There ought to be an App for that.....

Someone recently said to me, “Agriculture would be so much easier to understand if there were an app for it.”    Really.    It would be.   There is an app for everything.   Or so it seems.  Searching the App store for ‘Agriculture’ brings up “Ag Web News” and “Farm Futures,” and searching ‘Ag’ brings us to “AgRacer” where you compete in a driving challenge with various farm related implements.    Hmm…..what if we could explain agriculture in an App?

 

Apps are a relatively new thing---launched in July 2008 with only 500 or so. Today there are over 250,000 apps available for purchase from the Apple App Store.  There are apps for everything from Facebook to Log My Run,  there is even an App for a level (I must admit I have it!) and a fake hand warmer.   (If you think your hand is warmer it might work!)

 

But how would you develop an app for agriculture?

 

First, a couple things about Apps. They have to be engaging.  They have to involve a challenge, how do you win this or come back for more?    From an Agriculture perspective, they need to be real.  Unlike Angry Birds, I think there would be an issue with flinging pitchforks at crows!   And you wouldn’t want talking cows or pigs, and really the corn or beans shouldn’t talk either.    It is getting tougher, isn’t it?

 

Lets reflect on an App from this year in agriculture.   How would you reflect the drought?  How would you show the high winds in early August?  It sounds more like the ‘Hunger Games’ than a game! Seriously, would this make people come back for more?

 

Luckily, Ag in the Classroom just finished our ‘App’ for teachers this year.    Nearly 600 teachers across the state participated in our Summer Ag Institutes.  In a world where 60 million people pretend to be farmers in Farmville ,(http://mashable.com/2010/09/10/farmville-vs-real-farms-infographic/)  these teachers saw first hand what happens on farms around Illinois. 

 

One teacher wrote in her evaluation “All I kept thinking was, ‘there is more than farming in agriculture?’  But after our first day, I realized that this ‘farm thing’ was a bigger deal  than I gave credit for.”   We have countless stories and anecdotes about how viewing agriculture from a new perspective gave them much more insight into what a ‘real farm’ is. 

 

Another participant described her experience like this.   “I have learned that a farmer must be dedicated, hard-working and skilled in many areas.  Farmers have a deep passion for their profession and will do whatever it takes to make things work.  Perseverance is a trait that I hope I can instill in each one of my students, and I have learned that farming takes perseverance.”

 

All of that, and so much more, was learned when someone showed them what agriculture really was and they took the time to learn.   Could those emotions and experiences be channeled with an App on a 2”x3” screen?   I don’t think so.  

 

In a era of catching falling blocks, pretending to raise strawberries and where birds explode in an effort to recapture eggs, Agriculture in the Classroom has an App for agriculture.

 

Our App is our Summer Agricultural Institute, and getting teachers to visit a farm.   Pretty simple and not real flashy, but it works!  

 

 

Hungry ........for a Book???

I’m hungry……nothing unusual……..articles I’ve read say I’m probably bored, or thirst……or maybe I’ve been reading the wrong thing.

Latest on my ‘just finished reading list’in no particular order….

Born Round by Frank Bruni.  Bruni is the former restaurant critic for the New York Times.  The subtitle of the book is ‘A Story of Family, Food and a Ferocious Appetite'.   If you’ve read my post about gravy--I’m in the wrong business.  This guy (a former political writer, then international correspondent, turned restaurant critic) starts by going to all the ‘starred’ restaurants in New York City.  I, on the other hand, can tell you where the best Iced Tea is on all major Interstates in Illinois.  Something is terribly wrong with this situation.  It is a great book, especially if you have food that runs in your family genes.  Like Bruni does..and I do!

 Next up, Chigger by Raymond Bial.  Bial, who has been and AITC staple for years with books like Corn Belt Harvest  and  The Super Soybean has branched out of his typical photo-documentary book and has written a positively stunning portrayal of growing up in a small town.   This book, set fictitiously in Roscoe, Indiana; could be about my childhood---except substitute Nixon for Eisenhower, and The Early Show Dialing For Dollars with Ed Kelly for the Mickey Mouse Club.  One passage struck me---even in the 1950’s, there is a difference in what Americans eat.    Luke, our main character has befriended (almost by accident) a new girl in town--nicknamed ‘Chigger’.  Luke has both parents, a stay at home mom, gets 3 square meals a day--plus regular trips to the Tastee Freeze.  ‘Chigger’ on the other hand is a latchkey kid--before there were such things, from a broken household.   Chigger becomes a fixture at Luke’s house---for many meals and treats as her mother works odd shifts and sleeps odd hours.   After a summer of dinner with Luke, Chigger invites Luke to lunch at her apartment.  

            “Isn’t this great?” Chigger remarked, digging into a bowl of canned spaghetti and tomato sauce. “Mom got it special for us.’

            “Sure is.”       

            Slipping carefully into my seat at the table, I sniffed at the off-color stuff.  At least I knew what it was, even if I was quite sure what it was made of.  Out of politeness I ate every bite, even though it tasted pretty awful ---too soft and squishy for me.  Not that we had fancy meals at our house, just the opposite, but we hardly ever ate anything out of a can, unless Mom had put it up herself.    (Chigger, By Raymond Bial, 2012,  Motes Books, page 153)

Wow--what a difference food makes to kids.  Thinking back--there was ALWAYS a difference between ‘homemade’ and ‘store bought’.   I remember my sister an I used to beg for ‘store bought cookies’ because other kids got them.  I didn’t realize how lucky I was to get ‘homemade’ more often than not.  (Might explain the not only ‘born round--but ‘remained round’ as I like my cookies!)

The final series I just finished was “The Hunger Games” Trilogy  (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire and Mockingjay) by Suzanne Collins.  Although I’m not typically a reader of post-apocalyptic fiction, these books have been flying off the bookshelves of JH and HS libraries.  Plus there is a new movie about to come out.  In this series we see a world where food is power--not necessarily money.   Imagine---the people with the food have the power--what does it mean to be in power now?   How does it relate?  In these page turners, I was struck by how much I take for granted and always have---full cupboards and water from the tap.  I was left with the stunned feeling like each time I use the book “The Hungry Planet” by Pete Menzel.  What if we were to match up ‘contestants from around the world in our own ‘Hunger Games’---who knows what it is like to be truly ‘hungry’ versus ‘starving’.  

I’m certainly not starving..... or hungry……probably bored or thirsty---but living in the land of plenty, these books have reminded me of what great benefits my family and I have. I work to remind myself and my family of these gifts daily!

READ ON---and think about how hungry you really are. 

The Road Less Traveled...or...where does your gravy come from?

As part of my job with Ag in the Classroom, I travel.......a lot......in a mini van........a lot.  By a lot, I mean hundreds and hundreds of miles across Illinois.  I know the roads pretty well---I know where to take shortcuts and where gas stations that sell E-85 are, I know where you can find the freshest brewed Iced Tea--and where the cleanest restrooms are.......but this week I saw something I had never seen before.  More on that in a minute.

You see this week, I was in Monroe County (Waterloo, IL) helping with a committee meeting.  They are looking to refine their efforts with Ag in the Classroom.  I helped by being from far away.  I asked a question of what they thought was important to let students know.  Their answer basically came down to they wanted students (and ultimately adults) to know where their food came from.  This is ironic, as Monroe County (in Southwestern Illinois, 30 miles south of St Louis) is a pretty rural area.  There are a couple of school districts including Waterloo, Valmeyer and Columbia as well as some private schools.  We aren't talking a huge urban metro area.  Yet, the participants, including the students at the meeting shared stories of how their classmates don't have an understanding of what goes on in agriculture.  It was a great meeting, and I drove home. 

The next day I drove to northwestern Illinois and Carroll County.   I was in Carroll County to honor our Teacher of the Year Runner Up, Mr. Erbsen, from Eastland Grade School in Lanark.  Mr. Erbsen also teaches in a small rural district.  His students are surrounded by dairy operations and fields (currently under snow!) that will soon be planted with corn and soybeans.  In his classroom, he works to provide the vital link to show his students how agriculture impacts their lives, even if they don't live on a farm.  I presented his award at a school board meeting (held in the school cafeteria!), and I made a comment about how he works to show students where their food comes from.  It was kind of a theme this week. 

Then yesterday, Yahoo News released a story of the "Most Useless College Degrees".  Wow---here we have people in two different rural locations in Illinois---a land known for its agriculture--expressing a concern that even in rural locations--people don't know where their food comes from, and a contributor for Yahoo lists a degree in Agriculture a 'useless'?  Made me stop and wonder why? Why would someone think that? 

Then it dawned on me...and it came back to one of my roadside stops...at a gas station....that has good, freshly brewed Iced Tea, and clean restrooms, along a major Interstate in Illinois.  One night this week I saw something I'd never seen before at a gas station.   (Trust me, I've seen a lot, in my many mile!)

 A gravy dispenser.

Seriously, at this gas station you can get piping hot gravy to smother your biscuits that you warm up in the microwave. In theory, you get to to enjoy your gravy before you get back on the road.   I think my friends from North Carolina AITC would find this practice highly disturbing. 

I'm serious.  It was a dispenser, like the nacho cheese dispenser. Serving up piping hot gravy.

Is it any wonder why people don't know where their food comes from?  You can get gravy at the gas station. 

To look at me, you wouldn't think I am a food purist--but I'm telling you--there are only certain places that I will even think of eating gravy.  My fondest memories of gravy involve my grandmothers---now deceased--but let me tell you--they made gravy!  I'll eat gravy at church functions--where I know some of the folks that have been cooking it up in the back.  I don't even order biscuits and gravy at restaurants for breakfast when eating out---it seems that the last couple of times I've had them, I've been disappointed in the gravy.  I can't even fathom gravy from a gas station, from a dispenser.  In my book--that is just plain wrong. 

My wife doesn't make gravy.  Neither do I ---mine usually tastes like paste.  I think the gravy gene skipped a generation--because my daughter seems to have the knack. 

So I guess maybe I my thought is, the person that thinks a degree in Agriculture is useless, might think that gravy, from a gas station, from a dispenser is a good thing.  OR that is where gravy comes from?

On the other hand, I'll applaud the efforts of volunteers who not only want the entire population to know where their food, fiber, fuel, feed, flowers and a bunch of other 'f' words come from--they are willing to put their hard work in action.  That makes me think of last week--at the Fulton County Farm Bureau.  Fulton County, in west-central Illinois has an active AITC program.  But they need to raise money to help show students that food doesn't come from the grocery store----or the gas station.... neither does gravy!  

You see last Friday, after the snow in Central Illinois, the Fulton County AITC Committee hosted a fundraiser.  They served homemade chicken and noodles, mashed potatoes, green beans and homemade desserts.   The potatoes were peeled, boiled, drained and mashed.  They were not from a box.  Something tells me there was probably real bacon added to the seasonings of the green beans.  The Fulton County AITC Committee ran out of food after serving over 200 people on a cold night in January.  They raised some money, had some fun, made new friends.   Although they didn't serve gravy, I'll bet it would not be from a dispenser.  I'll also go on record that they could tell you 'where' the ingredients for their gravy came from. 

Hats off to the folks that think an Ag degree might really be useful, and continue to work to show others that their food and their gravy certainly doesn't come from the Gas Station. 

Christmas is right around the corner???

Christmas is Right Around the Corner….If you are like me, you might be looking for some last minute stocking stuffers?  Actually, in my book it is only 12/20--I still have 3 more days to think about what I'm going to buy before I head out on 12/24!!  If you are in a hurry check out these agriculture related books!

One of my all time favorites is “Oh Say Can You Seed?” by Bonnie Worth---this is a Cat in the Hat Learning Library Book---it is a great picture of what goes on as a seed germinates and becomes a plant!!  Perfect for all ages!

“Farmer George Plants aNation”---by  Peggy Thomas  a great look at what Washington did before, during and after being a war hero and president!   I’ll give you a hint--Mount Vernon is still an active farm!

“Corn”,” Pork” and “Soybeans”by Susan Anderson and JoAnne Buggey---Susan Anderson has worked with the Minnesota AITC Program for several years, and Joanne Buggey is the Elementary Education instructor working with future teachers  and AITC.  Put them together and they have the perfect recipe for designing books related to agriculture.

“The Beef Princess of Practical County” by Michelle Houts---one of my favorite books--strong female youth main character deeply involved in agriculture---just a great book from a farm wife!

“Little Joe” by Sandra Neil Wallace, another look at raising an animal for the show ring and sale.

“The Heart of a Shepherd” by Rosanne Perry.  An excellent book, that is perfect for upper elementary readers to adults.  You can almost see the movie of this book!

“Who Grew My Soup” by Tom Darbyshire  the best way to link this up is to pair it with the Illinois Farm Families website (www.watchusgrow.org).  In this book young Phin Quinn demands to know ‘WHO GREW MY SOUP” , and he gets to meet the farmer who do!

Going along that same theme is “How Did That Get In My Lunchbox?” by Chris Butterworth.  This book traces your lunch from the table to the farm.

“The Scrambled States of America” by Laurie Heller takes a look at each state, why they are so different, and also examines why it is good to be just plain old you!

“Apples to Oregon” by Deborah Hopkinson--a historical fiction account of Henderson Luelling and his actual trip with his family from Iowa to Oregon on the Oregon Trail.  Told in a way, you won’t forget!

“The Tree Farmer” by Chuck Leavell--Rock and Roller by night, tree farmer and author by day, Chuck Leavell (keyboardist for the Rolling Stones) writes about sustainable forests that he farms!

“The Super Soybean” by Raymond Bial--an Illinois Author, Ray uses photos he takes from throughout Illinois to bring difficult subjects to life. Check out any of his including “A Handful of Dirt” and “Cornbelt Harvest” too!

Speaking of those that you can’t go wrong with ---look for anything by Author Cris Peterson. This farm wife was raised in Minnesota and moved to her current home on a dairy farm with her dairy farming husband in Wisconsin.   Check out “Seed, Soil and Sun”, “Clarabelle”  and “Amazing Grazing”

“The Hungry Planet” By Peter Menzel is a great book that takes  look at what a weeks worth of groceries around the world looks like.  We are all connected by food, and you’ll be happy to know how much Illinois Farmers help feed the world!

“Pig 05049 “by Christien Meindertsma  has recently become my new favorite  The author follow a pig, #05049 and follows the pig and all the co-products and provides a photo of what that pork produces.   From Ham and Sausage to buttons, paintbrushes and marshmallows! 

You can't go wrong with an ag related book!   I just found that Gail Gibbons is also selling her wonderful books (like Pumpkins, Apples, and Corn) as e-readers--so there is something ag related at every level!

 Happy Shopping!!  Happy New Year!!

Being Thankful..........

 As I pause and reflect this week before Thanksgiving----I'm pretty thankful---how about you?
I have had many opportunities to work with students that are studying to be teachers at universities across the state.  Some of their classmates are exercising their 1st Amendment rights across campus, but they were in class---learning how to become better teachers.  For that --I am thankful---the future, no matter your politics, has many people looking to do the right thing--even if they didn't understand or appreciate all the agricultural literacy concepts I shared with them, they were respectful and asked many interesting questions.

Next I'm thankful for the opportunities I've had to interact with farmers from across the state of Illinois.  I'm thankful that you let us tell part of your story.  You have an audience that wants to know more-I thank you for your willingness to open up and share with our program, that we can turn around an help tell your story--in ways that teachers can integrate into their existing curriculum.

I'm also thankful for the opportunities to learn more about Agriculture across the US.  Recently, I got to spend time in Oregon with the Oregon AITC Program.  Leaving the land of Corn and Beans, I arrived in the land of Hops and Hazelnuts--and, seriously-- in the Grass Seed Capital of the World, Linn County Oregon.   What I found was farmers who took pride in what they were growing, wanting to help others with a product and to explain what really goes on --on their farms!  I was shocked to learn the impact the economy has had on grass seed.  But think about it---not as many new homes, not as much need for grass seed.  Wow!  The economy really did have an impact.  It was the same across the board.  From specialty wines and hazelnuts to hop production to salmon and beef and dairy and wool.   I met many great people--and am thankful for the opportunity!

Hopefully, you too will take a minute to pause and reflect.    Where did your bountiful meal come from, besides the grocery store?  The fine folks at Western Illinois University have developed a map detailing who grew your dinner.  It is certainly worth a look to see where your food came from. 

I guess this video---detailing how from 1960 the average farmer fed 26 people.....and now it is 155 people.....sums it up for me.  As I enjoy my Thanksgiving dinner---I'll be thankful....will you?

Flu Shots…..and Agriculture?

I got my flu shot the other day.  It was relatively painless, and after filling out the form and getting the shot I got a Snoopy Band-Aid, and a Tootsie Roll.   That process is happening across the US, and especially in Illinois  (well,  maybe not the Snoopy Band-Aid) as we approach the dreaded flu season.

But as I was signing the form, the person behind me in line said---I’ll be you can’t link your flu shot back to agriculture.    Wrong---I bet I can……

You see the vaccine for the flu virus itself is incubated on the inside of a chicken egg.   Yes that is right---a chicken egg.   For the last 50 years or so---flu vaccines have been cultured inside a fertilized egg.   Although there are researchers looking to find ways to utilize other methods, right now, the egg is still the most widely used incubator for our vaccine strains.  That means plenty of planning ahead for the vaccine period where you need plenty (say 100 million--give or take a couple dozen!) eggs!  How do you build up this supply?  Where do those eggs come from?  It is all one of the mysteries that most folks don t think about-we just get our flu shot!

But say you were to get sick?  How about Penicillin and all the other medicines we take?   We’ll right here in Illinois --Peoria to be exact at the USDA Agricultural Research Service National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research-Doctor Andrew Moyer and others helped utilize a development of the deep vat fermentation method to bring the production of penicillin to consumer uses.  In fact, from 1940--the price of penicillin dropped from “Priceless” to just 55 cents per dose in 1946!    All of that and more is detailed in the USDA Publication “Science in Your Shopping Cart”.  You’d be amazed at how you use agriculture and ag research in your daily life!

Of course there is corn starch in the bandages--Snoopy ones included, and the Tootsie Rolls I got after my shot---well those too are an Illinois Product made in Chicago, with Corn Syrup and Soybean Oil.  Yes, believe it or not--Illinois Agriculture is all around you...even with your flu shot!

Celebrate National Chemistry Week with Agriculture

I grew up in a small town in east-central Illinois.  Actually Hindsboro was bigger 20+ years ago, but I went to school in Oakland---another small town.  When I went to the University of Illinois, had to explain to some of my fellow freshmen--that I could really get into the big U with a graduating class of 32!    We even had chemistry!   Who knew that one day--with a  History and English Teaching Degree--one day--I'd be talking about Chemistry in Agriculture?  Well--Mr. Sullivan (my HS Chemistry Teacher!) this one is for you!!

October 16-22 marks National Chemistry Week!  Yes--you will find chemistry in Agriculture!   Not just the Arsenic (yes it IS an element! Symbol As; Atomic Weight 33) that Dr. Oz was talking about a couple of weeks ago!   The Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Association has some excellent resources related to our three main Chemicals related to agriculture N, P and K 

As harvest continues across the state, you'll soon notice many farmers incorporating nitrogen into their field in the form of anhydrous ammonia (NH3) and ammonium sulfate ([NH4]2SO4).  Farmers take special precautions when using these materials that are used as an aid to replenish nitrogen used in the growing process.    The concept of adding fertilizer is old, real old!   Since 1849 mixed fertilizer has been sold commercially, and even long before that, the legend says that Squanto (or Tisquantum) taught the Pilgrims to fertilize their corn with fish.  The practice of replenishing the nutrients of the soil is something consumers do as well as they begin to prepare their lawns for the winter.

The Virginia Ag in the Classroom program has developed some outstanding middle school and high school chemistry applications using the periodic table.  My favorite is a lesson on what percentages of each element N, P and K are in various size bags of fertilizer.  For example a 10 pound bag of  10-10-10 fertilizer contains 10% of each N, P, and K.   30% of the bag (3 pounds) is actually the nutrient, the remaining 70% (7 pounds) are filler, which allows those using the fertilizer to spread it over a large area without the threat of over-fertilizing. 

Our own Illinois Soil Ag Mag features a great look at N, P and K and how Illinois farmers work to protect our most precious asset, our great soil!

So as we celebrate National Chemistry Week this week--what about watching a farmer, and thanking him for taking care of the land and the water we all share--and learn a little chemistry along the way!