CAES Newswire

 College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences UGA Cooperative Extension
Menu
Published on 04/16/18

UGA Farm Again program to host tractors workshop

By Julie Jernigan

University of Georgia Farm Again program instructors will host a workshop to introduce potential farmers to tractors and how to safely operate them. The Tractors 101 event will be held on Thursday, April 26, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the UGA Tifton campus, beginning in the National Environmentally Sound Production Agriculture Laboratory (NESPAL) building. 

UGA Cooperative Extension, within the university’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES), and the Institute on Human Development and Disability (IHDD), part of the university’s College of Family and Consumer Sciences, manage the Farm Again program. CAES agricultural engineer Glen Rains and IHDD Associate Director Rebecca Brightwell co-direct Farm Again.

“This workshop is designed for socially disadvantaged and veteran persons interested in starting a farm,” Rains said. “We want to teach them how to safely operate a tractor and show them the potential dangers of operating powerful machinery.”

In the morning, there will be a classroom session where the parts of a tractor will be laid out in detail. Hands-on training stations will be set up in the afternoon.

Attendees will practice driving a tractor at one station, and they will learn how to connect equipment and study the maintenance of the system at another.

“This is a really helpful workshop for those who don’t know anything about tractors,” Rains said. “We will discuss which model to buy and whether or not they need four-wheel drive.”

At the end of the day, potential farmers will navigate a driving course to determine if they can steer and back up a tractor.

“We just want to give them the basics of operation so they can incorporate these practices into their own farming,” Rains said. “Sometimes there’s a stigma around tractors because people think they are difficult to operate. This is a great opportunity to get familiar with the machine. They will find out that it is actually fairly simple to work.”

This is the fourth workshop of a spring series aimed at small, beginning farmers or veterans who want to start their own farms. Due to the hands-on training, space is limited. Teenagers over 16 years old may attend with parental permission.

To register, visit www.farmagain.com/register. 

Julie Jernigan is an intern at UGA-Tifton.

Authors:
Julie Jernigan
Experts/Sources:
Glen Rains
UGA's Farm Again program will host a Tractors 101 workshop on April 26 in Tifton, Georgia.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Download Image
Some of the University of Georgia's extended campuses saw damage from Hurricane Helene. (Photo courtesy of Adam Fouche) CAES News
Relief efforts continue after Hurricane Helene 10/04/24
The University of Georgia community has rallied in the wake of Hurricane Helene, coming together to address damage done to campus facilities while also lending a helping hand to friends and neighbors hit hardest by the storm. While UGA’s main campus weathered the storm with relatively minor damage, the same could not be said for the Tifton campus, where heavy rains and high winds brought down trees and power lines, leaving the campus and surrounding area without power.
The University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education & Hotel saw some damage from the winds and rain of Hurricane Helene. (Photo by Andrew Davis Tucker/UGA) CAES News
UGA weathers Hurricane Helene 09/27/24
The University of Georgia’s main campus was fortunate to emerge relatively unscathed after Hurricane Helene barreled through the state early Friday morning. However, the impact was more significant at our extended campus locations. While the UGA Griffin campus reported no major damage, UGA-Tifton was hit much harder, with dozens of downed trees and power outages, as well as flooding in several buildings. Damage to farm operations across south Georgia appears to be extensive.
Yangxuan Liu, associate professor of agricultural and applied economics, reflects on her journey from medicine to agricultural economics. Her work supports farmers across Georgia while also empowering residents in her local community of Tifton. CAES News
CAES economist recognized as emerging leader for work supporting farmers 09/09/24 Claire Sanders Kinnard
For Yangxuan Liu, her career as an associate professor of agricultural and applied economics feels like equal parts coincidence and fate. “I was initially involved in agriculture because of my family farm in China. During breaks from school as a child, I would go visit my grandparents and work in their fields where they grow corn, wheat, cotton and other crops. This really gave me respect for the value of working the ground,” Liu said.
Nino Brown stands in front of a peanut field holding up a red net bag of harvested peanuts above his head as he speaks to participants in the Georgia Peanut Tour in 2022. CAES News
CAES experts study oil production to boost Georgia’s peanut power 09/05/24 Maria M. Lameiras
A new study by experts in the University of Georgia’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences is seeking to increase the value of Georgia’s peanut crops for new markets while reducing losses caused by aflatoxin, a consistent threat to the No. 1 peanut-producing state in the United States. The four-year, $490,000 grant will take a systems-based approach toward developing high-oil peanut varieties bred to withstand the unique climate and pest pressures of the Southeast.
Recent rankings from Forbes and The Princeton Review demonstrate continued excellence. CAES News
UGA ranks among best universities in the nation 08/30/24
The University of Georgia continues to solidify its position among the nation’s most prestigious institutions of higher education. “The University of Georgia’s impressive rankings by a host of national publications reflect the tremendous talent and hard work of our exceptional faculty, staff and students,” said UGA President Jere W. Morehead. “While individual rankings can fluctuate from year to year, UGA’s consistently strong performance across a wide range of criteria speaks to our position among the nation’s leading universities.”
Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium CAES News
Keep on the grass 08/29/24 Emily Cabrera, Scott Michaux
When the University of Georgia Bulldogs step between the hedges at Sanford Stadium, the grass on Dooley Field needs to look perfect. More importantly, though, it needs to help safeguard the health of athletes who compete on it. Gerald Henry plays a big role in the latter. The UGA Athletic Association’s endowed professor in environmental turfgrass leads a research team in the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences committed to creating sports fields that look good and perform well to limit the occurrence of injuries.