70 years on, ‘Backyard Farmer’ remains hardy perennial in Nebraska life
“We hear from our loyal viewers about how they watched the show with their parents or grandparents,” Todd said.
By Geitner Simmons,
Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, UNL
Apr 4, 2022
Excerpt:
“Backyard Farmer” started on KFOR-TV (now KOLN/KGIN), in the basement of the Temple Building on City Campus. In 1955, the program moved to Nebraska Educational Television’s channel 12. The key figures in launching the program to early prominence were George Round, director of university relations and longtime host of the program, and producer Jack McBride, a pioneering leader in Nebraska public television. The inaugural broadcast in August 1953 featured the kind of relaxed banter that quickly became a familiar part of the show, as Round joked straight away with horticulturalist Wayne Whitney.
Whitney, who would appear on the show through 1976, long stood out as a colorful character, blending serious advice with wry comments, and writing and drawing on a board to accompany panelists’ explanations. Viewers came to know his oft-used phrase that plants need “tender loving care.” Gardeners need to appreciate the nutrient value of manure, Whitley often noted. After a viewer called in and said a cow had eaten all the foliage off her favorite bush, Whitney shared his advice: Turn the cow around.
