Clemson Extension area agent says times are hard for service

FLORENCE — Tony Melton is a man constantly on the move as a Clemson Extension area county agent.

His specialty is horticulture but he takes care of everything else in between throughout the seven counties he serves: Chesterfield, Clarendon, Darlington, Florence, Marion, Sumter and Williamsburg.

He doesn’t have time to slow down, even when he’s in his office. He receives about 50 calls a day and “60 or better e-mails.”

Melton does his best to return all missed calls.

“I might not get back immediately,” he said, “but I will get back to you.”

And there are those who come to his office for advice, such as Jim Casey, a retired Progress Energy employee from Florence. He grew up on a tobacco and truck farm in eastern North Carolina and told Melton his father was the “collard king of North Carolina.”

Casey was concerned about his camellias. He said they “took a licking” from a recent cold spell.

Melton told him not to worry. He said things would clear up and gave him advice on what to do.

But he said times are hard at the extension service.

“The state budget is in terrible shape, and they keep cutting our budget,” he said. “A lot of our money comes from the state. It looks like we’re really going to have to hunker down until this is over.”

Meanwhile, the McBee native has brought national attention to the extension service. He is a 2007 recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of County Agricultural Agents.

The award is presented to the top 2 percent of county agents from each state with more than 10 years service in the nation’s Cooperative Extension Service. The selection is made by county agent peers in that state who are endorsed by the state extension director.

Melton specifically was cited for co-hosting his Emmy award-winning statewide TV program “Down Home With Tony and Amanda.” He’s also a regular panelist on “Making It Grow.” The TV program has aired for 14 years and has received several Emmies.

Melton teaches five different Master Gardner courses in four counties with more than 100 graduates each year. He began a vegetable growers group that meets semi-annually and an ornamental group that meets monthly.

Melton said he is a people person and his core goal is to help people. He keeps a calendar in his shirt pocket to remind him of his appointments.

“I’m pretty good at getting things over with,” he said. “If somebody calls me, I’ll do my best to get there and try to help them with their problem. I like to get things done. I’m not a procrastinator.”

Melton is a 1980 honor graduate of Clemson University with an undergraduate degree in horticulture. He returned later and plowed his way to a master’s degree in horticulture with a minor in plant pathology.

Name: Clemson University Extension Service
Established: 1914
Address: 2685 S. Irby St., Florence
Director: James F. Barker
Employees: 12
Specialty: Livestock, horticulture and row crops assistance
Web site: http://www.clemson.edu/florence

Fast Facts

• The Clemson University Extension Service office in Florence serves seven counties.
  
• It has 12 employees.
  
• The extension’s Master Gardner courses are taught in four counties.
  
• Most questions posed to extension staff deal with fire ants and moles.
  
• Clemson Extension Area County Agent Tony Melton said there are some areas in the Pee Dee where grass won’t grow because of ground pearls, which are scale-type insects who get their name ecause they look like little pearls shining in the sunlight.