The 2022 Purdue Small Farm Education Field Day was a big success. Nearly 72% of attendees reported that they learned something new. Nearly half indicated they plan to adopt recommended practices for diversified farming systems, and over a third (36.0%) plan to adopt recommended practices for creating, improving, or strengthening their business. Half (52.0%) indicated they plan to adopt practices for horticulture and the environment or practices that reduce negative environmental impact due to horticultural operations. Nearly half plan to adopt practices/technologies for the conservation of resources (48.0%) or increased efficiencies (44.0%).
Attendees commented ……
- ‘Diversity of information presented.
- Great field day. Jam-packed with information and experts. Lots of opportunities to question the experts.
- Great people and resources!
- I believe the diversity accurately represented many aspects of Indiana agriculture for large and small-scale operations.
- I recently got into the urban farming industry in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and this program has helped me get the wheels in my head turning.
- I think it was a great event to learn about small farms and different practices or crops. It was also a great networking event.
- I think it was a very informative event. Lots of good resources and networking as well as practices. Very educational.
- I thought the field day was well organized.
- New information presented in an understandable format by very competent professionals.
- The event was educational, local, had very knowledgeable presenters, helpful exhibitors, good handouts, and I got a free frozen treat.
- Up-to-date practices, evidence-based knowledge, concrete
- Very informative to see a high-volume production set up, including plant training systems and watering/fertigation systems, applied to a wide variety of crops.’
The event was held at the Purdue Student Farm located in West Lafayette, Indiana. The field day featured an array of “demonstration stations” on the farm where participants learned about a variety of topics:
- Student farm packhouse tour and overview of good agriculture practices (GAPs)
- Weed identification and understanding of thresholds
- Summer cover crops for weed suppression
- Infield soil diagnostics and soil health
- Vegetable disease, prevention, identification, and management
- Scouting for mites in high tunnel crops
- Black soldier fly composting
- Caterpillar tunnels
- Beans, onion, sweet pepper, eggplant, and tomato varieties in various production
Save the date for the next field day – July 27, 2023
Educational topics for the 2023 field day will be available in May. To learn more about the field day, visit our webpage at www.purdue.edu/hla/sites/studentfarm/events/ or contact Lori Jolly-Brown or Petrus Langenhoven.
