The Georgia Department of Agriculture is not a part of the USDA. According to their web site, they are the oldest state department of agriculture in the Unites States. It was established in the year of 1874. They help regulate and promote agricultural ideas. They also try to ensure food safety throughout the state. This is achieved by supporting local places of agricultural commission, which consists of grocery and convenient stores, food processing plants, seeders, and several more. For example they provide information of local farmers markets. The information contains the locations and times of sale. Without this department’s help, Georgia’s agriculture would be lost. Our farm would be left in chaos as well as many others. I appreciate the work that they do for our state and every Georgian should too.
Tag Archives: Georgia
“Life of a Southern Farmer: Gone With the Wind”
If a person lives on a farm in the state of Georgia, there is a high chance that they have either seen the movie or read the book Gone With the Wind. It is part of our tradition. The book supposedly portrays what life was like for many southerners during the civil war. For those who do not know what it is about, the plot follows a young woman, Scarlet O’Hara, having an affair. She lived on a plantation in Georgia, with the name of Tara, where most of the movie takes place. She is extremely well off in the beginning. The war along with some poor decisions lead to her going bankrupt and starving towards the end. I preformed Scarlet’s final monologue in my drama class. My piece went very well and I later received the highest drama average award because of it in addition to some of my other roles. I personally love the movie and find its main characters comical. Exploring Georgia announces that there is, however, a Tara museum that people can visit in Jonesboro. I have never been to it, but many tourists say that the attraction is well worth the visit.
http://www.exploregeorgia.org/listing/3880-road-to-tara-museum
http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/gone-with-the-wind/images/3046341/title/gone-with-wind-wallpaper
“Life of a Southern Farmer: Trees”
Pine trees grow very well in the state of Georgia. There are a number of different kinds, Loblolly being the most prominent. This tree ranges in size from medium to large. According to the Georgia Forestry Commission, their average height is between ninety to one hundred ten feet tall. It is used generally for wood pulp in paper production. In the south, lumber is a big part of our economy. Tree farms can be found throughout the state. The Company nearest me is called T&S Hardwood. Their business started out around the 1970’s with just one mill. It later grew to three mills. Tree farming is a long, laboring process. Without companies like T&S, Georgia would miss out on a huge economical opportunity.
http://www.gfc.state.ga.us/reforestation/species-descriptions/pines/
“Life of a Southern Farmer: Sunflower Farm Festival”
Wes Holt never expected his uncle’s sunflowers to bring travelers from all over the world to his property. They were originally planted just to attract doves for the hunting season. His property shortly became a tourist attraction. Now, Rutledge, Georgia hosts an annual Sunflower Farm Festival. Here the neighboring people build art to be put in the flower fields. Its attendees are allowed to roam the fifteen acre farm at their leisure. According to Judy Garrison, the Holt family opens up their farm “for only 30 days (June 15-July 15) each year, when blooms are at their most statuesque height (Deep South Magazine, 2013).” I always enjoyed sunflowers as a child. Their tall and limp behavior astonishes me. I encourage everyone to try and attend this festival. It is an inexpensive, easy way to have a little fun.
http://deepsouthmag.com/2013/06/georgia-sunflower-farm-festival/
http://gocovington.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Sunflower-Farm.jpg
“Life of a Southern Farmer: Bees”
When people think of agriculture, bees may be the very last thing that comes to mind. However, bees are very important in the state of Georgia. According to the Georgia Department of Agriculture, about one third of our food is directly related to the pollination of insects, one hundred of these crops being pollinated by bees (Georgia Department of Agriculture, 2014). Most southern bee keepers do not make a living off of their bee hives. They tend to only obtain a few for various reasons. If a bee farmer wants to sell his or her honey, they do not have to have a license to sell in their farmers markets, fairs, own homes, and own businesses. Yet, they must be producing in a sanitary environment. Honey bees can be found in the flowers around my house.
http://agr.georgia.gov/honey-bees.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Honeybee_landing_on_milkthistle02.jpg
“Life of a Southern Farmer: Peanuts”
Hardy Farms is one of the most well-known peanut producers in the state of Georgia. They happen to originate out of a small town called Cochran, Georgia. My grandmother’s house is located right next to one of their planting fields. They are known for their quality of being fresh and great tasting. According to their web site, “We pick our peanuts daily, then clean, process and package them just for you, allowing you to take them from the bag directly to the pot (Hardy Farms Peanuts, 2013)!” They like to believe that this concept makes them the best peanut producer in the Southeast. Their products are located in local grocery stores as well as road stands. I personally love Hardy Farms and refuse to eat peanuts from any other company.
“Life of a Southern Farmer: Onions”
When one thinks of onions they don’t get a sweet taste in their mouth, or do they? According to Bobby Flay, the Vidalia onion is not only the most famous but also the only onion there is (Vidalia Onions, 2014). However, this is knowingly not true, but these onions are one of the few that are actually sweet in flavor. They are grown in Vidalia, Georgia, which is about
an hour and a half from my house. I have played many of softball tournaments here in the onion town. It is extremely hot as well as humid, like most of the state. What set it apart from most towns are its well-known onions and its abundance of annoying gnats. For some reason, its yellow granex hybrid seed, planted anywhere else in the world, does not produce onions as sweet as the Vidalia. Georgia’s vast amount of rainfall causes our soil to contain a lot of sulfur, which makes our onions so sweet. This is what makes our onions so popular in addition to unique.
“Life of a Southern Farmer: Peaches”
Georgia is known as the peach state. Here, peaches are extremely popular. Most peach farms are located in the southern regions of Georgia; the northern parts being more industrialized. Peach farms consist of rows on top of rows of peach trees. These trees do not get very tall because they could not support the weight of the peach. However, their branches are big and solid. Peaches originated in China and slowly migrated to the United States. My family actually has a peach tree in our back yard. It produces many thick and juicy peaches. They are delicious, but only blossom during the summer. Georgia is the perfect place to grow peaches because of its warm humid climate. They refuse to grow in colder regions. The FFA explains, “The peach is a member of the rose family, and there are over 700 varieties of the fruit (FFA, 2014).” Each variety is unique in its own way.
“Life of a Southern Farmer: Economy”
Farmers play a huge role in our economy. They provide crops. In turn, providing a product to be bought and sold. This stimulates the circle rotation of our economy. Without farmers, there is no possible way our nation would survive. We would not have harvests to feed citizens. We would not have the means of agriculture period. This would cause the United States’ budget to plummet severely. Georgia is made up of a number of farmers, and without them it is doubtful that this state would even exist. Ikerd states, “As costs of land and labor in the U.S. continue to rise, as they almost certainly will, multinational corporations will simply move their farming operations to other countries (Ikerd, 2002).” If these changes were to occur, then the South would most certainly see a downfall. This is why it is crucial for farmers to concentrate their businesses in the United States. I cannot imagine a world without farming in it, and if farmers move overseas this outcome will be inevitable.
http://web.missouri.edu/ikerdj/papers/WhyFarming.html
http://www.aei.org/publication/the-next-real-estate-bubble-farmland/
“Life of a Southern Farmer: Corn”
Finding corn in the south tends to be rare. However, corn mazes are located sporadically throughout the state of Georgia. As a child, I remember my mother and father taking us to one of these in mid-October. At the front gate they gave my sister and I hole punch sheets. These sheets were used every time a person met up with a check point. If one’s whole sheet was filled with all of the different punches they had a chance to win a brand new bicycle. Needless to say, we didn’t need much more explanation. Our family ran up and down the rows of corn, punching our cards at every check point in sight. Our sheets were filled within an hour and a half. Though we did not win the bike, we still had a good time. Corn is majorly produced in the Midwestern regions for feeding purposes. It is a good source of nutrition for both cows and chickens in addition to people. According to Camp Silos, “each year, a single U.S. farmer provides food and fiber for 129 people – 97 in the U.S. and 32 overseas (Camp Silos, 2009).” This proves that America is our worlds leading corn producer.
http://www.campsilos.org/mod3/students/index.shtml
http://www.southernbellefarm.com/cornfieldMaze.php
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