Fall Crops, Cooling Units Discussed at Field Day

GOODMAN, Miss. (Press Release) — Fruit and vegetable growers can learn about growing fall crops and building mobile cooling trailers during the Sept. 19 Alliance for Sustainable Agricultural Production Demonstration Farm Field Day in Goodman.

Bill Evans, a Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station associate research professor with Mississippi State University, will cover variety selection, planting dates, disease resistance, pest management, crop rotation and more.

Alliance farmers and participants will finalize plans to conduct a hands-on training session to show farmers how to convert a cargo trailer into a mobile cooling unit.

“Keeping fresh fruits and vegetables cool preserves their quality and extends shelf life, but it can be expensive for small-scale producers to purchase and maintain the equipment needed to ensure ideal temperatures,” said Keith Benson, director of the Alliance for Sustainable Agricultural Production Demonstration Farm. “This cost-efficient alternative can help farmers move food to and from multiple markets, allow them to comfortably spread their harvest out over more days, and handle more and larger buyers with less help.”

Booth space will be available for vendors, farmers and service providers.

The field day is free and open to the public. The event begins at 10 a.m. and ends at 2:30 p.m. Advance registration is required. Lunch and materials will be provided.

The Alliance for Sustainable Agricultural Production is located between Goodman and Durant, one mile southwest of Highway 51 at 1184 Coleman Road.

The alliance will host the Armed to Farm training program for veterans on Sept. 24. The event will be planned during the Sept. 19 field day. Volunteers interested in assisting with high tunnel work and training on Sept. 24 should attend the field day. The program is sponsored by the National Center for Appropriate Technology Gulf States Office and helps military veterans and their spouses evaluate sustainable, small-scale farming enterprises as a career.

For more information on any field day-related topics, contact Benson at 601-988-4999 or keithmdp@yahoo.com.

These field days continue for the rest of the year and are held on the third Friday of each month through November. The last field day is scheduled for Dec. 12.

The Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Grant Program fund the programs.