UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — If you have questions about gardening, home food preservation, water quality in private wells, agricultural history, or education and careers in the agricultural sciences, you can find answers at the Pennsylvania Farm Show, Jan. 7-14 in Harrisburg.
The Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences’ exhibit in the Main Hall will offer a series of presentations throughout the week featuring Penn State Extension Master Gardeners, food safety educators, Master Well Owners and staff from the Pasto Agricultural Museum.
Presentations
Presentations by Master Gardeners will provide tips and advice on planting trees, maximizing home vegetable production, pollinator gardening, adding seasonal color to the landscape and other topics.
Sessions led by food-safety extension educators will cover the basics of home food preservation, and the curator of Penn State’s Pasto Agricultural Museum will display artifacts from the museum’s collection and discuss how historical aspects of farming set the stage for modern technology.
Master Well Owners — a statewide network of volunteers who share information about proper construction and maintenance of private water systems — will cover topics such as routine maintenance, water testing, interpreting test results and solving water quality and quantity problems.
The full schedule of presentations at the Penn State exhibit is available online at http://agsci.psu.edu/farmshow/events.
Penn State
Visitors at the Penn State exhibit also will be able to talk with students and advisers from the College of Agricultural Sciences, who will be on hand throughout the show to answer questions about the college’s academic programs and educational and career opportunities in agriculture and related fields.
Pennsylvania 4-H — administered by Penn State Extension — will also will have a large presence at the Farm Show.
Many 4-H members enter projects in Farm Show youth livestock shows and other competitive events. In addition, youth members on the 4-H State Council will represent the organization at several events during the week, including the opening ceremonies.
At the 4-H Ag Learning Station, youth visitors will create a bean bracelet — a plastic bag containing a seed that they can wear home around their wrists.
The college’s role at the Farm Show is part of Penn State’s land-grant partnership with the state.
Details
The show is held at the Farm Show Complex and Expo Center, at the corner of Cameron and Maclay streets in Harrisburg, just off exit 67 of Interstate 81.
Hours are 8 a.m.-9 p.m. Jan. 7-13, and 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Jan. 14. Admission is free, and parking is $15. For more information, visit the Farm Show website at www.farmshow.state.pa.us.
