10-Lancattar Farming, Saturday, April 18,1987 OPINION Not For Capital Gains From time to time we get reports that food supplies are being damaged by contaminated fallout from industrial and nuclear operations. This week The Deutch Press Wire reported that in Bangladesh more than 65,000 bags of powdered milk imported from Polland have been destroyed because a harmful level of radioactivity was detected. Of ficials say the milk was con taminated by fallout from the Chernobyl nuclear accident. Another report on our desk in dicates that contaminated milk from Chernobyl has been sold to unsuspecting customers in other foreign countries. In addition, while much research has been done to disassociate any link between cancer and low dose radiation, yet the reports that keep coming back to show more in cidences of cancer around nuclear installations in Britain. And in .—H-—.———- I FARM FORUM our readers write J Striped fields of barley and of rye, Are greening ’neath the April sky. Deep-delved earth with beauty Spring endows She follows close upon the plows. The showers come in desarray Drab dregs of winter washed away. Last season’s leaf is brought along By brook that sings her ancient song. Veiled willows hold a wanning nest For robin as a welcome guest. The very air seems dewey wine As petals from the stem untwine. So God in splendor walks the earth And once again it knows rebirth. Farm Calendar Saturday, April 18 Little International Livestock Show, Penn State University, 8 a.m.totp.m. NW Pa. All-Breed Calf Sale, Fairgrounds, Meadville, 12:30 p.m. Monday, April 20 Wayne County Milk Marketing Meeting, Tom Jurchak, Clifford Fireball, Clifford. Tuesday, April 21 Eptanta Area Young Fanner Association monthly meeting, planning questionnaire and FFA slave auction. Poultry Sales and Service Con ference, Keller Conference Center, Penn State University; continues through April 22. Oklahoma a company won per mission from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to test a fertilizer product made from the filtered liquid waste taken from the company’s low level radioactive fuel waste pools. While we don’t have first-hand knowledge of any of these reports, yet we have no reason to doubt them. And we mention the reports here to remind us again that all segments of the population need to be conscious of our tendencies to pollute the air and water around our modem civilizations. If far mers over apply manure to their fields, they can cause down stream pollution, too. So let’s set up some personal and company guidelines for ourselves. Let’s say to ourselves, “I won’t pollute the part of the environment that has been entrusted to me with any thing for any reason. Especially not for capital gains.” SPRINGTIME Lancaster County Co-op Day, Farm and Home Center, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Pa. Feeder Pig Show/Sale, New Holland Sales Stables; show, 4 p.m.; sale, 7 p.m. Thursday, April 23 Annual Fundraising Banquet, Pa. Poultry Federation, Hershey Lodge and Convention Center. Lancaster County Ladies Day Out, tour and luncheon, 9 a.m. Wayne County Beekeepers Meeting, Extension office, Courthouse, Honesdale. Friday, April 24 N.J. State Holstein Calf Sale, Warren County Fairgrounds, Harmony, 7 p.m. Gail Redheffer Stull Willow Street riJ fi-i NOW IS THE TIME By Jay Irwin Lancaster County Agriculture Agent To Clean Pastures Before Turning Animals On Them A careful check of pastures before turning cows into them can be time well spent. Trash, broken glass, and wire may produce bad udder and foot injuries. So remove or bury the debris. Nails sticking through boards may produce serious puncture wounds in feet. Old farm im plements should be hauled away; cows seem unable to resist step ping through old discs or harrows, often with disastrous results. Fertilizer and fertilizer bags are deadly; especially those con taining nitrates. Cows will eagerly kill themselves eating it. In spite of laws, we still have a few people who will pitch a bagful of junk out of their cars while they drive along our highways. A walk Saturday, April 25 Witmer Fire Company Ox Roast, noon, Witmer. NE Regional Seminar, “Women in a Changing World,” Bloom sburg University, Bakeless Center, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Penn State Dairy Expo, Ag Arena, 8:30 a.m. Wayne County Holstein Club Sale, Wayne County Fairgrounds, Honesdale. Cook College Ag Field Day, New Brunswick, all day. Sunday, April 21 4-H Capital Days, Harrisburg; continues through April 28. Pa. Flying Farmers monthly meeting at Bruce and Nancy Younker’s, Bethel. For more information call 717-867-2384. Monday, April 27 Pfizer Research Conference, In dianapolis Convention Center, 1:30t05p.m. PFA Women’s Spring Conference, State College. State Grange Banquet, Marriott- Harrisburg, 5 p.m. Wednesday, April 29 Lancaster County FFA Ag Mechanics Contest, Solanco High School, 12:30 p.m. Thursday, April 30 Adams County Homemaker’s Day, Cashtown Fireball, 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Friday, May 1 Delaware Food Festival, Felton Fireball, 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Call 1-800-202-8685 for in formation. / through your pasture fields before , turning your cows out, is time very i well spent. To Practice Strict Sanitation Livestock and poultry producers must take a special effort to prevent contagious diseases. Many of these infections are brought home by the owner, or with the purchase of a new arrival. There are a number of infections that can be spread very easily from farm to farm. In this part of the country, where the density of poultry and livestock is so great, producers should be alert to the possibility of spreading diseases. When returning from another farm, or public place, different clothes and footwear should be used. Stray dogs, cats and wild birds should be controlled as much as possible. New pur chases should be segregated and tested before mixing with the home herd or flock. In many cases vaccination should go along with very strict sanitation practices. Every producer should give at tention to the prevention of disease through good management and the use of good sanitation practices. To Understand Persistent Weed Problems Just how persistent do we have to be in order to control weed problems? Well, the answer to this question comes from weed scientists who ran germination tests on weed seeds. They report that 29 percent of Johsongrass seed germinated after being buried for 3% years; Saturday, May 2 tomorrow, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Md. Sheep and Wool Festival, Sheep auction, May 3,3 p.m. Howard County Fairgrounds, Pa. Shorthorn Association Spring W. Friendship Md., off 1-70, 9 Sale, Mercer, a.m. to 9 p.m. Continues THE SUPERSTITION OF REASON April 19,1987 Background Scripture: Luke 23:50 through 24:12. Devotional Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:1-11. If 1 have been addicted to anything in my life, it has probably been to reason. I don’t mean that there is anything wrong with reason; in fact, there are lots of people whom I wish were more reasonable and lots of situations in life in which I would like to see reason prevail more often. No, the problem is not with reason per se, but with me. I have asked of reason what often it cannot give. There have been times when I have forgotten the limitations of reason and tried to understand what is forever beyond my powers of reasoning. My reluctance to acknowledge this, in fact my stubborn resistance against this realization, has subjected me to a superstitious passion for reason that has sometimes been my undoing. morning glory 74 percent after 5 years; pigweed 66 percent after 40 years and dock 52 percent after SO years. They further reported that 51 of 107 species tested still had live seeds after 20 years. The reason these seeds remain in the soil for such a long period without sprouting is apparently related to environmental con ditions. According to weed experts, some seeds need just the right combination of moisture, tem perature, and nutrients before they will germinate. This explains why we may suddenly be faced with a weed problem we thought was cured several years ago. To Manage Poultry Home Equiment General management of poultry house equiment is important in maintaining a comfortable en vironment for chickens and turkeys. Defective equipment should be repaired or replaced promptly, especially if it is in volved with the delivery of feed or water to the birds. Rusty or bent cages will allow some birds to escape and may trap or injure other birds. It can also cause an increase in cracked egg shells. All sharp edges on the poultry equipment must be removed to avoid injuries. Rusty and decaying feed bins are another problem; they allow moisture to seep into the feed, resulting in mold and sick birds. The Cooperative Extension Service is an affirmative action, equal opportunity educational institution. AN IDLE TALE Of course, I'm in good company with my superstitious belief in reason. There are lots of people just as addicted to it as I am often with pretty much the same consequences. And, although l can’t take any real satisfaction in it, I can’t help feeling a bit relieved to know that the twelve disciples of Jesus also suffered from the same addiction. When the women from Galilee returned from Jesus’s tomb with the news that Jesus was risen and that this had been at tested by an angel whom they encountered there, the disciples reacted the way any good church officials would react: “these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them’’