond, Deanna dosmond@ncsu.edu NC St U; Parvej, Rasel mrparvej@agcenter.lsu.edu LA St U; Pena-Yewtukhiw, Eugenia Yewtukhiw@mail.wvu.edu WV U; Phillips, Mike jmp0133@auburn.edu Auburn U; Provin, Tony t-provin@tamu.edu TX AMU; Reed, Vaughn vr401@msstate.edu MS St U; Slaton, Nathan nslaton@uark.edu U of AR; Tubana, Brenda btubana@agcenter.lsu.edu LA St U; Villines, Cheri cvilline@uark.edu U of AR; Wang, Jim JJWang@agcenter.lsu.edu LA St U
Brief Summary of Minutes
BRIEF SUMMARY OF MINUTES OF MEETING(S): Host- Daniel Kaiser, Associate Professor and Extension Soil Fertility Specialist, University of Minnesota; Bloomington, MN
Quadrennial Joint Regions Soil-Testing Meeting (SERA-IEG-6 with NCERA-013, NECC-1012), SERA-IEG-6 Meeting, NRSP-11 Meeting
***42 attendees in person from 3 regions (NCERA-013, SERA-IEG-6, NECC-1012); majority of attendees were from Southern region SERA-IEG-6 group***
Link to 2024 Minutes https://soillab.tennessee.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/129/2025/07/2024.pdf
Monday June 3
NRSP 11 Meeting (main room) -9:00 – 12:00 pm CDT
Joint Regions Meeting (main room)
Session 1: 1:00 – 2:45 – Regional and national efforts in soil testing and database development Panel (Moderator: Nathan Slaton)
- Long term data management/control for correlation and calibration research (virtual) – Sylvie Brouder
- Data Management though Ag Data Commons (Virtual) – Michal McCullough, Data Curator/Metadata Librarian, USDA - National Agricultural Library
- Land Grant Institution perspective - Shannon Farrell U of MN Libraries
- 2:30: Sponsor : FIA
Sponsor Break 2:45 – 3:00
Session 2: 3:15 – 5:30 – Current efforts in soil testing and soil test correlation (Moderator: Manjula Nathan)
- 3:15: Spatial and temporal soil sampling variability affects soil-test P and K concentrations and fertilizer recommendations - Muhammad Rasel Parvej, LSU
- 3:45 A retrospective of developing P and K guidelines for Iowa – Antonio Mallarino, ISU
- 4:30 Targeting the Unsampled Acre – Craig Struve, Soil View
- 5:00: Sponsor: ALTA
- 5:15: Sponsor : Elementar
5:30-6:30 (reception to allow for conversing with vendors)
Tuesday June 4
Joint Regions Meeting (continued, main room)
Session 3: 8:00 – 9:45 – Sulfur the fourth primary macronutrient? (Moderator: John Spargo)
- 8:00: The Sulphur Institute report - David Vincent
- 8:25: Sulfur response in the south: experiences and challenges with soil testing for S – Brenda Tubana LSU
- 8:50: Identifying sulfur deficiencies with soil and plant tissue testing in Minnesota – Daniel Kaiser U of MN
- 9:10: Sulfur research in the Northeast - John Spargo
- 9:35: Sponsor: TSI
Sponsor Break 9:50 – 10:00
Session 4: 10:00 – 12:10 – Liming and soil carbon (Moderator: John Jones)
- 10:00: Survey on lime guidelines in the U.S. – John Jones
- 10:20: Lime work in the Northeast – Amy Shober
- 10:40: Soil health and carbon testing – Andrew Margenot UI (Virtual)
- 11:55: Sponsor : TSP
12:10 - 1:30 – Catered (working) lunch
Session 5: 12:30 – 1:45 – Sponsor Time (Moderator: Daniel Kaiser)
- 12:25: Sponsor: Spectro
- 12:40: NAPT report -Bryan Hopkins
- 1:00: ALP report - Bob Miller
- 1:20: Manure Database Update - Melissa Wilson/ Nancy Bohl Bormann
2:00 - 5:00 – Offsite Tour to MN Landscape Arboretum (https://arb.umn.edu/) to learn what is going on at the arboretum and how the arboretum is connecting urban MN with what is going on in rural MN
6:00 pm load buses for dinner reservations
6:30 - 9:00 pm – Sunset diner cruise on the Mississippi (https://riverrides.com/)
Wednesday June 5
8:00-12:00 - NCERA013, SERA6, NECC1012 individual workgroup meetings (breakout rooms - 3)
Noon - Adjourn
SERA6 Meeting June 5
*** Attendees: 14 in person, 8 online***
8:00-8:05 AM Welcome, Jim Wang LSU, SERA6 Chair
8:05-8:30 AM Regional Soil Testing: Validation of P and K fertilizer Recommendation for soybean in Tennessee - Nutifafa Adotey, UT
8:30-9:20 AM Exploring Myth of Unresponsive Soil Test Recommendations: Survey Results and Discussion- Tony Proven, Texas A&M
9:20-10:20 AM State Report
10:20-10:30 Am Break
10:30-12:00 AM Business Session
- Admin Reports Research advisor
- Extension advisor
- Committee Functions
- Publications
- Election of Secretary
- 2025 Meeting site/Introduction
ADJOURN
Business Session Minutes
Mike Phillips, Extension Director at Auburn University, was introduced as our new Extension Administrative Advisor.
There was a discussion of what should be included in the state reports and how much time should be devoted to the oral reports on the agenda. Franta suggested we include the number of staff in the report. Tony Provin questioned the objective of the state reports. Jim Wang mentioned that the state reports inform administrators of activities and track activities of the group. The group in attendance agreed to present our reports as usual to allow for discussion. It was suggested that a template could be distributed to the group to facilitate assembling all the needed information from each state.
State reports were provided by the following participants:
AL- Jessica Davis (Auburn)
AR- Nathan Slaton (U of Arkansas)
FL- Yves Jean (U of Florida)
GA- Jay Lessl (U of Georgia); online
KY- not represented at meeting
LA- Franta Majs (Louisiana State U)
MS- Keri Smith (Mississippi State U); online
NC- David Hardy, Soil (North Carolina Department of Ag)
NC- Deanna Osburn for NCDA (North Carolina State U)
OK- not represented at meeting
PR- not represented at meeting
SC- Shannon Alford (Clemson U)
TN- Robert Florence (U of Tennessee); online
TX- Tony Provin (Texas A&M U)
VA- represented by faculty, but no state report at meeting
WV- Eugenia Pena-Yewtukhiw; document only
Jessica Davis of Auburn U was nominated for the incoming Secretary position. There was no discussion, and she was elected to the role.
Mike Phillips introduced himself and suggested we home in on impact-economic and sustainability for example. We need to get our group’s info up to date in NIMMS. Eugenia asked about the general state of Extension and wanted Mike’s perspective. Mike also commented that we can do a better job of multi-state collaborations, especially to advise new faculty and lab directors.
Nathan Slaton spoke about the fact that a new Research Advisor will be assigned since Nathan McKinney (U of AR) has retired. He also spoke about the need for some continuity of what is included in the state report with room for flexibility.
There was a discussion initiated by Kristin Hicks regarding the location for our meeting in 2025. Tony Provin (TX) is slated to host the next meeting, but Kristin is already hosting the International Symposium for Soil and Plant Analysis in NC in June 2025. The group agreed to meet in NC and to set aside significant time to meet as SERA6 while there. TX will postpone hosting until 2026.
Photos are available at: https://soillab.tennessee.edu/sera-6/sera-6-photos/sera-6-2024-photos/