Kentucky commercial growers produce a wide range of specialty crops, such as vegetables and fruit. In 2017, cash receipts for fruit and vegetable production totaled $41.6 million (National Agriculture Statistics Service and Economic Research Commission). Direct sales make up a more than 50% of produce sales in the state (National Agriculture Statistics Service and Economic Research Commission), which allows for improved access to local foods. In addition, many home gardeners also grow their own fruit and vegetables for personal consumption. Both commercial and home growers of specialty crops can face many challenges that may limit produce yield and/or quality. Thus, there is a need for education about proper production practices and integrated pest management as a way for growers to continue to produce high quality specialty crops in the state of Kentucky.      

As a way to educate producers about the various aspects of specialty crops production, a webinar series was developed by University of Kentucky Extension Specialists. During the months of September through December, 2019, a one and a half hour program was provided two to three times a month on a specific specialty crop or production system. Specialist and selected County Extension Agents provided PowerPoint presentations via Zoom. County Extension Agents facilitated each session to local growers live. This program format resulted in improved audience reach, while reducing travel costs and time for Specialists. 

Overall, the nine webinar sessions were attended by a total of 296 individuals representing 41 counties from across the state. While this program was developed for commercial producers, sessions were attended by both commercial and home growers. Participants were asked to complete a before and after survey to gauge demographics of the audience, increases in knowledge, and anticipated changes in practices. The following is a summary of the survey results for the tomato portion of the webinar series. 

In November 2019, Specialists and a County Extension Agent provided a program on commercial tomato production in two sessions. A total of 85 individuals participated in these sessions. Surveys found that 1% of attendees had large-scale (wholesale/contract) commercial operations, 44% had small-scale (farmers’ market/direct sales) commercial operations, 10% planned to start growing commercially in the next two seasons, and 45% produced tomatoes for personal consumption only. Eighty two percent of attendees had less than one acre of production in 2019. Individuals expressed an interest in increasing production in 2020, as 18% of participants indicated 1-3 acres of production, while in the previous year only 10% of attendees had production on the same number of acres. A majority of participants had either 1-5 years of experience (39% commercial/28% non-commercial) or 10+ years of experience (32% commercial/55% non-commercial).  Forty one percent and 36% of attendees noted that they were either extremely or somewhat dissatisfied with their yield and quality of product respectively.  Surveys showed participants increased their knowledge in the following areas; tomato weed management (34%), tomato field selection and preparation (40%), tomato irrigation set up (40%), insect and mite management in tomatoes (49%), tomato cultivar selection (62%), tomato marketing (67%), causes of abiotic disorders of tomatoes (101%), methods to prevent abiotic tomato disorders (101%), common tomato diseases (69%), and basics of tomato disease management (66%). As a result of attending this program, participants indicated that they likely or definitely will make the following changes to their tomato production; manage weeds more effectively (80%), choose production fields more appropriately (77%), prepare fields more effectively (85%), increase insect scouting activities (85%), improve insecticide program (73%), adjust cultivar selection (67%), adjust your marketing approach (52%), adjust your fertilizer applications to help prevent abiotic disorders (83%), adjust your irrigation regime to help prevent abiotic disorders (87%), scout for disease symptoms multiple times per week (93%), and make changes to fungicide program (83%). Sixty six percent of growers indicated an anticipated increase in yield of 1-25% more fruit per plant, and 70% noted an anticipated increase of top quality tomatoes of between 1-25%, due to attending this program. While this program was provided at no cost to stakeholders, when asked to determine a value for the information received in this program, the average value was $380.

These programs were well received by growers, and additional sessions are planned for 2020.