Tractor known as a ‘multipurpose workhorse’ made available for field lab use
In an arrangement with Curtis Powell, operations superintendent at the Lake Wheeler Road Field Laboratory (LWRFL), Ronnie Jackson of Clinton Truck & Tractor has donated a six-month lease (or 200 hours use, if that comes first) of a Maxxum ® 125 farm/agricultural tractor for use in the teaching and research activities at the field lab. Called its “multipurpose workhorse” by CASE IH Agricultural Equipment, the tractor combines efficient power with operator convenience to handle large workloads and tasks such as those related to livestock operations, row crop applications and roadside mowing.
“This is the first donation of this type to the operation unit at Lake Wheeler Filed Laboratory,” said Dr. Reid Evans, assistant director of N.C. State University Field Labs, noting that “a large number of students use our facilities, not to mention a large number of visitors each year.”
The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences’ Lake Wheeler Road Field Laboratory is a diverse and heavily used field laboratory. Of a total of 1,474 acres, 903 are used for teaching, research and extension programs, with the balance in natural areas. The LWRFL provides specialized teaching facilities for students studying poultry, swine, dairy and beef cattle, biological sciences, ecology, environmental sciences and air quality.
The tractor will be used in normal day-to-day operations of the research farm and as part of many events, tours and classes that take place there. These activities include Farm Animal Days, which annually attracts more than 6,000 attendees; Ag in the Classroom, which brings teachers to campus from across the state; teaching/demonstration farm events; and tour groups from area high schools and other universities. CALS classes in crop science, soil science, biological and agricultural engineering, and horticultural science, along with training sessions in numerous disciplines, also are taught at the LWRFL.
