It’s pleasant images of those childhood daytrips that still go through my head any time I hear the classic beach tune “Under the Boardwalk,” a 1964 hit by The Drifters. However, in recent months, I’ve been looking at a different type of boardwalk that has nothing to do with vacation or the beach.
Whether they are quiet or talkative, rich or poor, dairymen, machinery experts, crop farmers or more, we love our hardworking farmer fathers. Read more
Fairs in the Northeast come in all sizes, shapes and content, but their primary purpose is to showcase agriculture, with entertainment coming in a close second. Read more
After an old dam is removed, tons of highly erodible sediment will be hauled away, restoring the natural floodplain that existed before European settlers arrived. Read more
Paul Brock, owner of Silver Thread Vineyard and instructor in viticulture and wine technology at Finger Lakes Community College, moderated a panel on “Creating the Experience that is Comfortable for Guests and Sustainable for Your Business” at the recent Al Fresco Flx. Read more
Richmond, Virginia-based tobacco company Universal Corp. released its annual earnings report for the fiscal year ending March 31. Read more
Pale, blue-gray walls and rows of low, dark gray-painted pews with straight backs awaited us. In the central section of the small church, a board down the center of the pews hearkened to the time when men sat on one side of the church, while women and children sat on the other. Read more
Each May, Sinclair Adam, Alyssa Collins and a pack of faithful staff and volunteers at Penn State’s Southeast Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Manheim, Pennsylvania, pull off a logistical — and exhausting — feat, all for the love of flowers. Read more
Blair County’s dairy princess, Kara Stultz, also has the well-deserved title of Pennsylvania’s second alternate dairy princess. The daughter of Rob and Tammy Stultz of Williamsburg, Pennsylvania, Kara has been in love with farming since she could walk. Read more
NEWMANSTOWN, Pa. — Fourth-grader Shane Musser likes to be on the move, says his mom, Rose Musser. Read more
A group of Indiana County 4-H’ers wants to make “PA Preferred” foods the basis of a meal subscription program. The four students are taking part in a competition, the second annual Pennsylvania Science of Agriculture event, to be held June 19-21 in State College. Read more
Education about production agriculture is going to be the biggest hurdle to our survival. We are currently struggling with this issue, and as time goes on it will get worse. Read more
For many years, I’d raised, or at least attempted to raise, strawberries. We always had a patch of them in our large family garden while I was growing up. Many of the first afternoons after school let out each June were spent gathering the sweet, juicy fruit, warm from the sun. Read more
From graduations to weddings, this is the time of year when many photos will be taken. I’m not sure how the phrase “watch the birdie” came to be identified with photo-taking, nor do I hear that phrase much anymore. Read more
On May 18, prior to the youth sheep show, at the 2019 Northeast Livestock Expo, held at the Windsor Fairgrounds, Isabelle Baker, 9, of Rockport, patted a spring lamb being sheared and groomed by Adam Eaton, 14, of Hope. Read more
When 14-year-old Brooke Emery realized her employers were struggling on their dairy farm due to the dairy crisis, she knew she wanted to help others understand the value of milk. Read more
“Everyone can share their opinion for better or worse about food and how things are done on farms,” Swarthout said. “Only 2 percent of us work in animal agriculture. It creates a dynamic where there’s a lot of room for disconnect.” Read more
“Interning brings people together in new ways,” Warmke said. “Those of us who have land, expertise and resources, this is the best way we can prepare the next generation. It gives a sense of hope and encouragement about the world.” Read more
If you have read about the keto diet, you know that it is basically a high-fat, moderate-protein diet with an extremely low intake of carbohydrate-containing foods. Read more
My mother always called our upcoming national holiday “Decoration Day,” because that’s what Memorial Day was known as for nearly a century. Read more
A move to Centre County a few years ago prompted Jessica Matthews to start a chicken hobby farm. While searching for straw online for her flock, she came across an ad for a dairy apprenticeship at Hameau Farm in Belleville, Mifflin County. Read more
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture on May 10 notified consumers that laboratory testing has shown “Triple Action Neem Oil Broad Spectrum Fungicide, Insecticide, and Miticide” contains pesticide active ingredients not listed on the product label. Read more
Summer and grilling seem to go together like peanut butter and jelly. Grilling outside in the warmer months helps to keep the house cooler. Adding a few simple grilling techniques and changing up your food choices can make grilling a very healthy option. Read more
We’ve had guineas pretty much ever since then, although we were down to one lone bird two years ago. Purchasing a half-dozen young ones from a friend two years ago regenerated the flock and brought company to the single, lonely guinea remaining. Read more
You never realize how much you use your kitchen faucet until you can’t. I kept catching myself repeatedly going to tap a glass of drinking water or fill the houseplant watering can. I finally had to hang a plastic container over the faucet to remind myself it was deceased. Read more
Pennsylvania’s Commission for Agricultural Education Excellence, which began meeting in January, will develop a statewide plan for ag education and offer recommendations on everything from teacher training to curriculum. Read more
In comparison with using mechanical hunting methods like archery or shooting a gun, Folch’s hunting takes a good deal of preparation. Read more
Since the beginning, grass seed has played a major role in American Seed Co.’s sales. Most of the grass seed supplies are shipped in from growers in Oregon, Washington and Canada, then mixed on site to customers’ specifications. Read more
Regardless of diversity, there is a common bond among the students attending each year’s banquet. Each is a member of Charlotte County’s chapter of FFA or the Charlotte County 4-H Club. Read more
“What exactly do you do as a Penn State Extension food, family and health educator?” or some version of that question is frequently asked when I meet someone new. Despite a 100-plus-year history of providing non-formal educational programs to our nation’s citizens, it is still said that the … Read more
As a writer, it’s not surprising that I enjoy reading. But as a farm wife, it’s also not surprising that I don’t get much time to read. Read more
Beautiful hanging baskets decorate our front porch: graceful draping floral displays in blues, pinks, yellows, purples and reds. Read more
According to the 2017 U.S. Census of Agriculture, the number of Hispanic principal operators in the country now stands at 90,344, up from 67,000, the figure reported in the 2012 census. Read more
The past and the present will be merging at the Ephrata Cloister on May 24-26. That’s when the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission site will play host to a special workshop on printmaking. Read more
Myrannda Kleckner is proof that even a busy young professional working full-time in agriculture while studying for a graduate degree at Penn State can still take time to stop and smell the roses — and lots of other flowers, too. Read more
Bone broth is a hot topic discussed in many newspapers, blogs and popular health shows. These sources report that drinking bone broth will make your bones strong, relieve joint pain, improve your digestion, and give you firmer skin. Where did this idea come from? Read more
Canning is suitable only for green hull or English peas. Peas are low-acid vegetables and must be pressure-processed to be safe. They may be packed into jars raw or hot. Read more
Things that I once took for granted or didn’t care about at all are starting to become important to me, and one such thing is my Pennsylvania Dutch heritage. Read more
The “green-ness” that encompasses the farm and our neighborhood is so intense and so all-pervasive that it almost feels like sensual overload after the seemingly endless, beige landscapes of winter. And, with her typical artistic touch, Mother Nature dots our landscape with accents in beautiful crayon-box contrasts to the background curtain of greenery. Read more
“Each year we experiment with something,” Jeanice Ferris said. “Last year it was the cherry husk tomatoes (also known as ground cherries). They are truly unique and customers liked them.” Read more
It seems like we hear about food recalls on a daily or, at a minimum, a weekly basis, making one wonder about the safety of the foods we purchase. Read more
After repeated muttered threats, I yanked the phone cord plug out of the wall socket. The blinking light on the message machine blacked out and the digital-status message faded. Read more
Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding celebrated Earth Day with a visit to Ernst Conservation Seeds in Meadville, where he touted the PA Farm Bill’s connections to conservation. Read more
Because of its many uses, hemp has been grown for thousands of years by many cultures. People have used the hemp plant for traditional medicine as well as for dietary and nutrition purposes. Read more
Gravestones might seem like a dead subject, but Michael Emery, an employee of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission for more than 20 years, brought the topic to life recently for a standing-room-only crowd at Historic Schaefferstown’s Thomas R. Brendle Museum. Read more
After her experience at the Ag Institute for Teachers, Teresa Hessmann knew she wanted to do something new to help her students better understand how their food got from the farm to their plates. Read more
Seven years ago, one of the country’s most popular and colorful shade bedding plants, Impatiens walleriana, with sales in the millions, nearly disappeared from the East Coast market. Read more
at Penn State Extension seminar on Profitable Lamb and Wool Marketing, growers were introduced to tips for raising premium meat, the specifics of marketing during ethnic holidays, and particular needs for increasing wool quality. Read more
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