The Farm Post eNews

Friday eNews from the Pike and Scott County Farm Bureaus

MARCH 27, 2015

FB members make a difference on WOTUS

The vigilant outreach efforts of Farm Bureau members across the nation are making a difference, with key votes in the Senate this week delivering a resounding message that the proposed Waters of the U.S. rule is flawed in both substance and process.

"Senators indicated they will not tolerate outlandish regulatory actions that disregard established law, and by their action put federal regulators on notice that the rule is simply unacceptable," said AFBF President Bob Stallman in a statement. Further, said Stallman, "The Senate action amplifies the spirit our farmers and ranchers have conveyed over the past year of the need to ditch the egregious WOTUS rule. We thank senators for their understanding that America's farm and ranch families care deeply about clean water and their recognition that the ill-advised WOTUS rule is flawed to the core."

What's a Family Farm

The latest Census of Agriculture farm typology report released by the Agriculture Department's National Agricultural Statistics Service aimed to answer the question: "What is a family farm?" NASS Statistics Division Director Hubert Hamer said they found that "family-owned businesses, while very diverse, are at the core of the U.S. agriculture industry." Additional findings showed that 97 percent of the 2.1 million farms in the U.S. are family-owned operations and 58 percent of all direct farm sales to consumers come from small family farms.

Farm Progress article

Scholarship Deadline

March 31 is the deadline for application to the five $1,000 scholarships through the Two Rivers Farm Bureau Foundation.

There are two SCOTT COUNTY FARM BUREAU scholarships, a PIKE COUNTY FARM BUREAU scholarship, the ROD WEBEL MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP and the new WAYNE RILEY scholarship.

Applications can be found in the document library at www.tworiversfb.org or call Farm Bureau for details.

In This Issue

You make a diff

What's a Family Farm

MARCH 31 Deadline

"On This Day"

On This Day

MARCH 27, 1912

CHERRY TREES IN DC

The plantings of cherry trees originated in 1912 as a gift of friendship to the People of the United States from the People of Japan. In Japan, the flowering cherry tree, or "Sakura," is an exalted flowering plant. The beauty of the cherry blossom is a potent symbol equated with the evanescence of human life and epitomizes the transformation of Japanese culture throughout the ages.

On March 27, 1912, First Lady Helen Herron Taft and the Viscountess Chinda, wife of the Japanese Ambassador, planted two Yoshino cherry trees on the northern bank of the Tidal Basin.

Washington DC's renowned National Cherry Blossom Festival grew from this simple ceremony, witnessed by just a few persons.

These two original trees still stand several hundred yards west of the John Paul Jones Memorial, located at the terminus of 17th Street, SW. Situated near the bases of the trees is a large bronze plaque which commemorates the occasion.