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A recent pasture walk |
One of Maryland Extension’s most important roles is to serve as a community-building agent within Maryland agriculture. As Maryland is a small state, especially when it comes to our agricultural sector, this cooperation is essential. When producers can work together and coordinate, they are more productive, more resilient, and more successful overall. Over the course of my internship, I have seen this point illustrated on a few notable occasions.
The first such occurred at the very beginning of internship, during a visit to a dairy farm north of Hagerstown. We were joined on this visit by a few other dairymen who had similar operations around in other parts of the state. As we toured around the dairy, each of the visitors were encouraged to ask questions, challenge lines of thinking, and offer any advice they might have. This generally helpful atmosphere continued for the duration of our visit. At one point, the hosting farmer even opened his financial books to us, and gave everyone a copy of his latest business report. Again, line items where closely inspected, all with the intention of helping our host be a better, more successful, farmer. The continued existence of this nurturing community environment depends on the work of Maryland Extension, who have helped connect these farmers together to allow for effective improvement of the Maryland agricultural community.
In similar fashion to the earlier pasture walk, a few weeks ago I had the pleasure of attending a second dairy farm visit, this time in Carroll County. Once again, various dairy producers from around the state convened to examine the inner workings of one of Maryland’s largest dairies, Cold Spring Farm. This time, we also had presentations from various experts on calf management, grazing and nutrient application regimens, and developing and maintaining a composting barn. Throughout the day, questions were asked in the same open and kind way as before, once again showcasing the benefits of the tight-knit Maryland ag community. Despite being a larger group than last time, it still seemed like everybody knew everybody; the dairy industry in Maryland is clearly a tightly-knit group. Additionally, I was surprised by the number of attendees who were not farmers specifically, but rather were associated with the larger industry. All of these folks, from veterinarians to nutritionists, milkers, equipment dealers, industry reps, and of course Extension agents, were brought together with the singular purpose of supporting Maryland agriculture.
Vet talk at the Cold Springs pasture walk |
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