AlO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 30,2002
OPINION
For Real Reform , Set A Deadline
We’ve spoken many times about how property tax should be re
formed, and though the issue is big for the state gubernatorial candi
dates, that’s all it’s been talk.
However, speaking at the recent Cornucopia in Harrisburg, one leg
islator has a more practical solution.
State Sen. Michael A. O’Pake (D-llth), said Pennsylvania should
act like Michigan and set a deadline. That deadline would put a real
reform into place.
O’Pake spoke about Senate Bili 1239, which he introduced in Janu
ary this year, that would mandate the end of the power to tax at the
local level after June 30, 2004. That would give state government two
years to come up with a solution.
You can view the complete bill on the Internet at http://
www2.legis.state.pa.us/WUOI/LI/81/BT/2001/0/581239P1644.pdf.
The bill is in the Pennsylvania Senate Committee on Finances.
In Michigan, this type of legislative solution helped remove the “op
pressive burden” of property tax for homeowners and farmers,
according to the state senator.
“It’s the first step,” said O’Pake. “We have to do that. It’s a better
and fairer solution.”
We agree with O’Pake. The current system is antiquated and op
pressive. It hurts people of middle income and the farm community in
general.
We support bills that take these kind of oppressive and unfair taxes
off the backs of farmers.
❖ Farm Calendar ♦
Pond Management for Irrigation,
Livestock, Recreation, Bigler
ville Fruit Lab, (717) 240-6500.
Maryland Goat Conference, Car
roll County Ag Center, West
minster, Md., 9:30 a.m.-3:30
p.m., (410) 386-2760.
Happy Easter!
Editor.
The state says to preserve
farmland, yet they seize and de
stroy farmland for whatever rea
son they want.
We are owners of farmland en
rolled in Clean and Green, which
is third highest priority under the
Agricultural Land Preservation
Policy.
Our farm has been in the fami
ly for three quarters of a century.
Ten acres were seized without
any just compensation or pay
ment for the land in September
of 2001 by an elementary school
for athletic field, parking, and fu
ture purposes.
The elementary school already
.has 12 acres, which is more than
The school has not
complied with procedure of law
to condemn, thereby destroying
our constitutional rights.
We are fighting this action
ourselves without a lawyer.
This abuse of power is happen
ing all over the state all the time,
but is not being publicized, and'
more people need to get involved.
Anyone interested in how to fight
government misuse of eminent.
domain and its tWo-faced 9tanoe
,
f
Monday, April 1
Mid-Atlantic Farm Credit annual
stockholders meeting. Modern
Maturity Center, Dover, Del.,
6 p.m.
“Ten Ways to Improve Profit
without Expanding” for dairy
producers, Country Cupboard
(Turn to Page A 22)
♦ Farm Forum ❖
on preservation should attend
our court case on April 3, court
room number 2, at 3 p.m. at the
Lycoming County Courthouse in
Williamsport. Any favorable
comments or questions should be
directed to the Homer Family at
(856) 327-3877.
The Homer Family
Editor.
Shiny new pickup trucks are a
common sight today in suburban
shopping malls.
I’m told that sporty little pick
ups even have a certain cachet
with Yuppie couples.
If you happen to be one of
those people who drive a pickup
for fun or for style, I wish you
well, but what I have to say
doesn’t really concern you.
On the other hand, if you are
one of the millions of Americans
who drive a pickup for work, es
pecially agricultural work, pay
close attention. Because our own
federal government is consid
ering legislation that would mean
the end of pickups as you know
and use them.
The U.S. Senate is considering
it would raise the
IcsfcL
To Scout For Cereal
Rust Mites In Timothy
Mark Goodson, agronomy agent in
York County, suggests timothy grow
ers be prepared to scout for cereal
rust mites and to treat with insecti
cide if necessary. Adult rust mites are
very small (less than 1 millimeter in
size). They are spindle-shaped, with
four legs and may be white, yellow,
or orange.
You will need a 10 to 20X hand
lens to see them. Evidence of their
presence on the plant is off-colored
foliage and leaf or bud abnormalities,
similar to drought stress. The mites
overwinter in the adult and egg
stages. Eggs from overwintering
adults are deposited in the leaf vein
grooves. The eggs appear as very
small spherical yellow balls.
The immature stages are similar to
the adult, but smaller. Immatures
begin hatching in March, with the
peak adult populations being
reached in April. Damage is most
evident in April and May.
Severe mite infestations have two
negative impacts on Pennsylvania
THE EASTER LIFE
Background Scripture:
John 20:1-18; Romans 6.
Devotional Reading:
Romans 6:9-13.
It is always interesting to me to
find Mary Magdalene figuring so
prominently in the gospel accounts of
the resurrection.
In Matthew 28, there are only two
disciples, Mary Magdalene and “the
other Mary,” who go to the garden
tomb and find it empty. On their way
to tell the disciples, they encounter
the risen Lord.
In Mark 16 there are three women
Salome is added to the two Marys
who find the empty tomb. Luke
also lists three women but, instead of
Salome, he names Joanna. In John
21, Mary Magdalene goes to the
tomb alone, finds the stone rolled
away, and goes to summon Simon
Peter “and the other disciple, the one
whom Jesus loved.” When they find
the tomb empty, they return to their
homes. But Mary stays at the tomb
and encounters first two angels and
then the risen Christ.
I would have expected that certain
other disciples would have played the
Lancaster Farming
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growers. Feeding injury causes sub
stantial yield losses and reduces hay
quality because of a brown discolora
tion. Horse producers are reluctant
to buy hay that is not the normal
color of quality timothy.
Growers should check fields now
for the presence of small round eggs
in the leaf veins. Although scouting
procedures have not been fully devel
oped, it is always a good idea to take
a representation sample across the
field. Populations can begin in isolat
ed pockets. A few mites can rapidly
develop into an economic problem.
There are no established economic
thresholds for the pest. Treatment is
recommended, however, in fields
with a previous history of cereal rust
mites and/or when 25 percent of the
plant tillers exhibit curled tips on the
new leaf blades within several weeks
following green-up. Research is
under way to develop better monitor
ing plans and an economic threshold.
Data provided by Dr. Marvin Hall
of the Department of Crops and Soil
Sciences at Penn State compares
Pennsylvania economic loss with and
without the use of a trademarked
carbaryl product during the 2000
season. Net revenue per acre (aver
age) with and without miticide treat
ment is estimated to be $303 and
$lBl, respectively, a net increase of
$122 per acre. For more information,
refer to http://www.ento.psu.edu/
extension/factsheets/cerealrust.htm
on the Internet.
The only known and registered
method of managing the pest is a
properly timed application of the
carbaryl product. Research trials at
the University of Maryland in 1999
and 2000 indicated that the carbaryl
product applied at 3 pints per acre
provides effective control of cereal
rust mites in timothy. Because mite
stages are concealed in the leaf blade
grooves, a spray volume of 20 or
more gallons with a ground applica
tor is required to achieve adequate
coverage and penetration to the
mites.
Higher water volumes should be
used for improved mite control. If
scouting indicates you have a prob-
prominent role in tjiese accounts;
Simon Peter, becatWtof his leader
ship role among the disciples; James,
the brother of Jesus, as future head
of the Jerusalem church; John, be
cause he was almost certainly “the
other disciple... whom Jesus loved”;
and Mary, the mother of Jesus, in
light of her role in Roman Catholi
cism. Altogether, Mary Magdalene is
mentioned only a dozen times in the
four gospels.
Mary Magdalene
To me, this is a revolutionary note,
indicating that the experience of the
risen Christ is not governed by
human priorities. Magdalene was not
one of the Twelve, but even more
shocking is the fact that she was a
woman!
Jewish men and women were not
permitted to worship together in the
main portion of the synagogue, but
the gospel records make it clear that
the first Easter greetings from
human lips came from her.
There is {mother sense in which
Easter is for everyone. To be sure, the
Easter story is focused on Christ’s
victory over sin, death, and the
grave. But we must understand that
Easter is not only about Christ’s vic
tory, but also ours.
Easter is not only about the resur
rection of Christ. Easter is also about
us, our death and resurrection.
Paul uses the analogy of Christian
baptism: “We were buried therefore
with him by baptism into death...”
(6:4). Paul also says: “We know that
our old self was crucified with
him ..(6:6). He goes on to say that
we have “died with Christ” (6:8). In
other words, when we become disci
ples of Christ, it means the death of
our former way of living. You cannot
follow him without something chang-
lem, spray approximately four weeks
after green-up in the spring. This
usually occurs around early to mid-
April in the eastern and central
counties of Pennsylvania where most
timothy is grown. Only one applica
tion per cutting at 3 pints per acre of
formulated material is allowed per
season, and it must be applied more
than 30 days before harvest or graz
ing.
To Develop Your
Food Processing Idea
Into A Business
Got a great new snack food idea?
Ready to market Grandma’s chicken
salad recipe? People looking to turn
family recipes into money-making
businesses now have access to valu
able information on the food process
ing business, thanks to a special
Web-based service developed by
Penn State’s College of Agricultural
Sciences.
“Resources for Small Food Proces
sors and Potential Entrepreneurs” is
a Website created by Luke Laßorde,
assistant professSr of food science, to
introduce budding business owners
to the fundamentals of food process
ing technology and regulations.
The site (http;//
foodsafety.cas.psu.edu/processor/
ent —res —text2.htm) is designed t(
answer the most frequently asked
questions surrounding commercial
food processing.
“Many people have an old family
recipe for a barbecue sauce, salad
dressing, or salsa that they think
tastes better than what’s on the mar
ket,” Laßorde said. “Our site offers a
variety of resources available in
Pennsylvania and other states to an
swer key questions.”
More than 90 online resources
have been collected and categorized
into various sections. The site also
has links to food testing laboratories,
equipment and packaging resources,
and direct marketing opportunities
and farm alternatives.
Quote Of The Week:
“Many people mistake our work
for our vocation. Our vocation is
the love of Jesus. ”
Mother Teresa
ing significantly in youriHfe. If, after
you have committed ' yourself to
Christian discipleship, your life is not
somewhat different, then you proba
bly are not his disciple.
The New Life
Easter is about both the death of
the old life and the birth of a new
life: "... so that as Christ was raised
from the dead by the glory of the Fa
ther, we too might walk in newness
of life” (6:4). Life without Christ is
life under the “dominion” of death.
Our mortality colors and struc
tures everything. Humanly speaking,
death is the one experience to which
all creatures are subject. Money, po
sition, and power do not shield us
from the grave. What we think of
death has a controlling effect upon
the way we live.
“But if we have died with Christ,
we believe that we shall also live with
him:” (6:8). This is not a matter of
being lucky enough to be resurrected
as Christ was, nor of being good
enough so that we may make the
same claim on God. If we “live with
him,” we will share the Easter victo
ry. Getting “resurrection” or “life
eternal” is not the goal: living with
him is and then life eternal is one,
but only one, of the results.
Just as Jesus promised, “ ... seek
his kingdom, and these things shall
be yours as well,” so Paul is saying
“live with him” and you will experi
ence the resurrected life both before
and after death.
The Easter faith is for both con
quering death and living life.
Lancaster Farming
Established 1955 ■
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
1 E. Main St.
Ephrata, PA 17522
-by
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A Slemman Enterprise
William J Burgess General Manager
Andy Andrews, Editor
Copyright 2002 by Lancaster Farming