Many people are not able to attend Kentucky State University horticulture extension events for a variety of reasons- work schedules, family obligations, distance to travel; or may have difficulty participating in field tours due to mobility, health issues, or sensitivity to heat or cold.  At the KSU September 2019 Third Thursday Thing, with the topic of horticulture and pawpaws, we utilized technology to help mitigate these issues. For the first time, the entire event was videoed and live streamed via Facebook, and the video archived on Facebook and Vimeo for future viewing.  Pawpaw orchard tours were also filmed and beamed onto the screen and sound system inside so that participants who had physical limitations or did not choose to go outside could see the orchard tour in real-time. Six out of the 150 in-person attendees stayed inside to view the video rather than go on the orchard walking tour. The facebook live video reached 5,747 people with 2,333 video views, and 52 people making comments and/or asking questions remotely.  This made the event accessible and disseminated information to over 5,700 people who would not otherwise have been able to attend. We will utilize social media and video technology at future events to reach people not able to attend in person. Making information available via social media is especially valuable at this time due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Positive feedback included:  

“I am so thrilled to find the Facebook broadcast could be viewed! I missed out yesterday because I was at work but was able to come home and start watching it last night and now this morning I've put it live-streamed into my TV and watching the rest of it.  I cannot thank you guys enough for doing this! Those of us who can't be there because of a variety of reasons are really going to learn a lot!  I wanted express my appreciation for the level of technology that you guys are using to share everything about Pawpaws.  It seems that you just have a wealth of information but also a way to share it that makes learning fun.”

“Thank you for the live stream. I learned a lot about Pawpaws.”

“This is so cool! The orchard looks beautiful and the information is so helpful.”