Fall Market Gardening School to take place in Ardmore

Friday, July 21, 2017

In an effort to provide fresh market producers with the most up-to-date information on management, production and marketing techniques, Oklahoma State University is teaming up with the Noble Research Institute to host the fall 2017 Oklahoma Market Garden School.

The eight-week course will begin Aug. 29 and meet weekly on Tuesday evenings through Oct. 17 at the Noble Research Institute, 2510 Sam Noble Pkwy, Ardmore, Oklahoma. Classes will take place from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Registration is $60 per individual or $90 per couple. Couples will receive one set of handouts.

Lynn Brandenberger, OSU Cooperative Extension horticulture food crops specialist, said the school is geared toward those who are established in the business, as well as those who are interested in exploring a new enterprise. Each week’s session will focus on a different area related to fruit and vegetable production, such as getting organized, soils and fertilizer management, crop establishment and irrigation, guidelines for producing fruit and vegetable crops, season extension, pest management, food safety and marketing.

“We have a great bunch of specialists from Noble Research Institute and Oklahoma State hosting this event who will share their expertise during the eight sessions,” he said. “Whether you’re already established in your business or just starting out, we’ll be offering something for everyone.”

The class is limited to 50 participants and preregistration is required. Online registration is available at https://secure.touchnet.com/C20271_ustores/web/store_cat.jsp?STOREID=3&CATID=100. To register by mail, send the registration form from the OSU’s Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture website at http://www.hortla.okstate.edu/, along with the registration fee, to Oklahoma Market Gardening Course, attn: Stephanie Larimer, 358 Ag Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078-6027 or call her at 405-744-5404.

“We continue to see the public’s interest grow for locally grown fresh produce. In addition, there are a growing number of public schools around the state that want to purchase fresh produce from local producers for their lunch programs,” Brandenberger said.

Produce grown, harvested, and sold in the same area has many benefits, including freshness, food safety due to a localized food production system and lower costs due to lack of transportation expenses.

“You don’t have to have a large operation to benefit from this course,” he said. “The information we’ll provide is valuable to both small and large producers.”