Registration Open for Missouri Tomato School

The Missouri Tomato School, May 19-20, gathers national and regional experts and successful local farmers to teach growers and serious hobbyists how to grow Missouri's top-selling vegetables.

Classes are Thursday and Friday at Woods Chapel United Methodist Church, 4725 NE Lakewood Way, Lee's Summit. Out-of-state growers are welcome.

Day One, 8:45 a.m.-5:30 p.m., features socially distanced classroom sessions, says University of Missouri Extension horticulturist Patrick Byers, who is lead extension horticulturist for the school. Day Two, 9-11:30 a.m., features a farm tour and on-site education at Redfearn Farm in Independence.

Topics include nutrient management, best practices for harvest and postharvest storage, disease management, hydroponic cultivation, beneficial insects vs. pests, growing tomatoes in protective structures, using essential oils to control pests and comparing yields of grafted and nongrafted tomatoes.

Presenters include Rick Snyder, who was host for the well-known Mississippi Greenhouse Tomato Short Course for 28 years and is a popular speaker on greenhouse tomato production. He recently retired after 33 years as extension/research professor at the Truck Crops Experiment Station at Mississippi State University. He writes a greenhouse column for American Vegetable Grower magazine.

Also speaking will be T. Casey Barickman, an associate research professor at Mississippi State's North Mississippi Research and Extension Center specializing in plant physiology and vegetable production systems. Barickman's lab blends applied and basic research to provide science-based management recommendations to Mississippi vegetable growers.

For conference details and registration, visit http://www.webbcityfarmersmarket.com/training.html or call Eileen Nichols at 417-483-8139.

Webb City Farmers Market, University of Missouri Extension and Lincoln University Cooperative Extension sponsor the school, which is underwritten by a specialty crops grant from the Missouri Department of Agriculture.

This is the fifth Missouri Tomato School organized by the Webb City Farmers Market.