Author: William Crawford
Major Program: KSU Small Farm Program
Online meetings have become the norm for Cooperative Extension personnel and many other professionals across the country during this unprecedented time of COVID-19. Meetings traditionally held in person with stakeholders too have shifted to this virtual landscape. The role of extension associates, agents and assistants has expanded to include not only the dissemination of content specific information, but also to teach the skills necessary to receive said information. Farmers, small
Author: Laura Rogers
Kentucky State University’s Small Farm Program and Beginning Farmer Project, in collaboration with the University of Kentucky and Kentucky Highlands of London, KY, worked together to provide a virtual zoom class on May 12, 2020. , This virtual zoom meeting taught web design with Ken Bates, Sandra Birch (KSU specialists), and Shelton Ansley of Kentucky Highlands. 14 Stakeholders participated with 10 signing up to continue with the additional classes to receive from Go Daddy for two years, a
Author: Edwin Chavous
The Kentucky State University (KSU) Small Farm Program is an Extension program designed to help farm families with decision-making skills to solve farm and home problems. It includes educational programs that emphasize farm production, farm management, and marketing. It also includes the use and understanding of local county programs and USDA agencies and their programs, plus providing technical assistance in completing applications for the program and the entire application process.  
Author: William Rogers
Back in the 1950s, Farmers never dreamed of using technology on their farms. However, in 2020 this is no longer the case. Today Farmers are using more and more technology in their everyday operation. Drones, GPS tractors, and computers are just a few examples of new technology present. Results are farmers depend heavily on these new devices now more than ever in the history of our country. Due to the dependence, I have taug
Author: Tehran Jewell
Farmers Grows 30 000 Vegetable Transplants on the First TryThis agent has worked with a Warren County KY farmer in cooperation with Kentucky State University’s (KSU) Small Farm Program. Initially we worked work with this farmer in order to construct a whole-farm plan. Although that process is ongoing and arduous, the farming season has come on in full swing! The farmer has started the farming season and having partnered with KSU Area Agents on the Small Farm Program in cooperat
Author: Danny Adams
During the covid 19 pandemic a new beef cattle farmer with approximately 10 head of cattle called and said he had a heifer cow having a calf and it was hung at the hips in the heifer. He had never had experience in delivering a calf from a cow. He told me he had tried pulling the calf with no success and nothing was working. I asked him how he was pulling the calf and he said straight back. I told him to pull the calf down toward the cows feet and give me a call back if that doesn't work.&nb
Author: Marion Simon
With the COVID-19 causing havoc with planned Extension programs and people’s lives, we began trying to determine a way to remotely offer the popular “The Third Thursday Thing” sustainable agriculture program. The Marc 2020 ”Third Thursday” workshop was cancelled due to time and reorganization.Then we settled on a recorded Zoom meeting for April’s “Third Thursday with the Louisville, KY branch of AgSafe with te topic of Safety related to COVID-19 on
Kentucky State University’s Small Farm Program and Beginning Farmer Project, in collaboration with the University of Kentucky and Cedar Ridge Ministry, worked together to distribute seven tons of Yukon Gold seed potatoes to the beginning and minority farmers across Kentucky to plant in the spring of 2019. Susan and George Miller, Lincoln County, wanted to produce potatoes to sell at the farmers’ market. They had funds to purchase seed potatoes to plant, but money for this
This agent has worked with a Warren County KY farmer in cooperation with Kentucky State University’s (KSU) Small Farm Program. Initially we worked work with this farmer in order to construct a whole-farm plan. As a beginning farmer, the farmer has successfully finished a farming season and having partnered with KSU Area Agents on the Small Farm Program in cooperation with Russellville Urban Gardening Project in Bowling Green & Russellville to connect with limited-resourced landow
A Mother in Franklin County, Kentucky, Emailed KSU Area Agent for Small Farm’s Requesting USDA Rural Housing Technical Assistances for Her Son In Shelby County, Kentucky The Kentucky State University (KSU) Small Farm Program is an Extension program designed to help farm families with decision-making skills to solve farm and home problems. It includes educational programs that emphasize farm production, farm management, and marketing. It also includes the use and understanding of
The Burley Tobacco Growers Co-op was formed in 1921 by a group of farmers trying to achieve better prices for their tobacco. Starting in 1940 the BTGCA helped administer a Tobacco Program that stabilized prices by controlling production. The program worked extremely well for more than 60 years. The Tobacco Program helped small farmers feed and education their families for generations. In 2004 there was a Tobacco Program buyout of all quota holders and growers. Which all
The old Kentucky saying …one may have heard…"When people are without a purpose they perish” means that when individuals are without a purpose, they fail. Unfortunately, some may try to develop a purpose by turning to substance abuse which alienates them from family, friends, and community, and often results in incarceration.Most of the time, when someone ends up in the prison system, or drug rehabilitation, they have hit rock bottom. Most are separated from their f
Many small and minority farmers in Kentucky raise beef cattle with most selling weaned calves at their local stockyards. Although some farmers use up-to-date and Extension recommended production methods such as deworming, vaccinations, and implants, most of the small farmers do not have handling facilities to work the cattle, are not aware of up-to-date practices, or feel that the costs are too high or they are too small to do the recommended practices.In May of 2018, the Kentucky St
Limited-Resourced Farmer began as a city-dweller but has since began farming.This agent has worked with a Warren County KY farmer in cooperation with Kentucky State University’s (KSU) Small Farm Program. Initially we worked work with this farmer in order to explain and introduce this her to land owners needing a tenant-farmer agreement to produce profit on-farm. The tenant-farmer has lived in the Mayfield, KY for over 20 years. Fast forward to today and having begun a farming l
Soybean Cyst Nematodes reduces soybean yields for KY farmers in their fields. University of Ky's Dr. Carl Bradley with the help of Ky Soybean Association provided grant funds to conduct five free SCN soil test in KY's counties with 5000 or more soybean acres. Fifteen years ago I sampled Wayne County's soybean farmers fields and found 0 to low risk of SCN's in Wayne County's soybean fields. Because of good crop rotation and an area that hasn't had a problem with SCN i
Madison County Farmer Receive Technical Assistance from Kentucky State University, Area Agent for Small Farm ProgramThe Ballew family have nearly 500 acres of farm land in Madison County, Kentucky. The late Ballew grandfather and late Ballew father paved the way for the family farm. The Ballew brothers Leroy and Lonzo are the third family generation farmers. Leroy and Lonzo Ballew are involved with different USDA agencies to mention a couple Natural Resource Conservation Service, the Kentu
Through the Kentucky State University Small Farm Program, KSU Small-Scale Farmer Grant Program, and the KSU Beginning Farmer Grant, in collaboration with the University of Kentucky Extension, a limited resource dairy farmer received much-needed materials to process and sell cheese that was produced on the farm.Area Small Farm Extension Agent, Laura Rogers, organized a workshop in Laurel County, at the Laurel County Extension Office, on the KSU Small-Scale Farmer Grant Program. Clara of Wil
The Kentucky State University (KSU) Small Farm Program is an Extension program designed to help farm families with decision-making skills to solve farm and home problems. It includes educational programs that emphasize farm production, farm management, and marketing. It also includes the use and understanding of local county programs and USDA agencies and their programs, plus providing technical assistance in completing applications for the programs and the entire application process. &nbs
