On December 10, 2021, an EF-4 tornado destroyed the University of Kentucky Research and Education Center (UKREC) located in Princeton, KY. Dr. Carl Bradley runs an applied plant pathology research program on diseases of soybean and small grain crops (barley, rye, and wheat) based out of the UKREC. Unfortunately, the tornado destroyed all facilities (labs, offices, etc.) and equipment (lab equipment, field equipment, vehicles, etc.) associated with Dr. Bradley’s program. This provided several obstacles ahead of the 2022 field research season.

With the help and generosity of the McCracken County Extension Office and the University of Kentucky College of Engineering – Paducah Campus (located at Western Kentucky Community and Technical College in Paducah), Dr. Bradley was able to obtain office and workspace for he and his crew to prepare for the upcoming 2022 field research season.

Field research trials were established by hiring a contract research company to plant the trials. In total, over 1,500 soybean research plots evaluating different disease management practices have been established for the 2022 field season. Over $200,000 in external funding was obtained for conducting this research, which is used to maintain hired personnel in the Bradley lab and to support the additional costs of conducting research due to the current limited facilities at the UKREC. Results of the field research trials are used by farmers, crop consultants, Extension agents, industry personnel, and others to help make field crop disease management decisions.