Education is a big initiative of the Hendricks County SWCD. From field days to school field trips, the staff and supervisors are enthusiastic about natural resource and agriculture education.
For the past several years, Hendricks and Boone Counties have worked together to put on an annual field day, alternating the host county. In 2012, Hendricks hosted the field day at the farm of district supervisor Brian Rutledge on August 21. Seventy-three people attended the field day, including 2 from Arizona and one from Illinois. Topics covered in rotating stations included cover crop management presented by Doug Whicker, Co-Alliance; planter and drill set up with Kris Fisher, Precision Planting; tree planting demonstration by district supervisor Jack Nelson, Nelson's Consultant Forestry; and soil health in the soil pit with Barry Fisher, USDA-NRCS.
District supervisor Mike Starkey has been hosting a winter planter workshop for a few years. The 3rd Annual Planter Clinic was held on December 4th with 140 people attending from across the state. The main speaker was Joe Nester, an independent crop consultant from northwest Ohio. Mr. Nester spoke on crop nutrient needs and what is available from healthy no-till soils. As has become custom, a farmer round-table discussion was held after lunch.