Youth, spouses and retired agents attend these with agents.
Tour One: Fruit Production and Value-added Agriculture
The tour will visit Davis and Son Apples in the foothills of western Lincoln County. We'll take a tractor-drawn ride through the rolling apple orchards and look at their facility for making pasteurized apple cider. Then we will visit Knob Creek Orchards and Creamery just down the road in Cleveland County. Knob Creek has become widely known for their homemade ice cream which tour participants will have the chance to sample. Be prepared to shop for ripe peaches and other goodies at these quality roadside markets.
Tour Two: Livestock: Corey Lutz Dairy and L.E. Smith Stocker Operation
The Lutz Family name is well recognized in dairy circles for outstanding Jersey cattle. Corey and Bridgette Lutz operate a dairy in Lincoln County that maximizes production and efficiency through excellent use of grazing resources. With a rolling herd average of 18,000 lbs on a 2X milking schedule this operation is a wonderful example of a family farm that is sustainable in every aspect of the word. Along with perennial pastures you will see use of annual forages and alfalfa to feed this high producing herd. The Lutz' recently won the title of NC Conservation Farm of the Year.
L. E. Smith operates a stocker cattle and replacement heifer development program on his farm in Lincoln County. This operation annually backgrounds from 1,000 to 1,200 calves which are then shipped to Nebraska for finishing on a retained ownership program. In order to capture the most value from the heifer calves that are purchased these females are grown out and mated for sale as bred replacement heifers. Come learn of some of the challenges of operating a stocker cattle operation and some of the cost cutting techniques used to help save on expenses.
Tour Three: Green Industry Tour
Hawksridge Farms is a 65 acre wholesale container nursery nestled at the foot of scenic Bakers Mountain in the foothills of western North Carolina. Landscape companies, garden centers and retail nurseries throughout the mid-Atlantic region are buyers of the vast selection of unusual shrubs, perennials, ornamental trees, ornamental grasses, ferns, bamboos and vines. Hawksridge Farms continues to be one of the leaders in the southeast in the introduction of new and exciting species and cultivars from around the globe into the nursery and landscape trade. You'll also see the most recent nursery technology that the industry has to offer during your visit.
Ira Cline Farm
The Cline Family have been leaders in Catawba County agriculture for many years. Their farm produces matted row strawberries, blueberries, gourds, pumpkins and cattle with a healthy emphasis on agri-tourism. Small fruits have been a mainstay for over 25 years and over 20 varieties of pumpkins and gourds are produced annually. The Cline's have cooperated with Land Grant Universities on blueberry research to such an extent that the variety "Ira" was recently named to recognize their contribution to the industry.
Tour Four: WATER QUALITY TOUR
The first stop on the Water Quality Tour will be the Sugar Loaf School Wetlands in Alexander County. This demonstration diverts stormwater runoff from a school, fire department, and various residences into a constructed wetland thus helping to prevent damage to the Muddy Fork Branch. Over 60 groups have visited this site to view its effectiveness and its many different native aquatic plant species. The school regularly uses this site as an outdoor lab for its students.
From there we will visit the Jumping Run Stream Restoration Project in Alexander County. This is a wetlands mitigation project where over 1 mile of stream has been restored on a large Holstein dairy operation. The stream has been completely fenced excluding it from the pastures and various in-stream BMP's (rock veins, root wads, etc.) have been installed.
From there we will travel to the Oxford Dam which forms Lake Hickory on the Catawba River (Alexander and Catawba County line). Here we will have a walking tour through the center of the dam with a brief explanation of it's hydro power generation.
Finally we will visit a demonstration rain garden at a rest stop in Claremont in Catawba County off of I-40. This bioretention area collects stormwater runoff (watering the plants) but then releases it slowly in a cleaner, less damaging fashion.
