VoL 21 No. 14
Man's best friend led the way while four harder working friends pulled a plow near Ronks on Thursday. 'Plowing fever' got the best of this Amishman
and a number of other farmers this week as unusually warm and sunny weather moved into the area.
New beef grades upset cattlemen
By DIETER KRIEG
LANCASTER—The new federal meat grading regulations
rhich are to go into effect Monday aren’t likely to benefit
myone, according to opinions expressed Wednesday night at
ic Lancaster Stock Yards when the new standards were
■xplained by USDA representatives. Most of the ap-
iroriinately 150 farmers and packers present didn’t know for
ure what the proposed revisions mean, but by the time the
Chester Co, Dairy Day featured calf care
By DIETER KRIEG
.'UNIONVILLE - Cleanliness, the elimination of stress,
-foper temperature and humidity levels, draft-free and diy
housing, and good management are the most essential points
to remember in a good calf-raising program, according to
Don Ace, Penn State dairy specialist.
Ace was here at the Stone Barn Inn on Thursday to take
part in Chester County Dairy Day activities which diw more
Solanco youth is Pa. Com Contest winner
By MELISSA PIPER
QUARRYVILLE - One of
the first farming techniques
that almost every young
person learns is the fine art
of growing com. And while
the whole operation from
Last of the tobacco crop moves to market
p RONKS - Lancaster County’s tobacco crop is sold, and as
*nas been reported here and elsewhere for the last several
weeks, the going price was 58 cents per pound.
Trucks and wagons were lining the main street here on
Thursday, waiting to unload their crop at an old warehouse.
A Denver area former said he had been there since 8 a.m.
and didn’t expect to reach the unloading dock until mid
afternoon. More loads were still coming in at 2 p.m. Asked if
he was satisfied with his price, he responded with a quick
“yes,” explaining that it’s very fair considering the quality of
Wagons and trucks lined the streets of Ronks on Thursday to deliver the last of this year's 58-cent tobacco crop to the warehouse.
plowing to harvesting can be
accomplished with great
numbers of acreage, per-
Meeting one single acre can
be quite complicated.
For one Solanco area
y out h however, his one acre
Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, Feb. 21,1976
situation was explained, they had made up their minds where
they stood: opposite from USDA.
Bill McCoy, president of the Lancaster Stock Yards, Inc.,
had this to say: “We can ill afford to change standards which
for the past 30 or 40 years have enabled cattlemen to come up
with a product which consumers want these new
regulations could, in my opinion, drive consumers from the
than 200 dairymen on a day which was marked by un
seasonably warm and sunny weather.
“I am well convinced that management is the key to
controlling calf losses,” the renowned daily specialist said at
one point. “How badly do you want to keep the calves alive? ”
he asked. Ace noted that in one study within the state, 545
dairymen were surveyed and out of these, three hadlost all of
their calves during an entire year. “Calf losses are pretty
com crop turned out to be a
prize winning effort.
Dam Hershberger, son of
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Her*
shberger, Quarryville Rl,
was recently named as toe
his tobacco this year. On the other hand, it did not cover his
expenses.
Two Amishmen from Bird-in-Hand were delivering the last
of their crop Thursday afternoon. They had sold all of it for 58
cents and commented that “we could use 60 cents, and we’d
be better pleased, but we don’t want to complain.
A tobacco grower from the Kinzer area said he wasn’t
satisfied with his price - which, like all the rest, was 58 cents
per pound. He flatly stated that the costs of production and
everything else have gone up but the price of tobacco stayed
Gold Medal Winner in a one
acre com contest sponsored
by the Pennsylvania Crop
improvement Association,
Dan’s honor was atngnlar in
the state as the youth was the
only producer to have 201
meat counter and even if we lose Just one customer, we
took a step in the wrong direction.”
It was a point which a number of people in the auction room
agreed with. Milt Marshall, representative of Cross
Brothers, a Philadelphia meat packing firm, rose from his
seat on numerous occasions to contest the USDA position,
“We pay for our own mistakes, and I’ll be darned if I want to
| Continued on Page ll]
dam serious in this state on the average,” he exclaimed.
“You can probably live with a calf loss of five to ten per cent,
but I’d advise you to stay below the five per cent mortality
level.”
Speaking of baby calves as frail individuals which are as
helpless as human babies, Ace made it dear that he is in
bushels of com in his acre
plot.
The contest is sponsored
annual by the crop
association and is open to
farming youth under 21
years of age. Judging is
the same as last year. “It don’t make sense,” he exclaimed.
Most fanners were, however, satisfied with the deal they
had made. Their costs of production weren’t always met, but
then on the other hand, they admitted they didn’t have quite
the quality or quantify either.
One Amishman, puffing on his cigar, summed up the at
titude of most tobacco growers: “I guess we’ll have to be
pleased with it.”
I In this issue
I Farm Calendar 10 Women’s calendar 44
' Editorials 10 Home on the Range 46
: Barney Nixnutz 10 Tractor Pullers 50
t FF A feature 14 Soybean situation 53
j Solanco corn winners 40D Peach meeting 58
| Soils and crops day 40F Lifeonthelarm 60
I Homestead Notes 42 Corn growers clinic 69
I Country Corner 42 Public Sales Register 72
$3.00 Per Year
[CcnSnued on face 17]
based on yield per acre along
with net profits gained from
the venture. Dan’s net profit
was calculated at $3Bl. which
the youth has put into buying
new stock for his dairy herd,
(Continued on Pate 15]