The UD Botanic Gardens spring plant sale will feature Acer and Geranium.

Get ready for Ag Day

Article by Katie Peikes Photos by Katie Young and Monica Moriak | Video by College of Agriculture and Natural Resources April 18, 2024

UD’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources gears up for annual showcase for the community

University of Delaware Ag Day always has something for everyone.

At the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) signature community event, you’ll find sheep shearing, bird flight demonstrations, plant sales, UDairy Creamery ice cream, participatory economics research and even cockroach races.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for our college to exhibit to the entire community what we do and what we have here,” said Lori Baiardi, CANR events manager. “We have a 350-acre campus right here in Newark. Ag Day is an opportunity for the community to really learn about agriculture, conservation and incredible research that’s happening here at UD and impacts their lives.”

Led by College of Agriculture and Natural Resources’ students, Ag Day is a decades-old tradition held each April. The 2024 edition of this favorite community event takes place Saturday, April 27, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m at Townsend Hall (531 South College Ave.) in Newark. CANR students and collegiate organizations will show off agriculture and natural resources through various events, demonstrations and food. Parking and admission is free and open to the general public.

A child high-fives UD’s mascot YoUDee.

The theme of this year’s Ag Day is “From the Ground Up.” Kenneth Geisert, a senior insect ecology and conservation and wildlife ecology and conservation double major, said the theme is about going back to our roots.

“The world as we know it is constantly changing, especially now with global warming and climate change,” Geisert said. “Everything is starting to become unpredictable. And we need to adapt with that time. So in order to do that, we have to go back to our roots, be where we started, see how the world has evolved since then, and adapt with that change.”

Geisert and several other students round out the Ag Day Student Committee, working with Baiardi to organize the event and showcase CANR’s areas of expertise to the public.

Maci Carter, a senior plant science and agriculture and natural resources double major on the committee, said Ag Day is her favorite day of the year. Getting to help plan her final Ag Day as a student and work with event sponsors to make the day a success is the icing on the cake.

Ag Day guests can visit the FMC tent, which showcases the company's innovative and sustainable crop projection technologies. At last year's Ag Day, a popular FMC exhibit featured its large insect collection.

“Ag Day is a really great way to bridge the gap between the public and agriculture,” Carter said.

Ag Day’s title sponsor is FMC Corporation, an agricultural sciences company that provides internships to Blue Hens and employs many UD alumni. This Ag Day marks FMC’s third year with its very own Ag Day tent.

“FMC has made Newark home — engaging scientists from all over the world to join our global innovation center in the pursuit of sustainable, future-focused agricultural solutions,” said Diane Nabb, global research and development manager at FMC Corporation. “This year, FMC will team up with one of our local community partners, Fair Hill Nature Center, to showcase farm equipment and host hands-on agricultural exhibits throughout the day.”

The UD Botanic Gardens will hold its annual Spring Benefit Plant Sale, highlighting Acer and Geranium as this year’s featured plant genera.

Also this year, animal science graduate Phung Luu of Animal Behavior & Conservation Connections will give bird flight demonstrations, always a favorite pastime of Ag Day guests.

UD animal science graduate Phung Luu will present a bird flight demonstration at Ag Day.

The UD Animal Science Club will host two sheep pens this year. Larry Armstrong, manager of UD’s Webb Farm, will demonstrate sheep shearing.

The UD Entomology Club will host the ever-popular insect zoo. People can look at, learn about and even hold various arthropods.

UD Cooperative Extension will have a tent highlighting its four program areas in agriculture, health and well-being, 4-H, and environmental stewardship. New Castle County Master Gardeners will be on site for their native plant sale, which will feature a variety of herbs and native perennial plants.

While admittance into Ag Day is free, the Center for Experimental and Applied Economics will pay attendees in cash for participating in research on the ground floor of Townsend Hall. Participants will receive cash incentives and an ice cream coupon upon completion.

Learn more about Ag Day 2024.