Date:  Thursday, September 10, 2026

Time:  4:00 PM

Location:  8261 Brockway Rd, Melvin, MI 48454

The Blue Water Conservation District is excited to announce a premier agricultural seminar on September 10th, 2026, featuring Real Agriculture resident agronomist Peter Johnson along with Ag PhD hosts Darren and Brian Hefty. These leading experts will share their extensive knowledge on regenerative agriculture, practical soil health, and advanced agronomic practices.

 Peter Johnson is a renowned agronomist from Canada who earned his Diploma in Agriculture from the University of Guelph. He dedicated a 30-year career to the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs as the provincial Cereal Specialist. On top of his education, he also has a lot of hands-on experience working on his own farm and managing agronomic research projects. Peter is known for his ‘Wheat Pete’s ‘ Word weekly podcast for Real Agriculture where he gives expert agronomic advice, practical crop management strategies, and in-depth discussions covering everything from weather impacts to soil health. Johnson is also featured in  Real Agriculture  Wheat School video series for wheat agronomy and crop management.

Joining us online from South Dakota are the agronomy specialist siblings, Darren and Brian Hefty. Drawing on four generations of hands-on farm experience, they elevate their practical knowledge with an education from South Dakota State University. They are co-owners of Hefty Seed Company where they oversee 3,500 acres of farmland employing various farming techniques. They apply this expertise in their weekly TV program, Ag PhD, the daily live call-in show on Sirius XM, the Ag PhD Insider Magazine and their annual field days. They have several popular weekly segments including Weed of the Week, Iron Talk and Farm Basics.  Their objective is to assist producers in enhancing land stewardship, boosting yields, and increasing farm profitability by sharing their insights through their show and newsletter.

Please join us to see what is new with the conservation district at our new building at 8261 Brockway Road in Melvin by walking around and checking out the venders that will be on display,   connect with other producers looking to discover actionable, field-proven tactics from the leading Canadian agronomy perspective and the Ag PhD hosts, and by enjoying some dinner from the Wagon Wheel Restaurant from Croswell with locally sourced meat and produce. 

BWCD can host events like this due to a  Regenerative Agriculture Education and Outreach Grant awarded to the district by MDARD.