HIGHER YIELDS

A ^{strong root} system means your crop

is

getting the moisture and nutrients necessary to produce the best possible

yields.Infact.

National Corn Growers Association

yield

contest winners have used COUNTER

2-to-1

over any other

insecticide.

You

can't

control the environment. But you can help protect

it,

your corn

crop..

.and your

invest-

ment. With COUNTER

in-furrow.

To order your free in-furrow

kitcall

1-800-942-0500.

Get COUNTER at your

local

Cyanamid AgriCenter

^7"dealer.

RestrictedUsePesticide Alwaysreadandfollowlabeldirectionscarefully.

™Trademark, American Cyanamid Company j1989

Safe Combination

{Continuedfrom Pone34)

World Food Demand...

4.3 Billion

People

6.2 Billion

People

in1980 by2000 by2050

(BMPs),scientists,extension educators and cropprotectionprofessionals help growersto usechemicals prudentlyand in

combination with mechanical andnatural controls.

Whilethephrases

IPM

and

BMPs

have longbeenusedinagriculture.

LISA

isa recently coinedacronym.

Many

people arewonderingjustwhat

LISA

is.andthe term holdsdifferentmeaningstodifferent people.

The

lettersstand forLow-Input Sustainable Agriculture.

Some

^advocates

of

LISA

contendthat

modern

agriculture

is not sustainable,and thatproducers mustreduceoff-farm inputssuch as pesti- cidesand fertilizersto increase sustaina- bility.

They

advocatetheuseofmanures andlegumes inplaceofcommercial nitrogenand lowornouseofcrop protectionchemicals.

Improvementscancertainlybe

made

in

how

cropprotectionchemicals and

fertilizersare usedand managed.

Some

farmershave foundthat increasing inputs suchas laborand

management

allows them toreduce other inputssuchascrop protectionchemicals.

Some

farmersare reducingthe

amount

ofchemicals they usethroughthescoutingfor insect infes- tations,ratherthanautomaticinsecticide applications. Othersare using

more me-

chanicaltillage whereerosion isnot a

problem.

Some

are trying

new

methods of control,suchas the

"bug

vacuum"

for insectson lettucein California.

Eachfarmer's

situation isdifferent,and therefore requiresanindividual approach tomanaginginputsand determining

how

pestswill be controlled.

Agronomy

professorsR.G.

Hoe

ftandE.D. Nafzigerdefine sustainable agriculture as "a

management

system thatuses inputs...boththoseavailable as naturalresourcesonthefarm and thosepurchasedexternally...in themostefficient

manner

possible toobtain productivity and profitability fromafarming operation,while minimizingadverseeffectsonthe environment."

Basically, sustainable agriculture involvesthose farming systemsthatmaintain andenhancethe abilityof U.S. agriculture tomeet

human

andenvi- ronmental needs

now

and ^inthefuture. It isalsoa productionsystemthat isprofitable andcompetitive

ithin theglobaleconomy.Itprotects theenviron- n tby reducingsoilerosionfrom wind andwater.

Billion

People

To know more

about crop protection chemicals, the

Mon-

tague, Michigan

FFA

Chapter arranged for a tour ofa local

Nor-Am

agrichemicalplant.

It keepspollutants outofsurface andgroundwater byemployingfertilizerandpest

management

practicesthatresult in

optimum

crop response with

minimum

'spillage'."

You

are a partofAmerican Agricultureand American Agriculture hasa great storytotell!

Our

agriculturaltechnology has longbeentheenvyof theworld.

As

an industry,agriculture notonlyfeeds America,but millionsofothers intheworld, efficiently,constituting the largestsegmentofthe U.S.economy.

Agriculturalproducers,scientists andchemical manufacturersaretoday continuingthatsuccess story with a

new

generation ofability toplayakey role infeedingtheworld,while maintaining our natural resourcesandprotecting theenvironment.

Remember:

Itis uptoyou,andonly you,to use pesticidessafely.

Read

thelabel,look around and think.Thatwill helpyou

make

theresponsible decisions about

when

and

how

to use pesticides safelyandeffectively.

ooo

36 FFANewHorizons

ftewsrdsdip MfeftiW'

"The ^real products of any

year's work are the farmer's

mind and the cropland itself

. . .

the finest growth that

cropland can produce is a careful farmer/'

— Wendell Berry

The ^word

stewardship

means

differentthingsto differentpeople.

Wendell

Berry'squotation eloquentlydefines a basic quality ofstewardship

—

that ofinall

ways

beinga carefulfarmer.It

means

putting the long-termquality oftheland

above

the fruitsof

any one

year.

Mr. Berry's

words

are also subjecttodebate.

Some may

arguethatthefinestproductofthelandis

and

alwayshas

been

food, thefuelthat

powers

all

minds

everywhere.Infact, ithasn't

been

too

many

years since prevailing

wisdom

called

on

farmersto

go

alloutto feed

an

ever-growing

world

population.

Conquering

starvation

was

the 'challengeofthe day'

While

thatnoblegoalstillhasmerit, priorities

have

shifted.

Now more

thanever, itisimportant not only to

produce

thefood

and

fiber

needed

tofeed

and

clothe theworld, butto

do

soina

way

thatstrikesabalance

between

therequirementsof

modern

agriculture

and

the

need

toprotect

and

preserveourland,

environment and

personalwell-being.Thatcan

be accomplished

only

by

"carefulfarmers"

working

inconcertwithpart- ners

who

sharetheirdedicationtostewardingtheland

and

environment.

At

Rhone-Poulenc Ag Company, we

strive to

be one

ofthosepartnersinstewardship.

We

firmly believe thatakeypartofourroleintheagriculturalindustryis toensurethatthose involvedinproductionagriculture havethe

knowledge and

thetoolsnecessarytouse

our

productsinthe

most

responsible

and

effective

ways

possible.

Tothatend,

we

have

and

arecontinuingto

make changes

inthe

way we

conduct

our

business.

We have expanded

ourstaffdedicatedtoproductstewardship.

Thomas M.

Dille

Presidentand

CEO,

Rhone-Poulenc

Ag Company

Chairman, NationalAgriculturalChemicalsAssociation

We

have modifiedcontainerpackaging

and

labelingto reflectincreasingconcernsabout user

and

environ- mental exposure.

We

have

promoted

theconceptofBest

Management

Practicesthroughouttheagricultural

community.

Rhone-Poulenc

hasalsotakenaboldstancein

responding

tounforeseen circumstancesinvolvingits

products.

We

haveledthe

way

in

working

withregula- toryofficialstodevelopguidelinesforproduct usein potentiallysensitive areas.

Indeed,

we have made changes

inthe

way we

think

and

feelabout

what we

do.Thatis

perhaps

the

most

important

development

ofall, foritisthe

most

far- reaching. Itaffectsall

segments

ofour business

and

reflects

changes

thatwill

be most

lasting.

At Rhone-Poulenc, theStewardshipinitiative

forms

the coreofour

commitment

to

do

all

we

cantoensure that

we

help our customers use

our

productsin

ways

thatbeststrikeabalance

between

the

needs

forfood

and

fiber

and

theconcernsforprotectingourland, en-

vironment and way

oflife.

We

believe that

commitment

is

our

finestproduct.

4L*,m£)M

& RH&NE-POULENC

RHONE-POULENC AG COMPANY,

2T.W.

ALEXANDER

DRIVE,

RESEARCH TRIANGLE

PARK,N.C.27709(919)549-2000

Two ^{of a}

Kind

It's the special mix of

competition and cooperation

that makes being a ^{twin in} FFA double the fun

From

^{thedaytheyare}born, twinsarespecialto a

commu-

nity.

They

go through life, especially in the younger years,being recognizedforsomethinginwhichtheyhad nosay.

"It'sablessingandacurse,"saysDebbieTschudyofMonroe.

Wisconsin."Peoplefrom your

hometown remember

youlonger, but they never get yourfirst

name

right!"

Eventhough Debbie,¹8,and hersister,

Dawn,

arefraternal, not identical twins,they still

experience

many

ofthe"un- explained

phenomena"

that surrounds twinsiblings. Ina normal conversation they finisheachother'ssentences and often answerquestions in unison.

When

asked about each other's differences, they arehard-pressedto

name

one.

Twins

share abondunlikeany

Kirk (left) and Kevin Mathews of Washington CourtHouse,Ohio,bothplay forward and guard for the varsitybasketballteamwhile staying activeintheFFA.

Dawn

'] and Debbi Tschudy t. busy freshmen attheUnive, "Wisconsin-

Platteville.bu. ;stillclose to theirhearts.

Melissa(left)and MonicaOwensofMonroe,Georgia,are excited aboutthe Made For Excellence conference they attended this past winter. These high school juniors raise horses for their Supervised Agricultural Experience Program.

other

human

beings.

As

onedevelops, sodoestheother.

And

at least in

FFA,

anongoingmixofcompetition andcooperation seemstohelpthetwins excelinreachingtheirgoals.Their

FFA

accomplishments often paralleleachother, whetherinleader- ship,suchasholding chapteroffice, orin skillslevels,suchas judgingcontests.

And.unlike

many

brothersandsisters,twinsjustseemtoget alongbetterwitheachother.

"Dawn's my

best friendandIdon't

know how

^Iwouldsurvivewithouther,"says DebbieTschudy.

"We

just

seem

tomotivate eachother." ...

TateandTracyEckare seniorsatCentury High Schoolⁱⁿ Bismarck, North Dakota. They're far from identical, but share many of the same interests. Tate is chapter FFA president,Tracyissecretary.Theybothexpecttomake^the state finals in high school rodeo

—

^{Tatein calf and team}

ropingand Tracyinbarrelracing.

38 FFANew^Horizons

Angela(I)and

Amy

BrownofWestBend,Iowa,willbe^travelingtoEurope

this summer on a three-week travel seminar for 1989 national FFA

proficiency winners. Angelais national Swine Proficiency winner and

Amy

is the central region

Home

and Farmstead improvementwinner.

Amy's name wasdrawnfrom a hat when aspot openedupinthetour.Shehadaonechancein25

ofbeing picked.

Curt(left)andChris KleinoftheJetmore,KansasFFA Chapterhave been busy in contests. These juniors

have

competed

in agriculturalmechanicsand crops, dairy and land judging.

John(left)andWayne Folmer^, 15, oftheSocorro FFA Chapter in El Paso, Texas, depend on each otherasteamropersinrodeoevents.

Last year, KirkFritz(left)served aspresidentof theFlatheadFFAChapterinKalispell,Montana andhis twin,Kevin,served asvicepresident.

Kirk isa statefirstvice presidentthisyear.

FFA advisor Doug Malone at Norris High School in Firth,

Nebraska, has _a peculiar situation. Heteaches twosetsof identical twins, both namedJeff

and Jason.Jeff (left) and Jason Helmink,backrow, andJeff(left)

andJason Kubik,front row. The Helminkbrotherswerepartofthe

AgDemonstrationteamthisyear.

Theirthemewas "Dress forSuccess. Mr. Malonesaysthe judges were surprised when Jeff, dressedin blue jeansand flannel shirt.

walked behinda screenand Jason emergedⁱⁿa 3-piece-suit.

Stacy(left)andTracySitzeroftheWeiner.ArkansasFFA Chapterraisecrossbred feeder lambs.The sophomores havebeenin FFAfortwo yearsandStacyisthisyear's chapter treasurer.

Annette (left) and CarrieEadsofthe Osceola. Missouri

FFAChapterwere so active in their first year as FFA members, they bothwere named

StarGreenhands.

Two.four.six.eight,whodowe appreciate? Advisor Sharon Ericksonofthe Kenmare.North Dakota FFA Chapter. She has tokeeptrackoffour setsoftwins, the largestnumber reportedto

FFA New

Horizons. Top to bottomandleftto rightare:Kyle andKellyBauer;Jeffand Jeremy O'Neill; Katie and

Pam

Rausenberger;and Staceyand Jessica Knutson. These twins

come from a school with only about 130 students in grades seventhrough 12.

Tony(left) and David

Boehm

oftheMandan,NorthDakota

FFA

Chapter were on the state-winning Meats Judging and Dairy Cattle Judging teams lastyear.

k

A

****£,£?* -iwPS'

jS

^-

^ &

April-May, 1990 39

Potato ^Planter Perestroika

This Idaho FFA chapter gave new

^life

^{to old} machinery and new hope ^for Polish potato farmers

By

PatriciaA. Smith

I

believeⁱⁿthefutureof farming, witha faithbornnotofwordsbutofdeeds..."

As

every

FFA member

knows,these beautiful and thoughtful words are fromthefirststatementofthe

FFA

Creed.

The

truemeaning ofanycreed,

how-

ever, is not derived from reciting it but from living it, and the

FFA

chapter in

Mackay,Idaho,is doingjust that.

In

November,

1989.the chaptertook on a history-making and news-making project; refurbishing usedequipmentfor potatofarmers inPoland.

The

ideatoofferhelptoPolishfarmers originated with

Mackay

resident Lin Hintze, a seed potato grower, and his cousin

Marx

Hintze,afarmerandalsoan engineerattheIdaho National Engineer- ingLaboratory.

Lin Hintze approached

Mackay FFA

Chapteradvisorand agriculture instruc- tor

VerNon Roche

with the idea, while

Marx

Hintze sought supportfromRepre-

The

refurbished¹

950s

potatoplanterswillarriveinPolandintimefor spring planting^.

Much

ofthe plantinginpasthas

been done

by hand.

Six potato iters

were donated

by localgrowei our

were

refurbished,

two were

usee oarts.Here,

Mackay FFA members

s

one

ofthe

donated

plantersinthesc l'sshop.

Photoby LriOrange/PoslRegister

sentativeRichard Stallings,D-Idaho.

Congressman

Stallings then called

Roche

toofferhis helpand toaskifthe

MacKay FFA

Chapter

was

willing to tackle the project.

"Most

ofthe kids had never seen po- tatoequipment work,"recalls

Roche

with a smile."Buttheywerewilling.

The

idea isto let the kids do ^it

—

^that's

^how

^they

learn."

BradLambson.a

Mackay

HighSchool junior, has been chairman ofthe potato equipment project.

"We

had tojustlearn aboutitas

we

went," heexplains. "If

we

took something apart,

we

had to watch

how we

tookitapartbecause^there were no manuals to

show how

to put it back together!"

Roche

adds,

"We made

sure

we

alwaysleftone assembledatalltimes so

we

couldgolookif

we

neededto."

Itwasdecidedtobegintheprojectwith potatoplanters.

"We

wentoutandscoured thecountrysideforplanters."saysRoche.

Eventuallysixusedplanterswerelocated, with four destinedfor shipment and the remainingtwoscrappedforparts.

All ofthe planters were donated by area farmers and most, like the one that

belongedtoClyde Lambert, weresimply obsolete rather then unusable. Lambert

showed FFA members how

^the planters worked, putting

some

of his

own

seed potatoesthroughaplantertodemonstrate andexplainthe finer pointssuchasspac- ingoftherows.

Then

each planter

was

completely disassembledand the partscleaned with solvent or steam-cleaned.

A number

of

theboxesontheplantershad hadfertilizer inthem whichnecessitated cuttingoutthe bottoms andrebuildingthem.

Ifa part could not be rebuilt or sal-

vaged from one of the spare planters,

Roche

andhisstudentswould haveto try to locate it through used parts dealers.

"After1 yearsJohn Deerewillsendparts to used parts houses,"

Roche

explains.

"Thereweren'tanyparts for these plant- ers around here anymore; they had to

come

^{out of} the midwest." Another

Mackay

farmer.

Reed

Nielsenrebuiltall

oftheshoes (furrow openers)onhisforge becausethestudentsdidnothaveaccess toone.

Roche

estimatesthe

Mackay FFA

Chapter has used about $1,000 oftheir

own money

for partsandother expenses, but chapter president

Monica

Pehrson summarized the feelings expressed by chapter

members

saying.

"Our

mainpur- pose^ishelping those people

—

it'sagift."

Lastly, theplanterswerereassembled, greasedand paintedintheiroriginal col- orswithpaintandpartsdonatedby

Rocky

Mt.

Machinery

in Blackfoot,

Demott

Tractor in Idaho Falls,

Mackay

Equip- ment,Tri-countySupplyandWall,Inc. in

Mackay, Sheehan's Welding Supply in IdahoFallsandFederal Surplus Property ofIdaho.

Potato planting in Poland begins in April,andshippingtimewasestimatedat a

minimum

of30days.Transportationis

being providedby Morrison Knudsen,a Boise-basedcompany.Thereforethestu-

(Continued onPage42)

40 FFANewHorizons

m^m

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mm ^r

We Deliver Research,

Quality and Commitment

1 ^{by the Ton.}

"wmB

Pfizersells

more

animalhealth prod- uctsworldwide than anyother phar- maceuticalcompany.

A

^largepartof thatsuccessisaleading positionin America's feedadditive

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which

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commitment

to