FPAC 2025 Research
Brad Shelton, Superintendent
1117 State Road 458
Bedford, IN 47421
812-279-8554
sheltonb@purdue.edu
https://ag.purdue.edu/department/arge/PACs/fpac/fpac.html
Indiana Beef Evaluation Program (IBEP)
Purpose: Provide a common environment for growing young bulls from cooperators in Indiana as well as surrounding states. To provide a source of superior, performance tested bulls to commercial cattlemen intent on improving their herds.
Contact: Nick Minton, Department of Animal Sciences
Cross-Breed EPD Development Collaboration with Simmental Assoc
Purpose: Early 2000’s American Simmental Assoc wanted to develop cross-breeding EPDs and was looking for large commercial herds with phenotypic data. Feldun maintains a Simmental x Angus cow herd. Feldun has provided pedigree and phenotypic back to the early 1980s and continues to provide data from birth until death, or until the animal is culled. Approximately 8000 animal points and 1000 DNA samples have been submitted to the Simmental Assoc to help with this effort.
Contact: Brad Shelton, Feldun Purdue Ag Center
Purpose: Provide unbiased data on newer herd sires that Select Sires has added to their stud line up. Feldun utilizes sires through the AI program that suit the needs of the cow herd. Data from birth through slaughter, for steers, is provided to Select Sires.
Contact: Brad Shelton, Feldun Purdue Ag Center
Forest Inventory Studies
Purpose: Provides location for woodland research activity across the 234 acres of forest at the Feldun-Purdue Agricultural Center. Current effort includes forest inventory. Feldun-PAC possesses mature woods with a long data base history dating back to the early 1950's.
Contact: Don Carlson, Department of Forestry & Natural Resources
Purdue Automated Agricultural Weather Station (PAAWS)
Purpose: Automated collection of weather data from this site is sent to the Indiana State Climate
Office at Purdue University - data can be observed at: http://climate.agry.purdue.edu
Contact: Beth Hall, Department of Agronomy
National Weather Service Station (NWS)
Purpose: Manual collection of daily weather observations from this site are sent to the NWS via
a web-based application known as WxCoder. Data has been recorded at Feldun since 1893.
Contact: Brad Herold, National Weather Service
U.S. Surface Climate Reference Network (USCRN)
Purpose: Provide a continuous series of climate observations for monitoring trends in the nation’s climate and for supporting climate-impact research
Contact: National Centers for Environmental Information.
Corn and Soybean Disease Sentinel Plots
Purpose: To monitor for the on-set of various diseases in corn and soybeans throughout the growing season.
Contact: Darcy Telenko, Department of Botany and Pathology
Insect Pest Monitoring Network
Purpose: Monitor insect pests of corn, soybean, wheat, and pastures.
Contact: John Obermeyer and Laura Ingwell, Department of Entomology
Black Vulture Monitoring
Purpose: Gain a better understanding of black vulture behavior in order to reduce or prevent livestock depredation and conflict with humans.
Contact: Pat Zollman and Marian Wahl – Department of Forestry and Natural Resources
Effectiveness of Annual Ryegrass to mitigate negative effects of fragipan soils.
Purpose: Establishment of annual ryegrass on fragipan soils and measure differences in soybean production as compared to no ryegrass treatment. Measure fragipan depths overtime.
Contact: Brad Shelton, Feldun Purdue Ag Center; Claire Phillips – USDA/ARS – Ames, IA
Soybean supplementation following timed-artificial insemination in beef heifers on fresh pasture
Purpose: Determine the effectiveness supplementing soybean hull pellets of heifers grazing washy pasture immediately after insemination.
Contact: Griffin Nichols, Department of Animal Science
Addition of sulfur to corn and forage sorghum, grown for silage, and the resulting nitrate and crude protein levels
It has been suggested that the addition of sulfur fertilizer to a growing crop improves the ability of the plant to convert nitrogen to crude protein and reduce potential for elevated nitrate levels. Crops will be fertilized with and without sulfur fertilizer.
Contact: Brad Shelton, Feldun Purdue Ag Center
Croplan – Anthracnose in sorghum x sudangrass collaboration
Purpose: In 2022 a variety of sorghum x sudangrass was grown at Feldun for baleage. The variety selected was considered resistant to anthracnose. After the 2nd cutting the stand was heavily infected with anthracnose. Croplan provided 9 varieties to better evaluate their resistance to anthracnose in a warm humid environment in Indiana.
Contact: Brad Shelton, Feldun Purdue Ag Center