Field day highlights Southern pea breeding
By Fred Miller
U of A System Division of Agriculture
July 22, 2016
Fast Facts:
- Southern pea field day will showcase Division of Agriculture breeding program.
- Research presentations will be followed by field tours of breeding plots.
- Research topics will include pea cultivation and management systems.
(227 words)
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — You can call them cowpeas or field peas if you want, but here in Arkansas that staple of local hospitality and fine dining is called the Southern pea.
They come in many colors and shapes — blackeyed peas and black peas with white eyes, cream peas, crowder peas, calicos and the finger-staining purple hull peas — and they’ll all be on display Aug. 17 during the Southern Pea Field Day at the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s Vegetable Research Station at Kibler.
Station director Dennis Motes said the field day will focus on the Division of Agriculture’s pea breeding program. Vegetable breeder Dr. Ainong Shi will discuss his work on germplasm development and variety improvement.
Other division researchers will describe ongoing research in Southern pea cultivation, pest control and fertility management, Motes said.
The field day will begin with registration at 8:30 a.m. Motes, horticulture department head Wayne Mackay and the featured scientists will give presentations beginning at 9 a.m.
Field tours showcasing new breeding lines and genetics research will follow the indoor presentations. Lunch will be served after the field tours.
The event is free, but pre-registration is requested by Aug. 10, Motes said. RSVP to Christina Lawrence at 479-474-0475 or by email at cml015@uark.edu.
The station is located near Kibler on Thornhill Street, off State Highway 162, about 6.5 miles south of Alma.
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.
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Media Contact: Mary Hightower
Dir. of Communication Services
U of A Division of Agriculture
Cooperative Extension Service
(501) 671-2126
mhightower@uada.edu
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