The Wayne County KSU/UK Extension Service Staff have been helping beginning farmers get started by having demonstration equipment for them to use without having to purchase the equipment themselves. Ninety five percent of the time the equipment is used for Wayne County farmers. 

A neighboring Clinton County Beginning farmer was planning on planting 4 acres of pumpkins by hand on the weekends after he worked his full time job during the week. A Wayne County vegetable farmer told him about the pumpkin planter equipment the Wayne County Extension Service has and he gave me a call to see if he could use it. I told him Wayne County farmers get to use the equipment first, but I would check with everyone I knew that wanted to use the planter and see if we could get a weekend for him to use the pumpkin planter, so he wouldn't have to plant the pumpkins by hand.

Twenty five years ago there was a need for a pumpkin planter in Wayne County to plant pumpkins for Cumberland Farm Products a wholesale produce distributor for Wayne County vegetable producers. The KY Dept of Ag was giving $5000.00 grants out for new alternative crops other than tobacco. The grants were a cost share with other farm related organizations and needed fifty percent or more coming from those organizations. The local Wayne County Soil Conservation Service was willing to help with the expense on the planter since it was a no-till planter and it was going to help in soil erosion. 

The UK Ag Agent and the KSU Small Farm Assistant went to the Farm Machinery Show in Louisville and talked with the representative on the Monosem vacuum planter company and the two row planter was purchased for around $11,000.00.

Wayne County farmers and neighboring county farmers have been using the pumpkin/sweet corn planter for twenty five years now. 

The KSU/UK Extension Service Staff have been overseeing the use of the planter for twenty-five years and the planter is still in excellent working condition.

 The two row vacuum pumpkin planter would cost more than $25.000,00 to purchase new now. Because Wayne County Extension Service has this pumpkin planter if saves new and beginning farmers this investment and helps them with their entrepreneur ideas without the large investment in a planter until they are sure this is what they want to do.

The beginning Clinton County farmer planted his four acres and had excellent results using the planter.

Over the 25 years several different farmers have use the planter for planting pumpkins and sweet corn some have decided not to continue to grow these crops, while others have decided to still sell these items and have purchased a planter themselves.

The KSU/UK Extension Service helps provide all the educational production information that beginning farmers will need to make their operation a success.