Kentucky State University program will offer hands-on instruction in sustainable land management, emerging technologies, and business opportunities

From cultivating high-value crops beneath a forest canopy to using drones to monitor trees and soil, Kentucky landowners have new opportunities to make their land more productive, resilient, and sustainable.

Kentucky State University will bring those possibilities together during the Landscape Scale Restoration Training: Forestry and Agroforestry on Wednesday, Aug. 26, in Lovely, Kentucky. The hands-on program is designed for landowners, farmers, forestry professionals, and others interested in sustainable land management and rural economic development.

The morning sessions will explore forest farming, non-timber forest products, high-value specialty crops, market development, value-added opportunities, silvopastoral systems, and other agroforestry practices.

Following lunch, participants will visit a plantation site for instruction in tree planting and monitoring techniques. The afternoon program will also address soil health assessment, invasive species management, site preparation, and the use of drone technology in forest and agricultural management.

Check-in and registration will be held from 8:30-9 a.m. at the Reed Rufus Public Library, 1442 Riverfront Road, Lovely, KY 41231. The training will begin at 9:30 a.m. and conclude at approximately 2:45 p.m.

Lunch will be provided. Registration is required and available online here.

The program is funded through a U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Business Development Grant.

For more information, contact David Pelphrey at 606-793-1708 or David.Pelphrey@kysu.edu; Kaleb Hinshaw at 863-640-5698 or khinshaw@coalfield-development.org; Dr. Manisha Parajuli at 502-597-6085 or manisha.parajuli@kysu.edu; or Dr. Francis Onduso at 502-597-6094 or francis.onduso@kysu.edu.