Jim and I drove up to the “big city” of Augusta yesterday afternoon to tour around the Maine Agricultural Trades Show. All the way there we listened to the radio — all news of what’s happening in Haiti after the earthquake — interviews with people there and people here who don’t know if their family members/friends/colleagues are OK. Even today, the only thing we know for sure is that people are in need. I’ve just heard that the Red Cross is already out of supplies in some areas…
To help the Red Cross, go to their website — www.redcross.org — or call 1-800-REDCROSS. They’ve made it really easy for people in the “connected world” … just text “HAITI” to 90999 to donate $10 to American Red Cross relief efforts for Haiti. The amount will be added to your cell phone credit card bill.
Now…about our outing. The “Ag Show” is a gathering for farmers, new and old, and anyone who’s interested in all things Ag. It’s a place where dealers of equipment & services can show their stuff. There are beehives of all shapes, maple sugaring supplies, BIG tractors and lots of reading material to take home from all sorts of ag companies and associations. The pork, beef, sheep and poultry producers are there as well as the apple growers and cheese makers…to name just a few. We chatted with a harvester of seaweed and brought home a sample to try on the sheep…it’s full of all kinds of vitamins and minerals! A few bags of this stuff along with Jim’s cactii grow lights should have the Sheriff knocking on the door in no time!
Dried seaweed is a treat for the sheep -- it's good for them, too! YUM!
It was exciting to visit with the folks from Moo Milk Company, a new Maine organic dairy partnership… and to learn about Maine Trader, a new website where farmers can list their products. This is “downtime” for a lot of farmers so it’s a good time to have the show…and we all need to get out and see other people right about now.
The only piece of farm “equipment” we covet (since acquiring the hay conveyer) is a “side by side.” That’s a generic term for an oversized 4-wheeler/ATV (seats 2 people side by side) that has a dump body on the back. It’s a neat little utility vehicle — what a help it would be! Not too long ago we thought of it as a luxury. Now that we’re a little older, it’s looking more like a necessity!
