h*! 1&80Z * r 1 ' ' 030 J * TIC 1 JDRAR'i *T ~P I // ' /"j ‘ E UNIVERSITY II /’^W I niVr n rtniivr lunhifl V 01.46 No. 30 Penn State Conducts Log- Grading Course MICHELLE RANCK Lancaster Farming Staff STATE COLLEGE (Centre Ce.) No two trees are the same. Just as surely as there are various species, sizes, and envi ronmental influences, there are different shapes, dimensions, and value of trees. In the lumber industry, then, to fairly exchange this product, a quality and quantity grade is given to the logs. “Buyers and sellers both use grades to treat each other fairly,” said Lee Stover, Penn State senior research assistant for the wood products program in the school of forest resources. Stover, who is also faculty coordinator for the wood prod ucts extension service, early this week led a two-day course that taught participants how to grade hardwood logs. “This course helps the experts become more efficient and prof jtaUer. aqd landowner tp knowwhat the value of their course coordinator Danielle Ko covsky. ' Kocovsky v professional devel opment coordinator for the School of Forest Resources,'said the school has been an annual offering for years. However “this is the Erst year it was a two-day program. It gives the students more hands on experience.” This year participants were able to follow the log through the sawmill stages to see the quality of lumber taken from the log. Weighing All Factors Participants, armed with scal ing sticks, tape measures, lec ture notes, book;, and calculators, weighed the various factors to determine a grade for the logs in Penn State’s Ag Arena. “It really is a hands-on learn ing experience, not something you can learn from a book,” said ’ Kocovsky. “That’s why these courses are so important to people in the industry. We* feel it’s very important to share re- , (Turn to Pago A2B) www.lancastorffarming.com Lancaster Fanning Includes More Than 100 Market Reports EPHRATA (Lancaster Co.) For the first time in its 45- year history, with this issue, Lancaster Farming includes more than 100 market reports in section A, covering a wide variety of crops and species. In the past several months, market staff representatives at Farmland Preservation Grows Esther and Waldo Wood are happy to be the first farm in Tioga County that has entered the process to preserve farmland. “We didn't want this nice land to be developed," said Waldo. Protecting the family farm is a high priority for the Wood family, and that belief played a huge role in their decision to sell the development rights to their farm. Photo by Carolyn Moyer, Bradford Co. correspondent Moms never get a break, even if It Is a holiday. A sow accompanies her pigs at a swine grazing operation, the John Moyer farm, on Stricklerstown Road south of Newmans town. The state ag statistics service reported the week ending May 20 as suitable for fieldwork, but soil moisture was rated 37 percent very short, 44 percent short, 18 per cent adequate, and 1 percent surplus. But corn and soybean planting continued ahead of the five-year average. Pasture was rated 62 percent fair to good, compared to 80 per cent the previous week, because of overall lack of moisture. But rain returned to many farms this week, revitalizing pastures. Photo by Stan Hall Four Sections the paper have been working diligently to provide additional market coverage. That in cludes the market at a glance summary on page A 2 and addi tional coverage throughout the section. Also, expanded coverage of Virginia feeder cattle markets Saturday, May 26,2001 has been included. Our popular produce and poultry market reports have been expanded. Look for additional improve ments in the way we publish your paper, the “business desk” of Northeast and Mid- Atlantic high-production agri culture. Tioga Preserves First Farm CAROLYN MOYER Bradford Co. Correspondent KNOXVILLE (Tioga Co.) Protecting the family farm is a high priority for the Wood family. That belief played a huge role in their decision to sell the devel opment rights to their farm, making this the first farm in Tioga County to be a part of the Farmland * gram. While TiagaCtwnty’iii “Widely known for its rolling tree covereddiills and prime hunting ground, farming is also a major economic force, with dairy farm ing high on the list. And, while development pressures are not as great here as in some areas of the state, the pressure is still very real. The Wood’s farm is situated only 15 miles from Rt. IS, a major north-south corridor. The farm is very near Cowanesque Lake and the Tioga-Hammond Dam, a prime recreation area. In fact, the farm is located right (Turn to Page A4O) $34.00 Per Year Egg Quality In Spotlight At National School DAVELEFEVER Lancaster Farming Staff SALISBURY, Md. About 80 people from all phases of the egg industry attended the Na tional Egg Quality School (NEQS) conducted in this East ern Shore town from Monday through Thursday this week. Egg producers, processors, vendors, consumers, and gov ernment inspectors representing more than 20 states and several countries including Belgium, Canada, and Mexico studied all aspects of egg quality with na tional experts during four days of intensive learning sessions and laboratories. NEQS Director Dr. Ken An derson said that the national school began in 1993 when east ern and mid-western regional egg quality schools merged. “The core emphasis (of the school) is always shell-egg qual ity, from farm to table,” Ander son said. That includes physical quality of the egg as well as mi crobiological, he said. Anderson said that emphasis on microbiological quality of the eggis afairly new development, v&ich began in the early 1990 s hs a iWptmseto concerns about Salmonella bacteria. “The definition of quality has changed,” he said. New approaches to nutrient management such as those being developed in Maryland as a result of the state’s Water Quality Improvement Act of 1998 could also have a bear ing on egg quality, according to Anderson. Maryland is taking measures to control excess phosphorus ap plications to the land. One is the treatment of poultry feed with an enzyme that increases the ef ficiency of phosphorus utiliza tion in the bird, thus decreasing the amount of phosphorus ex creted in the manure. (See re lated nutrient management story on page 36.) Anderson said that such di etary changes can have a bear ing on egg quality because phosphorus is a key compound in skeletal and shell structure and is closely linked in function (Turn to Page Ail) June 2 Issue For Dairy Readers Lancaster Farming’s annual tribute to dairy farms and the entire dairy agri-industry is scheduled next week. Included are several features, including a young family new to dairy farm ing, a milk bottler in the central part of the state, work under way to create a more nutritional milkshake, and lots of dairy rec ipes. The entire month will fea ture additional dairy news and views. For dairying, they should be dandy! 75c Per Copy
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