AlO-LancMter Farming, Saturday, January 1,1994 OPINION Happy New Year To Busy Farmers The work schedule on the farm in winter may be a little less strenuous than at planting, hay making, or at silo filling time or in com or tobacco harvest. But for livestock and dairy farmers, the extra stable chores take time, so you still have a lot to do. In addition, at this time of year farm educational meetings at the extension office or at your farm dealership or supplier are offered. Next year’s production schedule can be set, and tax records assembled. Nutrient management plans can be put in place this winter, and soil tests should be taken. Fertilizer, lime,'seeds, and pesticides should be purchased to insure they are available in the spring. Winter is a good time to check, repair, lubricate and reset equipment. If parts are worn, they should be replaced. You want to do everything possible to reduce down time on the equipment when you are running day and night in the fields. Cows must be clipped and other livestock kept in clean stalls. Water pipes must be kept warm. Many people who don’t know better, think farmers have nothing to do in winter. But when these consumers sit down to their next meal, we think they should know that farmers are busy all winter too. The blessings of Thanksgiving and Christmas have been experienced this year. And now we anticipate the begining of a new year. Therefore, we wish all the busy people in agricul ture a prosperous, healthful, and happy New Year. & Farm Calendar Mercer County DHI annual meeting. New Jersey Farm Bureau Dairy Summit, Tranquility Church. Tranquility, NJ., 10 a.m.-3 p.m., continues Jan. 6. Leola Produce Auction meeting, Bareville Fire Hall, Leola. 12:30 p.m. Raleigh DHIA Records Work shop, Amos Stoltzfus Farm, Honey Brook, 12:30'p.m. Mid-Atlantic Nurserymen’s Trade Conference, Baltimore, Md., thru Jan. 6. Berks County Dairy Day, Exten sion Office, Leesport. Farm Forum Editor, Have you ever sat by and watched your best friend die? However crushing it might have been it cannot compare to the devastation one experiences when death comes as a result of irresponsibility. Rocky, my Golden Retriever, a beloved Father’s Day gift given to me in the mid-eighties, is at my side, stricken with heartworms, not far from death. It could easily have been avoid ed and 1 been diligent as a pet owner and put him on the regimen recommended by virtually every licensed veterinarian. This mos quito borne parasite has also invaded the systems of three other dogs of mine, but because they are relatively young and robust, they arc successfully recuperatisg from Adams County Dairy Day, Exten sion Office, Gettysburg. 9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Solanco Young Fanners pesticide Sola" District annual meeting. Stock Yard Inn, 6 p.m. Bucks/Montgomery Dairy Day, Family Heritage Restaurant, Franconia, 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Franklin County Dairy Day, ■ Kauffman’s Community Cen ter, Chamhersburg, 9:30 a.m.-2;40 p:m. Milk Marketing Board Sunshine Meeting, Pa. Dept, of Ag, Pa. State Farm Show, judging only. Mercer County pesticide meeting. Elder Sales and Service, (Turn to P«fl* A 27) the sometimes fatal treatment. I used to pride myself as an ani mal lover but this is no longer the case. Sure, I hug them constantly, give them treats (probably too often), let them take advantage of me-even share my bed with them from time to time. But these indul gences can only be part of a commitment. The picture cannot be labeled “love” when their care is com promised. “Spoiling them rotten” means little if their well-being is neglected. Ignoring the necessity of regular checkups, periodic vac cinations and parasite control is to debase the meaning of animal love. Certainly, 1 can and do reflect on all the wonderful times Rocky and I have had together; how hie (Turn to Pago A»1) NOW IS THE TIME By John Schwartz Lancaster County , Agricultural Agqnt To Study New Sire Information According to Glenn Shirk, extension diary agent, the new sire rankings published in January 1994 will contain new information. This new information will include predicted transmitting ability (PTA) for somatic cell score (SCS) and for productive life (PL). PTA SCS indicates how well udder health qualities are transmit ted to offspring. PTA PL indicates how well longevity traits are transmitted. Cow summaries will begin to contain this new information in July 1994. Also to be included in the new summaries is the net merit (NM) index. This new index com bines the economic impact of somatic cell scores and productive life with the value of the milk, the fat, and the protein produced. Dairy breeders should find this new information helpful as they search for the best genetics for upgrading their herds. To Look At Farm Numbers U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Espy reported that the nation continues to loose about one per cent of its farms each year or about 23,000 farms. According to Espy, most of these are small farms less than 500 acres in size which no longer pro duce sufficient income to support the farm family. Espy also stated that 85 percent of the nation’s agri cultural output comes from 15 per cent of the nation’s farms. This same trend may be seen in Pennsylvania. Between June 1, 1992 and June 1,1993, Pennsylva nia lost about 1,000 farms. This represents a decline of slightly less than two percent. In Pennsylvania, about 48 percent of the farms are less than 75 acres in size with an average gross sales of about $74.50 per acre. Thirty-six percent of the farms have an average size of 178 acres and average gross sales of $3OB per acre, while 16 percent of the farms have an aver age size of more than 350 acres ' with an average gross sale of more than $575 per acre. To Evaluate Future In Farming With the beginning of a New Year, now is a good time to evalu ate your future in farming. With the increased productivity and efficiency in agriculture, far mers need to continue to grow and be better. There are several factors that determine the sim of a farm. One is the number of acres. The other is the speed with which we may harvest our crops orUvestock and poultry production. The cows you arc able to milk in in hour, the number of eggs you may park in an hour, the number of acres you are able to harvcst in an hour, and the number of hogs or broilers you may slaughter in an hour, etc. determine the optimum size of your farm. Today the major limiting factor for farm growth besides money is probably land. Society is writing on defining additional minimum standards to'meet environmental standards and concerns of neighbors. Studying the income figures based on farm size indicates far mers of small farms must develop flrf/iitinnal sources of income. This could come from many sources. • Become a part-time fanner and have another job to supple ment income and provide health, retirement, and other benefits. BY IAWRtNU W ALT H OUSt j I3UI3SLS SP£ GOD'S MISTAKES January 2,1994 Background Scripture: Luke 4:16-28 Devotional Reading: Isaiah 61:1-2; 58:6 Does God make mistakes? Practically all of us would be eager to say "No!” to that ques tion. According to our beliefs it is absolutely impossible for God to ever be in error. Yet, though we might vehe mently deny that God makes mis takes, we often act as if he does. If God had to wait for each of his acts to be ratified by a worldwide popular referendum, his will would probably never be done. Someone has said that, if God were a committee, the universe would probably never have moved beyond the “Big Bang.” The fact is, God’s ways are often not our ways. And when his ways are contrary to ours, we act as if the problem is with him not with us. That’s why we take our civic cues from politicians rather than from God. That’s why we usually leave God out of our busi ness lives—God doesn’t seem to have a “business head.” And that is also why we relegate religion to the “spiritual,” rather than the pragmatic, every day side. God is a nice fellow and all of that, but in “the real world” God’s ways are just too impractical. WHO’S THIS? Sometimes Christians not only don't agree with God’s ways, but they get downright upset about them. That’s what Jesus exper ienced in his home town of Nazareth when he went to the syn agogue on the Sabbath and read from the scroll of the Prophet Isaiah. At first, people were some what impressed with his reading, but then they began to question: “Is not this Joseph’s son?” (Luke 4:22b). Actually, that quotation could be taken two different ways. It could mean appreciation: isn’t it wonderful what our hometown boy is sayfng! Or, it could mean disdain: who does this local yokel think he is? Our key comes from Jesus’ response: “Doubtless you will quote to me the proverb, ‘Physician, heal yourself; what mi • Form partnerships with neigh bors to develop a larger land base and farm size to generated needed additional income. • Switch to higher income pro ducing crops. • Do more direct marketing. • Sell or lease the farm and invest the money. • Or use a combination of these or some other strategy you may develop. Fanning today is a business. We could learn a lot from our town business people on how they organize their businesses, methods of using outside capital, and busi ness partnerships. Take time now to discuss the future of farming with your family and develop a plan to achieve it Do not forget to use the many sour ces of help available to you in developing your plan. Feather Prof s Footnote: “The happiness of your life is in direct proportion to the character of your thoughts." have heard you did at Capernaum, do here also in your own coun try”*. And he said, ‘Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his own country” (Luke 4:23,24). Obviously, Jesus did not regard their comment as a congratulation, for he knew that they did not real ly accept him and his mission. His local townspeople figured that, if God had chosen this man, he had made a mistake! Jesus forced the issue to a head by citing to them two times in the history of brad when God had bestowed his special blessings upon Gentiles instead of Jews. Keep in mind how much they despised the Gentiles. As William Barclay says in his commentary on Luke, “They believed that ‘God had created the Gentiles to be fuel for the fires of hell.”’. If God had specially blessed Gen tiles such as Zaraphath and Naa man, he had made a mistake! ANNOYED WITH THE GOSPEL Now, of course, no good Jew would have ever said or allowed himself to think that God had made a mistake. But he might nevertheless have acted as if that were so. For Luke tells us, “When they heard this, all in the syna gogue were filled with wrath” (4:28). What were they angry about? About what God had done. Their anger showed that they dis approved of what God had done. Does that ever happen in our churches? Yes, it does when we find ourselves annoyed when the gospel of Jesus Christ is applied to people who, unlike ourselves, “don’t deserve it.” We would have a similar reaction if on some Sun day morning in church someone reminded us that God had healed an errant Hindu while Christians remained unhealed. Unfortunately, like his fellow Nazarenes, many of us think that, because we arc members of this church or that, we have a claim on the goodness of God. But, in fact, the goodness of God flows where ver people are receptive to it As always, the mistake is not God’s, but ours. Lancaster Fanning Established 1955 Published Every Saturday Ephrata Review Building 1 E. Main St. Ephrata, PA 17522 -by Lpnaaatar Faming, ine. m flasnan cnapw Wgrt 9- Campba* Qwwral Manegar EuaMS D Ufuayiuaaa ** 1 PJL —. HNgnp CvnOr *MM|M 1W by ÜBMMir ftm*g
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers