The All Commodities Field Day will take place July 22 at Robinson Station and the Robinson Forest. It will feature forestry, horticultural, livestock feed production and tobacco research under way at the station and forest. Another highlight will be a tour of the Wood Utilization Center to see the step-by-step story of manufacturing hardwood flooring.

Robinson Station and Robinson Forest are research and educational facilities of the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture.

Tours at Robinson Forest will include best management practices for logging, forestry and timber valuation and management, and alternative land uses for small-acreage forests, including production of Christmas trees, ginseng and goldenseal and shiitake mushrooms. Other topics will be landowner rights and responsibilities and forest management opportunities.

While at the forest, visitors also will learn more about environmental education opportunities at the facility, including an interpretative walk on the Boarding House Trail, according to Dwayne Turner, special projects coordinator at Robinson Forest.

People attending the Robinson Forest programs will leave Robinson Station at 9 a.m. and return about 3:30 p.m. Lunch will be served at the forest.

Research tours at Robinson Station will begin with registration at 1 p.m., followed by tours of horticultural, livestock feed production and tobacco research projects, as well as an in-depth look at hardwood flooring production at the Wood Utilization Center. The last station tour will begin at 5 p.m. Dinner will start at 6 p.m.

Topics on horticultural research tours will include evaluations of fresh-market tomato and pumpkin varieties, fresh-market green cabbage and other cole crops for eastern Kentucky, and annual flowers and hydrangeas for the cut-flower market. A high-pressure sprayer also will be demonstrated.

Research on livestock grain and forage production will include forage variety trials, kura clover establishment, round bale silage, weed control in pastures and hay fields, no-till sulfur fertilization and kenaf for livestock feed.

Tobacco research topics will include no-till production, drip irrigation and fertigation of no-till tobacco, and field-curing structures. In addition, visitors to Robinson Station can tour exhibits with information on educational institutions, agricultural commodity groups, agribusinesses, governmental agencies, community development and improvement, and public health services.

For more information on the All Commodities Field Day, call (606) 666-2438, 229.