How did you celebrate National Ag Day this year?
Did you visit a farm? Milk a cow? Eat a pork chop? Plant some seeds to get a headstart on your garden? Eat too much ice cream and fall asleep on the couch at 8:00 p.m.?
Ok, maybe I should rephrase: Did you know that March 18 was National Ag Day?
Here in Missouri, our local Lutheran school gave a nod to Ag Day by inviting neighboring school kids, all the way from kindergarten through grade school, to learn more about agriculture.
Booths were set up by experts in all sorts of fields: from soybeans to beef, 4-H to bees, and even ag reporting on the radio!
My mother-in-law was the resident dairy expert, filling kids in on what our farm looks like, what cows eat, how often they're milked and how we keep their barns clean.
The kids had great questions.
Well, not these kids. These are goats.
Also, I wanted to take them all home. I'm not sure that's how Ag Day is supposed to work.
The event planners kept the groups moving, so they got to spend about five minutes at each booth, learning about everything from plant life to fire prevention.
And, of course, dairies.
Also, alpacas. The folks who own these exotic creatures have three Great Pyrenees so we had a nice little chat about what good dogs they are and how much they sleep. Turns out, it's a lot.
My main question: How can they see? Apparently, it's just like having bangs.
And FYI: Like llamas, alpacas are spitters. You've been forewarned.
(See what you learn at Ag Day? I'm telling you, people, this is valuable information!)
So next year, when March 18 rolls around, consider getting in touch with your local soybean producers, cattlemen's association, hog farmers and dairymen. See if they'll take an hour to two to talk to the young people in your life about where their food comes from and why farmers are committed to putting food on their table and milk in their fridges.
And should you need a Great Pyrenees to lay at your booth and do nothing? Heck, I can even hook you up with one of those too.
The kids had great questions.
Well, not these kids. These are goats.
Also, I wanted to take them all home. I'm not sure that's how Ag Day is supposed to work.
The event planners kept the groups moving, so they got to spend about five minutes at each booth, learning about everything from plant life to fire prevention.
And, of course, dairies.
Also, alpacas. The folks who own these exotic creatures have three Great Pyrenees so we had a nice little chat about what good dogs they are and how much they sleep. Turns out, it's a lot.
My main question: How can they see? Apparently, it's just like having bangs.
And FYI: Like llamas, alpacas are spitters. You've been forewarned.
(See what you learn at Ag Day? I'm telling you, people, this is valuable information!)
So next year, when March 18 rolls around, consider getting in touch with your local soybean producers, cattlemen's association, hog farmers and dairymen. See if they'll take an hour to two to talk to the young people in your life about where their food comes from and why farmers are committed to putting food on their table and milk in their fridges.
And should you need a Great Pyrenees to lay at your booth and do nothing? Heck, I can even hook you up with one of those too.
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