Success StoryAssisting clientele during COVID-19 via virtual farm visits



Assisting clientele during COVID-19 via virtual farm visits

Author: Sheri Crabtree

Planning Unit: Agriculture and Natural Resources Programs

Major Program: Horticulture, Commercial

Outcome: Initial Outcome

During much of this past year, Extension programming was virtual due to COVID-19 restrictions. Most seminars, presentations, and workshops were easily transitioned to virtual platforms such as Zoom and Facebook live, but farm visits were more challenging. To solve this problem, virtual farm visits were conducted with clientele via video calls (FaceTime). The growers were able to video call via FaceTime so I could see their site in 'person' in real-time, when I could not be there physically in person. This allowed the growers to show me many things that would not be visible in photographs, and allowed me to provide immediate feedback and ask questions as they walked around the planting site. As a result of virtual farm visits, a grower in Campbell County, KY put in a new commercial planting of pawpaws and persimmons (about two dozen trees total). Demand exceeds supply for pawpaw and persimmon fruit in the state, and there are few growers in the Northern Kentucky region, so this new commercial planting will represent a new market for pawpaw fruit in that region of the state, hopefully supplying wineries, breweries, and restaurants in that area of the state in the future. With 25 trees planted, and an average mature yield of 50 lbs per tree and average wholesale price of $2.50 per pound, could lead to a potential increase in income of $3,150 per year for this farm.






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