Organic Dairy Farming in Frederick County

I came across a great story about an organic dairy farm in Jefferson, Maryland - in Frederick County - where the whole family plays a part in producing quality, organic dairy products.

Having visited this farm, I can say they have a really great operation.

Read more.

The machinery in the first picture is their current dairy operation, equipped to milk many of their cows all at once, aiming for efficient production twice per day.

The device in the second picture is designed to eliminate the flies that tend to congregate around cows out in the sun. The cow walks through here, equipped with machines that work similar to a bug-zapper, and it eliminates the majority of the flies.

The purpose of the device is to eliminate the need to medicate a cow with fly spray or ointment (remember, this is an organic operation, i.e., no chemicals, antibiotics, pesticides, herbicides, etc.).

While I think this would be very hard to manage an entire operation, I admire the Holter's for doing such a great job with it.

As for me and Wild Wind Farm, I think we'll stick with the all-natural approach as best we can and go from there. But it certainly is a great operation.

The Poison Dart Frog Lives In Maryland

Thanks to one Maryland farmer, the poison dart frog - which is endangered in many places of the world (mainly in Central and South America) where it was once native - is alive and well.

Read more.

A Sign of the Times?

Think about it: Back in the day, the grassy fields around what is now Comcast Center on the University of Maryland campus used to be grazed by animals as part of Maryland Agricultural College (circa 1856) - the center of the Maryland "college" campus. Today, you would hardly know it. Do most students even know there IS an agricultural wing to this college?

What's even more frustrating is the fact that agricultural students will now have to pay additional fees (on top of what they are already paying) to use the farming facilities that once were a much larger part of the university system. Couldn't they just add a fee to the thousands of cars that park on campus every day? There has to be a better way, no?

Read more here (link courtesy of DiamondBack Online, Maryland's independent student newspaper).