Ag students take part in field day

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The Delaware Area Career Center and Buckeye Valley had their first AgriScience Field Day event at the Buckeye Valley Land Lab on Tuesday, where students learned from three groups of industry professionals.

The event was held at the 309-acre William H. Powell Land Lab in Radnor and featured presentations from the USDA Ag Research Service, DelCo Water Company and Grant Skinner, the owner of a drone company called Grant’s Tech LLC.

Alex Zimmer, the agricultural science program instructor at the DACC, said after the event that it was a value learning experience for students.

“It was a great opportunity for students to interact with three groups of industry professionals as they learn about all the different ways they can be involved in agriculture, whether that’s production or on the science and research side of things,” Zimmer said. “Students had a great time, and I think the industry professionals were impressed with what our Buckeye Valley students were able to offer in terms of questions and involvement throughout the day.”

Zimmer said administrators from Buckeye Valley and the DACC were invited to see the value of the land lab.

Kevin King, a research agricultural engineer with the USDA Ag Research Service, was one of the presenters Tuesday. He hoped the event was informative for students.

“We’re trying to get students to understand there’s more to ag than just sitting on a tractor and planting a seed in the ground,” King said.

The research service gave presentations on topics like water chemistry and ecology, and how they relate to water quality, he added.

“We’re trying … to give them an idea of what that looks like from a practical standpoint and why it’s important,” King said. “(It shows) the students there’s a breadth of sciences out here and disciplines they can do that are ag-related and why it’s important. ‘From field to fork’ and understanding the processes that go into that.”

USDA Ag Research Service also provided lessons on plant identification, tree identification and community structure within forests.

Skinner, along with Andrew Coy, a GSI technician water systems inspector with DelCo Water Company, gave the students a presentation on the various uses of drones in agricultural science, including mapping areas.

“Wonderful day out here to educate students about the industry of drones,” Skinner, a DACC alumnus, said after the event.

Glenn Battishill can be reached at 740-413-0903 or on Twitter @BattishillDG.

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