Farmers facing the 2011 season will find answers to some of their toughest challenges at the "Weed, Seed and Soil Summit" to be held Feb. 4 in Des Moines, Iowa.

This free seminar will bring 9 speakers to the Ramada Tropics Conference Center at 5000 Merle Hay Road in Des Moines.

As corn, soybean and wheat prices soar, the approaching crop year offers major opportunities, but farmers face big risks. One of the most serious: Possible recurrence of soybean and corn diseases which crippled 2010 yields on many farms.

Speakers at this seminar will help farmers upgrade their crop fertility, soil biology and weed control to reduce potential problems such as:

• Diseases such as Sudden Death Syndrome in soybeans, which are apparently linked with low levels of critical trace elements.

• Chelating or tying up vital trace elements in crops and soil from many years of glyphosate use.

• Accelerating problems with herbicide-resistant weeds.

Here's more information on some of the speakers:

Dr. Don Huber will explain how one widely used herbicide can tie up micronutrients critical to the health of your soybean and corn crop — and how you can remediate the problem before it costs you valuable yields. Dr. Huber is Professor Emeritus of Plant Pathology and Purdue University.

Dr. Volker Romheld will reveal some of the fundamental nutritional reasons why diseases like Sudden Death Syndrome and Fusarium molds are attacking soybeans with increasing frequency — and what you can do about it. Dr. Romheld is Director of the Institute of Plant Nutrition at the University of Hohemheim at Stuttgart, Germany.

Neil Fuller is a crop nutrition teacher at UK University and a crop consultant for armers in 17 countries.

Bob Streit of Boone, IA is one of the Midwest’s leading crop consultants. He also works with South American crop pathologists. Bob and his colleagues were among the first to detect and counter the 2010 attack of Goss’s Wilt which struck Iowa corn in 2010.

Other speakers include Dr. Arden Andersen, Dr Michael McNeill, Jarrett Chambers, Keith Schlapkohl and Jeffrey Littrell. Seven firms dedicated to environmentally sound agriculture are sponsoring the conference. It is moderated by BRT Ag & Turf of Ladora, IA and FHR farms of Rochester, MN.

This conference is free but seating is limited. Pre-registration is required. Interested persons can contact FHR Farms for more information or to register for the summit at 877-907-1444.