Bumper Sticker Wisdom

This one comes thanks to a dark blue pick-up truck I saw parked in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.

Truer words have ne'er been spoken, or, for that matter, printed on a bumper sticker.

Got any other ag-related bumper sticker wisdom to share? Now's the time, and this here's the place. Have at it.

Posted by Mary Ann Leonard

Added to Art, Artifacts and Photos and Food and Nutrition on May 04, 2009 EST | Permalink

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Submitted by: Karl S on May 5, 2009 02:07 PM

Submitted by: Mary Ann on May 5, 2009 02:44 PM

Submitted by: J on May 6, 2009 10:19 AM

Bo versus Bovine as Presidential Pet

The flurry around Bo, the Obamas' new Portugese Water Dog, has prompted renewed attention on past First Pets. Even the White House itself has fed the media frenzy with a slideshow of Presidential Pets all the way back to Truman.

By stopping there, however, they missed a larger star than Socks and Bo put together.

Her name was Pauline Wayne, and yes, that's her picture above. She served as family pet for President William Howard Taft from 1910 to 1913, spending her days in her private stable or roaming the South Lawn.

In her own way, she was a bit of a media sensation herself, that is if you consider coverage by the New York Times to be making it. (And I do.)

At four years old, Pauline was a solid, healthy 1,500-pound Holstein of high quality stock when she made her cross-country journey from Wisconsin to the White House, replacing Mooley Wooly, the Taft's Jersey cow who had died a few months earlier.

And unlike the newest resident on Pennsylvania Avenue, Pauline was expected to substantively contribute to the family, in her case, by providing fresh milk, cream and butter daily. She apparently took that job seriously, generating an average of 7 1/2 gallons of milk a day, 25 pounds of butter a week. (Cows today can do better, some producing as much as 12 gallons per day, but Pauline was no slouch, coming from strong dairy lineage. Her aunt Gertrude was "said to have held the world's record for milk and butter production.")

When President Taft's term ended, Pauline's stint as White House pet did as well. She returned to her Wisconsin farm and lived out her days among family and friends, "add[ing] dignity to [the] herd" and no doubt sharing tales of Washington politics.

Perhaps it was the changing times, or perhaps no other bovine dared follow the beloved Miss Wayne, but Pauline proved to be the last cow to live at the White House.

At least up 'til now.

I can't help but wonder, with the Obamas recent foray into organic gardening, can a small livestock herd be far behind?

I'd be all for it, but what's your vote? Bo, bovine or both?

Or how about goats? I hear they're all the rage.

Posted by Mary Ann Leonard

Added to Animals and Art, Artifacts and Photos on April 17, 2009 EST | Permalink

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USDA on Flickr, Thanks to DCPL (and Many of You)

The DC Public Library is helping to reveal USDA's history. As part of their first foray into Flickr, the library has posted photos from their E. B. Thompson collection, including historic shots of the Department of Agriculture.

The building pictured above, the old Department of Agriculture building, reached completion in 1868, under the watchful eye of its designer and builder, Adolf Cluss.

The National Mall was a very different place then. Even as late as the 1920s, the Ag Department claimed a huge chunk of land there, with gardens, greenhouses and buildings extending to what is now Constitution Avenue.

Then, in 1930, the imposing white structure that stands today as the Department's main administration building took its place across the street from the old ag building. The latter was razed shortly thereafter.

Today, hundreds of photos of the Department's buildings exist on Flickr, thanks to tourists and photographers the world over. But for more historical photos, NAL has quite an array here as part of the larger USDA History Collection.

We're still working on getting everything digitized -- such jobs take time and money -- but if you really need some old USDA pics -- and Flickr isn't cutting it -- come on down! Our Special Collections folks will be happy to show you what we've got.

Posted by Mary Ann Leonard

Added to Art, Artifacts and Photos and History of Agriculture on April 16, 2009 EST | Permalink

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Submitted by: Aaron on April 16, 2009 04:14 PM

The First Lady Talks Up the New Garden

According to the Washington Post, First Lady Michelle Obama had frequent opportunities to talk up the White House Kitchen Garden during her and the President's recent European trip. During a break from yesterday's planting, Mrs. Obama remarked:

The number one question I got as the first lady from world leaders -- they were excited about this garden. . . . Every single person, from Prince Charles on down, they were excited we were planting this garden.

Not that I know, of course, but here's a version I like to imagine:

Prince Charles: "They tell me you're planting a garden at the White House. What a splendid idea!"

Mrs. Obama: "Why, thank you! I'm hoping it will encourage young people to eat more fruits and vegetables."

Prince Charles: "Brilliant! I do hope it works. How did you decide what to plant?"

Mrs. Obama: "My aides found a great collection of gardening resources on the National Agricultural Library Web site. The Library also provided wonderful guidance on planting fruits, vegetables and herbs."

Prince Charles: "Good show!"

Mrs. Obama: "We really wanted to grow some heirloom varieties, and the Library helped us with that, too."

Prince Charles: "Those librarians are really the bee's knees, aren't they? Perhaps I should contact them for help with things at the Palace. I do fancy fresh produce."

Mrs. Obama: "I'll have my assistant get you their number. I know they'd be happy to help."

Prince Charles: "Cheers! Give me a fortnight, and I'll claim a corner of the Palace garden for my veggies."

Posted by Mary Ann Leonard

Added to Plants and Crops on April 10, 2009 EST | Permalink

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Submitted by: Stephanie Ritchie on April 13, 2009 04:20 PM

Submitted by: Mary Ann on April 13, 2009 04:45 PM

Submitted by: Jeremy on April 14, 2009 09:21 AM

Twitter for Ag Types

I caught wind of a new ag community forming on Twitter, thanks to the AgWired blog.

This past Tuesday, a group of passionate participants had the first of what are planned to be weekly #AgChats on Twitter, getting their questions, comments and jokes across in 140 characters or fewer.

The exchange was both structured and free-flowing. Questions were sporadically tossed out to the audience -- what are the most pressing issues in agriculture? how can social media help put a face on farming? how can producers reach out to school children? -- and the audience, an apparent mix of front-line farmers and ag info types, eagerly chimed in.

Telling agriculture's story, growing ag visibility and correcting misperceptions appeared to be recurring themes.

"Solid message sent out across social media channels can reach millions. That can turn into 'see me, ask me.'"

"Agreed. Massive proliferation of misinformation is happening via SM. If ag doesn't participate, we have NO voice!!!"

"Simply visiting a school classroom goes a long way and is very simple for someone who isn't used to speaking about issues."

Since old tweets are archived, you can review the full discussion even if you missed Tuesday's chat.

If you prefer to tweet live with this group, check back on Twitter each Tuesday, 8:00pm to 10:00pm EDT. Just log in and type in #agchat to follow along.

I'll definitely be checking back. I'm eager to see how this community grows and where the tweets take them.

Posted by Mary Ann Leonard

Added to Rural Life on April 09, 2009 EST | Permalink

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