Carlisle County CES

County Emphasis:

To Empower Farmers to Produce Quality Food to Enhance Sustainability and Diminish Food Insecurity

Concentration 1:

Plant Production and Management

Concentration 2:

Sustainability, Natural Resources and Wildlife Management, and Environment

Situation:

Optimizing plant, crop and forage production is paramount as Kentucky producers navigate the challenges of economics, climate variability, and evolving consumer demands. Key challenges and strategies to enhance sustainable practices across various agricultural domains include:  rising input costs (seeds, fertilizers, machinery), crop price fluctuations, knowledge of soil health, and water management to produce high yielding crops for long-term productivity.

To meet the needs of producers, agents and specialists will continue to disseminate research-based information, offer workshops, field days, online resources, support local farmer’s markets, community gardens, community supported agriculture, and urban horticulture initiatives.

Kentucky is blessed with a rich array of natural resources, including vast forests, abundant waterways, and wildlife. With woodlands in each of the 120 counties and forest industries in 110 counties, Kentuckians in both rural and urban areas all derive benefits from woodlands. Hardwood forests cover 50% of Kentucky and 473,000 individuals own 88% of the 12.4 million forested acres in the state. Forests stimulate the Kentucky economy through employment and production to the tune of $13 billion annually and there are over 28,000 jobs in Kentucky’s forest sector. Forests provide recreational opportunities and are a powerful tool in efforts to promote sustainability and support native diversity. Wildlife management programs assist landowners through both urban and rural wildlife management and damage control initiatives.

County Situation:

A farm is defined by the United States government as “any place that produced and sold, or normally would produce and sell, $1,000 or more of agricultural products during the census year.” While Kentucky’s population is increasing, the number of people living on farms is decreasing. Therefore, the need exists to educate people, particularly youth, about the impact that it makes on their daily lives, as well as the importance of agriculture to the commonwealth. The top agricultural products produced on Kentucky farms are changing.

 The Carlisle County 4-H Council, the Carlisle County Agricultural Advisory Council, and the Carlisle County Extension Council all identified increasing agricultural literacy as a programming priority for Carlisle County Extension. According to the CEDIK Agriculture and Food County Profile for Carlisle County, in 2022, Carlisle County had 248 farm operations on 107,565 acres, which represented 81.3% of total county land. In comparison, Kentucky’s farm operations made up 51.6% of the state’s total land area, and U.S. farm operations made up 40.5% of total land area in the country. As a result, the agricultural industry is important to the economy and people of Carlisle County.

Long-Term Outcomes:

• Achieve long-term sustainability and resilience in agricultural practices through the widespread adoption of practices that enhance soil productivity, conserve water quality and quantity, and optimize resource use, leading to resilient agricultural systems capable of withstanding economic and environmental fluctuations.
• Wildlife habitat is increased and improved.

Intermediate Outcomes:

• Explore the use of emerging production technologies to achieve increased adoption of technologies such as monitoring crop productivity, crop quality, soil health, and soil moisture levels across Kentucky's agricultural sectors. 
• New or improved practices, behaviors, or choices that will occur in participants or communities because of the knowledge or awareness they gained from their contact with Extension (these are behavior change outcomes that are typically measured in follow-up evaluations because they require time to mature.) 

Initial Outcomes:

• Increase adoption of data-driven practices through immediate trainings, workshops, and field visits to educate producers on the latest data-driven agricultural technologies, focusing on efficient resource utilization, pest resistance, and yield improvements. 
• Increase knowledge and skills of individuals in both urban and rural settings to address immediate wildlife-related challenges and enhance biodiversity.  

Evaluation:

Outcome: Improved production practices and economic return of production inputs

Indicator: Number of participants who report increased economic return from improved production practices recommended in Plant Production and Management-related Extension programs.

Method: Surveys, participant feedback, CES agent feedback

Timeline: Frequently to annual

Outcome: Increased crop management knowledge and skills

Indicator: 

• Number of participants who increased their knowledge of risk management tools. 
• Number of participants who increased their use of risk management tools. 
• Number of participants who reported increased knowledge of plant production and/or management practices.
• Number of participants who reported reducing their inputs or costs in their plant production
• Number of participants who reported increased efficiency in their plant production and/or management

Method: Attendance and program evaluations / surveys

Timeline: Ongoing/Annual

Outcome: Stakeholders have knowledge and tools needed to better protect crops from weeds and understand the benefits of adopting best management practices for weed and resistance mitigation. Stakeholders are more aware of UK weed science research

Indicator: Number of stakeholders who reported increased knowledge of research-based weed identification and/or weed management practices for crops grown in Kentucky.

Method: Primarily surveys, consultations

Timeline: Annual

Learning Opportunities:

Audience: Grain crop producers

Project or Activity: Grain Crops Management, including Corn, Soybean, Wheat, Barley, Rye, Canola and others

Content or Curriculum: Plant & Soil Science Grain crops specialists and other UK extension specialists with grain crops responsibilities.

Inputs: Plant & Soil Science Grain crops specialists and other UK extension specialists with grain crops responsibilities

Date: Annual, Frequent

Audience: Grain crop, forage, tobacco, and hemp producers, agribusiness and government agencies

Project or Activity: Programs that support soil fertility and soil management practices to improve crop production, reduce negative environmental impacts, and enhance overall profitability in a sustainable manner.

Content or Curriculum: Educational materials to include Publications, Fact Sheets, Newsletters, Workshops, Field Days, County Meetings, Regional Meetings, TV and Radio Broadcasts, Videos, Field Visits, emails and phone calls

Inputs: UK Soil and Crops Specialists, experts and interested parties

Date: Frequently to annual

Audience: Home owners and consumers

Project or Activity: Programming for home gardening and landscape management

Content or Curriculum: Publications, Fact Sheets, Workshops, County Meetings, Regional Meetings, emails and phone calls

Inputs: Extension Specialists, USDA funding, county agents, KDA, Kentucky Extension Master Gardener Program

Date: Annual 

Audience: Adults 

Project or Activity: IPM and Pesticide Programs 

Content or Curriculum: Educational materials and program delivery 

Inputs: UK and subject matter Specialists 

Dates: Ongoing  

Audience: General public 

Project or Activity: Pest and disease identification 

Content or Curriculum: Clinical diagnoses and trainings  

Inputs: Diagnostic labs and services 

Dates: Ongoing/as needed

Evaluation:

Outcome: Improved production practices and economic return of production inputs

Indicator: Number of participants who report increased economic return from improved production practices recommended in Plant Production and Management-related Extension programs.

Method: Surveys, participant feedback, CES agent feedback

Timeline: Frequently to annual

Outcome: Increased crop management knowledge and skills

Indicator: 

• Number of participants who increased their knowledge of risk management tools. 
• Number of participants who increased their use of risk management tools. 
• Number of participants who reported increased knowledge of plant production and/or management practices.
• Number of participants who reported reducing their inputs or costs in their plant production
• Number of participants who reported increased efficiency in their plant production and/or management

Method: Attendance and program evaluations / surveys

Timeline: Ongoing/Annual

Outcome: Stakeholders have knowledge and tools needed to better protect crops from weeds and understand the benefits of adopting best management practices for weed and resistance mitigation. Stakeholders are more aware of UK weed science research

Indicator: Number of stakeholders who reported increased knowledge of research-based weed identification and/or weed management practices for crops grown in Kentucky.

Method: Primarily surveys, consultations

Timeline: Annual