AlO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 2, 2000 OPINION Generational Continuance We often find farmland preservation to be a politically cor rect misnomer for open space preservation. Not so with the Lancaster Farmland Trust. What a delight to see a private or ganization without the threat of government interference real ly work to preserve the generational continuance of these many beautifiil homesteads in Lancaster County. As you know, behind every beautiful farm scene the human side of farming reaches back to the inheritance received from parents, grandparents, and great grandparents. And from these roots, an eternal hope propels the heart-felt desire to see children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren take up the creative work known as farming. While the unequaled success of saving 117 farms since 1988 is magnificent, the professional efforts in land transfer and support of agriculture in general on behalf of these farm fami lies is the heart and soul of the Lancaster Farmland Trust. The goal here is not just to preserve farmland, but to support good stewardship of the land and encourage a thriving agri cultural economy. No wonder this Trust is the envy of other programs in the nation and also the most copied. And while you would think preserving farmland is an agri cultural pursuit, the truly informed realize that our farm heri tage enriches the lives of all citizens. That’s why many urban and city people are members of and support the Lancaster Farmland Trust. As the Trust’s Harvest Appeal is under way, it would be a good time to make an investment in the noble effort to save the farms of Lancaster County. FufijreoTourFoo Radisson, Philadelphia, thru Dec. 3. 4-H Dairy Judging, John George Farm, New York, 8:45 a.m. Pon?R)9?TieeungY^ High Quality, Consistent Pork Products in Ohio, Animal Sciences Building, Ohio State University College Campus, thru Dec. 5. New York Farm Bureau State Annual Meeting, Adam’s Mark Hotel, Buffalo, thru Dec. 7. Octorara Young Farmer Meet ing, Pesticide Update Certifi cation, Vo-Tech Dept., 7:30 p.m. Christmas Event, Ephrata Middle School, 7:30 p.m. First National Conference On Grazing Lands, Bally’s Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nev., thru Dec. 8. Western Pa. Vegetable and Berry Growers’ Seminar, Days Inn, Butler. Lebanon Valley Farm-City Ban quet, Lebanon Valley Expo Center, 7 p.m. Delaware State Grange Session, Capital Grange Hall, Dover, Del., 9:30 a.m., also Feb. 6. Nutrient Management for Horse Owners, Kent County Public Works Complex, Chester town, Md., 6 p.m.-8 p.m. Lancaster DHIA annual meet ing, Good and Plenty Restau rant. Smoketown, 11:30 a.nL_ AmmarsoutiiJersey Landscape Conference and Trade Show, w.;. <p: <¥ ♦ Farm Calendar ♦ 's. s *-- Masso’s Crystal Manor, Glassboro, N.J. Delaware State Grange Annual Banquet, Cheswold Volunteer Fire Company Hall, Cheswold, Del., 6:30 p.m. Ag Business Breakfast, Bee- man’s Restaurant, Athens, 7:30 a.m. Computer Workshop (farm management), Lancaster Farm and Home Center, 9:30 {jjmj-^jjnij^hnLDec^^^^ Susquehanna River Basin Com mission and Chesapeake Bay Commission Sediment Sym posium, Hershey Lodge and Convention Center, Hershey, thru Dec. 8. Maryland and Virginia Milk Producers’ District Meeting, Fulton Grange Hall, Wake field, noon. Agriculture In the New Century, Site Specific Agriculture 2000, Tidewater Inn, Easton, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. American Seed Trade Associa- tion, Hyatt Regency, Chicago, 111., thru Dec. 10. Northampton County DHIA and Holstein Association Meeting and Banquet, Christ EivangelicaK^hurdii^Jjm^^ LackawarmaDHlA Banquet, Green Grove Grange, 7:45 p.m. ZOW^Nanona^AualiaSym^ sium, Las Vegas, Nev., thru Dec. 12. Pa!stateCouncirofFannOr- ganizations Meeting, PDA IJmldingjlfeiTisbjng^lajin. TntroouctiontoSpreadshe (Turn to Pago A 24) As the lawn and garden season ends, one important job remains before winter sets in, noted Rob ert Anderson, Lancaster County extension agronomy agent. All power equipment should be prepared for winter storage. A few important things to do before winter include: • First, drain the gasoline from the tank and carburetor. Gasoline, which remains in the tank and carburetor, will cause a vamish-like substance to devel op. This deposit often causes ex pensive repairs next season. There are products on the mar ket, which may be added to gaso line, which prevents this buildup without draining the gasoline. You may want to try this ap proach if draining the gasoline creates a problem. • Second, change the oil be- * (tug.** IfK S3** Did it ever occur to you that God wants something from you for Christmas? That is a sobering thought, isn’t it? So what do you give to a person who has every thing? But maybe God doesn’t have everything from us that he wants. Maybe he, too, has a Christmas list and there is some thing on it that you could give to him. I think I’ve found that “list” in Luke 3. John the Baptist copied it down for us. So what can we give God for Christmas? John’s first suggestion is that God wants us to repent so that we “Prepare the way of the Lord.” (3:4). Perhaps that comes as a shock because many of us don’t think of ourselves as need ing repentance not right now, anyway. We live pretty respecta ble lives, keep out of trouble with the law, and don’t have any ene mies to speak of. Repentance is for sinners and that doesn’t real ly apply to us. That must have been what people thought when they heard John’s challenge. They were de cent, God-fearing people. While they might have realized they were not perfect, neither did they think of themselves as sinners. Surely, he was not speaking to them! ieets, To Winterize Lawn Power Equipment CD’S CHRISTMAS LIST? Background Scripture: Luke 1:15-25; 3:1-18. Devotional Reading: Isaiah 40:1-5. Brood Of Vipers! John, however, made his chal- fore winter. Oil may become acidic through use and, when left in the engine, will cause corro sion. • Third, clean the air filter and replace it if needed. • Fourth, clean and replace the spark plug. • Fifth, clean the top and un derside of the deck. • Sixth, check for missing or broken parts and order them now. • Seventh, have repairs that you cannot do yourself done dur ing the winter in anticipation of the spring rush. To Control Yard And Garden Diseases Plan to use warm weather spells this winter to reduce the chance of plant disease problems in your yard next year. According to Dr. Tim Elkner, Lancaster County extension hor ticultural agent, fungi have spe cialized structures that allow them to survive the winter and cause most of the infectious dis eases that occur on landscape and garden plants. As warmer spring temperatures occur, these fungi seek the assistance of wind and rain to find their plant host and continue their life cycle. Sanitation or cleaning up is important to break this over win tering disease cycle. Sanitation consists of activities aimed at re moving or reducing disease or ganisms. Practices such as tilling, removing infected leaves, and cutting out sick or dead branches will help reduce the amount of disease that may develop. Sanitation involves removing stems and leaves before new growth appears in the spring. Sanitation measures are not only important for flowering perenni als, but also are important for lenge to everyone in the crowd. And he is pretty outspoken: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come.” (3:7). Notice he didn’t say that this applied to just some of the crowd. These words were addressed to all. I had a high school classmate who would startle us with a sud den confrontation and a demand to know: “Are you saved?” One of my friends replied indignant ly: “Of course I am. I’m a Lu theran.” “But that wasn’t what I asked,” the other replied. I have often thought about both the question asked and the reply. There was a certain logic in the answer. Being Lutheran, he thought that salvation from sin was part of the package deal. And I can also understand the other student’s reply. The con fession God requires of us is not the faith of a particular church, but a confession of sin. As John spells it out: “... Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham (John Cal vin, Menno Simons, John Wes ley, and Martin Luther) as our father...’” The deadliest sins, said Thom as Carlyle, are “the conscious ness of no sin.” St. Augustine said that “All sin is a kind of lying.” If when confronted by God we are not burdened with the weight of our sins, we are de ceiving ourselves first and then the Lord. In the Biblical sense, sin is not concerned with respectability, but with our own failures to live the lives God calls us to. Others may be unaware of our moral failures, but we must not be. Someone has suggested that our sense of sin is in proportion to our nearness to God. If we are not conscious of our sins, per haps we are just not close enough to God. How Many Coats? If you are still unable to find woody plants such as trees and shrubs. It is often easiest to prune deciduous woody plants after leaves have fallen when symptoms are more visible. Remember, when pruning dis eased portions of plants, always make cuts in healthy tissue below the infected area to ensure that aU the diseased tissue has been removed. To Check Com Harvest Losses Reducing harvesting losses is one sure way to improve profits, reminds Robert Anderson, Lan caster County extension agrono my agent. Putting the highest percentage of the crop in the bin should be the number one management ob jective at harvest. Many factors affect field losses including crop not ready to harvest, preharvest losses, improper combine adjust ment, improper ground speed, improper operator practice, or combine leakage. Most of these factors may be corrected if losses are identified during harvest. After the harvest is over, the only check that may be done is to determine if the harvesting job was a good one. Now is the time to take a walk through some of your cornfields to determine what the average number of ker nels per square foot is. This should be determined across the entire width of one combine pass at several locations in the field. On average, I.S kernels per square foot will equal one bushel loss per acre. Once the decision is made that field losses were too high, it is important to remember to do something about it next year. Feather Profs Footnote: “ Worse than not being able to see is being able to see and have no vision. ” something in your life of which to repent, read further “He who has two coats, let him share with him .who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.” (3:10,11). Even if I live the most exemplary life and there is no one to condemn me for anything, still there are those to whom I have failed to do as God com mands. You don’t have to travel far to find people who are ill-clothed and homeless, hungry, children, derelicts, and the downtrodden. If you have two coats and enough to eat, is it not sin to pass them by? John also tells tax collectors not to collect more than is due and soldiers to “Rob no one by violence or false accusations.. John is speaking not only to tax collectors and soldiers, but all of us. In our daily work, God wants us to avoid lying, cheating, and deception. Martin Luther says that “The recognition of sin is the beginning of salvation.” The reason many of us find nothing of which to repent is that we have allowed ourselves to be come rent and unmindful of it in our very midst. But, as Carlyle said, “the greatest security against sin is to be shocked at its presence.” Maybe the best gift we could give to the Lord this Christmas is a renewed sense of shock and shame for the sin that is within our sight. Lancaster Farming Established 1955 Published Every Saturday Ephrata Review Building 1 E. Main St. Ephrata, PA 17522 —by— Lancaster Farming, Inc. A Stemman Enterprise William J Burgess General Manager Everett R. Newswanger Editor Copyright 2000 by Lancaster Farming
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers