George O. White celebrated 90 years
Photo by Christy Porter
Staff with the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) at the George O White State Forest Nursery greeted attendees at the 90-year celebration of the facility.
Photo by Shari Harris
Matt Elledge and Bobby Garrett demonstrated a tree digger, a much better way to harvest than “pulling trees.”
By Christy Porter, Managing Editor
George O White Nursery celebrated 90-years of productivity on Saturday with tours of the facility and in the field, a luncheon, free souvenirs, a visit from Smoky the Bear, a fishing clinic and an operation demonstration of a portable sawmill.
Staff conducted tours that took visitors through the processes of acquiring a seed, nurturement, quality control and harvest of four million seedlings, with two million allocated for public and private use. Along the way historical methods from as early as 1934 were displayed with photos and explanation; some methods such as quality control are still in use. New technology and scientific advancement were also presented, keeping the nursery a viable source of forestry.
The event was free with approximately 300 participants.
Photos by Christy Porter
Charlie and Debbie Welch greeted visitors, providing a tour tag and raffle ticket for Springfield Cardinals Baseball tickets. Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) employees also provided free souvenir bags that included a Redbud and Milkweed seedling.
Manager Mike Fiaoni welcomed the tour groups, and with the 9:30 a.m. group, he recognized past employees Bill Mares and Bill Moncrief for their contributions.
Dena Biram explained quality control, bundling and shipping processes. Guests were then taken to the coolers by Fiaoni, who shared temperature and mold growth control. Seedlings or cuttings are kept at a 34-degree temperature to keep them dormant and to prevent mold growth. However some seedlings such as the elderberry cannot be fooled, and proceed with spring regardless. Another cooler area is storage for the larger 50-pound bags of seed.
Obtaining the seed, separating it from plant growth and drying the seed was explained further in the tour.
Photos by Christy Porter
The groups were driven to the field where Matt Elledge and Bobby Garrett shared the machinery and attachments that included original planters to current technology, as well as pest control (sometimes Tabasco sauce) that contributes to the efficiency of planting and harvesting. During the season this can be a 24-hour a day job.
Once the season has ended any product left goes to a compost pile to nourish future plantings and the facilities are disinfected in preparation for the next season.
Photos by Christy Porter
From the field, the groups attended an interesting presentation of a portable sawmill, given by Mike Morris. During the operation of the sawmill, large logs were taken to assorted size planks.
Photos by Christy Porter
A free fishing clinic at the lake was a fun ending to the tour.
Photos by Christy Porter
Throughout the open house employees were happy and knowledgeable while answering questions and giving thorough explanations to all.
Congratulations to the winners of the Springfield Cardinals Baseball tickets who were Daryl Bates-2 tickets, Brandi Mace-2 tickets, and more winners were to be notified.
