Farm and Communities Tour Showcases Rural North Carolina

July 9, 1997

Greensboro, NC: "You name it, we raise it," Lesley Sanderson, a Robeson County farmer, told the more than 70 participants of a recent farm and communities tour, as they visited his roadside farming operation. Though he was speaking in reference to his farm, Sanderson's words can be applied to the entire state of North Carolina.

Sanderson's farm, where tour participants learned about his diverse vegetable and fruit operation, and his successful roadside marketing strategy, was the first of 11 stops that took place over two days in six southeastern North Carolina counties, during the annual North Carolina A&T State University School of Agriculture Dean's Small Farms and Communities Tour.

From elephant garlic to meat goats, the tour participants were able to learn about the diversity and innovation fueling the success of North Carolina's small scale farming operations.

According to Dr. Daniel Lyons, co-chairperson of the tour's planning committee and assistant administrator of regional and county field operations for A&T's Cooperative Extension Program, the tour was designed to showcase outstanding small-scale farming operations and rural community vitality in North Carolina.

"The site s were chosen based on their unique application of farming and management principles," said Lyons. "These talented individuals know what it takes to succeed in a small-scale farming operation."

As evidenced by several of the tour's stops, often what it takes is a combination of knowledge, diversity, planning, and capitalizing on available markets and the resources of the local Cooperative Extension Center.

In addition to the stop at Sanderson's farm, in Robeson County, tour participants were treated to a demonstration of beekeeping practices at retired railroad worker Vernie Smith's beekeeping operation near Lumberton.

In nearby Bladen County, the tour's two stops were designed to showcase the marketing success enjoyed by two rural neighbors who just happen to be catering to much the same market.

Though they live practically in each other's backyard, Herbert Sasser and Ernest Gause have learned how to turn competition to their advantage.

According to Edwin Elkins, an agriculture technician with the NC A&T Cooperative Extension Program, "Competition isn't always bad and can actually be an advantage for small-scale farmers. When customers come to either o f these places and can't find what they want, they can always go next door and get it. If one doesn't have it, chances are that the other one will."

Both retirees, Sasser and Gause draw upon their experience and knowledge to guide their successful operations.

In Columbus County, the home county of tour co-chairperson Larry Wright, an agriculture technician with the NC A&T Cooperative Extension Program, both an experienced farmer and a rookie farmer related the importance of the Columbus County Cooperative Extension staff to their operations.

Though Phil McPherson has grown strawberries for only one year, he has already had his share of challenges. From underestimating the time required for effective spraying to misdiagnosing his production problems, McPherson has learned a lot from his mistakes, and he credits Extension for his quick recovery.

"I don't know what I'd do without Extension," McPherson told the tour participants as they inspected the innovative drip irrigation system he uses with his strawberry patch.

The third largest county in North Carolina in total area, Columbus County is able to provide enough market demand to sustain McPherson and a larger producer such as Wayne Miller.

Among the crops in Miller's diversified operation are cabbages, strawberries, field peas, watermelons, cantaloupe and sweet potatoes. In conjunction with Columbus County Extension, Miller is participating in a field trial of four varieties of cabbage, hoping to discover which performs best in Columbus County conditions.

The restaurant market created by Brunswick County's coastal proximity has allowed Meg Shelton's herb farm to grow and prosper. In her ten-year-old operation, Shelton grows more than 100 varieties of peppers, and more than 600 species of herbs and other specialty plants, which are marketed primarily to chefs in Wilmington and Wrightsville Beach.

Another savvy farmer capitalizing on market demand is Estelle Caldwell of Sampson County. With the assistance of a Ways to Grow grant from the NC A&T Cooperative Extension Program, Caldwell was able to expand her livestock production to include meat goats, and a growing Hispanic population in Sampson County has proved a reliable clientele.

After stops and group tours of the Sampson County Livestock Facility in Clinton, and Allen Canning Company in Turkey, the tour concluded at Smithfield Middle School in Johnston County.

At the edge of the school grounds, tour participants inspected a garden planted and maintained by the sixth-grade class of teacher Kelly Mance. The fledgling farmers are supervised by both Mance and retired Extension agent William Clayton.

As participants in the "Down to Earth," an environmental education program developed by Drs. Bob Williamson and Ellen Smoak, specialists with the NC A&T Cooperative Extension Program, the Smithfield students use gardening and the scientific method to explore how gardening affects plant growth, human health and the environment.

To determine possible stops on the tour, the planning committee relied on the recommendations of county-based Cooperative Extension agents and technicians.

The NC A&T School of Agriculture Dean's Small Farms and Communities Tour was coordinated by the NC A&T Cooperative Extension Program.

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For more information, please contact Dr. Daniel M. Lyons, NC A&T Cooperative Extension Program, (336) 334-7956.