Purdue Extension Elkhart County: Invasive species in our area

Please welcome Mark Evans—Extension Educator-ANR-Plant & Soil Science. Mark will discuss Purdue Extension Elkhart County's role and share information about nvasive species in our area.

(From The Farmer's Exchange-Online Edition, Published November 15, 2024)

Mark Evans Joins Elkhart Co. Extension

A change of season also brings a new staff member to the Elkhart County Extension office in the role of plant science Extension educator. Mark Evans started on Nov. 4, transferring from Putnam County Extension where he served nearly 16 years as county Extension director and 4-H youth development educator.

Evans has nearly 32 years of service to Purdue Extension with his initial 11 years in Purdue Agronomy in the role of Extension soil conservation specialist, followed by five years as county Extension director in Owen County and serving as agriculture and natural resource educator in both Owen and Clay counties.

When asked what he was most excited about with the position, Evans said, "Elkhart County has a rich and diverse agricultural heritage, ranking second in number of farms, though farm size is small ranking 88 out of 92 counties in farm size. There is a lot of opportunity to teach about soil health and plant science. I hope to work with producers to increase the use of cover crops particularly on green chop silage fields where no cover exists two thirds of the year. These fields are losing in terms of soil health relative to a field with plant roots and more microbial activity."

Evans also expects to offer numerous programs including topics on vegetables, cropping systems, soil health and woodland programs. He plans frequently to have news releases and updates for local farm, horticulture and lawn topics relative to the season.

Though he grew up in Union County in southeastern Indiana, he was married in Elkhart County to Beth who grew up in nearly St. Joseph County. They have two sons; Justin is in the workforce as a welder while younger son Cody is a junior at Penn High School in Mishawaka. Mark enjoys Purdue basketball, the outdoors, attending his son's school events and serving the community in various aspects, especially through faith-based activities.