Many Fresno State plant science students look forward to internships to connect their classroom knowledge with the actual needs of a career, but recent graduate Juan Magana had a head start before he even began at Fresno State.
In high school, the Firebaugh native would shadow his brother, Gustavo Magana, who began working as a pest control adviser for J.R. Simplot after he received a Fresno State plant science degree himself in 2017.
On their visits to various farms and fields, Gustavo would share his knowledge with his brother, 11 years younger, as he scouted for various pests or illnesses that were affecting crops.
This experience amplified Juan’s own summer work as a laborer in high school and as a field scout in college. Working with Simplot, he has helped grow cotton, almonds, alfalfa, corn, pistachios, sweet potatoes, grapes and walnuts.
“(In high school) I would have much rather been outside and seeing things grow than staying at home,” Magana said. “I loved riding along with him since you can see and learn something new every day in the fields. Fresno State seemed a natural way to make this a career with its reputation and ties to Central Valley agriculture.”
The younger Magana’s drive to add new agricultural experience also led him to join the Plant Science Club two years ago, which recently led to his 10th-place individual finish at the Soil Science Society of America’s National Soil Judging Contest on May 1 and 2, hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
Magana tallied 756 points at the national event, which featured 107 competitors – the highest finish by a Fresno State individual since Mark Castanon placed fifth overall in 2018.
“Juan’s performance was incredible, but not surprising,” said Michael Sowers, the coach of the soil judging team and a plant science faculty member. “This past semester he has honed in on his hand-texturing skills, and even collected soil samples from farms that he worked on and brought them to class for practice. That extra dedication has definitely paid off.”
Other Fresno State competitors at the event included seniors Hannah Chamberlin (58th, 659) and William Dowling (80th, 627) and junior Mariela Perez-Garcia (96th, 575).
Those scores helped Fresno State place 16th overall as a team against the nation’s top agricultural programs, many of which entered students concentrated on soil science degrees.
Competitors were tested on their ability to identify, evaluate, classify and describe soil profiles in individual competition at nearby Wisconsin Lions Camp in Rosholt, Wisconsin, and at a nearby farm for the team portion.
Each individual’s score was based on judges’ evaluations of their descriptions and scorecards of three soil pits. In the team judging event, members from each team evaluated two soil pits and their scores were compiled.
The University of Idaho took top team honors ahead of the University of Delaware (second) and the University of Maryland (third). JosiLee Scott of West Virginia finished as the top individual overall, ahead of second-place finisher Bethany Knutsen of the University of Delaware and third-place finisher Emmeline Seest of Purdue University.
Competitors arrived earlier in the week and began studying the region’s soils in preparation for the competition. As they learned about glacial till and outwash soils, which are derived from glacier advances and recedences, they also learned how the soils impact potato production, which is the main crop in the region.
“The team was challenged by completely different soil types and topographies than what they are used to studying in California, but it did not stop them from excelling,” Sowers said. “After their strong showing at regionals with one of their best team scores, the team continued to bond and push each other to do their best this spring in their classes and labs.”
Fresno State qualified for the national event based on its first-place team finish at the Region 6 Soil Judging Competition on Nov. 2 near Las Cruces, New Mexico. In that event, Fresno State claimed six of the top-10 individual places and the overall title courtesy of senior Tanner Ozuna.
Other team members included seniors Aaron Delgado, Victor Fraga, Jimena Quezada, Tanner Ozuna, Gabriela Rios and junior Mary Travioli.
Two additional California schools from the regional event earned national invites. Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, which placed second in the region, placed fifth nationally at the Wisconsin event. UC Davis, which placed third in the region, took 23rd nationally.
Fresno State competitors are part of a plant science soil judging class taught by Sowers, who also works as a managing soil scientist at Valley Science and Engineering, a Valmont company.
The course emphasizes USDA methods for describing and interpreting soils for their capabilities to prepare students for careers in a wide range of agricultural and natural resource-related areas such as the Natural Resource Conservation Service, U.S. Forestry Service, Bureau of Land Management, private farm management and environmental consulting.
In preparation for the regional and national events, the team studied soil profiles in Central Valley locations and utilized support from Tulare County Resource Conservation District, Travioli Family Farms, Vecchio Farms, plant science faculty emeritus Dr. Bruce Roberts, and plant science administrator Marlene Miyasaki. The supporters also contributed funds to purchase equipment and assist with competition travel costs.
Sowers helped guide the team to other national trips in 2024 (24th), 2018 (15th), 2017 (20th) and 2016 (18th).
Magana also competed at the national competition in 2024 and led the team with an 80th-place individual finish at the event hosted by Iowa State University.
After receiving his degree at the Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology commencement at Fresno State on May 16, Magana can now focus on pursuing his pest control and certified crop adviser licenses. He’s also considering applying for jobs in farm management or sales, since he knows that the skill sets can be shared across career fields.
“Soil judging has helped me come a long way,” Magana said. “I struggled with some of the concepts initially, but the passion and knowledge of our coach carried over to the team as he challenged us with new things every class. Going to nationals was a nice way to end our semester before we received our degrees and have one more memorable experience together.”
