Story by Corinne Kocher
Photos by Bailey Garrot
Shared Plates
When we meet Tim Coolong, Associate Professor in UGA's Horticulture Department, he's actually wearing a Georgia Organics hat.
"I'm fired up," he laughs, citing the relationship between the university and Georgia Organics.
Coolong earned his bachelor, master, and PhD in horticulture from UGA. Now as a UGA extension vegetable specialist, he spends his days researching practical techniques for growers. Coolong will be speaking about his research at three different Georgia Organics conference sessions.
A hands-on heavy equipment demo for farmers at the Durham Horticultural Research farm outside Athens will feature five key pieces of vegetable-specific equipment. Coolong explains that mid-sized farms and up may find real value in seeing the heavy equipment in action.
"Equipment is not cheap, so you definitely want to see it work before you spend the money," says Coolong. He adds that videos of farm equipment can be deceiving - the handling or the build quality might look different online. But during an in-person session, farmers can ask questions and see how equipment really looks in the field.
Highlighting equipment like a ground-driven precision fertilizer rig, plastic layer, rotary spader, and vacuum seeder, Coolong also explains that he's planning on spending the most time on an offset cultivating tractor with belly-mounted hydraulics for cultivation. Especially in the south, this tractor can be found at "very accessible" prices.
"For organic growers who want to get to that scale where they're not hand weeding anymore, having a tool like this is probably the most important thing in terms of labor saving," says Coolong.
Ashley Rodgers, owner and operator of Rodgers Greens & Roots Organic Farm, agrees that some heavy equipment can bring efficiencies to a farm operation. "Whether considering scaling up or looking to save time, this class could benefit anyone who owns and operates a farm," she says.
Coolong will also speak on a packed UGA panel about soil health booster research. "Organic farming is always about soil quality - it's what you build your farm off of," he says.
The panel will cover research like a segmented trial plot of different summer cover crops and tillage regimes. In addition to the university's nitrogen mineralization calculator for cover crops, this new research can "help you plan some of your fertility tactics, based on your cover crops," says Coolong.
Coolong is practical about his research. "If we trial things out here and they don't work, that's just as important to let growers know as 'this is a great new tech to use'," he adds.
Coolong is excited to see so many farmers at the conference in Athens, saying, "I can get immediate feedback on what some of the biggest problems are for organic farmers are, so we can cater our research to their needs".
"We're excited that this conference can bring together a wide group of people so that we can show them this technology.”
Corinne Kocher and Bailey Garrot are the writer-photographer team behind Shared Plates, a blog exploring food in the world and how it gets to the table. Read all of their work at www.shared-plates.com and follow them on Instagram @sharedplatesatl.
Register TODAY so you don’t miss these exciting sessions: https://conference.georgiaorganics.org/
Check out Tim Coolong speaking at these sessions at the Georgia Organics Conference.
Friday Feb. 7: Farm Tour - Durham Horticultural Research Farm Hands-On Tour [Note: Tour for farmers only]
Friday Feb. 7: Morning Workshop - Soil Health Boosters, UGA Research Roundup: Locally Effective Microorganisms (LEMs), and The Challenges and Opportunities of Low-Till (along with Dorcas Franklin, UGA; David Weisberger, UGA)
Saturday Feb. 8: Forward Farming Track, Session I
Saturday Feb. 8: Legal Hemp is Here (along with Wes Swancy, Riverview Farms)