AlO-Lancastor Firming, Saturday, Juna 13, 1992 OPINION Ode To An Up-Stream Neighbor Editor: This morning as I checked my herd of beef cows, I crossed the creek that flows from your farm to mine. I was amazed by the amount of mud and manure in the water. In an effort to determine the source of these contaminants of this small stream. I walked up-stream to your farm. What I saw there infuriated me. You had applied liquid manure recently on a ten acre field. The field sloped directly into the stream which skirted the field for approximately 1200 feet. There were no contour strips nor terraces. There were only gullies where sod waterways should be. Time had not been taken to incorporate the manure even though last night’s rain had been forecast 48 hours in advance. I am a 60 year old Penn a. Dutchman who has fanned all his life. I have no ax to grind with you and I have no desire to have you incur any legal expense or aggraauation so I will not file any reports or grievences against you. But it has been over 12 hours since the rain has stopped falling and your farm con tinues to float past my farm. Dear neighbor, we do not need more government interfer ence. We need farmers who practice soil conservation out of love for their land and respect for their neighbors. Farm Calendar , S;iluid:i\. .liiih' 13 College of Agricultural Sciences Picnic, Russell E. Larson Agri cultural Research Center, Rockspring, 3 p.m. Lancaster County Dairy Princess Pageant, Farm and Home Cen ter, Lancaster, 7 p.m. Adams County Dairy Princess Pageant, Biglerville High School, Biglerville, 8 p.m. Lebanon County Dairy Princess Pageant, Lebanon County Vo- Tech School, Lebanon, 7:30 p.m. Somerset County Dairy Princess Pageant, Berlin Brothersvalley High School, Berlin, 7:30 p.m. Bradford County Dairy Princess Pageant, Wysox Chamber of Commerce. Beaver-Lawrence Dairy Princess Pageant, Laurel High School, New Castle, 8 p.m. Northwest Guernsey Breeders meeting, Lakeway Restaurant, Mercer. Dairy Goat Showcase, Carbon County Fairgrounds, Leighton, Pa. Brown’s Strawberry Festival, Beef and Pork Producers Promotion, thru June 14. Bucks-Montgomery Dairy Prin cess Pageant, Delaware Valley Quebec, Canada, from Bigler PennAg Industries Association annual grain meeting, Sheraton Pennsylvania State FFA Conven tion, State College, thru June 18. Dairy Day in the Park, Johnstown Downtown Park, 11 a.m.-2p.m. Blue Mountain 4-H Dairy Club Meeting, Adams, Elec. 204 W. King St, Shippensburg, 7:30 D.m. Sincerely, Muddied Down-Stream W i (lmscl.i\. linn- 17 Pesticide test, Schuylkill County Cooperative Extension Office, 9 a.m.-noon. Pest Management Forum, Stouffer Concourse Hotel, Arlington, Va., thru June 19. Pennsylvania State FFA Conven tion, State College, thru June 18. DER information meeting on sludge, Conrad Weiser H.S., 7 p.m. National IPM Forum, Stouffer Concourse Hotel, Arlington, Pennsylvania State FFA Conven tion, State College, thru June 18. Ag Issues Forum, Kreider’s Restaurant, 7:30 a.m.-9 a.m. Convention of International Harvester Collectors, Marion, Ohio Fairgrounds, thru June 21. Snyder/Union Holstein clubs Strawberry Festival, Jim Yoder Farm, Selinsgrove, 7 p.m. Turf Field Day, Lehigh County Agricultural Center, Allen town, 5 p.m. Huntingdon Co. Dairy Princess Pageant, Juniata Valley Elementary School, Alcxandri- Lycoming County Dairy Princess Pageant, Faith United Method ist Church, 7:30 p.m. Cumberland County Dairy Prin cess Pageant, Embers Com munity Center, Carlisle, 8 p.m. Dauphin County Dairy Princess Pageant, Dauphin County Agri cultural and National Resour ce’s Center, 7:30 p.m. Bedford County Dairy Princess Pageant and Ice Cream Social, Northern Bedford High School, Loysbuig, 7:30 p.m. Pennsylvania Dairy Goat Associa tion Goat Show, Clinton Coun ty Fairgrounds, Lock Haven, thru June 21. (Turn to Pag* A 27) To Be Aware Of Alfalfa Leaf Spot Diseases Robert Anderson, extension agronomy agent, reminds us that yellow alfalfa does not always mean we have a leafhopper problem. The fields he has checked this week have been infected with leaf fungus diseases. Cool, wet weather causes fungus diseases on plants. So. before spraying an alfalfa field that looks yellow for leafhoppers, check for diseases and use an insect net to check for insects. The most prevalent disease this spring has been Lepto Leaf Spot Lepto Leaf Spot appears as small brown spots on the leaflets, which are surrounded by a yellow area or halo. The spots will enlarge and acquire a tan center with an irregu lar border in time. The yellow halo is a key to iden tification. Infection is confined to young leaves and the greatest dam age occurs on new growth which is infected shortly after cutting. The infected leaves will eventu ally die and cling to the stem for a period of time. Leafhopper dam age starts as a wedge shape area at the tip of the foliage. Lcafhoppers will stunt plants and turn the leaves yellow and red in color. The only control for leaf diseases is warmer and drier weather. So check your fields before spraying and only spray for leaf hoppers when numbers arc above the economic threshold. We expect lcafhoppers to be a problem Farm Forum Editor: Would you please include this open letter in your next issue? Open letter to dairy farmer members of the Red Rose DHIA Now that the issue of transfer ring of your records to Raleigh DRPC is behind us, I feel it is my obligation, to you, as one of your elected slate directors, from the southeast district, to share some of my concerns with you. Up until this time I did not want to make any comments for fear they might jeopardize the negotiations between PA state board and the Red Rose board. The final decision to ultimately leave PDHIA and go to Raleigh DRFC. even though you showed your loyalty to Red Rose and sent in a request to switch, still is in your hands. Please be absolutely sure Raleigh will meet your needs and at a guaranteed price. So Car we have only heard speculations on what the price might be. At the time your board requested transferring of records, I admit that PDHIA did not have the resources to fill the needs of dairy (Turn to Pag* A3l) in the very near future while leaf spot diseases are the problem in most fields this week Rotation Of Crops Will Increase Yields With a good fertility program, good weed and insect control, and proper selection of varieties and planting methods, a field growing continuous com will remain highly productive for decades. However, com that is rotated with fnother crop such as a grass legume hay will almost always produce a higher yield in die first year than a similar field used to grow continuous com. Agronomists recognize the ben efit of crop rotation on yields but are unable to explain exactly why it happens. In addition, crop rota tion may reduce fertilizer costs, improve the soil’s physical condi tion, and decrease pest problems associated with insects and weeds. Cover crops will also provide some of these benefits. By using crop rotations and cover crops, we would be addressing many of the concerns of environmentalists while improving the soil. BHHIHi | ; Br lAvVktNCt W AMHOUSt J ‘sasiys sn THE GUILTY BYSTANDER JUNE 7,1992 Background Scripture: Obadiah. Devotional Reading: Psalms 96:7-13. The “innocent bystander” is usually a contradiction in terms. If one is standing-by while witness ing someone suffering, it is very difficult to be truly “innocent” This is the charge that the pro phet Obadiah leveled against the people of Edom. When the Babylonians came up against Jer usalem, the Edomites “stood aloof," “gloated” over their brother’s “misfortuned," indeed “rejoiced” over it and actually looted “his goods,” prevented Israelites from escape, and “deliverd up” survivors to the Babylonians. What made this particularly odious was that the Israeli ties and the Edomites should have been “brothers,” for they were descended from Jacob and Esau, respectively, the sons of Isaac, the gransons of Abraham. Genealogi cally, they were “family” and there should have been them some compassion. So there was no way that the Edomites could be inno cent bystanders to the depreda tions of Babylon upon Israel. And for this great sin, Obadiah was prophesying for God: “Behold, I will make you small among the nations, you shall utterly be despised” (v. 2), ALL PEOPLES although the prophecy is more than 2,400 years old, it is relevant to much of the world’s history that has followed and even our own times. If anything, it has been broadened because we are begin ning to understand that all people everywhere are our brothers and sisters, even if, like the Edom and Israel, we refuse to recognize it In the sixth century 8.C., Edom was castigated for its lack of bcotherli ness; in our day, all nations are guilty bystanders if they watch with glee or even indifference at the sufferings of others. A few weeks ago we toured To Provide Summer Cow Comfort Hot weather it stressful to cows. When temperatures rise above 7S-80 F, cows eat less, they milk less, and many will fail to conceive. To help combat heat stress, cows need shade, air and water. Shades may consist of trees, sun filtering nets placed over feeding areas, or well ventilated bams. Be sure shade areas are clean and dry. Fresh air may be provided by opening up the bams and using fans. Remove sidewalls and ridge caps. Build bams with high eaves. If necessary, insulate the roof and protect insulation from bird damage. Fans may be used to: • Provide tunnel ventilation. • Pressurize ducts and blow air onto cows. • Blow air over cows. Also, make sure cows have easy access to lots of fresh, clean water. Feather Profs Footnote: “A warm smile is the universal lan guage of kindness.” William Ward what used to be popularly known as “East Germany.” For a half century we have watched as the nations of Eastern Europe struggled under the burdens of Communism. I can remember those times I have bisited the Ber lin Wall or stood and looked over the Iron Curtain; I honestly never thought these would come down in my time. How thrilled I was, then, to walk through the Bran denburg Cate in Berlin a few weeks ago and to saunter through what used to be the terrible “Checkpoint Charlie”! For the most part, as nations ‘ there was not much taht we could do that we did not do during the Cold War—l don’t think Ob*>i| diah’s prophecy will fall upon us ' for that. But now that the walls are down—solely by the grace of God, I suspect—will we watch indifferently as these peoples % struggle to make their dreams 6f ' freedom come true? Will we be the guilty bystanders at a time when we are called to be their brothers and sisters? JUST LIKE US None ofus should think for one moment that the Iron Curtain is down for good. As we drove through the former East Germany—Dresden, Leipzig, Weimar, Erfurt—we found these newly “free” people in said straits: large numbers now without a job, those that worked poorly paid, prices out of sight and, with their new—found freedom and demo cracy they were experiencing some of the burdens of becoming “just like us”—drugs, crime, cor ruption, mushrooming at an alarming pace now that their police state is gone. How many of these, we wondered, may opt to return to what they had before? For the day of the Lord is near upon aU the nations. As you have done, it shall be done to you. your deeds shall return on your own head. Lancaster Farming Established 1955 Published Every Saturday Ephrata Review Building 1 E. Main St Ephrata, PA 17522 by Lancaster Farming, Inc. A SMman Enhfprkm Robert G. Campbell General Manager Everett R. Newewangar Managing Editor C»wH|W 1«1 W Lanuator nrakit
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