Country Comes to Town
If your family thinks milk comes from a carton and crawfish only swim in fettuccine, it’s time to take those city slickers to the country—right in the center of the Capitol City.
LSU AgMagic features April 20-26 interactive, hand-on activities that explain ecosystems from plant germination and forestry to aquaculture and farming and the state’s agricultural economy from the ground to the table and beyond.
“Today’s children are at least a couple of generations removed from the farm,” says Paul Coreil, LSU AgCenter vice chancellor and director of the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service. “They think their food comes from the grocery store. They don’t have the opportunity to be on a farm. We’re trying to help them understand the importance of the agricultural industry here in Louisiana and in their daily lives.”
The event offers opportunities to touch live alligators, crawfish and catfish as well as chicks, pigs, goats and other farm animals; watch eggs hatch; stroll through a miniature forest; learn about all the products from trees; and make leaf prints, animal tracks and crayon rubbings of insects.
During AgMagic, LSU’s John M. Parker Coliseum arena is divided into five areas:
Every year, Animals Produce For You is a showstopper with live chickens, pigs, goats, lambs and dairy and beef calves and a large dairy cow. Chicks hatching in an incubator, sheep-shearing and cow milking demonstrations add to the excitement.
–By observing and handling live catfish, crawfish, alligators, turtles, koi and other ornamental fish, Farming the Waters promotes an understanding of habitats, products and the concept of “farming” aquatic life.
–At the World of Wonder, logging tractors, a portable saw mill and other equipment illustrate the role forests and forest products in the state’s economy and the importance of protecting state’s abundance of natural resources.
–Plant Products explores the growth of cotton, rice and sugarcane from seeds to mature plants and explains the vegetable origins of ketchup and other favorite foods and the benefits of insects to gardening.
Flora and fauna aren’t the only ones under the microscope; the Louisiana Body Walk provides a cell-sized view of humans’ stomach, small intestines, heart, lungs, bones, skin and brain. Learning station activities demonstrate the effects that different foods have on each organ.
April 20-24, school groups and other organization preview the event; it opens to the general public on April 25-26.
For more information, visit lsuagcenter.agmagic.
Click here for this week’s Creature Feature.
Click here for this week’s City Lynx.
