In The Field Magazine - Polk August 2011

www.InTheFieldMagazine.com August 2011 INTHEFIELD MAGAZINE 1

August 15-September 15, 2011

Covering What’s Growing

Bridget Carlisle

ReseaRCheR extRaoRdinaiRe

®

2 INTHEFIELD MAGAZINE August 2011 www.InTheFieldMagazine.com www.InTheFieldMagazine.com August 2011 INTHEFIELD MAGAZINE 3

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The experience of ages has shown that a man who works on the land is purer, nobler, higher, and more moral... Agriculture should be at the basis of everything. That’s my idea. Nikolai Gogol

Agriculture, as defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is the science, art or practice of cultivating the soil, producing crops and raising livestock and, in varying degrees, the prepara-tion and marketing of the resulting products.

Sounds relatively simple doesn’t it? But agriculture is so much more than the sum of this definition. It means food from our country, a safe, abundant source of food is right here in the United States of America, and even better than that, it is right here in Florida. It means going to the farmers market for the freshest best food. Agriculture also gives us a sense of satisfaction, bringing in the crops after working in the fields or rounding up the cattle and seeing the fruits of our labors in the newborn calves running around to find their mommas, and shar-ing this with others who are involved in this age old industry.

Agriculture is also full of beauty and wonder. When you are out in the field or pasture before the break of dawn, you can pause as the sun comes up to greet a glorious day. You get to witness nature at is finest as your crops and livestock grow with each passing day.

Agriculture is also education. Education of the youth in our country is of the greatest importance. Of course we want to help those involved in projects with 4H and FFA, but don’t forget those who may not have a chance to be on the farm. The education of those who are generations removed from the farm is important as well.

Agriculture is a lifestyle. It’s a responsibility to preserve and even enhance the connection agriculture gives us to the land. Farmers and ranchers know the land around them and understand its importance in the continuation of this thing we call agriculture.

Until next month,

SarahThe LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. Numbers 6:25

From the Editor

Sarah Holt VOL. 5 • ISSUE 12

August

www.InTheFieldMagazine.com August 2011 INTHEFIELD MAGAZINE 1

August 15-September 15, 2011

Covering What’s Growing

Bridget Carlisle

RESEARCHER EXTRAORDINAIRE

®

In The Field® Magazine is published monthly and is available through local Polk County businesses, restaurants and other local venues. It is also distributed by U.S. mail to a target market, which includes members of Polk County Farm Bureau, Florida Citrus Mutual and Polk County Cattlemen’s Association. Letters, comments and questions can be sent to P.O. Box 5377, Plant City, Florida 33563-0042 or you are welcome to email them to: [email protected] or call 813-759-6909.

Advertisers warrant & represent the descriptions of their products advertised are true in all respects. In The Field® Magazine assumes no responsibility for claims made by their advertisers. All views expressed in all articles are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Berry Publications, Inc. Any use or duplication of material used in In The Field® magazine is prohibited without written consent from Berry Publications, Inc. Published by Berry Publications, Inc.

7 Did you know?

8 Advertisers Index

12 Business UpFrontAgro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers

16 Fishing Hot SpotsCaptain Woody Gore

24 Rocking Chair ChatterAl Berry

10 Grub StationReececliff Family Diner

40 Annual Dinner MeetingPolk County Cattlemen’s Association

42 Fighting Crime

56 FFA Convention

®

Together In The Field - Sheriff Judd

E V E RY THING

See store for details.

See store for details.

Publisher/OwnerKaren Berry

Editor-In-ChiefAl Berry

Senior Managing Editor/Associate

PublisherSarah Holt

Editor Patsy Berry

Office ManagerBob Hughens

Sales ManagerDanny Crampton

SalesAl Berry

Tina RichmondDanny Crampton

Kay Mullis

Creative DirectorAmey Celoria

DesignersJuan Carlos Alvarez

Mona Jackson

PhotographyKaren Berry

Al Berry

Staff WritersAl Berry

Sandy KasterJames Frankowiak

Tracy AikenSean GreenMark CookGinny Mink

Contributing WriterWoody Gore

Researcher Extraordinare: Bridget CarlisleCover Photo by

Karen Berry

Cover Story30

26 Redistricting WorkshopFarm Bureau


Thursday night, July 21, was the Polk County Cattlemen’s Association summer dinner meeting. I think it was the largest turnout in several years. There were 327 chairs set up and very few empty seats. We were fortunate to have two sweethearts in attendance. Our newly crowned Florida Cattlemen’s Sweetheart from Hillsborough County, Kaitlyn Gill, was in attendance and gave a brief talk on her experiences since being selected. Our Polk County Sweetheart, Shelby Freeman, presented a slide show from behind the scenes at the contest and other convention photos and stated what it meant to be able to participate in the contest. She was second runner up and did an excellent job representing Polk County. The Polk County Cattlewomen presented their premier and scholarship awards. Spirited bidding followed dur-ing the cake auction. Sales from cakes are used to fund these scholarships. The Cattlewomen came the night before the event and did an outstanding job of decorating the tables and stage. Thank you for all the effort. A video of the Ranch Rodeo was played and the many sponsors and stock suppliers were acknowledged by rodeo committee chairman, Fred Waters. The meat was cooked on our completely refurbished grill. With BEEF and Polk County logos promi-nently displayed, it will be a great advertising tool for our Association. This is another exam-ple of one of our members coming forward to offer their knowledge and expertise to support the local Association. Thanks go to Adam Norman for a great effort.

In conjunction with Polk County and the sesquicentennial celebration we are going to rec-reate an early 1900’s cow camp at Circle B Bar Preserve. There will be a small period correct cabin and cattle pens. Myrtice Young, Polk County Historic Preservation Manager, attended the dinner and exhibited a drawing of the camp. Chris Nelson presented an insight into rein-troducing a Polk Bred element into the Polk County Youth Fair Steer Show.

Charles ClarkCharles Clark

POLK COUNTY CATTLEMEN’S ASSOCIATIONPO Box 9005 • Drawer HS03

Bartow, FL 33831-9005

OFFICERS& BOARD OF DIRECTORS

President – Charles Clark (863) 412-8349 [email protected]

Vice President – Dave Tomkow (863) 665-5088 [email protected]

Secretary/Treasurer - Justin Bunch (863) 425-1121 [email protected]

Al Bellotto (863) 581-5515

Ray Clark, (863) 683-8196 [email protected]

L.B. Flanders, DVM (863) 644-5974

Dewey Fussell (863) 984-3782

Mike Fussell (863) 698-8314 [email protected]

David McCullers )863) 528-1195

Moby Persing (863) 528-4379

Ned Waters (863) 698-1597 [email protected]

J. B. Wynn (863) 581-3255 [email protected]

Alternate - Howard Yates, 2501 Arbuckle Lane, Frostproof, FL 33843-9647

Standing Committee Chairs:

Membership- J.B. Wynn

Events- Kevin Fussell (863) 412-5876

Rodeo- Fred Waters (863) 559-7808 [email protected]

Cattlewomen - President

Sherry Kitchen (863) 221-0230 [email protected]

Extension – Bridget Carlisle (863) 519-8677 [email protected]

Sheriff’s Dept. – Sgt. Howard Martin

LOOK WHO’S READING

Shelby FreemanPolk County Cattlemen’s Association Sweetheart

®

• Nine-banded armadillos always give birth to four identical young, the only mammal known to do so. All four young develop from the same egg and they even share the same placenta.

• Reindeer like bananas.

• Tennessee is bordered by 8 states. Can you name them?

• Toilets average 35 percent of indoor water use.

• The average speed of a skydiver is 200 mph.

• Cats spend 66 percent of their life sleeping.

• The smallest bone in your body is in your ear.

• Elvis’s middle name was Aron.

• The names of all the continents both start and end with the same letter.

• Skiing is the only English word with double i.

• Birds need gravity to swallow.

• The most commonly used letter in the English alphabet is E.

• Money is the number one thing that couples argue about.

• Eighty five percent of plant life is found in the ocean.

• August has the highest percentage of births.

• The average person falls asleep in seven minutes.

• Unless food is mixed with saliva you can’t taste it.

• An ostrich’s eye is bigger than it’s brain.

• Most lipstick contains fish scales.

• Lemons contain more sugar than strawberries.

• Eight percent of people have an extra rib.

• Ralph Lauren’s original name was Ralph Lifshitz.

• A lobster’s blood is colorless but when exposed to oxygen it turns blue.


YOU TOO CAN BE A WINNERHEY READERS, hidden somewhere in the magazine is a

No Farmers, No Food logo. Hunt for the logo and once you find the hidden logo you will be eligible for a drawing to win a FREE InTheField® T-Shirt. Send us your business card or an index card with your name and telephone number, the page on

which you found the logo and where on that page you located the logo to:

InTheField® Magazine P.O. Box 5377, Plant City, FL 33563-0042All Entries must be received by September 3, 2011.

Winner will be notified by phone.You Too Can Be A Winner - Enter Now!

No FarmersNo Food

THE

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Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers ................................................. 13Arrington Body Shop, Inc. ........................................................ 61B&L Pool Resurfacing, Inc. ...................................................... 57Berry Blue Farm & Nursery, LLC ............................................. 61Broke & Poor ........................................................................... 43C&J Equipment Sales, Inc. ....................................................... 39Carlton & Carlton, PA ............................................................. 49Cattleman’s Feed & Ranch Supply ............................................ 41Cowboys Steakhouse & Saloon ................................................ 35Cowboys Western World ............................................................ 5Crescent Jewelers ...................................................................... 11Discount Sheet Metal ............................................................... 47Eli’s Western Wear .................................................................... 27Ellison RBM Inc. ........................................................................ 8Farm Credit .............................................................................. 27Fields Equipment Co. ............................................................... 43Florida Farm & Ranch Supply .................................................. 61Florida Strawberry Growers Asso................................................ 9Fred’s Market ........................................................................... 19Grove Equipment Service .......................................................... 13Gulf Coast Tractor & Equipment ............................................... 2Haines City Paint & Body ........................................................ 61Helena Chemical ...................................................................... 53Higgenbotham Auctioneers ...................................................... 57Hogan & Hogan ...................................................................... 39Hurricane Sandblasting & Painting .......................................... 61I-4 Power Equipment ................................................................ 64International Market World ...................................................... 45KeyPlex Nutritional .................................................................... 3L.I.T. Security Cages/Lewis Insulation Technologies ................. 63Lay’s Western Wear & Feed ...................................................... 49Lightsey Cattle Co. ..................................................................... 8Mosaic ..................................................................................... 51Norm Sapp Delivery Services .................................................... 27Polk County Cattlemen’s Association ......................................... 7Polk Equine, P.L. ....................................................................... 61Precision Citrus Hedging & Topping ........................................ 37Prestige Homes ......................................................................... 51Red Rose Inn & Suites .............................................................. 21Red Rose Inn & Suites ......................................................... 28-29Rhino Linings ........................................................................... 51Rhizogen .................................................................................. 41Roadrunner Veterinary Clinic ................................................... 35Seedway .................................................................................... 49Seigler Funeral Home ............................................................... 53Southeastern Septic, LLC .......................................................... 47Southside Feed .......................................................................... 23Southwestern Produce .............................................................. 15Spurlow’s Outdoor Outfitters ................................................... 61Stephanie Humphrey ................................................................ 53Stingray Chevrolet .................................................................... 17The Bug Man ............................................................................. 8Winfield Solutions, LLC........................................................37,45Wishnatzki Farms ..................................................................... 25

Index of Advertisers

Florida Strawberry Growers AssociationFor more information call our office at

813.752.6822 Join Our Growing Family Now!

Join NowThe Florida Strawberry Growers

Association is a voluntary organization that has over 75 percent of Florida strawberry

growers as members. The Association represents growers on a wide variety of issues and

policies working to keep strawberry production profitable in Florida. In addition, FSGA offers associate

and corporate memberships to allied industries that would like

to join our vast network.


At 77 years-of-age, the Reececliff Family Diner in Lakeland is getting a long over-due face-lift.

A lot has happened since 1934 when the diner was established by the Stidham Brothers, Reece and Cliff.

Back in ’34, dusty Lakeland area cowboys were riding up to the diner and tying their horses up to the hitching post before going in for a hearty meal.

Hearty meals were hard to find back then because Americans were in the midst of the great American depression. Maybe that is one of the reasons the Reececliff adopted the policy of the best food at the best possible price. That policy worked during the depression and is going strong during the great American recession of 2011.

In 1936 Jesse Owens won four gold medals in track and field for the U.S. at the Olympic Games in Berlin, Germany.

By 1939 World War II had begun. In 1940 the practice of euthanasia on the German sick and elderly had started while the 1940 Axis Agreement was signed by Germany, Italy and Japan and the first experimental use of gas chambers was executed in the fall of 1941 at Auschwitz.

On December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor was at-tacked by the Japanese. This year, 2011, marks the 70th anniversary of that attack.

December 8 the United States and Great Britain declared war on Japan followed by a declaration of war on Germany December 11, 1941.

World War II officially ended on August 15, 1945. Japan surrendered, with the surrender docu-ments finally signed aboard the deck of the American battleship USS Missouri on September 2, 1945.

By that time the world had been through a lot and the Reececliff was only 11 years-old.

Since then our country has lived through the Korean and Vietnam Wars, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the assassination of President Kennedy, the Cold War, the civil-rights movement, the feminist move-ment, the rise of the counter-culture and gay-rights movement.

The microchip was invented starting the tech-nology revolution. Man has walked on the moon, orbited the far reaches of outer space. We started and ended the space program.

We still struggle with the war on terrorism that

began on 9/11, global famines, how to manage our natural resources, the battles against HIV and can-cer, and why people would want to harm innocent children or shoot strangers in restaurants, schools or shopping centers…all while trying to understand politicians and the national debt.

The Reececliff survived all that history including the passing of family ownership.

Looking a little worn around the edges at 75…and who doesn’t? The diner was purchased by res-taurant entrepreneur James Bronkhurst of Plant City who is giving it a face-lift with loving restoration, retaining the trademark sign from the 40s, outfitting it with a new awning and expanding to include a patio addition.

Although the familiar red and white has disap-peared, the Reececliff is sporting a new wardrobe in muted earth-tones and looking pretty spiffy as an improved 77 year-old.

What hasn’t changed is the service, the friendli-ness and expertise of the 20-stong staff, many have been working at the diner for years. The head chef, pie baker and salad maker have a combined Reece-cliff working life experience of more than 130 years!

Staff and customers refer to one another in the genteel southern way, Miss Jeanette Mobley has been the revered pie maker for over 60 years and still has the magic touch that makes the diner’s pies legendary. Miss Rachele, the manager, makes what are called the “new pies” with different flavors like bourbon chocolate pecan pie.

Miss May has been the salad girl for about 30 years and can’t be topped if the Cobb salad is any example. It’s actually more than five inches deep and filled with extra crisp bacon, freshly cut ham and turkey, tomatoes and eggs.

Many years ago my husband was in the restau-rant and hotel business and always complained that a “good salad girl is hard to find.” Who knows, maybe if he’d had Miss May on his payroll we’d still be in business.

Miss Willie has been the diner’s southern-cook-ing expert since 1963. When I tasted a side of lima beans, which I normally truly dislike because they are almost always over-cooked and end up mushy with a grey color, I was amazed. They were firm and that lovely delicate shade of green they were meant to be.

Honestly, I’ve never been a big fan of traditional southern cooking but a big fan of southern manners. This family diner proves me wrong in the first instance and right in the last.

Having become somewhat accustomed to fried green tomatoes, I was happy with the ones served but over-the-moon with my first bite of fried pickles. So glad my first taste of a fried pickle was from a chef who knows how to make something hot, crisp, and not greasy on the outside, but cool and crisp on the inside. Who knows, I might even get up the courage for turnip greens one day.

A lot of what is included in the southern-style menu here is what I believe to be one the most difficult of all things for a chef to accomplish…prepare simple food well. Food is the most satisfying when you can tell what it is. It should be the color God intended it to be, as well as cooked to the correct stage of doneness. Not over or under seasoned.

Chefs are artists who need to know when the painting is finished and not keep tinkering with it.

My partner-in-life thinks of the chef who prepared his Friday special pot roast like most guys would think of Marilyn Monroe or the car they loved the most.

Suppressing any feelings of jealousy, I have to agree with his love-affair with the Reececliff pot roast…a simple meal well-

prepared. In addition to the tenderness of the meat, the gravy was awe-inspiring. It is what gravy was meant to be with a perfect full-body flavor, a rich brown color without a single lump or greasy residue. It makes you want to forget those southern manners and lick that platter clean.

Manager Rachele Boyette has lived in Polk County all of her life and is proud that Reececliff also puts back into the Polk economy by buying only locally grown fresh produce from Goddard Produce on Main St.

Because of the comfortable atmo-sphere of this place, customers consider themselves family and stop by to comment or see what is going on. Carol Gilmore swiveled on her soda fountain stool and told us she was the third generation to sit on one of those stools holding one of the diner’s decadent milkshakes. She told us, “My mother Ruth was a car hop here in 1938.” See what I mean?

On the wall are photos of times gone by and plaques testifying to Miss Jeanette’s pie-making skills. One sign shows an old-fashioned sampler with the words, “Kissin’ don’t last but cookin’ does.”

If you are from Lakeland, you’ve eaten at the Reececliff. If you’re not, it’s worth a trip and don’t worry, nobody even thinks about kissin’ when their mouth is full of good cookin’.

Reececliff Family Dinerby Cheryl Kuck

Reececliff Family DinerEstablished 1934

Location: 940 S. Florida Ave.Phone: (863) 686-6661 Hours: Mon–Sat 7a–9p, Sun 8a–2p

Take Out Service: Order pies in ad-vance of holidays

Reservations suggested

Catering: Call Manager Rachele Boyett

Seating: Inside restaurant with diner counter accommodates approxi-mately 112 persons. Outside patio has seating for 16.

Drinks: Known for hand dipped milk shakes and ice cream sodas. No alcohol

Specials: Daily full meal specials include a choice of at least three vegetables. Senior 10% daily dis-count between 2 and 4pm

Prices: Moderate with generous portions. Salads and sandwiches to entrees from $6.99 to $10.99. Pies baked daily - from $2.99 for a slice to whole pies from $10.99 to $15.00

Extras: Sign-up for restaurant news-letter and receive a free dinner on your birthday. Free Wi-Fi.

Web site: www.Reececliff.com

[email protected]

Hours: Tues.-Sat. 10am - 5:30pm1514 S. Alexander St., Ste #108 Plant City

We Buy Go ld!

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Producing an abundant crop, durable and full of flavor at a profit is more of a challenge today than ever.

The demands of today’s consumer require more from our nation’s growers. To compete, we are forced to produce a product more profitable than in years past and one that exceeds general standards as well as meets the expectations of the consumer. This can be difficult for some producers.

Quite often the obstacle in meet-ing demand today is that we attempt to maintain or improve our production using old methods without the benefit of new technologies.

As producers, we are some of the best in the world at growing a crop and getting it to market but as businessmen and inno-vators, we tend to function in a rut doing the same thing over and over.

Think about it. The one thing that remains the same is our intention of growing a crop. Everything else is subject to change. Our acres might change, prices may change, and the weather, soil condi-tions, and nutrient levels will also change. How many of us are doing what we have always done but struggle to maintain production and quality.

Those using new technologies are enjoying greater return on their invest-ments. New varieties and stronger genetics add benefit to their production, advances in pesticides and equipment too add value. Many of these advances have already been introduced to crop production, the exception seems to be advances in liquid fertilizers.

The technology available today can put nutrient use back in the hands of the grower and in response to the requirement of the crop, not dictated by limitations of the product nor guided by historical treat-ment methods. How often are we forced to make treatments with conventional fertilizers in such a way just to manage the negative attributes of the product, such as instability, chlorine, by- products of in-dustry or high salt content? Likewise how many times have we staged treatments due to incompatibility with other fertilizers or pesticides? Available today is the technol-ogy that puts prescriptive use and applica-

tion back in your hands.Manufacturing processes employed

by Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers, allow you the opportunity to use a true solution fertilizer that remains stable and resists salting out. Our chelating technology pro-vides the freedom to mix your nitrogen, phosphate, potassium, micro elements and even add our calcium in a single mix, all while remaining a stable, true solution.

Unlike the conventional fertilizer arena, we at Agro-Culture Liquid Fertil-izers, along with our dealerships, can be prescriptive with the use of our products. The target of Maximum Return on Invest-ment will suggest that attention to crop removal values, nutrient balances and pos-sible antagonizing influences in the soil be considered when building a fertilizer pro-gram. With this information, along with the cropping intentions of the grower, a program targeting a desired crop response can be created. Face it, you spend money on fertilizer products to get an intended plant response in return.

As a grower you know what your production goals are. Soil test reports provide us the knowledge of the nutrient levels and conditions we begin with and at the same indicate what deficiencies, imbalances or limiting factors that need to be addressed.

To sum it all up, you can take a fresh look at plant nutrient choices out there and with Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers, you can create a multi-nutrient product mix that remains stable and can be ad-justed throughout the season in response to environmental influences, fruit load or stress factors. Our true solution products bring added value to crop production by having superior compatibility, no chlorine, no by-products of industry and a lower salt index than our competitors.

Remember if you do what you’ve al-ways done you will get what you’ve always gotten.

Looking for greater opportunity? Are you interested in improving yield, maybe crop quality or return on investment? The first step is to contact your nearest Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers representative.

Find us at www.Agroliquid.com.

Take a Fresh Look!


Perfectly Fresh. Perfectly Priced.

Southwestern Produce Company1510 Sydney Rd. • Plant City, FL

(813) 754-1500 or (813) 757-0096

VEGETABLE SALEFri. & Sat. August 19th & 20th • 8 am - 5 pmFri. & Sat. September 16th & 17th • 8 am - 5 pmCall in your order today or just drop by and see us!

WALK-INS WELCOMEGive us a call to be placed on our mailing list for monthly notification.

Baby Butter Beans ............... $13 Green Beans ....................... $13Pole Beans .......................... $13Speckled Butter Beans ......... $13Blackeye Peas ..................... $13Butter Peas .......................... $13Conk Peas ........................... $22Crowder Peas ...................... $13Green Peas ......................... $13Mixed Peas ........................ $13Pinkeye Peas....................... $13Sugar Snap Peas ................. $15White Acre Peas .................. $13Zipper Peas ......................... $13

White Corn .......................... $12 Yellow Corn ........................ $12Cream White Corn 4# ...........$ 6Cream Yellow Corn 4# .........$ 6Collard Greens .................... $12Mustard Greens .................. $12Turnip Greens ..................... $12Spinach ............................... $12

Cut Okra ............................. $12Breaded Okra ..................... $12Whole Okra ......................... $12Sliced Yellow Squash .......... $12Sliced Zucchini .................... $12Brussel Sprouts ................... $12Chopped Broccoli 5# ............$ 5Baby Carrots ....................... $12Broccoli ............................... $13Cauliflower ......................... $13Mixed Vegetables ............... $12Soup Blend .......................... $12

Blueberries 5# .................... $15Blackberries 5# ................... $15Cranberries 5# ................... $15Mango Chunks 5# .............. $15Pineapple Chunks 5# ......... $15Dark Sweet Cherries 5# ...... $14Rhubarb 5# ........................ $10Peaches ............................... $15Fresh Peaches 25# box ...... $20Green Jumbo Peanuts......... $15

Fresh fromthe Farm to yourFreezer!

Eating at Home More?

Come See Us!

Recipes Courtesy of The Florida Department of Agriculture

Watermelon Salsa

Ingredients 3 cups watermelon (seedless if available), diced1/2 cup bell pepper (any color), diced2 tablespoons lime juice, freshly squeezed1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped1 tablespoon green onions, chopped1 tablespoon jalapeño pepper, finely choppedkosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation

Combine all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate one hour to let all of the flavors come together. Tip: This light summer style salsa is a great way to liven up fresh Florida seafood. Use this salsa recipe as a template to make any kind of salsa, just replace the melon with your favorite fruit or veggie.

Yield

4 servings

Open Face Watermelon Sandwiches

Ingredients 1/4 medium-sized watermelon, seeds and rind removed1 handful fresh mint leaves, chopped8 ounces goat cheese1/2 loaf crusty bread, sliced thinolive oilkosher salt to tastefresh ground pepper to taste

Preparation

Crumble chilled goat cheese into a small bowl. Lightly mix cheese and chopped mint. Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper. Cut bread into eight small slices and drizzle with olive oil. Toast bread slices until golden brown and crispy on top. Let bread cool slightly. Spread cheese mixture on the top of each slice of bread. Cut watermelon slices into fun shapes and layer water-melon on top of cheese. Lightly season the top of the sandwiches with salt and pepper. Serve at room tempera-ture.

Yield

6 servings


Ever check a weather map and notice all the blue H’s and red L’s scattered over a specific area and wonder what it meant? It actually represents the barometric pressure changes happening as the weather systems change. When you look at a weather map many times it will have blue “H”s and red “L”s, which indicate areas with High and Low pressures. Barometric pressure is the measure of the weight of the atmosphere above us. It also exerts pressure on the waters we fish and even directly on our bodies.

In fact, it can change how some people actually feel. It is believed by many, that it may have a similar and even more dramatic effect on fish that often affects their feeding habits.

Many seasoned anglers agree that it’s worth noting that the areas with high pressures are the areas with good fishing. Another judging factor of good fishing is the lunar effects, which play a role in the tidal and illumination factors. On the other hand, the areas with low pressure are the areas with bad weather. Barometric pressure has been used by weathermen since the beginning of weathercasting. It’s also been used by fishermen to predict the quality of fishing, and more importantly, how, and sometimes when and where to fish.

It’s been an established premise for years that the barometric pressure has an effect on fishing. How this pressure directly effects the fish is still not fully understood, but knowing how to use barometric pressure readings can greatly increase your

chances of more catching and less fishing.Today aneroid barometers are the most

widely used instrument to detect air pressure. An aneroid is a flexible metal

bellow that has been sealed after removing some of its air. Higher

atmospheric pressures will squeeze the metal bellow while a lower pressure will allow it to expand. This expansion of the metal is usually mechanically coupled to a dial needle which will point to a scale indicating the barometric pressure.

Barometric pressure also varies with altitude. A higher elevation will have

fewer atmospheres above it, which exerts less pressure. To

standardize readings for world use, barometric pressure is always

calculated at sea level. Therefore, readings at elevations other than sea

level require a correction factor based on elevations and air temperatures, because cooler

air is heavier.Water depth also has less effect on barometric pressure

because water pressures over take the air pressure. However, the effect of barometric pressure is always much greater in shallow waters.

Remember, if the fish aren’t biting, you can’t always hang your hat entirely on barometric pressure because it’s just one of many factors that affect their feeding habits. Other effects include water levels, water temperature, light, tidal forces, water clarity, the pH level, wind, boat traffic, and of course fishing pressure.

by Captain Woody Gore

TAMPA BAY’S FISHING REPORT

Weather Maps:Blue h’sred l’s


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Tampa Bay Fishing Report Snook, Redfish & Spotted Sea Trout:

(Snook season is closed) During the summer when water temperatures get really hot, it’s not likely you’ll find Snook, Redfish or Trout in skinny water, except perhaps early in the mornings or late at night. Instead you’ll see them moving into deep water or suspending at a different level depending on the thermoclines. If you do find them shallow they’ll always drop into the shade line of mangroves, especially around moving water because it’s usually cooler.

They’re eating everything in the water, but always seem partial to a fresh greenback (if you can find them) cut threadfins, cut or live pinfish or chunked ladyfish and mullet.

Check around the passes separating the Mangrove islands. Early mornings and artificial lures work well this time of year and the key to artificial is confidence. For Snook try some of the many jerk baits or plastic shrimp rigged weedless or with 1/8 oz. lead head jig. Hard lures might include MirrOLure’s - (www.mirrolure.com) Top-Dog Series, or the all New MirrOMullet Surface Walker and MirrOlure Lipped Crankbait. The color selection is not nearly as important as the action but in general white, silver with black, green with white and red and white are good choices.

Mackerel fishing in Tampa Bay is semi-strong (good days – bad days) and there are some giant drag screamers chasing schools of threadfins. These are some exciting fish to catch on light tackle with the larger ones averaging from three to six pounds. They hit hard, rip off 30 to 50 yards of line, and make you wonder what in the world is on the end of your line. Find some hard bottom and you’ll usually find huge schools of threadfins or simply look for the birds. Toss out a bag or two of chum and get ready for some rod bending light tackle action. Try using large greenbacks or threadfins with small wire leaders and long shank hooks. I use 50# Seaguar Fluorocarbon leader, long shank hooks.

Mangrove Snapper: We’re finding them on every rock pile, marker structure, and bridge around Tampa Bay and fairly easy to catch. Lighter line and smaller hooks should produce a nice meal. They’re really partial to the new hatch greenies or

Threadfins but always take shrimp. We are seeing Cobia around markers, especially those

holding bait and occasionally some are still cruising the grass flats following large rays or manatees. When fishing markers, keep a chum bag over the side, if they’re in the area this should attract them. Toss them a pinfish, greenback or threadfin and hold on.

Tarpon Sometimes tarpon fishing slows a bit in August as many are returning from offshore. However, Tarpon fishing around the Tampa Bay usually continues with resident fish haunting the light-lines around the bridge lights. They’re best fished at night or early in the mornings and fairly easy to sight cast but difficult to land (bridge pilings). Some juveniles are showing up in rivers and channels.

“Give Me a Call & Let’s Go Fishing” Captain Woody Gore is the area’s top outdoor fishing guide. Guiding and fishing the Tampa, Clearwater, St. Petersburg, Tarpon Springs, Bradenton, and Sarasota areas for over fifty years; he offers world class fishing adventures and a lifetime of memories.

Single or Multi-boat Group Charters are all the same. With years of organizational experience and access to the areas most experienced captains, Woody can arrange and coordinate any outing or tournament. Just tell him what you need and it’s done.

Visit his website at: WWW.CAPTAINWOODYGORE.COM, send an email to [email protected] or give him a call at 813-477-3814.

BOB ROUSE


The rainforests are quickly disappearing and even our own Florida Everglades are in danger from development companies. People seem to have lost the understanding that trees sustain life as we know it. When developers go into a piece of property and tear down and uproot the trees therein, we’ve all just lost a source of oxygen. Ken Ford of Bartow Ornamental understands the importance of replacing the trees we destroy.

Ken’s background is in environ-mental engineering. He worked in the phosphate industry as a Manager of Environmental Affairs at WR Grace and then Seminole Fertilizer. One of the things he was in charge of was reclama-tion, which is rebuilding the land after it’s been mined. Ken spent 17 years in the phosphate industry. “Phosphate is mined by a strip mining process. Large drag-lines remove the top layer of soil, called overburden, until they get to the layer where the phosphate is contained, called the matrix. The matrix is hydraulically shipped to a washer plant where it’s sepa-rated into its three primary components: sand, clay and phosphate. Phosphate is then shipped to the chemical plant to be converted into phosphate fertilizer. The sand and clay are sent back out to the mine for reclamation. In order to com-plete reclamation we had to plant native trees but we were unable to supply all the needs through normal market channels so we started our own onsite tree farm and that’s how I got into tree farming. In 1993 Cargill Fertilizer purchased Seminole Fertilizer and put our senior management team on the road. Being too young to retire at the time, I searched for something to do so I decided to start a tree farm,” he explains.

He purchased the 13 acre piece of property that houses Bar-tow Ornamental over the summer of 1993. When he got it, it was head high in dog fennels. So, they started mowing and plowing. Once that was done, he installed the first well and “then we laid out the plant beds and irrigation. Then we started laying liners and potting up plants. I built everything you see out here, even this building. My wife and oldest son and I set the trusses for the roof. My wife and I did the roof, shingled it in the summer of 1994. When we first started out we were going to be a landscap-ing nursery growing azaleas, ligustrum and viburnum. We put in

a few trees just on a whim, oaks and cypress, for the first couple of years. After about the third year we realized our niche was going to be trees because there were already too many landscape nurseries in this area so we diverted our attention to trees.”

Since Ken was doing all the labor himself, he says, “We didn’t grow rapidly, so it took a few years to build up our inven-tory. Ultimately we hit about 15 different species and that’s when

the crash hit and we’ve just been trying to cut expenses to the bare bone. I had to let all my employees go and for the past two years it’s been negative cash flow.” Sev-enty percent of Ken’s customer base was related to housing developers but since there’s “not much new development going on in Florida or the Southeast,” he hasn’t put in any new inventory in the past two years, “because the cash flow is so bad.”

He’s been in business nearly 18 years and “had finally reached the point where we could turn the corner and get things paid off and all the sudden things hit the wall.” When business was booming, they were growing three and seven gallon native trees. “They’re primarily used for mitigation work, for when somebody builds a house and clears trees they have to replace the native trees.” Thusly, plans have changed. The plans right now are “to convert from containerized to field grown. We’ll be focusing on crepe myrtles which will reduce labor and give me more free

time without worrying about plants getting blown over.”Speaking of free time, Ken is a motorcycle enthusiast. Last

summer he rode his Kawasaki KLR 650 from Bartow to Alaska and back. He has seven motorcycles and rode dirt bikes off-road for twenty something years. This summer he plans on riding to Canada on one of his bikes.

Ken has been married to his wife, Marcia for 35 years. She’s a grant administrator for Polk County Schools and has been with the district for 22 years. Their oldest son manages a lab for a geo technical engineering firm and deals primarily with sinkhole investigations. “My youngest is still trying to figure out what he wants to do with his life,” Ken explains and then adds, “Neither of my sons is interested in the tree farm. They both think it’s too much labor.”

by Ginny Mink


Loving to learn how the natural world works is one of the great things about childhood. Having an opportunity to teach young hearts and minds how caterpillars grow into butterflies, or the wonders of life growing in a common egg, and how seeds grow into nutritional plants, are just a few of the things Danielle Bass has a passion for teaching her students.

As a current student herself at the University of Florida, Plant City, Danielle plans to graduate next year with a degree in agriculture. “I’ll be doing my internship at George Jenkins in Bartow in January, February, and March, and then I’ll finish up my classes and graduate.”

After graduation, Danielle says unequivocally, “I want to be an Ag teacher.” She’s already off to a great start. Beginning with the Ag Club she created this summer at the Kathleen Baptist Day Camp in Lakeland, Danielle saw an opportunity to bring her learning to a younger audience. “Since I started at UF, I would say like last year, I’ve got all these lesson plans that I think ‘Oh, that’s so cool,’ and I know that their age group, if you take all the technical terms out, and just do basics with them they really enjoy it.”

Visiting Danielle and the kids on a hot summer day, it was a treat to see them eagerly discussing the special qualities of eggs and how they are both incredibly strong and well suited for hold-ing little chicks, and also very fragile. Moving on to a demon-stration of how to give a chicken a necessary bath, the kids had the opportunity to handle the live chickens, who for their part accepted the laying on of curious young hands.

The combination of hands-on projects and illustrated ma-terials Danielle uses, along with her excellent teaching skills and way with children, really engages these eager young minds. The kids seem to really enjoy learning in a fun way that lets them use their imaginations and participate in the wonder of nature.

One recent project had the students “play God and create in-sects, but with all of the parts an insect usually has.” It was both an art project, and a learning experience. The kids were very proud of their creations, and excited to explain how the different parts of their insects worked. These are the kinds of things that would make a teacher proud.

She credits a number of wonderful people with helping her make the club such an interactive experience for everyone. “Miss Eileen and Miss Anita said I could do this, and they have helped me out with it, and Judi at the Hillsborough County Farm Bu-

reau (she does Ag in the Classroom), she gave me a whole bunch of materials, she gave me juicers so we did juicing of oranges with the kids.”

With an interest in horticulture and animal science, Dani-elle says she was “big into the Ag mechanics in high school. My teacher Carl Carlton taught me how to weld, so while I was in high school that was a really cool thing.” She credits Mr. Carlton with having a big role in her interest in agriculture. “Being more involved with it, and doing the steers, I mean I love doing the steers and seeing the cattle ranching, and getting involved with FFA and the Ag program really was a big hit to me.”

“I think God just laid it on my heart to be a teacher because I don’t know what day I woke up and decided that’s what I was going to do, it was just ‘Ok, thats what I’m going to do’ and I’ve been pursuing it ever since, and it’s been working out really good for me.”

She loves both learning as a student and being a teacher. Feeling that the process of teaching kids is also a learning experi-ence, Danielle realizes that sometimes her students will teach her something new about a topic.

Looking towards the coming end of this summer’s pro-gram, Danielle says she plans to tie everything they’ve learned so far into a complete review. One project left involves taking the caterpillars they are nurturing in little jars to Hollis Gardens and releasing them as butterflies as that time nears.

With the diversity of topics and fun, creative projects she brings to the kids, two things you notice right away, Danielle is very well prepared and thorough in her lesson plans, and she has a great talent for involving all of the kids, even the quieter ones. “It comes from learning at school, realizing everyone learns dif-ferently, and are at different levels.”

“Each of these kids is at a different level, like one of the girls knows everything about horses, and I said to her next week, now I know you know all about horses, but we have to be respect-ful when our guest comes to speak about horses. Not everyone knows about horses.” She says it is important to bring all of the kids up to that level they need to be from the level they are, and it is important for each of them to get their say.

Having such a dedicated, heartfelt teacher in one’s young life can make a world of difference, and Danielle Bass is already making a difference!

by Tracy Aiken

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Annabelle Limpkin? She was the Justice of the Peace in Hiawassee for 22 years. I am sure she married many more than nine men during her term. You guys lose again.” There was a lot of grumbling, but they all realized that Buford had out smarted them.

Fred, better known as “Boss” to his friends, had been quiet during this ordeal. He leaned back in his chair and said, “Dad burn it Buford, how can you out-smart this table when you’re so dumb you plugged your power strip back into itself and called me over to see why the TV wouldn’t come on?”

Buford replied, “Well you ain’t so smart yourself. I recall you’re the only man ever to get trapped on an escalator at Macy’s in Atlanta. Heavens Boss, I don’t know what makes you so dumb, but it works.”

A few minutes later we all pitched in and paid for Buford’s breakfast, left a tip, and moved on.

On the way back to the house on Bearpaw Road I was listening to a talk show on the radio. It reminded me of the Art Linkletter show “Kid’s Say the Darndest Things”. The moderator was talking to some four-year-old kids. He asked them numerous questions, and below are some of their answers:

• The four seasons are salt, pepper, mustard and vinegar.

• In the spring salmon swim upstream to spoon. • To prevent a head cold you should use an agonizer to spray into the nose until it drips into the throat. • The main cause of dust is the janitor. • The people who followed the Lord were call the 12 opossums. • In the middle of the 18th century, all the morons moved to Utah. • Temperatures are hottest next to the Creator.

Those comments brought back a lot of memories of my days in school. When we got out-of-line punishment was carried out in the cloakroom. I recall Mrs. Smith, our English teacher in high school, would always read the Tampa Tribune during our morning study period. Earl Livingston and Earl Bone got away with one when they substituted the metro section with a metro section from the week before. We all knew what they did, but never told. She had one

more confused morning as I remember. In closing, my daughter Karen, who owns this publication, has

a big tough dog named “Hope” and she can lick anyone! Look for my story in this column of having lunch at the “Hole in the Wall” restaurant in Blairsville. Good food and a great experience.

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In July my wife and I spent a couple of weeks at our place on Bearpaw Road over looking the magnificent Blue Ridge Mountains near Blairsville, Georgia. A couple of times I slipped out early and had breakfast with the boys at the Sawmill Place restaurant.

Each time I sit with some of the “locals” who are regulars for the morning get together they take off bragging’ and yarn tellin’.

Buford Lucus was the last to come in around 7:30. He walked over grinning like a ‘Cheshire cat’. Crawford Little looked up and said, “Buford have you been hit’n the shine before breakfast again?”

“No, but I had a good snort last night and slept hard as a rock,” he said as he pulled up a chair and sat down. Buford immediately took a sip of black coffee that his waitress earlier handed him as he made his way to our table and said, “Boys, I’ve got three questions for you this morning. If you can answer them all three right I’ll buy breakfast for everybody at the table thru this Friday. If you don’t answer them, you buy my breakfast for the rest of the week.”

Elfert Smith spoke up, “Buford, remember last month you pulled this stunt, and it cost you! I hope you have better questions than last time like who’s buried in Grants Tomb and how many months in a year have 28 days!”

They all agreed to take him on, knowing Buford flunked out of Union High School three times. “Get with it Buford, you’ve got a deal,” said Crawford as everyone nodded in agreement.

“O.K., here’s the first one. In what year did Christmas and

New Year’s fall in the same year? My next question is, Why can’t a woman take a picture of a man with a wooden leg in Ellijay? And the third and final question is, A woman living in Hiawassee married nine different men from Hiawassee in one week, yet she didn’t break any laws. None of these men died, and she never divorced them. How was this possible?”

Everybody laughed and started in on Buford. “For cry’n out loud, Buford, did you fall off a turnip truck? Who

ever heard of Christmas and New Year’s in the same year?” Elfert said. Everybody sided with

Elfert. Buford said, “Boys I got you on this one.

They fall in the same year every year. New years Day just arrives the first day of the year, and Christmas arrives very late in the same year. Now that’s one and two to go.

“What about the second question?” “Buford, who are you try’n to kid, you

know very well there ain’t no law in Ellijay about take’n pictures up there,” Elfert

replied. Buford responded, “I know that Elfert, but

you have to use a camera, not a wooden leg.”Well you guys lose again. Well, you guys have lost

two out of three so far. Now what’s the answer to my third question?”

“Dang if I know,” Crawford said. “I’ve lived up here all my life, and I have never heard of anyone marrying nine men, and neither have you.”

“Sure you have,” Buford retorted, “Don’t you remember

Karen & Hope


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Every decade, the residents of Florida have an opportunity to participate in the redistricting process. That is an opportunity to reshape the political boundary lines of each legislative (Florida House and Senate) and congressional district in the state, an ac-tivity that can fundamentally change community representation at all levels of government. The driver in this process is the U.S. Census and the data it provides.

This is an especially important opportunity for agriculture to have its voice heard as the new districts take shape and new representatives are elected. Florida Farm Bureau hosted a recent workshop at the Polk County Farm Bureau offices in Bartow to explore opportunities for agriculture in Central Florida to par-ticipate in the redistricting process.

Farm Bureau’s State Legislative Affairs Director Ben Parks moderated the workshop which was led by Associated Industries of Florida Political Operations Vice President Ryan Tyson. Farm Bureau is a member of Associated Industries of Florida.

The 2010 Census deter-mined 18.8 million people reside in Florida, apportioning 27 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives to Florida, an increase of two seats. Those 18.8 million people must have equal representation at all levels of government. To achieve that “one person, one vote” representation, Florida’s con-gressional and state legislative districts must provide for equal representation. That process is known as redistricting and it involves Florida’s 120 State House districts, 40 State Senate districts and 27 congressional districts. And, it must be finalized before qualifying for the 2012 elections.

The shifts in population require adjustments to representa-tion in Congress and to the state house and senate. In addition, the passage of Amendments 5 and 6 to Florida’s constitution have established rules that require the creation of compact, con-tiguous districts that adhere to existing government boundaries. They also prohibit drawing district to favor or disfavor an incum-bent or political party. Prior to the passage of these amendments in 2010, Florida had few rules for redistricting.

The Florida House of Representatives is giving Floridians an unprecedented ability to participate in the redistricting process through a combination of statewide public meetings and online or web-based resources. The redistricting public meetings are town-hall type sessions that began in June and will continue until the last session is held at Clewiston September 1. State residents are encouraged to attend and participate in these sessions, which are detailed at www.floridaredistricting.org. That site also offers visitors the opportunity to RSVP.

During the workshop, Tyson noted that the Florida House also has several ways for Floridians to participate in the process online:

• Contact the Redistricting Committee at [email protected]. and request to be added to the redistricting email list.

• Bookmark www.floridaredistricting.org for process news and resources. This site and social media, as well as MyDistrictBuilder, provide Floridians the chance to compare their ideas with those of others in the state.

• Share your ideas and join the two-way conversation on redistricting by following MyDistrictBuilder on Facebook and @FLRedistricting (MyDistrictBuilder on Twitter).

• Create your own state and legislative districts for Florida by accessing MyDistrictBuilder via the ban-ner link at www.floridaredistricting.org. Census date is available on that application as is a tool for creating

your own district, which you can then submit to the Redis-tricting Committee• Encourage your fellow Farm Bureau members to participate in the redistrict-ing process by making them aware of important informa-tion via the websites listed here and through other means of communications; show them how they can create their own legislative districts by using the tools the Florida House has cre-ated. This can be an individual or group initiative, and invite them to participate in the pub-lic meetings. Should they be unable to attend in person, they can provide input via the web at www.floridaredistricting.org.

At the conclusion of the public meetings September 1, the Redistricting Committee and Subcommittees will begin to review all public input. The 2012 Legislative Session will then officially approve the new district plans no later than March 9, 2012. The Attorney General than has 15 days to submit the Legislative plans to the state Supreme Court, which has up to 30 days to uphold the plans and the U.S. Department of Justice must preclear the Legislative plans during a 60-day period. June 4 – 8 qualifying for state and federal elections in Florida takes place.

The Congressional Redistricting Plan must be approved by the Florida Legislature by March 9. The Governor than has up to 15 days to sign the Congressional plan into law. It is important to note that there is no automotive court review of the Congres-sional plan. The next step for the Congressional plan is preclear-ance by the U.S. Justice Department and qualifying for elections.

Parks concluded the workshop noting that, “this time like no other in the history of Florida, agriculture must have its voice heard during this process.” Members seeking assistance with any aspect of the process are encouraged to contact their county offices. Tyson also offered his assistance for those interested in using the tools developed by the Florida House for use by Floridians interested in providing their input to the Redistricting Committee.

HOSTS WORKSHOP FOR DETAILS ON THE REDISTRICTING PROCESSMany Ways for Farm Bureau Members to Provide Input

by Jim Frankowiak


TEL: 813.752.3141 • I-4 Exit 21• 2011 N. Wheeler St. • Plant City, FL 33563WWW.REDROSEINNANDSUITES.COM

The Premier Showplace for Talent in Florida

AUGUST 19 & 27RALPHALLOCCO& SECONDWINDPerforming in the Red Rose Dining Room

AUGUST 20LOLA & THE SAINTSDoo Wop At Its Best! Relive the 50s & 60sas though it was yesterday. “Forever in Love,”“Just Over the Brooklyn Bridge.” Plus,P.J. Leary’s Las Vegas Sounds.

AUGUST 26JOHNNYALSTON’SMOTOWN ROCK &ROLL REVUEA dynamite crowd pleaser!P.J. Leary’s Las VegasSounds perform beforeand after the show.

SEPTEMBER 2, 10, 17 & 23RALPH ALLOCCO& SECOND WINDPerforming in the Red Rose Dining Room

SEPTEMBER 3 & 30JOHNNY ALSTON’SMOTOWN ROCK & ROLL REVUEA dynamite crowd pleaser! P.J. Leary’s LasVegas Sounds perform before and after theshow.

SEPTEMBER 9COVER TO COVERThe trio covers the top hits from yesterday totoday! Also, P.J. Leary’sLas Vegas Soundsperform before andafter the show.

SEPTEMBER 16RICHIE MERRITTRichie Merritt, formallyof the Marcels, will beperforming in theRed Rose Dining Room.Also, P.J. Leary’s Las Vegas Sounds performbefore and after the show.

SEPTEMBER 24THE MYSTICSThe Mystics, including, original members of thegroup, George Galfo and Phil Cracolici, willperform their hits, including their number onechart topper “Hushabye.” P.J. Leary’s LasVegas Sounds perform before and after theshow.

OCTOBER 11861 BALLA Tribute to one of America’s top novels andfilm! Come see and meet original Gone Withthe Wind cast members, Mickey Kuhn and

Patrick Curtis. Music from the 97th Regimen-tal String Band. Period costumes welcome, butnot required. Doors open 6:30, Dinner servedat 7:00, 1861 Ball Events at 8:00.

Stay overnight and join in on the Sunday Teawith a reading by Marjorie York with her onewoman show of “Just Call Me Peggy,” a trib-ute to Gone With The Wind author, MargaretMitchell; cast members will also be in atten-dence to sign autographs and talk about theirexperience of being in one of the greatest filmsof all time!

OCTOBER 7, 22 & 29RALPH ALLOCCO& SECOND WINDPerforming in the Red Rose Dining Room

OCTOBER 8LOLA & THE SAINTSDoo Wop At Its Best! Relive the 50s & 60sas though it was yesterday. “Forever in Love,”“Just Over the Brooklyn Bridge.” Plus,P.J. Leary’s Las Vegas Sounds.

OCTOBER 15 & 21JOHNNY ALSTON’SMOTOWN ROCK & ROLL REVUEA dynamite crowd pleaser! P.J. Leary’sLas Vegas Sounds perform before andafter the show.

Coming Soon!NOVEMBER 12FROM THE SAHARA HOTEL INVEGAS – A SALUTE TO THEPLATTERS, COASTERS,DRIFTERS AND TEMPTATIONSFOR ST. JUDEThe act comes to Plant City to help benefitSt. Jude Hospital. The annual event includesDinner in a Supper Club atmosphere andgreat musical talent to dance the night awaywith... for a very good cause.

RRose_AugSpread:Layout 1 8/1/11 12:44 PM Page 1 RRose_AugSpread:Layout 1 8/1/11 2:54 PM Page 2


There are more than one million cattle ranchers in the US overseeing 94.5 million heads of cattle on their acreage. The cattle industry is the “largest single segment of American agriculture.” An interesting piece of trivia that is probably not common knowledge is the fact that half of the US beef exports are purchased by Japan because the average Japanese farm is only three acres yet they have a population of 125 million!

Florida ranks tenth in the nation in cattle and was the first state to begin raising them. In addition, five out of ten of the largest cow/calf operations are found here. Polk County is ranked third in the state in cat-tle inventory with “nearly 400,000 acres in pasture farm land which comprises 31 percent of Polk County’s total land area.” In fact, “According to census data, livestock enterprises in Polk County contribute more than $35 million in annual economic impact.” No wonder Bridget Carlisle, a Livestock Extension Agent II, finds “the beef industry fascinating.”

Bridget says she’s always been interested in agriculture, “Dad was in it a little bit. Dad’s grandfather had a farm. When I was in high school I had two horses and I had to pay for their feed and housing. I went to UF to go to vet school but then I got interested in the beef industry and took it from there,” she ex-plained.

Bridget majored in Animal Sciences where she discovered how segmented the beef industry really is, and that’s what grabbed her attention. “We have cow/calf operations in Florida because we grow low qual-ity grass really well so the cows can live off that and have calves then we send them out west. We feed them out west because that’s where the grain can grow.”

“Pure bred breeders produce the seed stock for cow/calf operations that produce calves that eventually end up on your dinner table. All the segments have different purposes.”

Bridget has been working for Extension Services in Florida for the past 15 years, having started out in Highlands County as a 4H Extension Agent with a livestock appointment. She then moved to Palm Beach

Researcher Extraordinaire:Bridget Carlisleby Ginny Mink


County, the county of her origin, then on to Clay County and now she resides in Polk County with her two children. The Polk County Extension Service where she works “provides educational programs to assist producers in the production of an economically efficient and marketable livestock product. This includes information related to: pasture, weed, and pest management, reproduc-tive and genetic performance of animals, improved marketability, animal disease, and the economics of livestock production.”

Bridget admits that the rancers who have spent their lives raising cattle are significantly more knowledgeable about the industry given the fact that 99 percent of ranches in the US are family owned and as she says, “Most of the people that I work with have forgotten more than I’ll ever know about ag. When I visit a producer, my hope is to help them identify problems, research solutions, and hopefully provide answers. I do the foot work for them.”

Bridget further explains, “A lot of what I do is teaching, just not in the formal classroom. We’re teaching producers: pasture management, reproduc-tive efficiency management, nutrition and how to raise productivity. I get to do it in the field which is thrilling. Hopefully it’s information the produc-ers need. My job is to bring researched university information to the producers which allows our producers to produce more and be more economi-cally efficient, to reduce input costs or maximize their return and help them grow better grass, choose management strategies that will save them more money or grow better calves, that’s the ideal.”

Recently Polk County ranchers have noticed a decline in their pastures. They are starting to see patches of grass dying and those patches are getting bigger and bigger. These ranchers brought this to Bridget’s attention. “Some ranchers are losing a significant amount of their bahia pastures,” she says and, “the decline is gradual but we’re doing a study on it now trying to figure out the cause of the

decline.”Though Bridget and the ranchers who raise

them are supremely fond of cattle, still others are concerned about the impact of these cow/calf operations. In fact, Polk County began looking at new livestock rules due to concerns about odor, dust, noise, neglect, flies, the spread of disease and potential groundwater pollution. So, Bridget did her research on the most pressing concern, groundwater pollution, and presented the following information:

“The EPA sets standards for approximately 90 contaminants in drinking water. When addressing water pollutants with livestock, typically we are looking at microbial pollutants from animal waste. Microbiological impairment of water is assessed by monitoring concentrations of fecal-indicator bac-teria such as fecal coliforms and enterococci. These microorganisms are associated with fecal material from humans, livestock and wildlife and their pres-ence in water is used to indicate the potential pres-ence of enteric pathogens that could cause illness in exposed persons. For effective management of fecal contamination, the sources must be identified first.”

“Millions of dollars are spent each year on monitoring fecal-indicator bacteria in water and attempting to develop reliable methods for fecal source tracking. Strict waste load allocations from point sources like sewage treatment plants or indus-trial discharge pipes have already been established with the purpose of meeting regulatory standards. For this reason it is believed that non-point pollu-tion sources are mostly responsible for many water system impairments, especially after storm events. Historically agricultural operations were identified as nonpoint sources, but urban associated pollu-tion is being recognized as contributing more than previously believed, this includes fertilizer use, sewer overflows, and malfunctioning septic systems.”

Three test sites were included in her research and the findings are quite interesting. In order to perform these tests, the EPA utilized Microbial

Source Tracking (MST), “a method that associates various animals with fecal pollution of waters by utilizing genetic markers since each source produces unique, identifiable, strains of fecal bacteria due to the fact that the intestinal environments and selec-tive pressures to which the bacteria are subjected differ from source to source.”

The first case study was done in Holman’s Creek, Virginia – “the recreation area tested above EPA standards for fecal coliform. It was believed that surrounding cattle and poultry operations were the primary source. The surrounding residences had wells and septic systems. Following MST, it was determined that humans were the primary source of fecal pollution. Wildlife and cattle each contrib-uted one fourth of the total fecal coliforms in the watershed. Poultry was a minor contributor. The recommendation was repair of septic systems and pipes and to keep cattle from direct access to the streams.”

The second case study was done at the Lower Boise River in Idaho. “It was believed that the sur-rounding irrigation runoff from ag lands was the cause. Findings indicated that the primary source of contamination was from waterfowl.” The final case study was performed on Stevenson Creek Basin lo-cated in Clearwater. Results there showed that “the dominant sources of fecal coliform were malfunc-tioning septic and aging sewer systems, dogs and wild animals; significant inputs from farm animals was unlikely.”

Given the information contained in these case studies Bridget hopefully quelled some of the concerns about livestock’s contribution to possible groundwater pollution. Perhaps Polk County won’t really need to reconsider its livestock laws. These presentations are a huge part of Bridget’s job and thusly have the potential to impact consumer con-cerns as well as legal actions.

Worries about water contamination are not the only things affecting the cattle industry. “In an

industry that is typically low in returns on assets, the current economic climate has resulted in dra-matically higher input costs and decreased returns for beef cattle. Partner the economic downfall with inclement weather, pressure from urban sprawl, increased regulatory issues, and anti-agriculture activists, today’s livestock producers are facing real challenges to sustaining an industry that not only positively impacts our economy, but our environ-ment, national food system and reflects our commu-nity’s heritage. As a result of these challenges, there are nearly 50,000 fewer acres utilized in the produc-tion of livestock today than five years ago and nearly 10,000 fewer head of cattle (a 7-8% drop in cattle operations and cow numbers). In order to remain sustainable, livestock producers must find ways to minimize expenses and maximize returns.” That’s where Bridget’s research expertise comes in.

Obviously Bridget is dedicated to her job and the ranchers she assists. Though her first agricultur-al love is cattle, she admits that the most interesting thing she’s ever done in her career has nothing to do with cows. “The most interesting thing I’ve done as a livestock agent, was a phorid fly release. Phorid flies are a biological control measure for fire ants. They are species specific. They lay their eggs in the ants’ head and as the egg develops the ants’ head gets decapitated. The flies arrived in little dishes, in egg form, so there were little ant heads rolling around. We went to a ranch that had a problem with fire ants. Then we disturbed the mound so all the ants would come running out and we released the flies, which look like little gnats. You could see them light on the ants, and that’s when they’re lay-ing their eggs. The idea was to release them there and then they would reproduce; this has been done all over the state.”

From cows to phorid flies, just another day in the life of Livestock Extension Agent II, and researcher extraordinare, Bridget Carlisle.


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With the ever changing marketing of animals, consumers are seeing more and more “specialized” labeling claims on their products (i.e. organic, naturally-raised, or grass-fed.) Producers have found if they can set their products apart through “special-ized” marketing claims they will be able to sell that particular product for an increased price. Unfortunately, these labels can contribute to confusion and misconceptions among consumers.

Consumers that understand labeling claims, and the regula-tions surrounding them, are better able to select beef products that meet their wants and needs. The US Department of Agricul-ture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) establishes standards and verification systems for marketing and labeling claims. Currently the only label claims with standards and third-party verifications that assess beef production practices and that are established by the AMS, are “Organic,” “Grass Fed,” “Natu-rally Raised,” and “Never Ever 3.” However, consumers may see other label claims, such as “Pasture Raised” or “Hormone Free,” and, though these other labels must go through an approval process by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), there is no strict regulatory definition for the claims or third-party verification. Therefore, consumers must understand the meaning behind the labels to better know exactly what it is they are purchasing.

So what do these standardized and verified claims mean? Any product that carries the following label claims must meet the USDA standard for that particular label. The producer may go above and beyond those standards, but must meet those stan-dards as a minimum. The following is a brief summary of each.

Organic. USDA organic beef animals must be raised under organic management three months prior to birth. They must be fed 100% USDA organic grain and/or forage diets. Certain vitamin and mineral supplements are allowed. These beef ani-mals may not ever be implanted with or fed growth promotants or antibiotics. Neither the beef animal, nor its dam (or mother) during the last three months of pregnancy or while nursing, may be treated with paraciticides (de-wormers). Beef animals may be vaccinated and must have access to pasture. For a more complete

list of allowed and prohibited substances, visit the National Or-ganic Program site at http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop/.

Grass or Forage Fed. The standards state that any meat product carrying the USDA Certified Grass Fed Label must have been raised on forage or grass diet as the lifetime food source of the ruminant animal outside of milk the animal received prior to weaning. The animal’s diet is to be made up solely of forage products and cannot be fed grain or any grain by-products. The animal must also have continuous access to pasture during the growing season.

Naturally Raised. One of the most recently established is the Naturally Raised Marketing claim label. The standard states that livestock used for the production of meat and meat products have been raised entirely without growth promotants, antibiotics (except for ionophores used as coccidiostats for parasite control), and have never been fed animal by-products. They may have received parasite control products (dewormers), vaccinations, and bloat prevention and treatment products (such as feed-grade probiotics). In fact, most beef produced would qualify as a natural product under the USDA standard.

Never Ever 3. The Never Ever 3 is a USDA Process Verified Program (PVP) label claim that combines three common label claims into one PVP (or third-party verified) claim. The standard states that livestock used for the production of meat and meat products have been raised entirely without growth promotants, antibiotics (except for ionophores used as coccidiostats for para-site control), and have never been fed animal by-products. One would note that these standards are much the same as those for the “Naturally Raised” claim.

As the competition for the consumer at the meat case be-comes more important, more and more marketing labels will be developed. Some other marketing claims that are currently being reviewed by USDA/AMS are sustainability, locally produced, and humanely raised and handled. Each day more and more claims are coming to the meat case. As a consumer the best action that can be taken is to be better informed about the different methods for raising animals.

Beef Product Marketing & LaBeLing StandardSby Christa L. Kirby, Extension Agent II, Livestock. UF/IFAS Manatee County Extension Service and Bridget Carlisle, Extension Agent II, Livestock. UF/IFAS Polk County Extension Service

U.S.D.A. 2009. United States Standards for Livestock and Meat Marketing Claims, Naturally Raised Claim for Livestock and the Meat and Meat Products Derived From Such Livestock. Agri-cultural Marketing Service. Washington D.C. http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5075017 Accessed August 1, 2011.

U.S.D.A. 2009. Never Ever 3 (NE3). Agricultural Marketing Ser-vice. Fredericksburg, VA. http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5066028 Accessed August 1, 2011.

U.S.D.A. 2008. Dispelling the Myths About Livestock Marketing Programs for Producers. Agricultural Marketing Service. Wash-

ington D.C. http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5065677 Accessed August 1, 2011.

U.S.D.A. 2007. United States Standards for Livestock and Meat Marketing Claims, Grass (Forage) Fed Claim for Ruminant Livestock and the Meat Products Derived from Such Livestock. Agricultural Marketing Service. Washington D.C. http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELDEV3102211 Accessed February 22, 2010.

Carr, Chad, Larry Eubanks and Ryan Dijkhuis. 2008. Specialty Meat Marketing Claims: What’s the Difference? http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/AN191 Accessed February 22, 2010


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Marco Island played host once again to the Florida Cattle-men’s Association Annual Convention and Allied Trade Show. A good time was had by all June 20-24, 2011 as nearly 800 members attended the event. The Marriott Resort hosted the extravaganza full of committee meetings, luncheons, a sweetheart contest, silent auction, cattlemen’s dinner and awards presentation, dance and allied trade show.

Cary Lightsey received the Top Membership Recruiter Award. His efforts of forming new relationships are greatly appreciated by his fellow members of the FCA, as membership numbers flourished this year with 800 new members, 200 of which signed-up online using the newly designed Web site. Other convention highlights were:

• Cowmen/Cowwomen: Dottie Mae “Katie” Nail, Ouida Smith Roberts, Jesse “Jack” Simmons and James E. Williams.

• Honorary Directors: Rosa Lee Hull, Joe Jordan, Ber-nard Lewis, Gerald Simmons, E.L. Strickland, Frank W. Williamson

• Legislature of the Year: Steve Crissafulli• President’s Special Recognition Award: Don PlaggeThe FCA welcomed Don Quincey of Chiefland, FL as the

new FCA President. Members of the FCA would like to thank Mr. Strickland for his diligent work and dedication to the cattle industry over the past year and would like to wish Mr. Quincey good luck in the upcoming months.

Kaitlyn Gill was crowned the 2011 FCA Sweetheart. The year 2011 had good things in store for the ladies who attended the convention – diamonds and cash! Congratulations to Lauren Butler for winning the diamond bracelet provided by the Florida Association of Livestock Markets. Another lucky lady was Sue Ann Outlaw, as she left with a $5,000 dollar check in her pocket as the 2011 Florida CattleWomen drawing winner.

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On Wednesday, June 22 the crowd went wild when 18-year-old, Kaitlyn Gill was crowned the Florida Cattlemen’s Associa-tion Sweetheart at the FCA Annual Convention in Marco Island. Kaitlyn is a shining star in Florida agriculture…..one week prior to winning the Sweetheart title she was announced the Florida FFA Star Farmer and she was the Florida FFA Star Green Hand her sophomore year. Kaitlyn’s other accomplishments include first place in the National Cattlemen’s Association public speaking con-test, second place in the Florida FFA public speaking contest, and Junior Florida Cattlemen’s Association state officer, just to name a few. She resides in Ft. Lonesome on her family ranch, Lonesome G Ranch, in Hillsborough County.

What is a Sweetheart you might ask? Every year the county cattlemen associations select a young lady, between 17 and 23 years of age, to represent them in the state contest, held every year at the Florida Cattlemen’s Association Annual Convention in Marco Island. The FCA Sweetheart is always beautiful, however, it is her knowledge of the Florida beef cattle industry that earns her the title - not her looks! The girls compete in a rigorous contest while at the convention. They complete a written exam, which tests their knowledge about the Florida cattle industry, they are interviewed by a panel of three judges, they give a power point presentation, and answer an impromptu question on stage during the youth luncheon. These events give the judges an opportunity to judge the contestants based on their communication skills, personality, poise, and knowledge of the beef industry.

This year’s judges were Hoppy Kempfer, Marcia Lightsey, and Bill Sellers….they had a very difficult job! Kaitlyn competed against seven amazing contestants: Kayla Crosby (Clay), Dianah Enochs (Marion), Shelby Freeman (Polk), Kyndall Robertson (Hardee), Olivia Shelfer (DeSoto), Kelly Yarbrough (Highlands), and Cindy Young (Sumter). The court included Second Runner-Up: Shelby Freeman, First Runner-Up: Cindy Young and the Julia Parrish Spirit award (Miss Congeniality) went to Kayla Crosby. The Queen and first and second Runners-Up will receive a scholar-ship upon completion of their reign and responsibilities. The FCA Sweetheart is a beef ambassador and it is her responsibility to attend events throughout the year to promote beef to people not involved in the beef cattle industry. She also writes an article each month for the Florida Cattleman and Livestock Journal to high-light the activities she has participated in. Being the Sweetheart is a once in a life time opportunity with amazing benefits – from travel-ing this great state to meeting industry and political leaders.

Kim Strickland, Lindsey Wiggins, and Suzannah Belflower provide the leadership for the FCA Sweetheart committee. They encourage girls all over the state to participate in this contest. If you have any questions please feel free to contact Kim at 239-851-3896 or Lindsey at 863-673-5971.

Kaitlyn GillThe New Florida Cattlemen’s Association Sweetheart

Gator Collegiate of the Year was Cindy Young – Congratu-lations and Go Gators! Outstanding CattleWoman of the year went to Patty Barthle. Her knowledge, diligence and sweet spirit plays a remarkable role in the Florida CattleWomen’s Associa-tion and is appreciated by all of her fellow members and peers. Congratulations Patty! Emma Johnson was the winner of the grand door prize - a handmade, hand-tooled, Billy Cook roping saddle sponsored by Nutrena. Congratulations Emma on receiv-ing the “best seat in the house!”

Wendy Petteway, President of the FCW, reflects on the con-vention, “I was so happy to see all the cattlewomen at convention as we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Florida Cowbelles and CattleWomen. We have a rich history and we should all be proud of the work we do to promote beef and educate the consumer about the role of beef in our diet. Everyone had a great time and we are continuing the work we do at the South-ern Women’s Show and the American GrillMaster Experience in Orlando in the coming months. Please check the website for upcoming meetings and other information.”

The Fall Quarterly Meeting will take place August 31- Sep-tember 2, 2011 at the Chateau Elan Hotel & Conference Center in Sebring, Florida. For more information visit www.floridacat-tlemen.org/d/fallquarterly.pdf.

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The Polk County Cattlemen’s Association held their annual dinner meeting on July 21 at the W.H. Stuart Center in Bartow.The Polk County Cattlewomen’s Association awarded two schol-arships to deserving youth. Leigh Ann Bartle received the Academic Scholarship and Shelby Freeman received the agriculture scholarship. Funding for the scholarships come, in part, from the cake auction held at the dinner. Leigh Ann also received the Polk County Youth Fair Pre-mium Award for the care of her steer voted on by members of the Polk County Cattlewomen’s Association. They observe students through-out the Youth Fair and select someone who puts for the extra effort. Zack Bennett was the winner of a heifer, given to a current mem-bers child, to be shown in the 2012 Polk County Youth Fair. Bill and Anne Atkinson of Oak Knoll Ranch donated the heifer. Polk County Cattlemen’s Sweetheart Shelby Freeman presented a slide show of a behind the scenes look at the Sweethearts competition at the Florida Cattlemen’s Convention. The newly crowned Florida Cattlemen’s Sweetheart, Kaitlyn Gill of Hillsborough County was also in attendance. Fred Waters gave an over view of the 2011 Ranch Rodeo and thanked all the sponsors who make it possible to have the event. The Polk County Cattlewomen’s Association has a supplement to their cookbook available for purchase for $10. Please contact Margie Wood at [email protected] or by phone at 863-984-1751.

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The Polk County Sheriff’s Office has many valuable partner-ships in the community. Without these partnerships, we wouldn’t have the historically low crime rate that we do – our crime rate is down 6.8 percent since last year, and 28 percent less than the state crime rate. In fact, the crime rate (crimes per 100 residents) is down in unincorporated Polk County 56 percent since 1997. We are very excited to venture into this latest partnership with In The Field magazine, providing readers with timely crime pre-vention tips, Agricultural Crimes success stories, and the latest innovations in crime fighting. This month we’d like to focus on a nationwide crime trend we’ve unfortunately seen right here in Polk County: copper wire and metal theft.

According to Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) statis-tics, copper theft has dramatically increased since 2006, thanks in part to the rising value of metal. From 2001 to 2008, the price of metal nationwide has increased nearly 500 percent. Copper and metal thieves’ targets include electrical substations, railroads, se-curity and emergency services, telephone land lines, water pumps and wells, construction sites, vacant homes, and other sensitive sites. The theft of copper from these targets disrupts the flow of electricity, telecommunications, transportation, water supply, heating, and security and emergency services, and presents a risk to both public safety and national security. Copper thefts have been responsible for shutting down railway systems and even 9-1-1 emergency systems.

Our central Florida agricultural community has clearly been affected by this growing trend. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) has detectives dedicated to investigating metal and cop-per wire theft, who also work closely with the scrap metal dealers in the area to combat the problem. PCSO also has a dedicated Agricultural Crimes Unit, whose deputies investigate illegal dumping, trespassing, thefts, criminal mischiefs, and burglaries in the agricultural areas of the county. The deputies and detectives assigned to investigate these crimes and arrest those responsible could use a little extra help from the community.

The faster law enforcement is alerted that a crime has oc-curred, the better the odds are that the crime can be solved. Time is usually on the side of the criminal – and criminals are always looking for those crimes of opportunity. A large grove or piece of property in a remote location, especially those that contain water pumps or grove vehicles, is tempting to a thief -- and criminals can tell how often you visit your property, and how often you don’t.

The first rule of combatting this trend is: treat your land as if it is your home. When you walk into your home, you can usual-ly tell within an instant if someone has been there who shouldn’t have, and if something has been disturbed or stolen. Make an effort to visit your property on a daily basis. If this isn’t possible, enlist your friends and family to be your eyes and ears.

Solving crime isn’t like what you see on TV – shows like “CSI” and “Law and Order” portray detectives and crime scene technicians arriving at a scene, processing prints and evidence, making an arrest, and going to trial all within a 60-minute time span. In reality, it can often take days or weeks to obtain the results of evidence left behind at a scene, especially if the crime goes unreported for quite some time. It’s a simple matter of sci-ence. When science is paired up with good detective skills and community partnerships, however, crimes no matter how big or small, no matter how old or new, can be solved.

Our deputies recently worked two separate incidents, one involving an ATV theft, and one involving damage to water meters, where the victims contacted us so soon after the crimes occurred, their property was recovered and the suspects were ar-rested within 24 hours.

PCSO deputies are the best in the business, but when they are called to a scene where a burglary took place sometime with-in the prior weeks or months, the chances of recovering the stolen items and locating the suspects responsible decrease dramatically. It is also difficult to get the public or media involved in helping catch someone responsible for a past-occurred crime.

We have many wonderful partnerships throughout the county, especially in our Agricultural community. Please do not hesitate to contact us when you see something amiss. Together, we can make a positive difference.

Here are some tips to help law enforcement prevent agricul-tural crimes: • Identify your property. For example, paint your name or any

other unique identifying mark on your agricultural equip-ment, including vehicles, cables, pumps, and structures. Criminals will have a harder time selling items that clearly belong to someone else.

• Record and retain all serial numbers on your equipment.• Use signs identifying your pump houses. When possible, use

locks to prevent access to your equipment.• Maintain a presence at your property as much as possible

– drive by every day at different times, and check to see if anything has been disturbed. Ensure your property is clearly marked with “No Trespassing” signs.

• Keep the list of PCSO Agricultural Crime Unit numbers on page 44 handy. Call us if you see or hear about anything suspicious.

Fighting Crime Together In The Fieldby Sheriff Grady Judd

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Florida forests cover about 17 million acres, or roughly half of our state, and support more than 133,000 jobs that have a $16.6 bil-lion impact on our state’s economy. FFA forestry camp has been a tradition in our state for over 75 years and thousands of FFA mem-bers have participated in the yearly event. Forestry camp is a joint partnership through the Florida FFA Association, the Florida Forest Service and the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The camp is held in High Springs, Florida at O’Leno State Park, one of the 33 state parks in Florida.

Forty-three Polk FFA students headed north for their weeklong adventure on July 17. They were greeted at camp by their instructors, foresters and rangers who work in the forest in-dustry daily. Students were assigned cabins and then grouped, into “forests,” based on their ex-perience at previous forestry camps. Then the fun and learning began with a team scavenger hunt, providing students a chance to meet their team members and to familiarize themselves with the park. Books and learning materials were distributed and students were off to bed, ready for their first full day of camp.

The week is designed to teach students the importance of teamwork and to educate them on practices used in the forestry industry. So, daily activities are divided into sessions of instruction and team ac-tivities, such as volleyball and minute to win it games. The instruc-tion of forestry was top notch, providing students with a good grasp of common practices. Many things were covered including timber cruising, land measurements, dendrology (the science of tree iden-tification), invasive plant species, hydrology, map interpretation, ca-reers in forestry, diseases and harmful insects and much, much more. The experience was more meaningful because students were in the forest, applying each concept as they were taught.

One lesson taught was the importance of prescribed burns to forest health. Students learned why burns are necessary in Florida forests and about the equipment used in prescribed burns. A Flori-da Forestry Service helicopter landed and students were able to get a firsthand look at the equipment. The chopper carried a basket that holds over 300 gallons of water for fire sup-pression use as well as a dispenser that releases ping pong balls filled with chemicals for start-ing a prescribed fire. The pilot did a few dem-onstration water drops near where the students were sitting adjacent to the Santa Fe River—this temporarily cooled the air and provided a wel-comed relief from the July heat.

Many students had to adjust to life without conditioned air and television. They were awak-ened at 6 a.m. and lights out occurred between 10 and 11:30 pm, depending on the particular night time activities. The young folks took the lifestyle change in stride and traipsed through the woods with their water bottles and clip boards while obtaining a wealth of knowledge.

The culminating activities occurred on Thursday afternoon, a forestry evaluation that tested the students’ ability to apply the knowledge learned during the week and an awards banquet. The evaluation consisted of several parts. The written test was based on general forestry knowledge from lectures and lessons throughout the week and from the guide given to students titled Introduction to For-estry in Florida. The tree measurement activity required students to measure two different trees and determine how many boards could

be harvested from that tree. Other sections of the evaluation included tool identification, a dendrology quiz with live plant samples, an in-vasive species identification section and a land measurement activity, all which proved to be a challenging measurement of student learning.

The banquet was an exciting event for the students. A steak dinner was prepared by the forestry staff and the dinner hall was decorated with leaves and pine cones from the park. After a guest speaker, the awards for the week were an-nounced. Teamwork awards were given to the “forest” that accumulated the most points for the activities through the week, the Pine forest won. The individual awards were next and there was a lot at stake in the evaluations results since the “Top Camper” would receive a trophy, an

engraved Biltmore stick, a hand compass and a $500 annual scholar-ship to the University of Florida. This year’s award went to Taylor Dupree from the Kathleen FFA Chapter with an evaluation score of 94 percent. Returning campers are also eligible to compete against each other for a trophy and the title “Top Returning Camper.” This year there was a tie for that title between Brett Wasden and Elise McGuire, both from the Bartow FFA Chapter, who each scored 100 percent on the evaluation.

Students woke up early again on the last morning, July 22, for breakfast and to prepare for the trip home. After breakfast students chipped in and worked as a team to clean the cabins, restrooms, din-ing hall and the grounds at the state park. The students were excited to give of their time and efforts since the state forestry staff were so supportive and giving towards the students all week. After hugs,

pictures and phone numbers were exchanged, we were on our way back to Polk County.

Forestry camp truly is one of Florida FFA’s best teaching tools for students. In the short week a wealth of knowledge is shared with the students in a setting where they can immediately apply what they learned. The forest is trans-formed into a classroom where the sky is truly the limit. It is an amazing experience that all Polk FFA members should participate in before they graduate. Thanks to Florida FFA Associa-tion, the Florida Forest Service, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Polk County School Board for their continued support of Forestry Camp in Florida for the past 75 years.

43 Polk FFA Students attend Forestry Campby Keitha Hall

Michaela Butler from the Kathleen FFA Chapter uses an azimuth compass to measure distance in a tree plot.

Taylor Dupree from the Kathleen FFA Chapter was named Top Camper.

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Asian PearsAsian pears have become popular within the last decade for

their taste, texture, and juiciness. Also known as apple-pear, Chinese pear, or Japanese pear, it is a fragrant fruit with a very crisp texture. Although “apple-pear” implies that the fruit might be a cross between an apple and pear, it actually is not. Asian pears are also different from the traditional European ones we think of when we envision pears. When ripe, Asian pears tend to be rounder, firmer, slightly sweet, and extremely juicy due to their high water content, compared to the sweeter, softer European pear. Asian pears come in many varieties, with slightly varying flavors and subtle notes of apple, citrus, vanilla, or honey.

For centuries, Asian pears have been grown commercially in Asia. More recently, the fruit has been grown in other parts of the world, including the US, New Zealand, Australia, Chile, and France. Within the United States, California, Oregon, Washing-ton, and Florida harvest the fruit from August through October.

Nutritional ProfileThis super-juicy fruit is a fantastic source of vitamin C, vi-

tamin K, dietary fiber, riboflavin, and potassium. The outer peel is entirely edible and contains most of the fiber in the fruit. Ac-cording to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, one medium Asian pear (122 g) contains 51 calories, 0.61 g of protein, 0.28 g of fat, 12.9 g of carbohydrate, and 4.4 g of fiber. It also provides 8% of the Daily Recommended Value (% DV) for Vitamin C, 7% for Vitamin K, and 4% for manganese. Most notably, one medium fruit has 18% of your daily fiber needs.

Fiber: Don’t peel the fruit!Research has shown that dietary fiber has a protective effect

against cardiovascular diseases by lowering blood cholesterol levels and slowing the progression of heart disease in high-risk individuals. Fiber binds to the cholesterol-containing bile salts, excreting them out of the body. It also promotes bowel regularity and increases satiety levels, which can aid in weight control.

In addition to the effects of fiber on regularity, other com-pounds in Asian pears promote healthy digestive functioning and offer protection from colon cancer. Pears are one of the top foods for high fiber.

Antioxidants: Eat Your Vitamins!Florida Asian pears are bursting with disease-fighting anti-

oxidants, which neutralize destructive free radicals in the body. The vitamin C and vitamin A in Asian pears, as well as other compounds, have antioxidant qualities. Copper also supports the function of antioxidants, sweeping up free radicals. When healthy cells are damaged, they are more susceptible to disease

and certain types of cancer, and antioxidants may help slow the progression of conditions like asthma, arthritis, and colon cancer. Diets that contain fruits high in antioxidants, including Asian pears and other fruits and vegetables, are linked to a re-duced risk of heart disease, stroke, and multiple types of cancer.

Vitamin C: Beauty, Health & More!Asian pears are a good source of vitamin C, which has many

important functions in the body. Eating foods high in vitamin C significantly raises the amount of iron your body absorbs, which is a good way to prevent anemia. Vitamin C also supports the body’s immune system in its ability to fight infections and viruses, and may possibly shorten the duration and intensity of a cold. Additionally, this vitamin is involved in keeping capillaries, gums, and skin healthy and supple.

How to Select and StoreWhen ripe, the color of the outside peel changes from green

to brown. Unlike European pears, Asian pears stay firm when ripe.

Choose a yellow-brown skinned fruit free of blemishes that feels firm and heavy for its size. It should yield slightly to gentle pressure and have a fragrant smell. Handle gently because they bruise easily. Store Asian pears at room temperature for up to five days or in the refrigerator for up to two months. Rinse under cool running water before eating or preparing.

How to enjoyTraditionally, Asian pears are often given as gifts or shared

with guests. They are delicious and burst with juiciness when eaten out of hand. They can also be used as a sweetener instead of sugar when ground and cooked in vinegar or soy-based sauces. Their juice or pulp is sometimes used to marinate meat. Other ways to serve Asian pears are as part of a fruit salad, or combined with watercress, cheese, and nuts for a salad. Make a grilled cheese and pear sandwich. Chopped Asian pears can be added to cold or hot cereal or combined in a stir-fry. For dessert, try poaching Asian pears or dicing them to use as an ice cream or yogurt topping. Or use the fruit in cake, crisp, and pie.

Enjoy this beautiful, juicy fruit during Florida’s peak Asian pear season today. It’s a delicious way to get plenty of fiber and other nutrients.

Enjoy this beautiful, nutritious fruit during Florida’s peak season today. Eat it out of hand or combine with other fruits for a healthy treat.

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The 2011 Grazing Management School will be held September 15 and 16 at the Okeechobee County Extension office. The course is spon-sored by the South Florida Beef-Forage Program of the University of Flor-ida, Cooperative Extension Service, and is conducted with the volunteer assistance of area livestock producers and allied industries. It represents separation of the original Forage and Pasture Management School into subject components that can be taught in a couple of days. It is part of a continuing multi-County education effort to help South-Central Florida producers raise and market more high quality beef cattle, per cow, per acre, profitably.

Grazing management is the manipulation of livestock grazing to ob-tain defined outputs of livestock products. It involves careful management of both pasture and livestock resources to meet desired objectives. This course is offered in a two-day session, with theories of grazing manage-ment concepts and methods discussed in a classroom setting the first day, and those concepts are supported by practical applications in the field with a ranch tour the second day. Some of the topics to be discussed include Pasture Establishment & Renovation, Weed Control in Varying Grazing Systems, and Economics of Producing Cattle on Forage.

The registration fee is $30.00 if returned by August 26, and $50.00 if returned after August 26. Registration forms are online at http://sfbfp.ifas.ufl.edu/events.shtml or can be picked up at one of the Extension of-fices in The South Florida Beef-Forage Program area. Registrations should be returned to, and checks made payable to: South Florida Beef-Forage Program, c/o Pat Hogue – Treasurer, 458 Hwy 98 North, Okeechobee, FL 34972.

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that it seeks to establish a Citrus Disease Research and Development Advisory Committee comprised of representatives from both the citrus producer and scientific communities. The Advisory Committee would report to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and provide leadership to citrus disease scientists. Citrus greening is one of the most devastating diseases affecting any commercial agricul-tural crop, according to the National Academy of Sciences. More than 250,000 jobs representing key sectors of the U.S. economy are at risk, including harvesting, packaging, processing, transpor-tation, marketing, retail sales, and nursery production.

Citrus greening threatens to destroy over 1 million commer-cial citrus acres that have an annual production value of approxi-mately $3 billion across the nation. Yearly losses could reach $10 billion if citrus greening is left unchecked.

Citrus greening disease obstructs the flow of nutrients in

citrus trees and leads many fruits to remain green, grow lopsided and taste bitter. The disease is present in Florida and portions of South Carolina, Louisiana, Georgia, and Puerto Rico. The Asian Citrus Psyllid, the insect that spreads citrus greening, has been detected in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, and areas of Southern California and Arizona. This broad distribution increases the concern that, should citrus greening be introduced into new states, the insect would rapidly spread the disease.

USDA will invest $2 million this year into research on the disease at the U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory, a USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) laboratory located in Ft. Pierce, Fla. USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) has committed to focusing $9 million in a three-year, competitive grants program targeting citrus greening.

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Our ambition to understand the world around us is per-haps the most significant factor driving the progress of our hu-manity. Observing the world around us has seeded the minds of our greatest thinkers to plow through the weeds of stale notions and manifest a bountiful harvest of innovation borne of awareness. Insects outnumber all animals on the planet by at least four to one, and in their diversity makes them an outstanding resource for enlightenment. This month, we will take a closer look at the impact insects have already had on humanity and how continued observation of the smallest of animals make the largest impact on our lives.

King Solomon may have been the first to applaud the virtues of insect ob-servation: (Proverbs 6:6) “Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:” It was probably the Harvester Ant (Pogonomyrmex) that he witnessed, they characteristically store large sup-plies of grain in their nests to carry them through the winter. In addition to sim-ply foraging, the harvester ant is known to chew off the germ portion of the seed preventing it from germinating within the nest. Additionally, should it rain, the harvester ant will carry the grain out of the nest and into the sun to dry out, thus preventing mold and fungus from growing in the nest. There are some ant species however that encourages fungal growth. The Leafcutter ants comprise the largest and most complex animal communities on earth, second only to humans. Leafcutter ants cultivate fungus within the nest much like we cultivate crops in the field. They collect fresh plant material to use as nutrients for fungus farms within the nest and divide the tasks of keeping it from pest and mold. The ants can sense chemical changes in the fungus and adapt their foraging activities appropriately. If gathered leaves are toxic to the fungus, the colony will stop gathering that species and provide the fungus with an alterna-tive nutrient source.

Protagoras, the teacher of virtue, insisted that man is the measure of all things, arguing that human knowledge is rela-tive to the observer. In addition to King Solomon’s example of wisdom, other great thinkers have cited the observation of insects as a source of enlightenment. Aristotle, one of the founding fathers of “natural philosophy” counted bees and ants among the “political” animals, these observations mold

the scientific name for the genus of the common paper wasp (Polistes) which literally means “founder of cities.” Insects have nestled their way into much more than just our homes. We are only beginning to understand the behavioral mechan-ics and the underlying physics that insects incorporate into what we so casually call “instinct.”

Migratory insects such as butterflies, for example, have evolved to efficiently utilize high altitude winds that carry them at a rate of up to 60mph with very little energy expen-diture, other than correcting for crosswinds that would take them off-course. The argument that insect behavior such

as foraging or mating is a biologic re-sponse, hard coded in DNA, becomes diluted as we learn more from observa-tion. Research Scientists from Ohio State University and University of Arizona are administering odor conditioning trials with sphinx moths (Sphingidae). They are finding the moths can be “trained” to associate food with odors that are in-comparable to odors that would signal food in nature. These trials suggest that

moths learned to differentiate between odors that meant food and those that don’t.

Observation of the world around us, and insects in par-ticular, is the mother of invention for contemporary technol-ogy. Visual navigation of flying insects inspired the flight con-trol and navigation system of a class of small flying robots developed by NASA. The “MAR Proteus” is an experimental watercraft with a reputation of being light weight, fuel ef-ficient, and wave adaptive. Nicknamed the Spider Boat for obvious reasons, its four legs provide superior stability. The legs of the boat flex with the waves in much the same way a water spiders legs absorb changes in the water surface that would otherwise submerge it. Closer to home is the Spider-man glove. Inspired by our very own Florida tortoise beetle (Hemisphaerota cyanea); with funding from the U.S. Military, engineers at Cornell University have developed a palm sized device that uses water rather than oil as the adhesive force. The device is capable of reversible adhesive bonds capable of sticking to nearly any slick surface.

It’s easy for us to walk past an insect without a second thought, that creative stagnation can be avoided if we just take more time to observe little things.

A Closer Look: Insect Intelligence, an Overlooked Perspective

By Sean Green

A Closer Look: Insect Intelligence, an Overlooked Perspective

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ger,

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Harvester Ant

“The more you investigate these creatures and the manner in which they live, the more you will come to the conclusion that there is a great intelligence in how

they work and what they accomplish.”—Rudolf Steiner


Naturally Amazing ActivitiesANT HABITAT (formicarium)

by Sean Greenphotos courtesy of Steve Jurvetson

A Formicarium is a great way to observe some of the fascinating features of insect life. For this month’s project, we will construct a simple one. Although any species, can be studied, it is best to stick with less aggressive species and I encourage you to do so with one of Florida’s treasures, the Florida Harvester Ant (Pogonomyrmex badius). This species is less aggressive than other species its size and are renowned for their habit of creating underground fungus farms. They will be found nearly exclusively in open, sandy stretches of grass or woodlands. Mounds are characteristically flattened and often littered with pebbles and debris.

Digging up a nest is never a good idea and can be dangerous. Harvester Ants swarm from June through October for mating but August and September are the most common months for swarming and easy collection especially after an afternoon rain s h o w e r . When ants s w a r m , the large w i n g e d queens are easy to spot, but if they have wings, they have not yet mated. A Mated q u e e n will have shed her wings and be found w a l k i n g around on the ground looking for a suitable spot to start a nest. Care fu l ly collect a single queen and place her in the environment you created. She will dig a private queen chamber to lay her first set of eggs, surviving only on stored fat reserves until her first eggs hatch. The first borne will be workers, the workers will be charged with foraging for her and feeding her, it is only when the workers are borne that she is likely to eat. Creating a colony from a single founding queen is time consuming, but much more rewarding than collecting as many ants as possible from an established colony. She will need lots of nutrition to continue egg production and establish the nest. The Bhatkar diet is probably the best known general ant diet named after its developer Awinash Bhatkar of the Texas Department of Agriculture. In addition to grains, insects, and plant material, this is an excellent diet supplement to provide the colony.

There are many designs for ant habitats on the internet ranging from a simple tube stuffed with paper to elaborate set ups with live plants and drip irrigation systems for moisture. The simple designs are great for just watching the ants dig but will not sustain the colony for long. We will make a simple habitat that is somewhere in between the two extremes. The goals for our habitat are simple.

• Keep sand near the sides of the habitat for easy viewing of the tunnels.

• Provide a foraging area that ants can find food and water

• Create a moat around the habitat to keep the ant from escaping..

Materials:• Empty fish tank (this will be the main habitat)• Foraging container (a box that is about 2 inches smaller on

all sides than the fish tank and at least 6 inches tall) • Moat Pan (shallow pan 1 or 2 inches larger than the fish

tank on all sides – 2-3 inches deep)• Clean Sand• Water dish: (bottle cap filled with wet cotton ball)

the habitat:1. Place the foraging container in the middle of the empty

fish tank. The foraging tank serves two purposes; it keeps dirt near the glass and provides a separate foraging area for the ants.

2. Fill the tank with sand around the foraging container. The foraging container should look like an empty pool in the middle of the tank.

3. Partially fill the foraging container with items. (Including the water dish keep it wet) For the ants to crawl in and out with (sticks, rocks, bark,)

4. Place the entire habitat in a shallow pan that will serve as a moat, fill the pan with water to create a small moat. Ants will not cross water; this will keep them from escaping

the bhatkar Diet:(From page 219 of the Book, “Journey to the Ants” by Hölldo-bler & Wilson) The recipe fills four 15-cm diameter petri dishes, and is jellylike in consistency.

1 egg62 ml honey1 gm vitamins1 gm minerals and salts5 gm agar (typically found in whole food stores, health food stores, or Asian supermarkets)500 ml water

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erals, and the egg until smooth. 3. Add to this mixture, stirring constantly, the agar solution. 4. Pour into petri dishes (0.5-1 cm deep) to set. 5. Store in the refrigerator.

The University of Florida has officially partnered with a National Science Foundation-funded program to allow measure-ments and data collection related to the Earth’s ecological health to occur on UF’s 9,100-acre Ordway-Swisher Biological Station property in Putnam County.

The project, known as the National Ecological Observatory Network, or NEON, is a 30-year, continental-scale program to track ecological responses to environmental shifts such as climate change, land-use modifications and invasive species introduc-tions.

The project includes 20 core sites that represent different areas of North America. The Ordway-Swisher site near Melrose will serves as the core site for NEON’s Southeastern domain, which stretches from North Carolina to Texas.

“Partnering with NEON will strengthen the linkages be-tween the Ordway-Swisher Biological Station and key ecological observatories across the continent,” said John Hayes, Ordway-Swisher director and interim dean for research in UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

“The data we collect in cooperation with NEON will pro-vide a cutting-edge look at our nation’s ecological health and will help provide solutions to build a sustainable future,” he said.

In addition to generating critical ecological data, Hayes said

the partnership will establish the Ordway-Swisher Biological Sta-tion as a hub for environmental research in the Southeast.

The Ordway-Swisher Biological Station provides a rela-tively pristine environment for long-term research, educational opportunities and conservation activities. Since its lands have had restricted access throughout most of its history, the area’s forests and wetlands are preserved in a state similar to what the first explorers and settlers found upon their arrival in Florida. This unspoiled habitat makes Ordway-Swisher a perfect place to gauge the effects of environmental change.

Data collected from Ordway-Swisher will be combined with data from other NEON sites to create a comprehensive picture of environmental change across the continent.

Studies planned for the site include measuring carbon cycling and soil and water characteristics and tracking populations of birds, mammals, insects and vegetation.

Other sites that that have recently reached land-use agree-ments with NEON include Harvard University’s Harvard Forest in Massachusetts, the Northern Great Plains Research Laborato-ry in North Dakota and Steigerwaldt Land Services in Wisconsin

Photo below: The sun is low on the horizon as seen from a small lake on UF’s Ordway-Swisher property close to Melrose, Fla. UF/IFAS Photo by Tyler Jones..

UF Ordway SwiSher Finalized aS Site in large Scale ecOlOgy prOject

by Robert H. Wells


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Polk County FFA members attended the Florida FFA Convention the week of June 13-17, 2011 in Orlando. During the state convention over 3,000 students attended to receive awards, degrees, attended leadership workshops and compete in various contests.

Many students were recognized for their accomplishments with their Supervised Agricul-tural Experience projects, also called SAEs. Ag-riculture education is based on three components of instruction - classroom learning, FFA and SAE projects, which are designed to provide students practical experience in various areas of agricul-ture. Five Kathleen FFA members won their SAE Proficiency areas at the convention and will now compete at the National FFA Convention in Oc-tober against other state winners in their catego-ries. The winners are as follows: Agriculture Pro-cessing: Taylor Walker who produces sugar cane syrup; Agriculture Repair and Maintenance: John Harris, who works for Tom’s Lawnmower Repair; Diversified Livestock Production: Megan Campbell, who raises beef cattle and poultry; Sheep Production: Nathaniel Lawson, who raises show and market sheep; and Turf Grass Mainte-nance: Dillon Nix, who owns D’s Lawn Service. Each of these students won $400 and the chance to compete at the national level for a $1000 prize. Their teachers and FFA advisors are Keitha Hall and Kyle Carlton.

Clifton J. Garcia of the Bartow FFA chapter was named the Florida FFA Star in Agribusiness, which is one of the most prestigious awards of-fered by Florida FFA. Clifton was awarded this honor based on his “State FFA Degree,” which considers years in FFA, Leadership, Scholarship and money earned and invested from Students Supervised Agriculture Experience Program or project. Each year nearly 300 FFA members earn this degree across the state. Of these students 16 are chosen as the best in four categories-- Agri-business, Production Agriculture, Placement in an Ag Job and Agriscience (research)--based on their project. All 16 finalists are interviewed by a panel of judges at the site of their project. One State Star is chosen for each of the four areas. The only award that receives a scholarship is the Star in Agribusiness. The scholarship was set up by a previous award winners parents when he was killed and they wanted to honor his memory by offering a scholarship in his name to other Star in Agribusiness winners.

Another outstanding ninth grade FFA mem-ber from the Tenoroc FFA Chapter is Loral Mill-er. Loral brought home first state championship title for the new school in the Creed Speaking contest at the state convention. The FFA Creed is a five paragraph statement of beliefs that FFA members are required to know and those is the contest are sixth through ninth grade students

who recite the Creed and answer questions about its meaning. Loral won the sub-district and the district contest before she was allowed to com-pete at the state contest. She competed against the best 11 Creed speakers across that state and won the championship. Loral will now compete for the National Championship in October in In-dianapolis.

Friday morning of convention the newly elected state FFA officers were announced. In order to be eligible to run for state officer, stu-dents must have graduated high school, earned their State FFA Degree, gone through a two day interview process and taken a written exam on FFA and agriculture issues. Needless to say, only the best of the best are selected to run for state of-ficers. During convention chapter delegates cast votes for the student who will represent their area at the state level as the Area State Vice-President, and will serve as agriculture ambassadors for the coming year. This year Shelby Oesterreicher of the Bartow FFA was elected to serve as the Area IV State Vice President for the 2011-2012 school year. Additionally, Shelby also won the Ryan Rimmer Memorial Leadership Award for Out-standing District Officer for her year of service as Polk’s District President during the 2010-2011 school year. Shelby organized a canned food drive and hosted a middle school FFA leadership conference as part of her year of service to Polk FFA students.

Two FFA chapters were recognized for their work at the state convention as well. Both Kath-leen FFA and Tenoroc FFA chapters were named Superior FFA chapters for their work in devel-oping student leaders, developing positive rela-tionships in their communities and encouraging FFA member participation. These chapters will also be recognized at the National Convention for their efforts in October. Kathleen also was named a Florida Premier chapter, won the SAE award for members having numerous diverse ag-riculture projects and won the best shop project for a shop table students built in their ag mechan-ics class.

Finally two Alumni groups two the top hon-ors at the FFA convention for their support of local FFA chapters and their students. Dundee Ridge Middle School FFA Alumni chapter was named the Outstanding Alumni Chapter in the state of Florida. This group of volunteers donat-ed hundreds of hours chaperoning events, hosted leadership events and sponsored many livestock projects. The Kathleen FFA Alumni took home the second place award for their efforts help-ing Kathleen High School and Kathleen Middle School FFA chapters. FFA organizations benefit greatly from the support of their local Alumni organizations.

Polk FFA Students Earn Top Honors at Florida FFA Convention

Photos top to bottom1. Alumni (left to right) state officer, Lori Kid-dey (Kathleen FFA Alumni) and Jennifer Williams (Dundee Ridge Middle School Alumni)

2. Clifton Garcia, Star in Agribusiness from Bartow FFA3. Dillon Nix, Turf Grass Management winner4. John Harris, Taylor Walker and Megan Camp-bell, Proficiency winners from Kathleen

5. Loral Miller, Creed Speaking Winner from Tenoroc 6. Nathaniel Lawson, Sheep Production Winner 7. Shelby Oesterreicher, Area IV State Vice Presi-dent and Ryan Rimmer Award winner

by Keitha Hall


As the summer winds down we begin to reflect on the events that have been the highlight of any FFA summer. First there is, of course, the one and only Florida FFA State Convention. What could be better than the laser light shows, the amazing members, and support-ers of the FFA all in one place? I would like to congratulate everyone who participated in contests on the state level this year. Convention is a chance to recognize all the chapters and members who worked hard in the past year, as well as, to encourage everyone to keep up it up. It is always my favorite part of the year, a chance to get Florida FFA together to celebrate the ending of another fantastic year. As one chapter of Florida FFA came to a close, another one began. The 2011-2012 state officer team was elected and we have already begun preparing for the year ahead.

The new state officer team attended National Leadership Conference for State Officers in Georgia. Our team met with other teams from Georgia, Indiana, North Carolina, and South Carolina. We planned workshops, discussed agricul-ture issues facing not only our state but our nation, and decided on national FFA delegate issues. Not only did we learn how to work with other teams, we learned about each other. Our team grew tremendously this week. Another conference we attended was Blast Off in Gainesville, Florida. This conference is designed to help us grow as individual leaders and learn about each other. We learned about our teammate’s strengths and our strengths as a team. I know I am not the only one excited about what the next year holds for the Florida FFA Association.

FFA members attended Washington Leadership conference or WLC. This conference is held in Washington D.C. At WLC camp members learn all about servant leadership and how to create Living to Serve Plans or LTSPs. An LTSP is a plan to serve others everyday through community service projects. Each member carefully plans out a community service project with the intention of carrying the plan out upon their arrival home. Members also get the opportunity to meet with the government officials who represent them. Two of the other camps that are held during the summer are Florida Leadership Adventures (FLA) and Florida Outdoor Adventures (FOA). At FLA members learn leadership skills that will help them in the coming year. The members who attend FOA are not only taught about lead-ership skills but also learn about careers in the agriculture industry and participate in a bass fishing tournament. All of the camps are designed to enhance students’ knowledge of agriculture and leadership skills.

I like to think that the ending of one event is only the beginning of a new and exciting adventure. I would like to offer a challenge for the coming year. I challenge you to become a servant leader and try to teach others about FFA and the agricultural industry. I also want to challenge everyone to grow through every adventure you take this year. Risk boldly, take chances, and grow!

Shelby OesterreicherArea IV Vice PresidentFlorida FFA Association

This summer over 2,300 FFA members from across the nation converged on our nation’s capital. The Washington Leadership Conference (WLC) is a five day event that trains FFA members to positively impact their school, community, state and country through service. Throughout the summer, FFA members will log over 11,000 hours of community service in the DC area practicing the conference theme of “service.” Members truly live out the part of the FFA’s Moto, “Learning to do, Doing to learn.” Sixteen Polk County FFA members, representing six schools, participated in this amazing experience.

The Polk County FFA members attended WLC the week of June 21-26. Their trip was filled with many experiences. For some students, this was their first airplane ride, their first time riding on a Metro, or using public transportation, a first time away from their parents, and a first time giving of their time to help others. The conference operates using student leaders to guide and direct the activities of the group, which helps develop lasting bonds among the participants.

The Polk County FFA group leader, Keitha Hall of Kathleen High School, booked students an early flight to allow some extra sights before the conference started. The first stop was Ford’s Theater where students heard the account of President Lincoln’s assassination and the extensive manhunt to capture the shooter, John Wilks Booth. From there students walked to the White House for a photo opportunity and then headed to the Smith-sonian’s American History Museum. The final stop for the day was the National Archives, where students got to view the hand written documents that govern our nation—the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

After a short Metro trip, students were back at the hotel and ready for their Washington Leadership adventure to begin. WLC divides students into different smaller groups to accomplish its goals. The conference focuses on addressing needs within our

communities and making a difference. Nicole Green, Kathleen FFA, said, “Washington Leadership Conference made me take a look at society and helped me realize that I could help make it better.” With all these new issues being brought to attention, stu-dents were then charged with creating a service plan to address needs within their own communities.

As the students worked to create service plans specific for their communities, the WLC staff was creating service projects for the participants. The projects varied from cleaning up Kings-man Island that will soon house an environmental education facility, cleaning a school in a low income area that no longer can afford the luxuries of a full time custodial staff, gleaning vegetables to provide food for a local food bank, sorting and boxing food for distribution at a local food pantry, and many others. Wes Fussell, Bartow FFA, said, “Giving back to Habitat for Humanity in our nation’s capitol was a great experience. It made me realize people are in need everywhere, and even doing a little to help out makes a huge difference.”

Of course the conference wrapped and we visited more sights—The Capitol, The Washington Monument, The Lincoln Memorial, Arlington Cemetery, The World War II Memorial, The National Archives, The National Aquarium, The Jefferson Memorial, Iwo Jima Memorial, and many Smithsonian muse-ums. Kaylee Norris, Frostproof FFA, said, “The memorials were inspiring! They are true testaments to the great Americans they represent.”

Polk County WLC participants were as follows: Bartow FFA-Wes Fussell and Taylor Ross; Frostproof FFA-Kathryn Flood, Kathelyn McDaniel, Kaylee Norris and Hannah Terrebonne; Kathleen FFA-Patience Costine and Nicole Green; Lake Gibson FFA-Makayla Goble and Emily Riness; Haines City FFA-Ridge Carter, Quinn Carter, Taylor Bailey, Victoria Perkins; Lake Wales FFA-Jackson Alligood and Shelby Anthony.

FFA Goes to Our Nation’s Capital


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What’s going on InTheField?

AgCalendar• August 31-September 2—FCA Fall Quarterly

Meeting, Sebring

• September 8—Florida-Friendly Landscaping Design 101 and Plant Sale, 10:00 a.m. – noon, Circle B Bar Reserve, 4399 Winter Lake Road, Lakeland

• September 13-December 6—Master Gardener Training Program, Every Tuesday, 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Call (863) 519-8677 ext. 109 to register

• September 18-21—Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association’s 68th Annual Convention, The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach, FL

• September 23—17th Annual FCA Heifer Sale, Arcadia Livestock Market

• September 24—25 Years-A Garden Celebration at the Polk Training Center Nursery, 9:00 a.m.-12:00 noon, 111 Creek Road, Lake Alfred

• September 28-30—37th Annual Florida Agricultural Labor Seminar, Wyndham Orlando Resort

• September 29—Rain Barrel Workshop, 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon, Polk’s Nature Discovery Center, Circle B Bar Reserve, 4399 WInter Lake Road, Lakeland

• September 30-October 1—Florida Ranch Rodeo State Finals & Heritage Festival, Kissimmee

• October 14—Composting Workshop, 12:00 noon - 1:00 p.m., Lakeland Electric Administration Building, 501 E. Lemon Street, Lakeland

• October 21—The Backyard Gardener’s Festival and Plant Sale, 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., UF/IFAS Polk County Extension Service, Stuart Center, 1702 US Hwy 17 South, Bartow

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam an-nounced plans for the 2011 Florida Energy Summit, which will be held October 26 through October 28 in Orlando. Commissioner Putnam made the announcement during a visit to the Florida So-lar Energy Center in Cocoa, where he explored the research and development of energy technologies to advance the production of biomass, hydrogen, fuel cell and solar energy.

“The Florida Energy Summit will advance the expansion of the production of renewable energy in Florida by bringing together leaders in energy development, agriculture production, government, academic research, technology and finance,” said Commissioner Putnam. “By taking a more comprehensive look at prospective energy resources, we will gain a better understanding of Florida’s energy potential to not only capture, but also capital-ize on the rich resources available.”

The Florida Energy Summit, a three-day conference hosted by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS) at Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, will bring bright minds from across the state and around the nation to discuss the latest advancements in energy conservation and the future of renewable energy in Florida. Visit www.floridaenergysummit.com to learn more information about registration, sponsorship

opportunities and hotel reservations.The summit replaces the Farm to Fuel Summit, an annual

event hosted by DACS since 2006 for the exchange of ideas among agriculture and biofuel industries. During the 2011 Legis-lative Session, the Florida Legislature transferred the responsibili-ties of the Florida Energy and Climate Commission to DACS, creating the Department’s Office of Energy. With this addition, DACS is expanding its role in the energy sector to encompass not only agricultural based fuels, but also all renewable energy and conservation activities.

The primary duties of the Office of Energy are to administer any state and federal energy incentive programs, to promote the development and use of renewable energy resources, to pro-mote energy conservation in all energy sectors and to provide assistance to other state agencies, counties, municipalities and regional planning agencies to further and promote their energy planning activities.

For more information about the Florida Department of Ag-riculture and Consumer Services, visit www.FreshFromFlorida.com or follow Commissioner Putnam on Facebook, Twitter or Google+.

Commissioner Putnam Announces Florida Energy SummitSummit to Feature Speakers and Discussions on Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Practices


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In The Field Magazine - Polk August 2011