Landscape, Horticulture Industry Field Day Set for Oct. 11 in Hammond
By Richard Bogren, LSU AgCenter
HAMMOND, La. — The LSU AgCenter Hammond Research Station will hold its annual landscape horticulture industry field day for nursery, landscape and garden center professionals on Oct. 11.
Providing service to the landscape horticulture industry is the major focus of the research and extension program at the Hammond Research Station, said Charles Hutchison, interim resident coordinator at the station.
The field day will begin with registration at 8 a.m. Walking tours of plant trial gardens and landscape research and demonstration plots along with outdoor lectures on several horticulture topics are scheduled from 9 a.m.-noon and from 1-2 p.m.
Topics for the field day will include an overview of best performers from the ornamental plant variety evaluations, including annual bedding plants, herbaceous perennials, and woody ornamentals; updates on current disease, insect and weed issues; and a field tour featuring techniques for establishing native prairies and ornamental meadows.
The afternoon program will include a review of edible landscaping with olives and figs during a walk-through tour of the trial orchards, which will include a presentation on tea variety evaluation and production research.
Southeast Louisiana Nursery Association will hold their annual trade show concurrently with the field day. Wholesale nursery exhibitors from the Northshore will display available products from 8 to 9 a.m. and from noon to 3 p.m.
Louisiana licensed landscape architects attending the day’s events will receive Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry continuing education credits.
Refreshments will be available throughout the day, and lunch will be served at noon. Attendees will receive a booklet summarizing current activities and research.
No registration fee or RVSP is required to attend the field day, which is intended exclusively for professional horticulture industry personnel.
The station is located approximately 6 miles east of Hammond at 21549 Old Covington Highway (La. Highway 1067).
For more information about the field day, contact Yan Chen at 985-543-4125 or email yachen@agcenter.lsu.edu.