Fresno State President Joseph I. Castro, faculty, staff and students will help welcome thousands of people in the agriculture industry to the 50th World Ag Expo, Tuesday through Thursday, Feb. 14 through Feb. 16 in Tulare.

Student ag ambassadors from the Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology at Fresno State will host the college’s information booth for students, visitors and alumni from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day in the Ag Careers and Education/World Ag Women Pavilion (booth spaces 7002 and 7003).

Ag ambassadors advisers Michelle Perez, a University undergraduate recruitment counselor, and Dr. Steven Rocca, associate professor of agricultural education, will also share tips on admission and opportunities within the college.

From 10 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. on Thursday, Castro and his wife, Mary Castro, will join Jordan College Dean Sandra Witte and staff to host “Ice Cream with the Dean” at the booth.

New Fresno State football head coach Jeff Tedford will also appear at the booth from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Thursday to meet and greet attendees.

Castro and Witte will be interviewed live on the Ray Appleton Show from 11 to 11:30 a.m. Thursday at KMJ (AM580) News Talk Radio’s fair booth. Earlier in the morning, Castro and Witte will attend the 23rd annual California Agriculture Leadership alumni breakfast and visit vendor and alumni booths.

Fresno State Dairy Club and animal science students will also pass out free hot chocolate at entrance gates each day.

Among the 74 seminars offered at the event, Fresno State’s Center for Irrigation Technology will host 10 seminars from 10 a.m. to 2:50 p.m. Thursday in Expo Seminar Center Trailer Three. Each presentation will last 20 minutes and will feature information on innovative irrigation methods and products. An irrigation seminar schedule is at http://www.californiawater.org/2741-2, and a link to the entire seminar schedule is at https://www.worldagexpo.com/seminars.

Bill Green, education specialist for the Center for Irrigation Technology, will also host a mobile education unit exhibit each day in the PG&E Pavilion at location AB19.

Last year the world’s largest agricultural exposition welcomed more than 106,000 visitors from 47 states and 79 countries to see the latest in farm equipment, chemicals, communications and technology from 1,500 exhibitors on 2.6 million square feet of exhibit space. For more information, visit www.WorldAgExpo.com.

Irrigation Seminars at the World Ag Expo (hosted by Fresno State Center for Irrigation Technology)

Date: Thursday, Feb. 16, Seminar Center: Trailer Three

Website: California Water

  • 10 a.m. – Recycling Made Easy: Tape, Ag Film and Other Plastics – Matt Andros, Andros Engineering
  • 10:30 a.m. – Drip Irrigation Recycling Services – Inge Bisconer, The Toro Company, Micro-Irrigation Division
  • 11 a.m. – Reading the Electric Meter to Determine the Cost of Irrigation – Bill Green, Center for Irrigation Technology, Fresno State
  • 11:30 a.m. – The Importance of Annual Maintenance in Micro-Irrigation Systems – Mike Illia, Netafim USA
  • Noon – Fertigation Strategies – Methods to Protect Water Quality – John Petrosso, Mazzie Injector
  • 12:30 p.m. – Measuring Plant Nutrients Made Easy – Jacob Moreno, Irrometer
  • 1 p.m. – Leveraging Technology for Better Water Management – Tom Devol, PureSense
  • 1:30 p.m. – The Do’s and Don’ts of Irrigation Filter Selection – Randy Delenikos, Lakos Filtration Systems
  • 2 p.m. – Irrigation Efficiency and Diagnostic Evaluation – Rich Bernier, Simplot
  • 2:30 p.m. – Filtering Ag Water – David Laybourn, Olson Industrial Systems