Oct. 13, 2008 — With the annual St. Thomas-St. John Agriculture Fair on the calendar for Nov. 22 and 23, the agriculture consulting firm Fintrac wants home gardeners, crop farmers and livestock farmers to apply for awards.
While Fintrac gave out Crop Farmer of the Year and Livestock Farmer of the Year awards at last year's Agriculture Fair, the Home Gardener of the Year award is new this year. Nov. 1 is the deadline for applications.
"There is some really good stuff being grown around people's homes," said Richard Pluke, a Fintrac senior agronomist-entomologist, on Monday.
Ticking off a list of possibilities, he said tomatoes in pots and a vegetable patch in the backyard qualify residents for the Home Gardener of the Year award.
Fintrac will look at home-gardener issues such as use of space and water and soil conservation practices.
"Are they using gray water and composting?" Pluke said.
Crop and livestock farmers must farm as a business to be eligible for an award.
Pluke acknowledged that there are many challenges to home gardening as well as crop farming on St. Thomas and St. John, and said it was hard for residents to make a living as farmers.
"This is to reward people's diligence and to stimulate others," he said.
Pluke looked at the big picture when discussing farming on St. Thomas and St. John. No matter what the scale, farming helps address the issue of the island's food security, he said.
A study done in 2002 showed that if 100 people grew 10 tomato plants each, it would double the tomato yield, Pluke said.
"A few people growing stuff makes a big difference," Pluke said.
The monetary amount of the awards hasn't yet been decided, but last year's winners received $500 each, Pluke said.
At last year's Agriculture Fair, Lucien "Jambie" Samuel was named Crop Farmer of the Year and Gary Pemberton was Livestock Farmer of the Year.
Judges will visit farms and home gardens during the first two weeks of November.
To apply for the Home Gardener of the Year, Crop Farmer of the Year and Livestock Farmer of the Year awards, call Richard Pluke at 776-7600, email him, or call the Agriculture Department at 774-5182 or the UVI Cooperative Extension Service at 693-1080.
Back Talk Share your reaction to this news with other Source readers. Please include headline, your name and city and state/country or island where you reside.
