Category: Life on the Farm

June 4-8: Farm 2 Table

thefarmingdaughterLeave a comment

An educational hands-on field trip program designed for third and fourth graders

“The best day I ever had!” That’s how one kid described his Farm 2 Table field trip. And who could blame him? In a time when most kids think that milk comes from a carton, this child had the opportunity to pet real live calves and piglets, talk to a maple farmer, and plant his own pizza garden.

Farm 2 Table is a unique field trip experience for 3rd and 4th graders hosted by the Erie County Agricultural Society. My sister Addison and I have helped since the program started in October 2010. Two Farm 2 Tables are hosted each year, one in the spring and one in the fall. Each day for a week schools come to the Erie County Fairgrounds for an awesome learning experience about agriculture. The trip costs nothing, in fact each school wa given $100 per bus to offset transportation costs.

Addison and I have helped on various stations, including sheep (where the kids made their own Ojo de Dios craft with 100% wool yarn) and the goat station (where my own goats were on exhibit for the kids to pet). This June we were once again placed on the pig station with our wonderful station leader Laura. Our station actually had piglets for the kids to pet after they heard a talk about pigs and labled where pigs originated on a map.

Kids petting the piglets
Laura feeding the piglets
Feeding Frenzy

After our station they went to a variety of others, including:

  • Chicken: a chance to see a live chicken as well as day old chicks and goslings
  • Cow: the kids got to go on a cow scavenger hunt and “milk” our resident fake cow Mable in Milkable Mable’s Stable

  • Bees: learn about the fascinating life of bees and how honey is produced
  • Maple: get to taste both fake and real maple syrup (the Maple leader got frusterated because most kids liked fake over real 🙂 )
  • Chia Pets: a grass “hair” growing pet planter
  • Gro-Ums: garden kits with themes like pizza, salad, and taco
  • Blacksmith: a live demonstration by Paul Gresz
Paul Gresz mesmerizing the kids

All the kids have a blast and don’t even realize all the things they are learning about agriculture and where their food comes from. This year they all got to sign planter boxes that were later used during the fair. After they went through all the stations the kids ate string cheese and milk with their lunches. Before each kid went home they were given a goodie bag full of cool stuff like a horse shoe and passes for their parents to come to the fair (kids are free).

One of our Farm 2 Table ambassadors
One last cute pic

For more information about Farm 2 Table visit: http://www.the-fairgrounds.com/farm2table

First Life

thefarmingdaughterLeave a comment

The corn is up! This is a picture from the first field that sprouted.

Dad has been planting corn since the 14th of this month, sometimes all through the night. He has 145 acres done, with about 95 acres left to plant. The corn we grow is used for two differt types of cow feed: corn silage and grain. Corn silage is the entire plant chopped up and stored in a silo. For grain we use our combine to only harvest the dried kernels. The kernels then go into the grain recipe our nutrionist writes.

The picture I posted was taken yesterday. Already, you can count the rows in the field. This means the plants are tall enough that you can distinctly see the sprouts and the rows they were planted in. It’s hard to believe this tiny sprout will soon be over 7 feet tall! And you thought your kids grew fast!

Although the corn is starting to shoot up, we need some rain. It hasn’t rained since Dad planted the field, over 10 days ago. Thankfully there is enough moisture trapped in the ground to let the corn start growing. A good soaking though would really kick the plants into high gear.

Face of a Farmer

thefarmingdaughter2 Comments

What do you think a farmer looks like? Dirty? Smelly? Maybe you imagine the stereotypical caricature of a portly man wearing overalls and leaning on a pitchfork. According to the American Farm Bureau the average consumer is more than 3 generations removed from the farm. Perhaps you are like most of the population. You’ve never had a chance to talk with a real dairy farmer. You’re concerned about the safety of your food and the way animals are being treated.

The good news is dairy farmers are concerned about the same things you are! Producing safe, quality milk is something we take pride in. Farmers want to care for the earth so that flourishing, productive land can be passed on to their children. Farmers know that only healthy, happy cows will produce milk.

If you’d like to “meet” a real farmer check out Face of a Farmer. The Erie County Agricultural Society interviewed my dad for their new webpage. Click on the link below. You can read the article about my dad and watch the video in the top right hand corner. I hope you’ll see that farmers are people too and that they care deeply about their families, their farms, and their communites.

http://www.ecfair.org/face-of-a-farmer/archive/richmond-farms-dairy-2012/

Here’s a picture of a real farming family:

My Farming Family