News Releases

SPRING HILL, Tenn. (May 22, 2003) -- What do Bermuda grass, steak dinners, and fishing have in common? Each topic will be featured at the University of Tennessee Field Day on July 24.

The field day, “Making Forages Work,” is a free public event to be held at the Middle Tennessee Experiment Station. The event promises to educate livestock producers and other participants on the importance of forage plants that are grazed or harvested for use as animal feed. Technical sessions will cover a variety of issues pertinent to the forage industry, such as safe weed management for livestock, mineral availability to grazing livestock and grazing systems for warm- and cool-season grasses.

Additional sessions and demonstrations will cater to those at the top of the forage food chain. “We want to show how forages touch all areas of livestock, extending all the way from the farm to the fork,” said Dennis Onks, superintendent of the Middle Tennessee Experiment Station. “Forages are important to the homeowner as well as the producer.”

Homeowners will benefit from cooking demonstrations, promoting Tennessee products and cooking on a budget, as well as from sessions that discuss landscaping and pond water quality. Lawn equipment demonstrations are scheduled, and the Tennessee River Angler Bass Club will hold a fishing contest with awards for the winners. Kids of all ages are invited to participate. Those planning to compete should bring their own fishing gear.

A diagnostic lab, organized by UT plant pathologist Dr. Alan Windham, will also be set up onsite, and members of the public are invited to bring diseased plants for expert examination.

The event will begin at 7:30 a.m. CDT and will finish around 1:00 p.m. Researchers, extension agents and local vendors will remain onsite to answer questions and greet participants.

The Middle Tennessee Experiment Station, one of 11 research facilities in the statewide UT Agricultural Experiment Station system, is noted as the home of the performance-tested bull program, which has been in operation since 1972. The station researches forages for both beef and dairy cattle.

The experiment station is located on Hwy. 31, just minutes south of Nashville. Take exit 53 from I-65 and follow the signs to Columbia. The experiment station is on the east side of Hwy. 31, across from the Saturn Plant.

For more information regarding the event, or to obtain a map, contact the Middle Tennessee Experiment Station at 931-486-2129.

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Contacts: Dr. Dennis Onks, Middle Tennessee Experiment Station, 931-486-2129
Patricia McDaniels, UTIA Marketing and Communications, 865-974-7141