Progress report for SAR24-002
Project Information
This project will provide sustainable agriculture education to the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Agriculture staff with a special emphasis on the Small Farm and Horticulture staff. The Small Farm and Horticulture staff will then provide sustainable agriculture training and education to vegetable and row crop producers in eastern and southwest Arkansas.
The sustainable agriculture education and training will target soil health education for farmers. To provide soil health education to the Small Farm and Horticulture staff the agents and Horticulture staff will attend conference, field day, and other educational meetings where soil health issues are addressed.
The Small Farm staff and Horticulture staff will provide the soil health education and information to the UAPB farm cliental. In addition, the Small Farm and Horticulture Staff will work with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to help Socially Disadvantaged Producers (SDPs) use the Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) to obtain funding to install conservation practices such as cover crops, no-till, reduced-till, plastic mulch, drip-irrigation, etc.
The UAPB Small Farm staff and the Horticulture staff will also work with individuals in food deserts areas. These individuals will be assisted in developing sustainable community gardens for the local community. Afterwards, some of these individuals will began to grow vegetables as a income generating crop to improve their livelihood.
The staff will also provide a high-tunnel demonstration that will include sustainable agricultural practices. This demonstration will be conducted at UAPB on the main campus.
The funds from the project will be used to educate Socially Disadvantaged Producers (SDPs) on soil health and conservation practices that promote soil health. The UAPB Small Farm and Horticulture staff will attend field days and conferences to obtain educational information on soil health. The staff will also work with the Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS) to be updated on current and new conservation practices.
The UAPB staff will take all information from the educational meetings and NRCS and share it with SDPs in the targeted area. In addition, the UAPB staff will provide soil health educational sessions in crop production meetings conducted by the Small Farm Program.
The funds from the project will also be used to conduct demonstrations. Three demonstrations will be conducted. The demonstration will be a field cover crop demonstration, a high tunnel with sustainable agriculture practices, and a community garden with sustainable agriculture practices.
Therefore, the outreach and training objectives from 2023 will be continued in 2024. This is necessary because it will take several years of soil health education and demonstrations for most SDPs to adopt soil health principles and practices.
Advisors
- (Educator)
- (Educator)
- (Educator)
- (Educator and Researcher)
- (Educator and Researcher)
- (Educator and Researcher)
- (Educator)
- (Educator)
- (Educator and Researcher)
- (Educator and Researcher)
- (Educator and Researcher)
- (Educator)
Education
The UAPB Project Team provides primarily sustainable vegetable production education and some row crop (soybeans) education to farmers in the targeted area. The team attended the Southeast Regional Fruit and Vegetable Growers in Savanna, GA, and the Watermelon Field Day in Blackville, South Carolina, to obtain the latest information (we work with a small group of farmers that recently started rowing watermelons). The project team obtained sustainable, organic, and conventional production information at these meetings.
The project team worked with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to obtain education and information on their climate-smart conservation practices in their Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) and their Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP). These practices included things like cover crops, crop rotations, nutrient management, Integrated Pest Management, High Tunnel System, and Irrigation Water Management. The project team met with the NRCS EQIP and CSP Personnel for updates on the program.
The information gained from these meetings is passed to producers through group meetings, one-on-one visits, and demonstrations.
Education & Outreach Initiatives
To help farmers with a limited number of acres grow vegetable crops using sustainable agriculture practices.
Most farmers in the Arkansas Delta are large (1000 acres or more) row crop farms producing soybean, rice corn, wheat, cotton, and grain sorghum. However, some farmers with 40 acres or less are growing vegetable crops, which are more suitable for small acreage farms.
The project team provided three vegetable production meetings to assist these small farmers in the area. Emphasis was placed on southern peas, greens (mustard, collards, and turnips), watermelons, and sweet potatoes. The project team also conducted high tunnel demonstrations in Pine Bluff, Forest City, and Marianna, a southern pea and watermelon demonstration in Forrest City.
To help farmers use sustainable agriculture practices, they were encouraged to sign up for the EQIP Program, which provided financial incentives to help them purchase cover crops, practice crop rotations, nutrient management, and other conservation practices. Farmers were also informed about the soil benefits of using cover crops and other conservation practices.
The farmers realize the soil benefits of adding cover crops. However, more research is needed on cover crops suitable for vegetable crops. Many vegetable farmers use turnips as a cover crop. Farmers are becoming interested in high tunnels; more individuals are adding them to their operations. Farmers also realize the importance of having irrigation for their operations. Consequently, they are signing up under the EQIP Program to receive financial and technical assistance installing irrigation for their operations.
Farmers growing southern peas are learning to use a preemergence herbicide to control the resistant pigweed, Palmer Amaranth, in the Arkansas Delta. Some farmers started using the herbicides after the field demonstration conducted in St. Francis County.
To Teach individuals in food insure areas how to raise fresh vegetables for individuals and the community.
In specific food-insecure communities, the project team taught individuals how to raise fresh vegetables using raised beds and regular community gardens. The team started in Southwest Arkansas and includes Northeast Arkansas communities.
The project team found some boxes that could be used for raised beds and began to set up the boxes in different communities where they had identified interested individuals. The team provided the soil mixes and compost for the raised beds. The team then taught individuals in the community how to transplant vegetables into the raised beds. The project team also taught the individuals and groups about sustainable agriculture practices like companion plants, crop rotations, etc.
These individuals and groups were later informed about the changes in NRCS that included EQIP Payments for installing raised beds and Soil Carbon Amendments.
Individuals and groups learned how to grow vegetables using sustainable agriculture practices in raised beds and community gardens. The individuals and groups grew enough vegetables for themselves and others. Many fresh vegetables were given to other individuals in the community.
Many of the individuals in the community are senior citizens, and the project team introduced them to their senior raised beds, which were up on legs. These legs prevented them from bending to harvest their vegetables. The next step will include introducing high tunnels and determining their suitability for specific individuals and groups.
Educational & Outreach Activities
Participation Summary:
Learning Outcomes
Project Outcomes
Our New and Beginning Farmers Class uses the education and information from the SARE Project. The class members are introduced to the SARE Program and all sustainable agriculture practices. Some new and beginning farmers attend workshops and meetings to learn about sustainable agriculture practices.
The agricultural service providers have several farmers who have received EQIP funding to help them install cover crops and other sustainable practices. Several have installed irrigation in their operations to decrease drought risks. Recently, an 80-year-old man installed irrigations, covered crops, and implemented other practices in his operation to help increase his income. This was a direct result of the agricultural service provider advising the farmer.
The project team would like more studies on cover crop mixes for vegetable producers, especially on southern peas, watermelons, and sweet potatoes. Many farmers also grow mustard, turnips, and collards after their summer vegetable crops. Some think the harvested greens are the cover crops, but they are not. We would like to have recommendations or more options for these situations.
Face of SARE
Information about the SARE Program is included in our Small Farm Program Newsletter, "Farm Sense." This newsletter is emailed and directly mailed to all of our participants. We also advertise information about the SARE Producers Grant in the local newspapers. Information on the SARE Research Grant is provided to our Research Director and emailed to Department Heads and directly to many researchers at UAPB.
Information about the UAPB workshops is also posted on the Arkansas SARE Web Page.