Category: Fairfield

With over 50,000 ponds across South Carolina, proper management of these systems is always an important topic!

In March, we welcomed 29 pond owners from across the Midlands to the Recreational Pond Management Workshop, hosted in Lexington County. Participants learned about aquatic weed control, plant identification, fisheries management, and available Clemson resources. Workshop feedback indicated a 100% increase in both knowledge gained and participants’ likelihood of using the information presented. The success of this workshop gave pond owners new confidence and practical tips for managing their ponds.

Feedback from the workshop also indicated that attendees would like to learn more about wildlife management, including the control of beavers, muskrats, and turtles. While still in the planning stage, be on the lookout for Nuisance Wildlife in Private Ponds Workshop, tentatively planned for November in the Midlands region!

For pond or water-related questions, please contact Charly Greenthaler at charleym@clemson.edu or (803) 520-1679.

Members of Midlands STEM 4-H Club have been busy learning about gardening, stewardship, and healthy living through hands-on activities in their school garden. Club members had the chance to harvest their sweet potatoes, which were planted at the end of last school year. The sweet potatoes were a great success, and members even had the opportunity to learn how to prepare a healthy sweet potato snack.

MSCS 4-H Club members then prepped their garden beds and planted their next round of crops, including green beans and squash.

These activities helped youth develop practical skills not only in gardening and nutrition, but also in teamwork and meal preparation. The school garden provides a continuous lesson on where food comes from and encourages healthy living.

Fairfield County 4-H Youth Development Agent, Chloe Margeson | cmarges@clemson.edu

The new 4-H year has officially arrived, with enrollment underway, offering youth ages 5-18 across the county opportunities to learn new skills, make friends and build confidence through fun, hands-on, engaging activities.

Clubs for the new 4-H year explore every 4-H program area, including STEM, agriculture, animals, leadership and more. Other events and programs throughout the year encourage youth to explore 4-H outside of their club experiences.

To learn more about joining 4-H, finding or starting a club, or becoming a 4-H volunteer, contact Fairfield County 4-H Youth Development Agent, Chloe Margeson at cmarges@clemson.edu.

Keeping an eye on The South Carolina Grower blog, written by Clemson Extension food crop agents, provides timely suggestions for pest and disease management and potential issues being seen in the state. In addition, the resources tab provides up-to-date information on meetings of interest around the state with the opportunity to earn private applicator CEUs.

The two-spotted cotton leafhopper was observed again in August, initially in Charleston. The pest does not appear to be overwintering in South Carolina at present. The favored hosts are in the mallow family, including cotton, hibiscus and okra. In addition, it is known to be found on sunflowers and eggplant. If you find the insect, please report it to Extension. The adults are visible to the naked eye, but using a phone camera provides magnification, bringing the spots into clearer focus.

For more information, contact Commercial Horticulture Agent 
Rob Last at rlast@clemson.edu or (803) 359-8515. 

Did you know that Fairfield County residents can participate in Clemson Extension’s Health Extension for Diabetes program? Rural Health and Nutrition Agent, Elizabeth Josey, is currently working with a group of South Carolina residents through this free, four-month online program, which provides education, support and practical tools to help adults better manage Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes.

New cohorts are starting soon! If you or someone you know could benefit from this program, contact Elizabeth Josey at parker4@clemson.edu to learn more.

Looking for a fun way to try new, healthy recipes from the comfort of your own kitchen? Check out Stirring Up Healthy Recipes, an online cooking class offered by Clemson Extension’s Rural Health and Nutrition Team!

Stirring Up Healthy Recipes is a fun and educational cooking program designed to help participants prepare delicious, healthier meals at home.

During the program, participants watch live cooking demonstrations, learn new healthy recipes and discover simple ways to modify favorite dishes with healthier ingredients.

Join us the second Friday of each month from 12:00-12:45 PM.

Register Here

To find out more about the program, contact Rural Health & Nutrition Agent:

Elizabeth Josey | parker4@clemson.edu

By the end of our workshops, you’ll be ready to preserve the season’s bounty and contribute to a community dedicated to safe and sustainable food practices. This is more than just a learning experience; it’s an opportunity to merge tradition with innovation in kitchens across the Midlands.

Choose your workshop date for only $40!

Location: Camden, SC 29020

Don’t miss out on this empowering educational journey. Register now and become part of a movement that values both heritage and creativity. Spots are limited, so secure your place today!

Register Here

Faith Isreal | 803-722-1195 | fisreal@clemson.edu

Enviroscape Lesson (September 15) – Provided a lesson to Richard Winn Academy using the enviroscape to illustrate point source pollution and non-point source pollution in our waters.

Silvopasture Field Day (September 17) – Assisted in setting up the demonstration plots for the Silvopasture Field Day that was hosted on September 17 at Clemson’s Edisto Research and Experimental Station.  This field day was free and showed cased forest stands that have been thinned and open areas that have been planted with longleaf pine at different spacing.

Newberry Soil and Water Mobile Lab Gardening Program (September 25) – Provided a lesson on soil health and how to interpret a soil sample analysis for their Winter Gardens and Soil Health Workshop.

Chainsaw Safety Workshops – The Clemson Extension Forestry and Natural Resource Team is offering Chainsaw Safety and Handling Workshops along with Tree Felling. These workshops teach participants about safe chainsaw handling, proper protection equipment, basic saw cuts on downed trees and techniques to safely fell a tree.

• September 25, 2025 – Chainsaw Safety Workshop at Clemson, SC.
• November 7, 2025 – Chainsaw Safety Workshop at Clemson, SC
• January 16, 2026 – Tree Felling Workshop at Sandhill Research and Education Center

Union Agricultural Fair (October 13-18) – Clemson Extension is heavily involved in the Union County Agricultural Fair. Each year we oversee agricultural products, home economics, poultry, display animals in the barn, and the livestock shows. During the month of October, you will find us fully involved in the Union County Agricultural Fair.

5K Day (October 16) – Each year we host the all the 5-year-old Kindergarten students in the Union County School Districts. They move the barn in stations to learn about Beef cattle, dairy cattle, pigs, goats, horses, rabbits, chickens, bees, and crops, all of which are part of Union County’s history. For this program I plant the crops sections for the display during the fair and the presentations for the 5-K Day.

Chainsaw Safety Train the Trainer (October 27-29) – conducted a train the trainer with Forestry Mutual Insurance to train 5 Agents on chainsaw safety.  This training will help provide more instructors for our chainsaw safety program. 

Newberry Career Center Interviews (November 19) – Newberry County Career Center invited me to sit in on mock interviews for their students who were interested in a agricultural related careers.  Had the opportunity to interview 5 students. 

Champion Tree (November 24) – Visited with John Cely at the Congaree National Park to measure 2 potential national champion trees.  They are currently state champions.  We measured a Loblolly pine and a cherry bark oak. 

Learn to Burn (December 11) – Assisted the South Carolina Forestry Commission in hosting a learn to burn to promote the Broad River Fire Cooperative. 

Portable Sawmill (January 7 & 12, 2026) – We are currently in process of planning a portable sawmill workshop for March 11, 2026.  For this program we have been milling logs and collecting data that would pertain to landowners who maybe interested  in purchasing a portable sawmill.  Through these work days we have milled numerous pine logs for the lumber and will in turn use that lumber to  make products displayed at the workshop. 

Judge 4-H Food Plots (January 14, 2026) – Always one of my favorite activities.  Mark and I judged a 4-H’ers food plot in Union.  This is a great project where the 4-H’er, plants the plots, monitors the plot, and then completes a record book.  We visit the site and then judge plot based on a set of criteria. 

Newberry Forestry Association

• November 11, 2026 – Buddy Lominack with Big Pine Logging, Inc. gave the association a loggers perspective in the current market.
• February 2026 – Dr. Patrick Hiesl with Clemson University will present on the Economics of Portable Sawmills.

Laurens Forest Landowners Association

• November 25, 2026 – Jon Carter presented on Utilization of Agricultural Spray Drones in Forestry
• February 24, 2026 – Colton Webb with the South Carolina Forestry Commission will present on Prescribe Fire and any changes that maybe coming in the next year.

4-H Shooting Sports Trailer
The 4-H Shooting Sports Trailer has been busy the last few months. We use the trailer to raise funds for our 4-H Shooting Sports Program. We have been fortunate to raise enough funds to purchase and maintain our supplies, so the participants do not have to pay any extra fees for the clubs.

• Union County Fair – October 14 – 18, 2025
  • Grand American (Orangeburg, SC) – January 2-3,
    2026
• Walker Days (Union, SC) – February 27-28, 2026

Upcoming Events:

Chainsaw Safety Workshop

• March 12, 2026 – Clemson — https://www.eventbrite.com/e/chainsaw-safety-and-handling-workshop-tickets-1925493987349?aff=ebdsoporgprofile
• March 26, 2026 – Georgetown — https://www.eventbrite.com/e/chainsaw-safety-and-handling-workshop-tickets-1977944586503?aff=ebdsoporgprofile
• March 27, 2026- Georgetown — https://www.eventbrite.com/e/chainsaw-safety-and-handling-workshop-tickets-1977947278555?aff=ebdsoporgprofile
• April 24, 2026 – Clemson — https://www.eventbrite.com/e/chainsaw-safety-and-handling-workshop-tickets-1977948336720?aff=ebdsoporgprofile

Tree Felling

• March 13, 2026- Clemson — https://www.eventbrite.com/e/tree-felling-workshop-tickets-1925474789929?aff=ebdsoporgprofile

Portable Sawmill Workshop

• March 11, 2026 – Clemson — https://portablesawmillworkshop.eventbrite.com

Newberry Forestry Association

• May 12, 2026 – Jon Carter will present on Utilization of Agricultural Spray Drones in Forestry

Laurens Forestry Association

• May 26, 2026 – Lance Beecher will present on pond management

Jackie Jordan, the Fairfield County Urban Horticulture Agent and Master Gardener Coordinator offered two Master Gardener Training classes in the fall of 2025. The Master Gardener Training Class trains, selects, and utilizes knowledgeable volunteers to facilitate the educational work of the local Horticulture Agent by delivering research-based information to the citizens of the state. The course is an 11-week course covering lawn care, home vegetable gardening, urban tree care, native and ornamental plant selection, and insect, disease and weed identification and management. Master Gardeners provide many free garden programs at multiple Richland County Library locations.

On March 26^th Jackie Jordan will be hosting a landscape design workshop focusing on using native and edible plants in the landscape. Participants will learn principles of design so they can create a beautiful and functional home landscape.

For more information on the program, please reach out to Jackie Jordan  by email at jkopack@clemson.edu.

Clemson Extension hosted a joint meeting of Fairfield and Richland County cattle producers on February 3, 2026, in Winnsboro. The meeting topic was Cattle Marketing: What Buyers Are Looking for. Ms. Tammie Shore, Mr. Wes Weeks, and Mr. Joseph Coleman, owners/operators of Saluda Livestock Exchange, spoke about the characteristics and management that cattle buyers desire in the cattle they purchase. They also highlighted the services and sales opportunities that are available at Saluda Livestock Exchange. Forty cattle producers from Fairfield and Richland Counties attended the meeting and received up-to-date information on the current cattle market in South Carolina.

This meeting was part of the 2025-2026 Fairfield Cattle Educational Series, an annual series of educational topics for cattle producers in the area. Meetings are held in October, November, January, February, March, and April each year. The series offers educational topics on forage management, herd health, cattle marketing, and other topics of interest to the cattle-producing community.

Brian Beer | bbeer@clemson.edu