Summary: Irrigation is defined as the watering of land (or other plant growth media) by artificial means to foster plant growth. This can be very costly and the availability of supplemental water may be scarce, so it is important to be able to calculate accurately how much water to apply and when. This lesson will introduce you the underlying concepts you will need to consider.

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:

• Explain how the systems approach can be used to manage water in irrigated systems. 
• Identify the fluxes (flows) of water and energy in an irrigated soil-plant-atmosphere system.
• Describe how the Irrigator’s Equation can be used to quantify the four (4) major variables involved in managing irrigation systems.
• Use the principle of conservation of mass to determine the water budget (also called water balance) of a soil-plant-atmosphere (SPA) system. 
• Use the principle of conservation of energy to determine the energy budget (also called energy balance) of a SPA system.

Time Required: We estimate it will take you 2 hours in total to complete the lesson.  You can work on it at your own pace and do not have to complete it in one setting.

Who Would Benefit:  A variety of people will find this upskilling course useful from adults to high school students.  This includes careers (or hobbyists) growing plants (ie field crops, greenhouse production, turf and lawns, gardens, etc.) and wishing to save money and water by better timing irrigation applications.

Upskill Credentials: If you finish the entire course including passing a final quiz (which you can take up to 3 times), then you will earn a badge certificate of completion.  This has also been approved for 2 Soil and Water Management CEUs through the national Certified Crop Adviser program.

Instructor: Dr. Allan A. Andales is a Professor and Extension Specialist of Irrigation and Water Science in the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University (CSU). He has a joint appointment in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Dr. Andales applies principles of soil and water engineering, environmental biophysics, and numerical methods to study the effects of management practices and environmental factors on field hydrology and agricultural production. Experimental data are used to develop computer models and decision support tools that can improve agricultural water use efficiency and water quality. He is a member of the CSU Extension Water Resource Management Team that engages the public in addressing agricultural and urban water issues in Colorado.

ADA Accessibility: We have done our best to follow ADA best practices. Let us know if you run into any problems or require further accommodations.

Acknowledgements: This online micro-credential upskilling course is offered through the CSU Ag Upskilling program.  Development was supported in part by funding from the CHS Foundation, administered by Colorado State University (2022).  The CHS Foundation, funded by charitable gifts from CHS Inc., is focused on developing a new generation of agriculture leaders for life-long success. Together, with our partners, we are igniting innovation and driving excellence in agriculture education, cultivating high impact programs for rural youth and accelerating potential for careers in agriculture.  Learn more at CHS Foundation.

Summary: To effectively utilize limited irrigation resources in the most cost-effective manner requires balancing the inputs and outputs of water fluxes, as well as water that is stored in the soil profile. Best irrigation management scheduling practices focus on water balance in the rootzone because that is where the plant/crop is extracting water (and nutrients) from the soil.  It is here we estimate the irrigation water requirements to maintain healthy plants. Decisions on when and how much irrigation water to apply depends on the soil water deficit and the management-allowed depletion (MAD). This lesson will walk you through each of these concepts including real world problem scenarios.

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:

• Use the water balance of the root zone to estimate the irrigation water requirement. 
• Make irrigation decisions by comparing the soil water deficit to the management-allowed depletion. 
  
  

Time Required: We estimate it will take you 2 hours in total to complete the lesson.  You can work on it at your own pace and do not have to complete it in one setting.

Who Would Benefit:  A variety of people will find this upskilling course useful from adults to high school students.  This includes careers (or hobbyists) growing plants (ie field crops, greenhouse production, turf and lawns, gardens, etc.) and wishing to save money and water by better timing irrigation applications.

Upskill Credentials: If you finish the entire course including passing a final quiz (which you can take up to 3 times), then you will earn a badge certificate of completion.  This has also been approved for 2 Soil and Water Management CEUs through the national Certified Crop Adviser program.

Instructor: Dr. Allan A. Andales is a Professor and Extension Specialist of Irrigation and Water Science in the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University (CSU). He has a joint appointment in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Dr. Andales applies principles of soil and water engineering, environmental biophysics, and numerical methods to study the effects of management practices and environmental factors on field hydrology and agricultural production. Experimental data are used to develop computer models and decision support tools that can improve agricultural water use efficiency and water quality. He is a member of the CSU Extension Water Resource Management Team that engages the public in addressing agricultural and urban water issues in Colorado.

ADA Accessibility: We have done our best to follow ADA best practices. Let us know if you run into any problems or require further accommodations.

Acknowledgements: This online micro-credential upskilling course is offered through the CSU Ag Upskilling program.  Development was supported in part by funding from the CHS Foundation, administered by Colorado State University (2022).  The CHS Foundation, funded by charitable gifts from CHS Inc., is focused on developing a new generation of agriculture leaders for life-long success. Together, with our partners, we are igniting innovation and driving excellence in agriculture education, cultivating high impact programs for rural youth and accelerating potential for careers in agriculture.  Learn more at CHS Foundation.

Summary: No matter the particular plant scenario you are working with (ie field crop, pastureland, Greenhouse business, turf grass, home garden and landscaping, etc.) being able to accurately estimate the water needs and timing of irrigation will help lower costs, as well as preserve limited water supplies. In this lesson you will learn how to use a specific irrigation app which has been developed by a group of public researchers and is free for your use. This app, along with the foundational irrigation principles you learned in previous lessons and/or from your previous knowledge will help you maximize the effects of your irrigation applications while minimizing costs. This lesson uses a Colorado field example.

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:

• Set up a field in the Water Irrigation Scheduler for Efficient Application (WISE) App to schedule irrigations during one growing season.
• Input irrigation amounts in WISE based on estimated soil water deficits (D) and the crop’s management allowed depletion (MAD) during one growing season.
• Interpret the WISE water balance outputs.

Time Required: We estimate it will take you 2 hours to complete the lesson.  You can work on it at your own pace and do not have to complete it in one setting.

Who Would Benefit:  A variety of people will find this upskilling course useful from adults to high school students.  This includes careers (or hobbyists) growing plants (ie field crops, greenhouse production, turf and lawns, gardens, etc.) and wishing to save money and water by better timing irrigation applications.

Upskill Credentials: If you finish the entire course including passing a final quiz (which you can take up to 3 times), then you will earn a badge certificate of completion.  It has been approved for 2 Crop Management CEUs through the national Certified Crop Adviser program.

Instructor: Dr. Allan A. Andales is a Professor and Extension Specialist of Irrigation and Water Science in the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University (CSU). He has a joint appointment in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Dr. Andales applies principles of soil and water engineering, environmental biophysics, and numerical methods to study the effects of management practices and environmental factors on field hydrology and agricultural production. Experimental data are used to develop computer models and decision support tools that can improve agricultural water use efficiency and water quality. He is a member of the CSU Extension Water Resource Management Team that engages the public in addressing agricultural and urban water issues in Colorado.

ADA Accessibility: We have done our best to follow ADA best practices. Let us know if you run into any problems or require further accommodations.

Acknowledgements: This online micro-credential upskilling course is offered through the CSU Ag Upskilling program.  Development was supported in part by funding from the CHS Foundation, administered by Colorado State University (2022).  The CHS Foundation, funded by charitable gifts from CHS Inc., is focused on developing a new generation of agriculture leaders for life-long success. Together, with our partners, we are igniting innovation and driving excellence in agriculture education, cultivating high impact programs for rural youth and accelerating potential for careers in agriculture.  Learn more at CHS Foundation.

Curso de Cuidado y Manejo del Caballo para Vaqueros y Procesadores - Versión en Español es ofrecido por la Corporación HorseQuest para el público en general, productores de ganado de engorda y empleados que aprenderán cómo manejar con seguridad los caballos (horses) cuando se trabaja en los corrales de alimentación (feedlot), así como también el cuidado y manejo básica del caballo.

Para obtener más información o para inscribirse contacte a Kathy Anderson, en la Universidad de Nebraska-Lincoln, a la dirección de correo electrónico: kanderson1@unl.edu 

Para asistencia técnica por favor contacte campushelp@extension.org

Este curso requiere una cuota de inscripción de $25. Una vez pagada la cuota de inscripción, recibirá un correo electrónico con la clave de acceso.

Por favor, vaya a: Pen Rider and Processors Horse Safety and Care Certification Course (http://marketplace.unl.edu/extension/programs/feedlot-horse.html) para registrarse.

Design Your Succession Plan for Small Business workshops assists small business owners to get started on their succession plan and shape the future ownership of their business. This workbook will help a business owner get started on a succession plan; learn how to open lines of communication with family, employees, and partners to create a shared vision; and construct a plan to work with professionals who will assist in the transition process.

The fee for this course is $10.  To purchase and enroll in the course, click the following button:

The Designed for Impact: Effective Extension Education Series equips educators with practical skills and knowledge to improve their teaching and increase learner engagement. This six-part series is designed for Extension professionals to create an outcome-based instructional design, a learner-centered teaching plan, and an end-of-event survey. After this series, participants can reuse the context-specific templates and guidance to develop future educational programs. 

The Designed for Impact: The Effective Extension Series enables educators to gain practical skills and knowledge to improve their teaching and increase learner engagement. This six-part series is designed for Extension professionals to create an outcome-based instructional design, a learner-centered teaching plan, and an end-of-event survey. After this series, participants can reuse the context-specific templates and guidance to develop future educational programs. 

Visit Click2ComputerScience for more resources like this.

This course is designed as a self-paced learning environment, delivered entirely online with video, lectures, reading and progression quizzing.  Learning content is based on research publications and extension resources developed by national experts. The targeted learner is expected to have completed undergraduate level coursework in genetics. A final competency test will be given online.

The course has two parts. Part 1 provides the learner with a baseline in the biology of oomycete disease in soybean. Part 2 is focused on the resistance breeding process for both single gene and partial resistance using naturally occurring variation in the soybean germplasm. Learners will be able to compare the genetics that differentiates seed products and describe the work and genetics applications breeders accomplished in developing these new products.

Please contact Kathy Schindler (kschindler1@unl.edu, 402-472-1730) with questions about registering.

The purpose of Documenting Children’s Learning is to learn how to document children’s learning through observation and to prepare for in-person training offered by Nebraska Extension. This course is developed using Flash content so your device must be able to play flash in order to access the course.

For more information contact Katie Krause, UNL Extension, katie.krause@unl.edu

This online training serves as a resource for farmers, veterinarians, and other stakeholders in the dairy industry, supporting the training of farm workers on antimicrobial stewardship, disease identification in adult cows, and adherence to farm protocols. 

Course Goals

Learners will be able to describe procedures for accurate identification and options for treatment for cases of mastitis, metritis, and lameness in adult dairy cows.

Course Format

This course is available fully online with no scheduled class sessions or fixed due dates. You can start the course at any time and work through it independently at your own pace.

Course Organization

This antimicrobial stewardship dairy training consists of six modules. Individual modules can be viewed in any order, however, following the order of presentation may facilitate learning and discussion on specific topics on the farm. Modules include:

1. Antibiotic Resistance
2. Lameness
3. Mastitis
4. Metritis
5. Treatment Protocol
6. Visual Exams

Certificate of Completion

A certification of completion is available as an option. The certificate will be provided upon completion of all six modules.

Technology Requirements

• For best performance, a computer or tablet that supports the most recent web browser versions and is capable of playing mp4 files. It is recommended to use a computer five years old or newer with at least 1GB of RAM and high-speed internet connection. Some features may not be compatible with mobile devices.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader. Can be downloaded here for free.
• The recommended web browsers are Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and Microsoft Edge.

Contact Us

If you have questions about the course, please contact the instructors: Greg Habing at habing.4@osu.edu or Richard V. Pereira at rvpereira@ucdavis.edu. 

This program was a recipient of the 2025 Recognition of good practices and innovations in sustainable livestock transformation, One Health, animal health, and Reference Centres.

Funding provided by the Antimicrobial Use and Stewardship (AUS) Branch of the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

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The Effective Extension Program Design, Teaching, and Evaluation Series enables educators to gain practical skills and knowledge that will improve their teaching and increase learner engagement. This six-part series is specifically designed for Extension professionals to create an outcome-based instructional design, a learner-centered teaching plan, and an end-of-event survey. After this series participants will be able to reuse the context-specific templates and guidance to develop future educational programs. 

eLearn Urban Forestry is a self-led, online, distance learning program geared speciifcally toward beginning urban foresters and those allied professionals working in and around urban and urbanizing landscapes, including service foresters, natural resource planners, landscape architects, city officials and public works employees.  The program is comprised of ten learning modules:  The Benefits and Costs of the Urban Forest; Tree Growth and Development; Urban Soils; Site, Tree Selection and Planting; Arboriculture; Assessing and Managing Tree Risk; Tree Disorder Diagnosis and Management; Trees and Construction; Public Policy and Urban Forestry; and Urban Forest Management.

For more information or to enroll, contact Leslie Boby, Southern Regional Extension Forestry, University of Georgia at lboby@sref.info.