Cream of the Crop

Texas State Technical College students reaped the rewards of hard work Tuesday.

Over the last seven months, agriculture technology program students prepared and planted sorghum and managed their crop on 38 acres at the college for a class project.

Their work culminated Tuesday with the first successful harvest at the college since the program began 34 years ago.

Program instructor Matthew Mire said Tuesday that students planted five varieties of grains to study each variety's reaction to the
environment. The land where the sorghum was planted was purchased several years ago for the college's future expansion, but the agriculture technology program has been able to use it for now, Mire said.

Chris Sparks, agricultural technology program graduate and now part owner of C&J Farms, harvested the crop as students observed the process.

"This is the first year we get a harvest on our crop," Mire said. "Last year our crop was damaged by Hurricane Dolly and the previous year we had a bad harvest."

This "real-world classroom environment," Mire said, will help TSTC students get ahead of students who have not had hands-on experience when competing for a job.

Mire said students will sell the sorghum and the profit will be returned to the agriculture technology program for additional equipment or supplies.

Mire estimates the students will earn about a $6,000 profit from the harvest.

Bianca Garcia, vice president of the Agriculture Technology Club, said Tuesday that she and her classmates learned about spraying herbicides and pesticides and about the bugs that affect the fields.

"It really did show us what is going to be done if you choose a career in agriculture," Garcia said. "Agriculture is a big source of income in the (Rio Grande) Valley and from our clothes to the food we eat - it all goes back to agriculture."

Garcia plans to become an agriculture teacher.