Area growers can get a glimpse of new technologies and practices at the Dell-Cam Farm Inc. at Altheimer Thursday, July 26.
The farm will host the National Black Growers Council (NBGC) Model Farm Series Field Day at 8 a.m. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. at 556 Elm Rose Lane (16401 U.S. 79N), according to a news release from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff School of Agriculture, Fisheries and Human Sciences.
Dell-Cam Farm is one of five model farms on the 2018 NBGC tour. The field day will consist of designated stations to discuss the latest agricultural technologies and their combined usage with various U.S. Department of Agriculture programs.
A scientist or expert along with a practicing farmer will be at each field day station stop.
“NBGC’s mission is to improve the efficiency, productivity and sustainability of black row-crop farmers,” said Dewayne Goldmon, owner of Dell-Cam Farm and an advisor to NBGC. “Having the farmers present to validate the experts’ information is valuable. They tell the rest of the story.”
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The tours will be followed by a brief program and lunch at the S.J. Parker Extension Complex at UAPB.
Corporate participation has increased in 2018, including representatives from Monsanto, FMC, Syngenta, John Deere, Case New Holland, Great American Crop Insurance and Bunge. USDA agencies, led by the Natural Resources Conservation Services, will also participate.
Monsanto’s African Americans in Monsanto (AAIM), a business resource group focused on the continued development of its African American employees, will handle registration and field day logistics, according to the release.
Several learning stations are included in the tour, including information on variety/hybrid selection for corn and soybeans, weed control technologies in corn and soybean, rice production (including row rice systems), irrigation efficiency, precision agriculture and big data usage.
Featured USDA programs will include cover crop usage, residue management, land leveling, tail water recovery systems, conservation buffer strips, enhanced wildlife habitats, risk management tools and other components of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) programs.
“UAPB is partnering with the National Black Growers Council to provide Arkansas growers the opportunity to visit the Dell-Cam Farm, and to take part in field day activities as they learn with row crop growers from across the country – Alabama, Louisiana, North Carolina, Mississippi and Virginia – on the NBGC tour,” Henry English, director of the UAPB Small Farm Program, said.
The S.J. Parker Extension Complex is located on the corner of L.A. “Prexy” Davis Drive and Oliver Road, off University Drive at Pine Bluff.
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff offers all of its Extension and Research programs and services without discrimination.
— Carol Sanders is a writer/editor at UAPB School of Agriculture, Fisheries and Human Sciences.