Paul Davis

Unit Coordinator
Extension Agent, Agriculture and Natural Resources
Crop & Soil Sciences
(804) 652-4743
padavis@vt.edu

Much of my Extension career has focused on agriculture profitability, maintaining Charles City County’s rural characteristics, and improving our natural resources, such as water quality.  All of these objectives are being accomplished with our development of the Innovative Cropping System (ICS).  ICS is a crop management system centered around continuous no-till planting, “Never-Till”, along with winter annual cover crops, “Never-Fallow”, in a grain crop rotation operation.  We have fine-tuned this cropping system with nitrogen injection on corn, and variable nitrogen rate applications on wheat to improve overall nitrogen use efficiency.  This crop management system reduces fertilizer usage, soil erosion, and fuel oil while improving soil and water quality of our streams, rivers and the Chesapeake Bay.

By working in partnership with the Colonial Soil & Water Conservation District, and Virginia Tech soil and grain specialists, we have helped revolutionize crop production not only in our county, but also in Virginia and the United States. 

Education

1986  Virginia Polytechnic Institute, Blacksburg, VA, Master of Science, Weed Science
1981  Virginia Polytechnic Institute, Blacksburg, VA, Bachelor of Science, Integrated Pest Management
1979  Ferrum College, Franklin, VA, Associate Degree, General Agriculture

Experience

2004-present Extension Agent ANR/Unit Coordinator, New Kent & Charles City, VA
1989-2004 Extension Agent ANR, New Kent, VA
1986-1989 Chesapeake Bay Education Program Coordinator, VCE, Richmond, VA
1984-1986 Graduate Research Assistant, VPI&SU (educ. leave)
1981-1984 Extension Agent ANR, Fluvanna, VA
1974-1976 Heavy Equipment Operator, U.S. Army, Texas

Honors & Awards

2008 Excellence In Small Grain Extension Programming
2007 Virginia Agribusiness Council's 2007 Extension Service Award
2006 No-Till Innovation Award 2006, 15th Annual National No-Tillage Conference