M-Lancast* Fanning Saturday, February 1,1992
Art Exhibit Promotes Rare Breed Conservation
UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre
Co.) An unjusual combination
of art and agriculture may help to
save some rare farm animals from
extinction.
The Art of American Livestock
Breeding, organized by Pennsyl
vania cattleman John Dawes and
the American Minor Breeds Con
servancy, will be exhibited Feb. 7
through March 29 in Penn State’s
Palmer Museum of Art at Univer
sity Park.
This collection of paintings,
many by renowned artists of the
19th century, depicts livestock
breeds which are in danger of
The Art of American Livestock Breeding, organized by
Pennsylvania cattleman John Dawes and the American
Minor Breeds Conservancy, will be exhibited Feb. 7 through
March 29 In Penn State's Palmer Museum of Art at Unlversi
ty Park. This collection of paintings, many by renowned
artists of the 19th century, depicts livestock breeds which
are in danger of dying out.
N.E. Vegetable
Growers To Meet
SCRANTON (Lack
awanna Co.) The
Northeast Regional
Vegetable Growers
meeting will be held on
Thursday, February 6
from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30
p.m. at the Milwaukee
Methodist Church in
Lackawanna County.
Sponsored by
cooperative extension
of Penn State University
and the Lackawanna
County Horticultural
Association, program
topics will include
information on veget
able varieties; weed,
insect, and disease con
trol; safe use of pesti
cides; and federal
drought relief.
Sneakers from Penn
St T niversity include
fi Mac Nab, plant
pc ilogist; Michael
Orzuiek, vegetable spe
cialist; Shelby Fleis
cher, entomologist; and
county Extension agents
Don Overdorff and Tom
Jurchak. Joseph Col
angelo will represent the
Pennsylvania Depart
ment of Agriculture and
Kent Swartz, USDA.
Training credits will be
provided for recertifica
tion of private applica
tors of restricted use
dying out.
“We are a nation descended
horn fanners, and we hope these
paintings raise awareness of that
heritage,” said Dawes, who raises
Angus beef cattle and Milking
Shorthorns on his Huntingdon
County farm. “It takes the work of
many lifetimes to develop a breed
of livestock, and the American
Minor Breeds Conservancy is not
willing to throw that away.”
Created before the widespread
use of photography, the paintings
in the exhibit are a permanent
record of breeds once considered
to be of major importance to pro
of ' il: 'Mi if the'
Reservations are $6
and can be made by mail
' or phone with the Lack
awanna County
Cooperative Extension,
200 Adams Avenue,
Scranton, PA 18S03,
(717) 963-6842.
&TECHL
Dynamic Technologies
DYNA
DYNA-TECH INDUSTRIES
602 E. EVERGREEN ROAD
LEBANON, PA 17042-7925
SERVICE OUR FIRST CONSIDERATION
10 TO 60 KW
TRACTOR DRIVEN GENERATORS
breeds declined as they were
replaced by animals that grow or
reproduce faster.
“The Conservancy believes
there’s a need to maintain genetic
diversity,” Dawes said. “Different
breeds have a place in different
regions, depending on factors such
as soil type and climate.”
The need to maintain genetic
diversity in livestock is not lost on
animal scientists. “In our rapidly
changing world, it’s difficult to
ensure that we have an animal that
,T#^Sau
S Jktf® Up TO 45 Fee^?
Const —tOOO u |Sq 0 0
will thrive in a particular environ
ment,” said Dr. Stanley Curtis,
professor and head of Penn State’s
dairy and animal science
department.
"If we can preserve that diversi
ty, then with modem techniques in
breeding and genetic engineering,
we can sometimes bring back
desirable traits of rare breeds,”
Curtis said. “It would be a mistake
to let these breeds wither away.”
The traveling exhibit is meant to
call attention to the work of the
GENERATOR
SYSTEMS
DISTRIBUTOR
FOR
SALES - SERVICE - RENTALS
INSTALLATION
717-274-8899
FAX 717-274-5334
Conservancy, including support
for the registration of rarer breeds.
"The registry office for Ayrshires
recently closed because there
aren’t enough animals registered
to pay for office staff and computer
support,” Dawes said. “The Con
servancy is gearing up to be a regi
strar for breeds in that situation.”
The exhibit has been on display
in the Washington, D.C., area and
in Hagerstown, Md. It will move to
Pittsburgh after its Penn State
engagement.
per (To
5 to 1628 KW
(onth/renl
delivery
additions
cost