Farmer Field School Open Day

"A farmer is a person outstanding in their field". Get the double entendre?

At Farmer Field School, farmers perform outstandingly at a learning program which is very practical and participatory. What is Farmer Field School? The following video provides an overview of the program with the description of the project, teaching methodology and participant feedback:

On Wednesday, July 16, 2014, an Open Day was held for the the Farmer Field School for the region of Choiseul/Soufriere. Field School for this region is conducted on the farm holding of Mr. Compton at River Doree, Choiseul. The program which is currently funded by the Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund also benefits from technical support of the Taiwan Technical Mission. The sessions are also facilitated by the Ministry of Agriculture Extension Services. In attendance were representatives from the Embassy of Taiwan, Taiwan Technical Mission, Ministry of Agriculture, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI), Hotels and Ministry of Social Transformation.

The event was organised with a presentation on Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) in the production of watermelon and corn-these were the two crops grown by the Field School participants. These GAPs presented ranged from production to post-harvest to marketing activities.

Audience to Mr. Pilgrim's (CARDI) presentation

Afterwards, the group was taken on a tour of the field cultivated by the Field School trainees. The varieties of watermelon planted were the Empire No. 2 and Dark Belle. The corn varieties cultivated were the White Pearl and America H5. 

Intercropped corn and watermelon

After the walk in the afternoon sun, we were refreshed with the Watermelon Tasting segment of the activity. The fruit of the labour of the Field School trainees were on display whole and sliced for the enjoyment of the visitors. Following which there was a Question and Answer Segment.

Taste test: Which variety do you prefer?

Congratulations to the trainees who will be graduating from the Farmer Field School at the end of the month on their achievement!