Happy Friday, bloggers!
Servi-Tech Communications recently had a chance to catch up with Ryan Nickerson, who went on a mission trip to the west African country of Senegal.
He has an amazing story that we’d like to share with you.
Servi-Tech Agronomist Travels to Africa
Farmers in the U.S. have many modern conveniences to help make life easier: from the tractors they use to the way they test crop yields.
But what if you were charged with helping farmers who had next to no equipment and only a mule and a plow?
That’s what Servi-Tech agronomist and Doniphan resident Ryan Nickerson experienced in the west African country of Senegal. He visited with farms and producers in Kaolack and several small villages, giving soil fertility advice from Jan. 28 through Feb. 11.
He educated farmers about the role that nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium plays in a plant’s life. He also provided strategies for applying compost to the land.
“My whole philosophy was taking what they do and making it better,” he said.
Ryan Nickerson talks to farmers in the west African country of Senegal. Nickerson traveled on a mission trip to Senegal Jan. 28 through Feb. 11.
Nickerson said he decided to take on the challenge and travel to Africa because of Servi-Tech’s purpose; making the planet more productive.
“The trip was my one opportunity to make the world a better place and make the planet more productive,” he said.
Senegal has sandy soil that is low in organic matter. Nickerson said farmers knew that implementing compost creates nutrient rich, organic material, but they didn’t know when, or how, to apply that material to the land.
Servi-Tech’s central Nebraska Territory Manager Rick Runyan said he was happy to hear Nickerson would be traveling abroad to be an agriculture expert.
“This was a chance of a lifetime for Ryan to represent his company and his talents for the betterment of the people of a foreign country,” Runyan said.
Since French is spoken in Senegal, Nickerson used a translator to talk to the farmers.
Runyan said Nickerson brings back an appreciation for technology, communication and infrastructure — things typically taken for granted in the U.S. Farmers in Senegal don’t have tractors, irrigation technology or access to fertilizer or crop genetics like U.S. farmers have.
Senegal farmers use a mule and a plow. Nickerson developed ways the farmers could plant their corn, peanuts and millets crops in rows.
His advice also included different land management strategies. For example, at the end of a growing season Senegal farmers like to burn the fields to get rid of the crop residue.
Burning the fields can be dangerous and can hurt the soil cycle and soil structure.
“I did a lot of educating about what they’re doing and how it’s affecting the soil,” he said.
While in Senegal Nickerson talked to farmers about soil fertility and land management strategies.
Nickerson found out about the trip through his former college adviser, Dr. Stephen Mason, professor of agronomy at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln.
This is Nickerson’s first time traveling overseas to share his agriculture expertise, although he has been overseas before. He served in the military in Iraq from April 2003 to May 2004. He also helped build a school in Nicaragua through the military.
“Sometimes we don’t realize what’s going on on the other side of the world,” he said. “As good as we have it, there are millions of people out there that need help. I’m just happy to help a few of them.”
While in Africa Nickerson kept readers updated on his progress by updating a blog at mp2.ag.
Nickerson lives in Doniphan with his wife, Amanda, and children Ethan, 8, and Kayli, 4. He grew up on a small family farm in Cambridge, Neb., that raised cattle and dry land corn.
Nickerson is a senior agronomist with Servi-Tech. He provides agronomic services to farmers in central Nebraska.
Ryan Nickerson poses for a photo with children in a village near Kaolack, Senegal.
Servi-Tech was organized in 1975 by three farmer-owned cooperatives to provide technical service for agricultural producers in southwest Kansas. Today, Servi-Tech provides consulting to approximately 2,000 farmers across five states and over 1 million acres.
