America's Heartland Blog

United Egg Producers Announces Support for America’s Heartland Fund for Agriculture Education

2012-02-13T13:19:00.000-08:00

Ag organization becomes first to offer support to new fund established by national television series on U.S. agriculture, soon to launch eighth season on PBS and RFD-TV

Sacramento, CA (2/13/2012) – America’s Heartland today announced United Egg Producers as its first major contributor to the new Fund for Agriculture Education, which was established to help sustain the highly successful national public television and RFD-TV series into an unprecedented eighth season in 2012. The Fund gives organizations and enterprises new opportunities to showcase their support for the only program of its kind celebrating American agriculture.

“UEP is very proud to support America’s Heartland through its Fund for Agriculture Education,” said Chad Gregory, Senior Vice President of United Egg Producers. “Connecting with consumers about where their food comes from and who produces is it is a top priority of UEP’s. I cannot think of any better vehicle to help deliver that message to consumers than America’s Heartland.”

“We’re incredibly grateful to the UEP for their support of the Fund for Agriculture Education,” said Michael Sanford, Vice-President of Content Creation at KVIE Public Television in Sacramento, which produces the series. “As one of America’s Heartland’s promotional partners, they’ve long provided our production team great insights into U.S. agriculture. Now, they’ve emerged as the first agricultural organization supporting our Fund. That support and the support of our major funders allow us to continue telling positive stories about agriculture to a large television and online audience, and help change negative impressions about the hardworking men and women who bring food, fuel and fiber to the nation and the world.”

The Fund for Ag Education was established in December 2011 to allow additional organizations and enterprises to support America’s Heartland even if their underwriting budgets are more limited. Fund contributors are invited to donate in increments beginning at $25,000. That support complements the major funding provided by the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture, Farm Credit, and the United Soybean Board, all current season seven underwriters who have renewed their support for season 8. All support will be acknowledged at the beginning and end of every one of season 8’s half-hour episodes, which will air at least 44 times on PBS stations and RFD-TV. Donors also have an important profile on the America’s Heartland website (www.americasheartland.org); unlimited access to High-Definition stories video specific to their industry; and an invitation to participate as Advisory Board members at twice-yearly meetings as well as regular conference calls.

The first of 22 half-hour episodes of America’s Heartland’s eighth season begin airing on public television stations and RFD-TV the week of September 3, 2012. For more information on episode schedules and PBS station carriage, go to www.americasheartland.org and www.rfdtv.com.

About United Egg Producers

United Egg Producers (UEP) is a Capper-Volstead cooperative of egg farmers from all across the United States, representing the ownership of approximately 90% of all the nation's egg-laying hens. Based in Georgia, UEP and their farm members believe in consumer choice, and therefore produce eggs in modern cage, enriched colony cages, cage-free and organic production systems, as well as producing other specialty shell egg products. Their members also provide liquid, dried and other forms of further processed egg products to the retail, food service and food manufacturing sectors. UEP also has a long history of working with government agencies such as USDA, FDA, EPA and others to solve problems and create programs that will move the U.S. egg industry forward.

About America’s Heartland

Launched in 2005, the award-winning America’s Heartland travels throughout the U.S., introducing non-farm viewers to the men and women who provide the food, fuel, and fiber we use and consume daily. The half-hour weekly series is seen on more than 230 public television stations (including 19 of the top 25 U.S. markets) as well as the RFD-TV cable and satellite channel. Many segments are targeted specifically to consumers: Off the Shelf looks at food choices we make at the supermarket; Farm to Fork, with nationally known chef Dave Lieberman, takes consumers from farm fields to farm kitchens for unique recipes; and Harvesting Knowledge explores the rich history of foods we enjoy every day.

The www.americasheartland.org website gives consumers easy connections to topics, educational resources, search functions and video offerings. To give viewers immediate access to stories and special segments, America’s Heartland has expanded its social networking outreach with updated features and information on Facebook and Twitter. Video plays an increasingly important role on the America’s Heartland YouTube Channel, currently welcoming more than 90 thousand visitors each month. The series receives in-kind production support from many prominent agriculture organizations, including the National Corn Growers Association, U.S. Grains Council, American Soybean Association, FFA, National Association of Wheat Growers, and the National Cotton Council of America.

America’s Heartland Announces New Fund for Agriculture Education for Season 8

2011-12-06T10:58:00.001-08:00

Washington, D.C. (12/5/2011) – At their annual Fall Advisory Board meeting in the nation’s capital last week, America’s Heartland announced the establishment of the new Fund for Agriculture Education, designed to sustain the highly successful national PBS and RFD-TV series into an unprecedented eighth season in 2012. The Fund will also give ag organizations new opportunities to showcase their own support for the only program of its kind celebrating American agriculture.

“We’re delighted to establish this Fund for Agriculture Education, which we believe will benefit both agriculture and non-farm consumers,” said Michael Sanford, Vice-President of Content Creation at KVIE Public Television in Sacramento, which produces the series. “First, it allows the many agricultural organizations that support America’s Heartland to do so even if their underwriting budgets are more limited. And, the Fund allows us to continue telling positive stories about agriculture to a vast television and online audience, and help change negative impressions about the hardworking men and women who bring food, fuel and fiber to the nation and the world.”

Fund contributors are invited to donate in increments beginning at $25,000. Their support will be acknowledged at the beginning and end of every one of the season 8 half-hour episodes, which will air at least 44 times on PBS stations and RFD-TV. Donors will also have an important profile on the America’s Heartland website (www.americasheartland.org); unlimited access to High-Definition stories video specific to their industry; and an invitation to participate as Advisory Board members at twice-yearly meetings as well as regular conference calls.

The announcement follows renewed America’s Heartland season 8 funding support from Farm Credit, which made that announcement two weeks earlier at the 2011 National Association of Farm Broadcasters event in Kansas City. Farm Credit became the first sponsor to renew support of the weekly series, which is seen on more than 240 public television stations as well as the RFD-TV cable and satellite channel.

For the current season 7, Farm Credit’s funding support is joined by the United Soybean Board and the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. The first of 22 half-hour episodes of America’s Heartland’s seventh season began airing on public television stations and RFD-TV the week of September 5, 2011. While most stations will begin airing season 8 in September 2012, production on the new season will begin as early as this December. (For more information on episode schedules and PBS station carriage, go to www.americasheartland.org and www.rfdtv.com).

About America’s Heartland

Launched in 2005, the award-winning America’s Heartland travels throughout the U.S., introducing non-farm viewers to the men and women who provide the food, fuel, and fiber we use and consume daily. Many segments are targeted specifically to consumers: Off the Shelf looks at food choices we make at the supermarket; Fast Facts about Food reveals the nutritional benefits in many agricultural products; Farm to Fork, with nationally known chef Dave Lieberman, takes consumers from farm fields to farm kitchens for unique recipes; and Harvesting Knowledge explores the rich history of foods we enjoy every day.

America’s Heartland also examines how technology is changing production and how sustainability and environmental issues are becoming increasingly important to producers and consumers. Currently, the series is seen in 20 of the top 25 television markets and on more than 240 PBS stations covering 60% of the U.S. Overall, including its RFD-TV viewership, the series reaches more than 40 million viewers each season.

The www.americasheartland.org website gives consumers easy connections to topics, educational resources, search functions and video offerings. To give viewers immediate access to stories and special segments, America’s Heartland has expanded its social networking outreach with updated features and information on Facebook and Twitter. Video plays an increasingly important role on the America’s Heartland YouTube Channel, currently welcoming more than 90 thousand visitors each month. The series receives in-kind production support from many prominent agriculture organizations, including the National Corn Growers Association, U.S. Grains Council, American Soybean Association, FFA, National Association of Wheat Growers, and the National Cotton Council of America.

Farm Credit Renews Support for America's Heartland

2011-11-10T11:19:00.000-08:00

Underwriting support of season eight enables more award-winning programming to connect the nation's agriculture producers with millions of non-farm consumers

KANSAS CITY, Mo., Nov. 10 - America’s Heartland (www.AmericasHeartland.org) announced today that Farm Credit (www.FarmCredit.com) has committed to renew its underwriting support for season eight of the award-winning national television series celebrating American agriculture. This is Farm Credit’s second season to underwrite the program viewed on more than 240 public television stations as well as the RFD-TV cable and satellite channel.

“Farm Credit’s partnership with America’s Heartland has been mutually beneficial and we are excited to continue with another season,” said Christina Bowen, national contributions director for Farm Credit. “America’s Heartland offers excellent programming that aligns in so many ways with our mission of support to agriculture and rural America and honors farmers and ranchers while sharing their positive stories with the public.”

In addition to underwriting season seven and season eight, Farm Credit will soon be providing valuable multimedia resources for visitors to AmericasHeartland.org through an educational video series called aGROWnomics. aGROWnomics will allow Farm Credit experts to share information about the economics of agriculture and how it affects farmers and consumers.

“Farm Credit has been an outstanding partner for our seventh season and our ongoing relationship allows KVIE to continue exploring and sharing the contributions that American agriculture makes to our communities, the economy and the world,” said Michael Sanford, vice-president of content creation at KVIE Public Television in Sacramento, which produces the series.

Additional season seven underwriters include the United Soybean Board and the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. The America’s Heartland seventh season began airing on public television stations and RFD-TV in September 2011. While most stations will begin airing season eight in September 2012, production on the new season will begin as early as this December. For more information on episode schedules and PBS station carriage, go to www.americasheartland.org and www.rfdtv.com.

About America’s Heartland
Award-winning America’s Heartland has been introducing non-farm viewers to the men and women who provide the food, fuel, and fiber we use and consume since 2005. Currently, the series is available in 20 of the top 25 television markets on more than 240 PBS stations covering 60 percent of the United States. Including its RFD-TV viewership, the series reaches more than 40 million viewers each season. In-kind production support is provided by the National Corn Growers Association, U.S. Grains Council, American Soybean Association, FFA, National Association of Wheat Growers, and the National Cotton Council of America. Visit AmericasHeartland.org to view episodes and access educational resources and complementary video series offerings.

About Farm Credit: Lending Support to Rural America
For 95 years, Farm Credit has been a national provider of credit and related services to rural America through a cooperative network of customer-owned lending institutions and specialized service organizations. Created by Congress in 1916, the Farm Credit System provides more than $175 billion in loans and leases to farmers, ranchers, rural homeowners, aquatic producers, timber harvesters, agribusinesses, and agricultural and rural utility cooperatives. For more information about the Farm Credit System, please visit www.farmcredit.com.

A follow up on Teen Tractor Restoration

2011-10-25T10:36:00.000-07:00

In Season 2 we profiled a group of young women who took on a restoration challenge...and did great! Here's an update on this year's competition...

SAN RAMON, CALIF., October 20, 2011 – Chevron Lubricants, maker of the Delo^® brand of technologically advanced engine oils, lubricants and coolants, today crowned Ryan Haass of the Devine FFA Champion of the 2011 Delo Tractor Restoration Competition (www.DeloTractorRestorationCompetition.com) for his restoration of a 1969 Case 530. The Devine, Texas contestant was one of twelve finalists invited to Indianapolis to participate in this year’s competition. The national event, which delivers the most coveted title in teen tractor restoration, took place during the 84^th National FFA Convention in Indianapolis this week. As Champion, Ryan Haass of the Devine FFA receives a $5,000 prize.

Eufaula FFA of Eufaula, Alabama was voted Reserve Champion for its restoration of a 1968 Massey Ferguson and received a prize of $3,000. Third place was awarded to Gonzales FFA of Gonzales, Texas for its restoration of a 1948 IH Farmall M, receiving $1,500. All remaining finalists received $250.

“The Delo Tractor Restoration Competition has the ability to inspire kids to do things they may never have done, or even thought possible,” said Channing Reeder, indirect channel marketing specialist, Lubricants Marketing Americas, Chevron Products Company. “The program encourages participants to interact with their teachers, advisors, family, friends and community and provides them with experiences they can draw upon in their future careers. Being involved with a program that inspires kids to ask questions, interact, learn, and in the end accomplish the incredible, is something Chevron and its Delo brand are very proud of. Although we can only crown one winner, we salute all the competitors for their incredible work.”

The 12 finalists for the 2011 Delo Tractor Restoration Competition were:

· Buckeye FFA: Medina, Ohio – 1954 Allis-Chalmers WD-45

· Central City FFA: Central City, Nebraska – 1943 Model A John Deere

· Decatur FFA: Decatur, Texas – 1936 John Deere Unstyled A

· Devine FFA; Devine, Texas – 1969 Case 530

· Eufaula FFA: Eufaula, Alabama – 1968 Massey Ferguson

· Forreston FFA: Forreston, Illinois – 1941 IH Farmall H

· Gonzales FFA: Gonzales, Texas – 1948 IH Farmall M

· Lindsay FFA: Lindsay, Texas – 1937 Minneapolis Moline ZTU

· Louise FFA: Louise, Texas – 1984 Hesston 566

· Northwood FFA; Nappanee, Indiana – 1961 John Deere 4010 Diesel

· Oran FFA: Oran, Missouri – 1946 Farmall

· Sequim FFA: Sequim, Washington – 1954 Farmall, Super C

About The Delo Tractor Restoration Competition

Since 1995 the Delo Tractor Restoration Competition has rewarded the determination, mechanical skills and business savvy of high school aged FFA members from around the country. Through the restoration of an antique tractor, participants develop skills applicable to the modern business world. The skills needed for success in the program – equipment maintenance, teamwork, project management, budgeting, planning and marketing – help develop the participants into future leaders in the agriculture community.

All entrants to the Delo Tractor Restoration Competition are required to submit a workbook detailing the entire tractor restoration process, from mechanical overhauls of the engine, transmission and auxiliary and ancillary systems, to the external appearance of the tractors. The 12 finalists were invited to the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis to present their projects to a panel of five professional tractor restorers. Projects were graded on restoration process, results and documentation, as well as oral presentation and safety precautions.

Photos from The Driscoll Ranch Rodeo

2011-08-02T09:11:00.000-07:00

Photojournalist Dave Elkinson is on the road again! This time he's visiting the Driscoll Ranch Rodeo in La Honda, California. Mutton Bustin, Roping and more! Thanks for sharing, Dave!

Brandon Bancroft, 10, practices roping before the Driscoll Ranch Rodeo opened on Saturday. The rodeo is held yearly in La Honda, California.

Olivia Kanes, San Francisco, competes in the barrel races on Saturday at the Driscoll Ranch rodeo in La Honda, California

Wyatt Attard, 3, San Gregorio, California, is escorted around the barrels by his mom Traci (on the right) during the Driscoll Ranch Rodeo on Sunday. Wyatt did the barrel race both Saturday and Sunday. After finishing the run his horse shorty does a few tricks. He's following in the family footsteps, his dad is a roper.

Danielle Grimsby, 18, takes a fall off a steer Saturday during Driscoll Ranch Rodeo in La Honda.

A pair of gloves wait for the competitions to begin Sunday at the Driscoll Ranch Rodeo in La Honda.

The Miss Driscoll Ranch Rodeo Queen's Chaps.

Joel Vawter, 2, Soquel, works the stands Sunday at the Driscoll Ranch Rodeo in the Driscoll Ranch Rodeo. Vawter competed in the mutton busting contest and won a fan award as the best dressed boy in the event.

Overview of the Mutton busting competition, Sunday, at the Driscoll Ranch Rodeo in La Honda, California.

Wide view of a barrel racer’s run.

Kelly Allen, El Grenada, California, asks her dad for help picking out which shirt to wear during the barrel racing competition.

The scene behind the chutes at Driscoll Ranch Rodeo in La Honda, California, before the rodeo began on Sunday.

Showmanship Competition at the San Mateo County Fair

2011-06-20T15:43:00.001-07:00

Another day at the San Mateo County Fair! Photojournalist David Elkinson continues to capture all the action taking place. This time he grabs some great shots of the kids participating in a showmanship competition.

Danielle Grimsby, 18, Belmont, CA, demonstrates her presentation skills Friday evening at the San Mateo County Fair in California. Friday was the showmanship competition.

Rebecca Lewitt, 18, Redwood City, CA, shows a goat Friday evening at the San Mateo County Fair in California during the showmanship competition. Lewitt won the showmanship trophy.

Kelly Noland shows a goat Friday evening at the San Mateo County Fair in California during the showmanship competition.

Brianna Camozzi, 19, of the Half Moon Bay California FFA, shows a lamb Friday evening at the San Mateo County Fair in California during the showmanship competition.

Emilie Montoya, Pacifica, CA, shows pig Friday evening at the San Mateo County Fair in California during the showmanship competition.

Part of the challenge during the showmanship competition at the San Mateo County Fair in California, is get the pig under control.

Rebecca Lewitt, 18, Redwood City, CA, gets strong hug from Danielle Grimsby, 18, Belmont, CA, after winning the showmanship award Friday evening at the San Mateo county Fair in California

Andrew Olague, 18, of Pacifica cleans up his cow after the cattle competition.

San Mateo Fair - Rabbit Day

2011-06-20T13:02:00.000-07:00

Photojournalist Dave Elkinson continues to capture moments at the San Mateo Fair. This time he grabs some great shots during Rabbit day!

Ruby Juballa, of the Burlingame 4H, holds up three fingers to communicate to the audience that she won a third place during the rabbit competitions on Monday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Christopher Nielsen brings hay to his sheep stall on Monday at the San Mateo County Fair in California. Keeping their animals in showing shape required constant attention every day the day of the fair.

Jenna Baxter, of the Half Moon Bay 4H, grooms her sheep on Monday day. The sheep show was to be held the next day but participants constantly cared for their animals so they would be ready to show.

Maxine, a blue butt gilt, gets attention from a fairgoer on Monday night. Maxine and her owner Emilie Montoya won a blue a blue ribbon two days later in the pig competitions.

Detail shot of a rabbit trophy that were given out on Monday during the rabbit competition.

During the rabbit competitions on Monday evening the judges left no side of the rabbit unturned at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Competitors of all ages showed their rabbits Monday night during the rabbit show at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Live Auction at the San Mateo County Fair

2011-06-20T12:54:00.001-07:00

It's the last day of the San Mateo County Fair and it's live auction time! Photojournalist David Elkinson captures all the action and excitement of the event.

Danny Killoran, 11, San Mateo, California, waits in line on Saturday, the second to last day of the San Mateo County Fair in California, to have the turkey he raised be auction off.

Donovan Rice, 12, Pacifica, California, watchs the bidding during the livestock auction on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California. Animals raised by the children were auctioned off.

View behind the scenes as competitors get ready to bring their pigs up to the auction block on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California on Saturday.

Flags used during the livestock auction at the San Mateo County Fair in California on Saturday.

Chicken being held as competitors bring animals they raised to the auction block on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Ruby Juballa stands with two of her chickens as they are auctioned off on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Danaielle Grimsby, 18, Belmont, carries in two chickens to be auctioned off on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Justin Algue, 14, Pacifica, holds his turkey as he waits for his turn to bring it up to the auction block on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Karly Herder, 17, with her turkey as she waits for her tunr to bring it to the auction block on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Auctioneer's assistant help spot buyers in the crowd on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Andrew Olague, Pacifica, California, waits to bring in his animal on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Kids watch as the animals they and other competitors are auction off on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

An audience gathers in the barn as fairgoers watch the cattle being paraded out to the auction block on Saturday at the San Mateo County Fair in California.

Pig Day at the San Mateo County Fair

2011-06-17T13:49:00.001-07:00

Photojournalist Dave Elkinson bring us more photos from the San Mateo County Fair!

It's pig day and the competitors are showing off their prized oinkers!

More photos to come!

Leanna Morford, 10, exhibits her pig in the novice class on Wednesday. She won her class.

Adult volunteers stand at the ready to help corral wayward pigs.

Amy Simanek after winning the Grand Reserve in the pig competition on Wednesday.

San Mateo County Fair Photos

2011-06-15T14:18:00.000-07:00

It's fair time across the heartland! After months of preparation competitors have an opportunity to show off their hard work. From cows to cooking the ribbons are handed out with pride.

Photojournalist Dave Elkinson is at the San Mateo County Fair in San Mateo, California this week. He's sharing some great photos of life at the fair. Check back for more updates!

Rebecca Lewitt, 18, of Redwood City, California smiling after she won a blue ribbon in the lamb judging on Tuesday at the San Mateo County Fair.

Nicole Nielsen with her rabbit Floppsey. It is Engcop rabbit. Sunday was rabbit day, the second day of the fair. Nielsen will be busy during the fair. She has other animals she is raising.

Craig Kellogg, Redwood City, CA, gets his son Declan Kellogg, 12, ready for the lamb competitions on Tuesday.

Danielle Grimsby, 18, showed her lamb on Tuesday at the San Mateo County Fair.

America’s Heartland Launches Re-Designed Website

2010-10-29T08:26:00.000-07:00

New Features Include Easy Video Access and More Social Networking Options

National Public Television Series Offers Full Non-Broadcast Viewing
Options to Worldwide Online Audience

SACRAMENTO, CA–OCTOBER 28, 2010: For the first time since its successful launch in 2005 as the only nationally-broadcast television series celebrating American agriculture, America’s Heartland has completely re-designed its website (www.americasheartland.org) to offer easier access to streaming video, quick links to social networking sites, and other exciting new features. “This new website offers viewers an easy way to watch all of America’s Heartland content online,” said Michael Sanford, Vice-President of Content Creation at KVIE Public Television, which produces the series. “It’s a great option for viewers to enjoy and interact with the program beyond their broadcast viewing experience, and ideal for those unable to receive the series on traditional broadcast channels.”

The new website offers visitors instant home page access to the half-hour episode airing each week in most public television markets and on the RFD-TV cable and satellite channel (www.rfdtv.com). They can also watch all other episodes produced so far this season. By clicking “Episodes” on the tool bar, every one of America’s Heartland’s 120-plus episodes can be seen dating back to season 1 (2005). Additionally, web users can find stories categorized by state or commodity.

Other new features include:
• Instant home page access to social networking sites including Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Flickr, where users can offer feedback, share video, or post their own images;
• A new link to the site’s Education page, where teachers and students can access accredited lesson plans and study guides on agriculture;
• Special graphically-rich features designed to teach non-farmers about agriculture, including Working the Land, Harvesting Knowledge, Fast Facts About Food, and Off the Shelf;
• A quick and easy way to sign up for the America’s Heartland weekly e-newsletter, which includes video links to new episodes and other news about the series.
• A new comment engine that allows visitors to leave feedback directly on episode pages, creating an environment that fosters open conversation in the America's Heartland online community.

KVIE Web Developer Randy Ramirez says, “Our hope is that people will find this website easier to use than ever, and share it with others. That, in turn, will grow our online audience and help in our efforts to share the positive story of American farming and ranching.”

To find out if America’s Heartland airs on your public television station, visit the Schedule page on www.americasheartland.org. RFD-TV airs nationally on satellite (DIRECTV Channel 345 and DISH Channel 231), as well as a growing number of cable systems across the U.S.
On RFD-TV, America’s Heartland airs Wednesdays at 8:30pm EST, Thursdays at 10am EST, and Fridays at 11:30pm EST.

ABOUT APT, THE PROGRAM’S PUBLIC TELEVISION DISTRIBUTOR
American Public Television (APT) has been a leading distributor of high-quality, top-rated programming to America’s public television stations since 1961. In 2009, APT distributed 56 of the top 100 highest-rated public television titles. Among its 300 new program titles per year are prominent documentaries, news and current affairs programs, dramatic series, how-to programs, children’s series and classic movies. APT also licenses programs internationally through its APT Worldwide service. In 2006, APT launched Create™—the TV channel featuring the best of public television's lifestyle programming. For more information about APT’s programs and services, visit APTonline.org.

ABOUT AMERICA’S HEARTLAND
Launched in 2005, the award winning America’s Heartland travels throughout the U.S., introducing non-farm audiences to the men and women who provide the food, fuel, and fiber we use and consume daily. Frequently-appearing segments are targeted specifically to consumers: Off the Shelf looks at food choices we make at the supermarket; Fast Facts About Food reveals the nutritional benefits in many agricultural products; and Harvesting Knowledge explores the rich history of foods we enjoy every day. Currently, the series is seen on more than 230 PBS stations covering 60% of the U.S. America’s Heartland also reaches viewers in rural communities with primetime broadcasts on RFD-TV. The series reaches more than 44 million viewers each season.

America’s Heartland is produced by KVIE Public Television in Sacramento, with support from the Monsanto Company and the American Farm Bureau Federation. Additional production and promotion assistance is provided by the American Soybean Association, The National FFA Organization, National Corn Growers Association, National Cotton Council, National Association of Wheat Growers, United Soybean Board and U.S. Grains Council.

Ashley Reding - Preview of Tonight's Segment!

2010-09-22T09:43:00.000-07:00

Well, the time has come. For those of you who know me only through this blog, you will now get to see my family and me on America’s Heartland, Episode 603 airing tonight on RFD-TV! That’s right. You will soon be able to combine my face with my (mild) Kentucky accent. (The show can also be viewed on local PBS stations and later this week on www.americasheartland.org.)

It is hard to believe that it is the end of September and we are still in the mid-90’s. One of my first blogs was about the flood we experienced in May. Last time I spoke of rain being feast or famine. All in all, it was a very, very dry season. Because of the lack of rain, the corn dried out and was ready to harvest sooner than normal. At this point, we have already harvested over 50% of our corn. Bean harvest and subsequent wheat planting should begin the first full week of October. Things are rolling right along!

This has been one of the least stressful falls that I can remember. Not that there isn’t a lot going on, but we have such a great group of guys (and girls!) out there in the field. Aaron tends to divide his time between the office and the combine. Like many of us, he often needs to be in two places at one time. All I can say is that his cell phone plan has unlimited text and talk time for a reason!

Speaking of Aaron, it is time that I address something that I have avoided in my blog to this point. Since our segment on America’s Heartland is airing soon, I wanted to go ahead and write about it since we talk about it a little during the show. About six years ago, Aaron began having weakness in his right calf muscle. After six years and about that many neurologists, Aaron was diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, this spring.

The weakness has severely affected his right leg and, therefore, his ability to get around as easily as he used to. Please don’t think this has stopped MY husband! Quite the contrary, Aaron is as focused and determined as ever. While an ALS diagnosis is never good news, there are many positives in our situation. We are blessed to have the care and support of our family and friends, of course. Additionally, Aaron’s symptoms are progressing very slowly. While that made it frustrating to get a diagnosis, it is a blessing knowing that this disease will not progress rapidly. Aaron and I remain faithful and committed to God’s plan for us. I am not saying that every day is easy, but we are at peace and moving forward with the wonderful life we have been given.

All of that hard work has not been missed by “the little people” in the house either. Earlier this week Kathryn asked if our farm had a slogan. I told her no and asked if she had thought of one. She said, “Determination, sweat, and hard work.” I couldn’t help but chuckle. While it won’t be on any of our marketing material, she definitely pegged the “corporate culture.”

Andrew remains as committed as ever to his future farming profession. He absolutely loves school, but would miss every day if he could ride in the combine with his dad. Andrew can tell you the model number of every combine, tractor, and implement on our farm and on Aaron’s brother’s farm in Iowa. Adam has just turned two and loves reading about and playing with tractors, but he is a bit intimidated by their size and noise, so he still hangs with me in the van when we visit the field.

My harvest pictures are non-existent. I will add some to the Flickr link later this week. The ones I have included are of us in front of our Dodge Ram truck and in our new Case IH Scout. We won the Scout from the Kentucky Farm Bureau Outstanding Young Farm Family Contest. The truck was the prize for winning the national Farm Bureau Achievement Award. We had to wait a while for delivery, but we are enjoying our “toys.” We are thankful to Farm Bureau and their sponsors for these nice prizes. I have also included one of Aaron and Andrew on the platform of the combine – or, as Andrew would say, “the John Deere 9770 STS combine with the 612C corn head.”

Well, stay tuned. Our show airs tonight, but the blog will continue through harvest and wheat planting. At this rate, that won’t be too long!

Reding Update: Feast or Famine

2010-08-31T10:19:00.000-07:00

I’ve decided rain is either a stranger or an uninvited, intrusive guest. It’s been feast or famine this year – with a few exceptions. A couple weeks ago I found myself posting “Come on rain!” to my Facebook account. I know I am desperate for rain when I use a social networking site to ask the rain to fall! I’m pretty sure Facebook didn’t have any control over the situation, but the rain did fall and was beautiful music to my ears.

Of course the downside of rain is that my internet connection went out. Which of course reminds me of a story… For the first several years that we lived in Howardstown, the phone line would go out each time we had a significant rain. They finally fixed that issue about a year ago, but our only high-speed internet option is through satellite. (By the way, I find humor in the commercial where the guy is in the middle of the desert and can get internet, but we can’t get it in Howardstown!) So, when the clouds come, the signal goes. Perhaps my next book (after the one about things city girls should know when marrying a farmer) should be entitled “You Might Live in the Country If…”

Speaking of the county, I have included two bird’s-eye view pictures of the countryside. Aaron was invited to take a plan ride to view some of our fields. He graciously accepted the offer and took Josh along with him.

You might see that some of the corn has turned in those pictures. While it seems we just finished planting, harvest has already begun! We began combining last Friday. I have been out of town so I haven’t taken any pictures but will post those next time. It’s so hard to believe fall is here already! Andrew is so excited to get to ride in the combine. He has been asking to farm since we finished planting. It makes Aaron so proud to have a son who loves to farm.

In addition to harvesting corn, soybeans and wheat, we also harvest our own blueberries courtesy of several bushes in our backyard. This year, the harvest has gone on since the end of June and the blueberries are still coming! We have never in ten years had such a long blueberry season, and we just love it. I have included a couple pictures of Adam and Andrew picking blueberries. Andrew works very hard at picking, but won’t eat any. On the other hand, Adam doesn’t work hard and eats all he picks!

Along with fall comes back-to-school. I have included a shot of Kathryn on her first day. Our school began August 5, so we are fully back in the swing of things. In addition to the pictures mentioned, I have also included one example of how our resident-photographer Josh can make a dirty blade look cool (at least if converted to black and white.)

Reding Update: A Fungus Among Us

2010-08-10T12:27:00.000-07:00

Well, last week I mentioned Pa Ingalls’ wheat crop being destroyed by grasshoppers. It is amazing how much crop protection has changed since then. Last week we had a helicopter spraying several of our fields with fungicide. These fields were showing signs of a damaging fungus, and the corn was too tall to use our sprayer. So, we had a helicopter come in and do the job. Here is a photo of them refilling. It took just over a minute to fill. Then the pilot could apply product to 30 more acres. It was amazing to watch as he maneuvered around the field and over electrical wires and trees.

I am also including three pictures from the wheat harvest. While this was several weeks ago, I just now received the pictures from our cousin and official farm photographer, Josh Ohde. Josh has worked part time for us for several years, but recently joined us full-time as our Crop Protection Specialist. He has such an eye for capturing great shots like these three and the ones posted last time. He can somehow even make dirty planter parts look cool from the right angle!

We are again thirsting for rain. The crops are beginning to look a bit stressed again, and the temperatures remain in the 90’s. We have been fortunate to get the rain we have gotten. Many of our friends across the state and country are much more desperate than we are…but we’re getting there! We remain thankful for what we receive and hopeful that more is on the way.

Ashley Reding

Ashley Reding's Latest Update From Kentucky

2010-08-02T11:17:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed a week away from the farm last week and I am so very happy to report that we got a couple inches of much needed rain while we were gone. If I had charged a dollar for every time Aaron checked the internet or called home for a rain report while we were gone, I could have made a nice profit!

Kathryn (who turns 10 on Tuesday!) has been reading the Little House on the Prairie books this summer. Last week I decided to pick one up and read it myself – for the first time in 25 years. I laughed out loud when I read the following lines from By the Banks of Plum Creek: “It’s only till I harvest the first wheat crop,” said Pa. “Then you’ll have a fine house and I’ll have horses and maybe even a buggy.” I am just wondering if, after the grasshoppers ate his crop, he told his wife, “but NEXT year…” I have a feeling this line has been passed down for many, many generations!

Thinking of my “farmer mentality” topics, I heard a statement again this week that I had heard before, but it causes me to chuckle each time. What’s the only way to get five farmers to agree? Hang four of them. This goes back to the independent mindset that is so ingrained. If you are in a farm family, you know it’s true!

I have only mentioned the crops a little bit lately because there hasn’t been much to report. Before we left town, the corn was really stressed. The field had a white tint to it instead of that lush, beautiful green. We were certainly blessed with rainfall and have a good chance of more rain this week.

Watching the radar and praying for sufficient rain are two big activities on the farm in the summer. Other things we are doing include checking over all of the equipment, cleaning machinery used in spring, putting things away and pulling other things out so that we are ready to go when it’s time to harvest. We are also looking at the logistics for the fall and determining if we need additional drivers to help lead machinery from field to field. We are scouting the crops to keep an eye on weeds and the overall health of the crop. This is a happy thing when it rains, but not such a fun thing when drought is setting in!

Creating a mini-movie…a short insider look from Art Director Jamie Judd:

2010-07-26T11:04:00.000-07:00

Creating animation…

From the very beginning of America’s Heartland I have been privileged to not only create all the show’s graphic elements, logos and animation, but to dream up several “mini-movies” for each show.

These “mini-movies” are fun informational animations that run anywhere from 20 seconds to one minute in length, and give the viewer an entertaining look at farm facts, history, crops, cattle, machinery, locations, farming fun and just about anything you can think of related to the world of farming and how it relates to all of us.

Along with visual animation and pictures, they include narration, sound effects and themed music that all match what’s happening on screen at any given moment to make the whole piece come alive -- a small by complete movie.

My goal is to visually teach a concept or little known fact quickly and effectively so that you walk away with something new each time.

I really enjoy building these little movies each week and the many challenges I face on how make them, different, entertaining and fun; but at the same time find that interesting epiphany that will make people sit up and say “I didn’t know that!”

For example, putting a beard on a fish, creating dinosaurs that explode and bringing hand drawn machines to life are some of my favorites.

Harvesting Knowledge, Fast Facts About Food, Farm to Fork, Location Maps, and three or so “mini-movies” per show add up to a lot of animation, and so I need to plan out very carefully how much creative time, element creation, research, animation and rendering time, (the time it takes the computer to draw out each frame of animation to create a finished movie), for each segment I will need. Not to mention that full HD animation takes up a lot of space!

It all starts with a script that comes from one of our wonderful producers. From there I will read through it and highlight words and concepts that pop out at me. It can be a location like Vermont and how dairy cows are big business there, so I immediately think of a covered bridge, fall colors, and dancing cows in business suits. If I can find images from our photo library and separate those images out as separate elements to animate, all-the-better; but I often create the pieces I need from scratch or model them in 3D as I create those worlds.

That’s it for now, but stay tuned for more on “Creating a mini-movie”, as I talk about how to bring the elements together and animate them frame by frame and my recent use of more and more 3D, and how I get all these pieces to our post production editor for final inclusion in the show!

Another Update from Kentucky Farmer Ashley Reding

2010-07-09T10:59:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! The last couple of weeks have been crazy around here. At least farm life slowed down a bit before our personal lives sped up. Kathryn (our nine year old) was in the hospital twice last week, and I am so happy that she has recovered splendidly.

Speaking of kids, Andrew (4) said the following after our lunch prayer last week:

“Thank you, God, for the 8130 and the Kinze planter with 16 rows. And for letting us plant the corn and killing it too.** And thank you for letting us get to Grandma's house. In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen."

**The “thanks for killing it” was in there because they were replanting corn damaged in the flood and he apparently didn’t know that was a BAD thing! The 8130 is a John Deere tractor.

All planting and replanting is complete. Wheat harvest is done. There is always something going on, however. This week we are focusing on applying crop protection products and praying (a lot) for rain. In some areas, the corn is becoming stressed due to lack of rain and the intense summer heat. Stressed corn = stressed farmers!

Summer is also a time when we check and repair trucks and equipment. We focus on improvements for the farm, and attend lots of meetings. This summer is actually a slow one with “only” about 14 days worth of different meetings. I work here in our farm office three days a week and spend time with the kids the other days.

To be honest, my thoughts are just not on the farm today. When I began this blog, I said it was going to be about our farm and family…and family is all that’s on my mind today. After a very rough week, my grandfather passed away today. Jimmie Franklin Shemwell was 77 years old. While I am extremely sad, I am also very proud to have known such a great man. I visited him in the hospital about a month ago. At that time, he told me that he had lived a good life and had no regrets. If this cancer is what “got him,” then that was ok. That helps me to be at peace.

So, I will end this week wishing you all a safe summer and will challenge you to be thankful for the many blessings you have. God bless America. God bless our families. And, God…please send rain!

Ashley Reding's Update from Kentucky

2010-06-18T16:08:00.000-07:00

Some weeks are full of excitement on the farm. This week was not one of them (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing!) We received several scattered showers over the weekend and early in the week, so fieldwork was limited. It seems Aaron was doing something different each day: combining wheat, planting soybeans, running the sprayer, talking on the phone, or working in the shop. This hasn’t led to many good picture opportunities, so I’m going to cheat a little this week and share my favorite picture of last year’s wheat harvest. This was taken from the cab of the tractor. I love the lights shining on the wheat and the colors of the sky.

My only story about family this week is about Andrew, our four year old. Yesterday we were driving home and he saw two deer in a field. At first he sounded very excited when he said, “Look, Mom! Two deers!” Then his voice changed as he showed grave concern. He announced, “Oh, no! If the deer eat the soybeans then there won’t be any soybeans. Then dad and the combine can’t harvest the soybeans.” I don’t know if it’s nature or nurture, but this child is a farmer through and through!

Last week I promised to talk a bit about autosteer. I thought I would let Aaron talk about how we use autosteer on our sprayer. The following was written by him:

Five years ago, as I was trying to decide how we could best benefit from GPS, it became evident that the sprayer was top priority. Both university and private data indicated that the cost of GPS technology on a sprayer can be recovered in one year!
Here is how our sprayer is equipped: On top of the cab is a yellow, globe-shaped satellite antenna. It receives and transmits signals to as many as fifteen different satellites that orbit the earth. The more satellites the antenna is “hitting,” the more accurate the reading on the monitor that is mounted in the cab.
The primary function of the monitor is to show the location of the sprayer in a field, and to map the field as the sprayer applies product. Because the sprayer “knows” where it is and where it has been, it can be programmed to do a variety of exciting tasks.
The most interesting to me is “auto-steer.” When we have the sprayer running in auto-steer, we only manually steer the sprayer when we turn at the end of the field. Otherwise, at the touch of a button, the sprayer takes over and steers itself 90 ft. over from its previous pass.

Another feature I like is called “SwathControl.” The sprayer covers 90 feet in each pass. With that in mind, you can imagine how easy it would be to overlap, especially on irregularly shaped fields. SwathControl recognizes when the sprayer is passing over something it has already sprayed and begins to shut off any of the five sections of the boom that are overlapping. As soon as each section passes the area that has already been covered, the sections turn back on automatically.
How are these features of benefit? They greatly increase our accuracy by eliminating skips and overlaps. This saves money and makes us better stewards of your farm and the environment as a whole. Lastly, they reduce a great deal of operator fatigue after a long day.

I was recently told about a farmer who thought GPS and auto-steer technology were too expensive. He alleged that if they couldn’t drive a straight row, they shouldn’t be farming. With the number of acres that we farm, GPS is a wonderful investment. As Aaron mentioned, it saves product and operator fatigue.
Next time I hope to have some great footage of wheat combining and soybean drilling. Until then, have a great week!

Ashley

Another update from guest blogger Ashley Reding

2010-06-09T15:31:00.000-07:00

Oh, the hard life of a farmer… As you can tell from this picture of my husband, Aaron, farmers do occasionally get to kick back. What might surprise you is that this picture was taken while he was planting corn! Oh, the joys of auto-steer. Kathryn (9) just noticed last night that I could drive our van without pushing the gas pedal. I laughed because she was so amazed at cruise control, yet doesn’t bat an eye at the tractor driving itself across the field. (For those of you unfamiliar with auto-steer, I’ll talk more about it next week.)

Since last week, I am happy to report that we planted the last of our corn – including what was replanted. Kathryn is becoming quite the photographer this summer. She is already working on photographs to enter in the county fair, and took these two great shots of corn fields – one obviously much more mature than the other.We are nearing the end of the soybean planting and will soon be harvesting winter wheat.

This week I had a routine checkup with my doctor (I am diabetic.) We spent much of the time talking about farming which she knew little about. They say most Americans are at least four generations removed from the farm (which is true in my case), so it is no surprise that many people don’t understand today’s farms.

What I found interesting is that my doctor thought farmers owned all of their land. She was really shocked – and I was shocked that she was shocked! I thought I should add this to my mental inventory of things that farmers think that everyone knows, but they really don’t. Here are a couple more:

1. In town, a car with caution lights on usually meansthe person has a flat tire or is trying to carry items in their car that actually require a truck. In the country, a car with its lights flashing probably means there is a big piece of machinery close behind. Slow down and move over! Aaron gets so frustrated when people don’t slow down, but I have to defend those who have no clue what this means!

2. Another misconception is that farmers are busy in the spring and fall, but they relax in the summer and winter. Ha!! I suppose some farms do still operate this way, but we do not. Summer is when we harvest wheat and apply crop protection products to the soybeans. We are also involved with Farm Bureau and various commodity groups that have summer and winter meetings. Additionally, we attend training sessions in both summer and winter to improve our farming processes and learn about new technologies. This past winter, we were out of town four weeks in an eight-week period! And that doesn’t include the additional one and two-day trips sprinkled throughout the winter months. Of course summer and winter are also filled with planning for the upcoming season, which takes many, many hours.

Farming is never a world in which I thought I’d live and I am on the list of those who had many misconceptions about farming. I’m learning new things every day and am so happy that I can teach Aaron and our family new things about business practices that help our farm. For two total opposites, we work well together!

Flooded Fields at Planting Time - Guest Blogger Ashley Reding

2010-06-02T12:36:00.000-07:00

Last week I mentioned the 10 inches of rain we received the first weekend in May. While this was not the highest water on record, the older locals saw water where they had never seen it before. My first pictures are of one of our “flood victim” fields – you can see how the corn is nice, green, and tall (relatively speaking) where the water did not reach. Then see where we had to replant and start again. Amazing. I am also including a picture of the trash left behind from the flood. While this picture wasn’t taken in a field, it is a good representation of the sticks, limbs and more limbs that had to be cleared before any replanting could begin.

This last week has been warm and wonderful for planting. We are drilling beans and planting (and replanting) corn. Kathryn (9) got out of school last Friday, so she has been a farm helper three days already. Andrew (4) is on his third day in a week – and that’s only because I won’t send him out every day! Andrew and I rode with Aaron a couple of nights ago and it is amazing to watch Andrew’s concentration. He asks about everything he sees and repeats to you what he’s already learned. Andrew was planting with Aaron for over eight hours last Friday, and he still didn’t want to come home. That is amazing for a boy who can’t sit still! Aaron is beaming with pride as his children’s love of farming grows.

Without the flood, we would be nearly finished planting; however, we are still about one to one-and-a-half weeks from being finished due to the rain and replanting. At that time, wheat should be ready to harvest. So there will be no break this season. Maybe next year…

Last week I mentioned that I learned quickly that “but NEXT year” is a common farmer motto. Another thing I learned early on is that when asked “Will you come lead me to the next field,” one should prepare to be gone for three hours. More than likely, the initial request is simply step one in the plan. What it really means is,
“Will you come lead me to the next field…then drive me back to the first field to get the truck….then come back to this field and wait until so-and-so gets here with the such-and-such and then take him back to the farm?” It didn’t take long to learn that I’d better stick in some snacks for the kids and get on my tennis shoes. Perhaps my next endeavor should be writing a guidebook for new not-from-the-farm farm wives!

Introducing our guest blogger

2010-05-24T19:33:00.000-07:00

We're excited to try something new with the blog!

I recently visited the Reding family of Howardstown, Kentucky to shoot a story for our upcoming season (starts airing across the country in September). The family was in planting and planning mode for the upcoming season and it occurred to me that the Redings would be a great family for viewers to follow throughout the year.

I've asked them to "guest blog" this year -- bringing us updates (every week or so) from the farm. We'll get to follow along as they grow their crops and hear from them first hand! Ashley Reding will likely do most of the writing but expect to hear from her husband Aaron as well.

Turns out the week after we visited they had serious flooding on their ground, the kind of challenges that farmers across the country face every day. So expect to hear about that, too!

So please enjoy their posts, wish them well this growing season and hopefully get a sense of what it is like "down on the farm." And of course, tune in during season 6 to see their story on America's Heartland!

Jason

Note - we'll also continue posting behind the scenes write-ups, road reports and other general items of interest on the blog!

Guest Blogger - The Reding Family of Kentucky

2010-05-24T19:25:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the first America’s Heartland blog about my farm and family! As with most farmers, “farm” and “family” go hand-in-hand. Our farm would not be here without the support of our family, and our family would not be the same without our farm.

My name is Ashley Reding and I live in Howardstown, Kentucky, which is about an hour south of Louisville. My husband, Aaron, and I, along with members of his family, own and operate Homestead Family Farms. This week I would like to tell you a bit about our farm and family. I will then follow up with updates on our progress throughout the growing season and harvest. Aaron will occasionally contribute with some information about technology that we use on the farm as well.

Aaron and I are the perfect example of opposites attracting. Other than being hard-headed, we differ in about every way. I am an only child from the city, while he is the oldest of nine (living) children from the country. Our religious upbringings were also different, as well as about everything else! I was raised in a family business, majored in business, and hate getting dirty (notice that is present tense!). As my childhood babysitter pointed out, I used to cry when I got my hands dirty. So marrying a farmer was not something I ever imagined. I am sure he might say the same about me!

We met at the University of Kentucky through mutual friends and our fate was sealed! We were married in 1998 and have three children. Kathryn will be 10 this summer and is a farm/city mix if there ever was one. She loves girly-stuff, shopping, fine dining, musicals and visiting her grandparents in Paducah, where I am from. She also loves helping her dad on the farm. Andrew is four and plows hundreds of acres a week on his knees with his toy tractors – complete with sound effects. He loves riding with Aaron on anything from the semi to the sprayer to the tractor, combine, backhoe – you name it. Adam will be two in September and does not fear dirt! After “mama” and “daddy,” his first discernible word was “tractor.” He joins Andrew in playing with – and fighting over - their farm toys.

Aaron’s parents, Mark and Barb Reding -- with the help oftheir children -- ran a farrow-to-finish hog operation and grew enough crops to support their livestock. When Aaron graduated and returned home from college, he wanted to focus on the row crops – corn and soybeans at that time. We have since added wheat to the crop rotation. The hogs were eventually phased out and we now have only the row crops.

We are your traditional farm family. Many members of our family contribute to the success of our farm -- Aaron’s parents, sisters Anna and Sarah, brothers John (19) and James (14), cousin Josh, and even me, the city girl (but I prefer the non-dirty work!). But we may not be considered traditional because we are a large farming operation. We farm in five counties and run our farm as a business – in addition to as a lifestyle. A friend in college once told me, “Farming may not be a great way to make a living, but it’s a great way to live.” We believe it is both.

As with all farms, we rely heavily on Mother Nature, and this has been a strange year. I learned early on as a farm wife to ignore the phrase “but next year…” I’ve also learned that farmers have a lot of things in common. Determination and independence are two traits I’ve observed. The belief that somehow the weather will be kinder or the markets will be better next year is another. It used to frustrate me, now it makes me smile because I know that no matter how good this year is, we can always hope that next year is even better.

This year was warm weeks earlier than normal and planting was in full force on April 6. The first weekend in May we got 10 inches of rain and had historic flooding. This washed out many of the bottom-land fields that we had planted. While it is hard to see the money wash down the river, it is even harder for me to see all of the hard work and many hours of missed sleep wash away. But, that’s a part of farming and the show must go on!

I look forward to sharing more about our farming life with you. I hope you can learn from my “city girl” perspective and enjoy reading about our farm and family.

Rainy Days and Mondays

2010-04-26T06:48:00.000-07:00

In the past five years traveling the country for America's Heartland I've only had one story lost due to rain. Considering the hundreds of stories we've done, it's a pretty impressive figure. For a show that focuses on agriculture -- weather is critical. We don't shoot in a studio, we rarely even shoot indoors! Like the farmers and ranchers we profile -- America's Heartland operates on mother nature's schedule.

That means sitting on front porches in Eastern Iowa waiting for a storm to pass. It means asking a Virginia aquaculture farmer to check on his fish in a downpour. It also means adjusting shoots on the fly and quickly rearranging schedules.

Today is one of those days. Rain is falling in Kentucky and our story wraps we were going to shoot this morning are on hold. My hope is that the weather clears out just long enough for our visit to the Old Friends horse rescue farm near Lexington. In the meantime...I find myself watching raindrops fall outside the hotel window, drinking too much free coffee from the hotel breakfast buffet and writing this blog.

I'm officially naming it: The Heartland Paradox. Farmers need rain to have a successful crop. We need farmers to have a good story. But rain keeps that from happening.

Happy Travels,
Jason

On the road report from Virginia

2010-03-19T11:17:00.001-07:00

My latest travels take me to Virginia where we have been dodging rain drops and meeting some fascinating folks who have a passion for agriculture.

Photographer Steve Riggs put down his expensive professional camera and grabbed the Flip Cam and caught us having a great lunch at Wade's Mill in Raphine, VA.

Jim and Georgie Young run the historic mill...selling their flour products (and her specialty kitchen items). The mill was great but I must say lunch really took the (cheese)cake. Georgie teaches cooking and made a special lunch for us using regional ingredients.

After we ate our main course we had a delicious Chestnut Cheesecake from Pettijohns' Orchard in Raphine. One of the best pieces of cheesecake I've had in a long long time!

In case you are ever in the area be sure to stop by Wade's Mill and tell them America's Heartland sent you! I should note that Wade's Mill is not a restaurant so don't expect to have lunch there. But if you are hungry...check out these places that were "on the menu" when we visited:

Turner Ham - Fulks Run, VA
Mountain View Farm Cheese - Fairfield, VA
Greens from The Herbery - Fairfield, VA
Dressing from Rockbridge Vineyard - Raphine, VA
Bread from The Backyard Baker - Raphine, VA
Chestnut Cheesecake from Pettijohns' Orchard - Raphine, VA
Chocolate Truffles from the Cocoa Mill - Lexinton, VA

Happy travels,
Jason Shoultz

A funky look at American agriculture

2010-02-18T12:45:00.000-08:00

Who says agriculture can't be fun and funky? Here's a music video created by our Series Producer Jim Finnerty that puts farming to a hip-hop beat! We hope you enjoy it!

Behind the Scenes - Meet another America's Heartland Team Member

2010-01-27T15:13:00.000-08:00

Mindy Yuen is the latest addition to the America's Heartland Staff.

My Travels with America's Heartland

2010-01-21T10:58:00.000-08:00

With this being my first blog I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Tyler Bastine and I’m an Associate Producer for the America's Heartland series. I’ve been apart of AH team for over three years now and prior to working for the program I did not have any background in agriculture, so for me this has been quite an eye opening experience!

I consider myself very fortunate to have the opportunity to travel across the country (As well as overseas) to capture our stories. I would say this is ‘hands down’ the best part of my job. I’m able to meet the fine folks who work extremely hard from sun up to sun down daily. I must admit, they are some of the most down-to-earth (literally) and genuine people I've met. It takes a certain breed of individual to do what they do. All in all I’ve come away with much more respect and appreciation for the farmers that work so hard to provide food, fiber, and clothing for the rest of us. I'm very proud to be a part of a national program that celebrates all they do for this country and abroad.

Harvest Time in the Heartland

2009-11-03T15:34:00.000-08:00

The combines are out across the heartland...and depending on where you live it may just be slow going!

For many, this is a favorite time of year. The kids are back in school, high school football fields light up on Friday nights and families enjoy evening hay-rack rides.

The crisp, cool air that awakens the senses and invigorates the soul. It is definitely my favorite season. Give me a nice hot bowl of chili on a cool Saturday afternoon and I'm in heaven.

When I was a kid they sold "deer whistles" that people attached to their front car or truck bumpers. They were sold as a way to keep deer (which are out in full force this time of year) out of your way. Hard to prove of course...never did see any deer running away with their hooves over their ears.

Is this your favorite time of year? What are some of your favorite fall memories?

Jason

BTW - keep an eye out for farm implements when driving in rural areas! They'll be out at night and can be hard to see.

America’s Heartland Season 5 National Debut

2009-09-08T08:36:00.000-07:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 4, 2009 — America’s Heartland, the only nationally broadcast weekly program on agriculture, debuts its new season on RFD-TV Wednesday, September 9, 2009 at 8pm (EST) and again on 9/13 @ 6:30pm (EST). America’s Heartland also debuts on public television stations nationwide the second week of September (check local listings). This season, America’s Heartland offers even greater access to informative, in-depth stories about issues important to viewers in both urban areas and rural communities. With a new, faster paced format, the series’ larger reporting staff travels the country to meet farmers, ranchers and growers. Each high definition broadcast tells their stories with compelling and personal insights on life in the heartland. It’s a look at American agriculture that’s fresh, fun, insightful, and informative.

Reporters Jason Shoultz, Sarah Gardner, Yolanda Vazquez, Paul Robins, Rob Stewart, Akiba Howard, and John Lobertini travel coast-to-coast to provide viewers a better understanding on how American agriculture affects their lives.

In addition, new features like Off the Shelf give viewers information on the food they buy every week; Harvesting Knowledge takes a look at the historical background of your favorite foods; and Working the Land takes urban viewers to America’s farm fields to look at the specialized and sometimes dirty jobs of people working in agriculture.

Introducing viewers to the men and women who provide food, fuel, and fiber to our nation and the world, season 5 of America’s Heartland also examines issues like food safety, animal welfare, urban farming, sustainability, and environmental concerns.

America’s Heartland has also dramatically expanded its social networking outreach with new online features at www.americasheartland.org; friends on Facebook, access on Twitter, and an extensive channel of exclusive video offerings on YouTube. One recent story has been viewed more than one million times.

America’s Heartland is produced by KVIE Public Television with support from The Monsanto Company and the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Road Update from Iowa

2009-07-22T13:46:00.000-07:00

We're putting together a half-hour special featuring all of the uses for soybeans! Iowa is the top soy producing state...so I got to head back to my old stomping grounds!

Bat Cave Preview

2009-05-11T14:41:00.000-07:00

We're back from a successful shoot in Texas! We've got lots of great stuff to share. But here's a FLIP CAM preview of our shoot at the huge bat cave near San Antonio. It's called Bracken Cave, home to 20 million bats.

Here's a quick preview of what it looks like when the bats exit the cave! They were flying a couple of feet over our heads. Photographer Brad White even got hit in the back on the neck!

Bracken Cave is owned by Bat Conservation International, a non-profit group that educates folks about bats.

Keep Watching!
Jason

Facebook fans...share your photos!

2009-04-07T09:40:00.000-07:00

We are looking for photos from our America's Heartland fans on Facebook! We know there are many of you out there who have an eye for photography. And there are some great vistas to be found in the heartland.

So please visit our facebook page and load your photos. If you aren't a "fan" yet, become one. It's free!

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/pages/Americas-Heartland/42084461548

Just back from Oregon

2009-03-26T10:23:00.001-07:00

Jason at Tillamook Cheese factory, originally uploaded by America's Heartland.

We just got back from a shoot in Oregon and we've uploaded some photos to flickr! Check them out!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/33078341@N06

We visited the Tillamook Cheese factory and sampled some delicious cheese and ice cream made fresh at the creamery. We also stopped by the Union Mills Feed Store in Mulino. It's been in the same family for 150 years. On our last day we got a lesson in using horses on the farm from Doc Hammill!

All of these stories will be part of our upcoming season of America's Heartland.

But why do they watch???

2009-03-03T13:01:00.000-08:00

Last week America's Heartland attended the 2009 Commodity Classic convention in Grapevile, Texas (near Dallas). It's a convention that attracts upwards of 5000 farmers and agriculture business folks from all over the US.

It's a great opportunity for us to talk with farmers and ranchers who are some of our biggest supporters.

We busted out the FlipCamera again and recorded some testimonials from viewers!

First up, Rose Gauck from Indiana explains why she watches the show every week!

We also asked her husband Gerald to explain how the show reaches a non-farming audience...

Finally, the Isringhausens from Jerseyville, Illinois talk about the importance of sharing the story of agriculture in the U.S.

Thanks again to all of our loyal viewers! It was great talking with you!

Jason

Blogging from the road

2009-02-19T06:26:00.001-08:00

We're off and running with our season five segments. Last week another crew was shooting stories in Pennsylvania...where it was 20 degrees and snowy. I'm happy to file this report from sunny Florida.

Florida has a rich agricultural heritage that sometimes doesn't get noticed among the beaches,city scene and that famous mouse.

We've found some great stories that we'll be sharing with you when season five debuts this fall.

In the meantime...here's a video blog from the road. We shot this at Worden Farm near Punta Gorda. For you tech-types or video professionals, we shot this with a MinoHD handheld camera. It's the size of a cell phone and shoots 720p HD fairly well. Don't worry...we're not shooting the whole story on this camera! Just the blog stuff.

Jason

2009-02-06T16:01:00.001-08:00

Jenna's Journey to the Farm Bureau Convention

2009-01-14T09:31:00.000-08:00

Every January, the annual American Farm Bureau Convention takes place and America’s Heartland has been attending since launching back in 2004. This year the location was historic San Antonio, TX and your favorite America’s Heartland Associate Producer, Jenna Cederburg, was selected to go and promote the series. Since I’d never attended a Farm Bureau Convention, I was excited to mingle amongst those who play such an important role in our show’s success as well as get the opportunity to meet fans of the series.

“Forward” was the Farm Bureau’s tagline this year and I was intrigued as this seems to be the common theme in America these days. For many farmers and ranchers, there is a tangible desire to do just that - move forward and adapt in order to flourish during these difficult economic times.

I’m happy to say the America’s Heartland booth drew heavy traffic during the two-day showcase! People who stopped by got their very own copy of an episode of our show as well as fun farm animal erasers and pencils. They also participated in a drawing in order to win a portable DVD player complete with the entire third season of the show. Passers by were also able to stop and watch episodes from our current fourth season.

It was fun to mix and mingle with people from Ohio, Alabama, South Dakota, Kentucky… pretty much everywhere! Fans would recall specific Heartland stories from their region which was quite impressive. It’s clear to me now that people really enjoy the show and truly value the stories we tell.

Now, back home in Sacramento, we at America’s Heartland look “Forward” to a successful fifth season as we continue to bring the people and places of American agriculture straight to your living room.

Jenna Cederburg
Associate Producer
America’s Heartland

Poke Salad Annie

2009-01-08T14:30:00.000-08:00

In episode 418 I visit East New York Farms, an urban agriculture endeavor. We stopped by their farmers market on a Saturday morning. There are a lot of former farmers who live in the city taking advantage of the program. I met Annie Wyche, who used to live in the southern US. She had lots of interesting vegetables for sale.

But something she said required some more research:
"And we have callaloo. That’s a vegetable used mostly in the West Indies. We call it a polk salad down South. It’s the same thing. I was amazed that everybody be calling for callaloo, so I said, ‘that’s not callaloo, that’s polk salad.'”

Initially I thought she was calling it PORK salad, assuming that it was just some regional thing. Upon further research Annie was referring to POLK salad. I think. Or POKE salad. Confused. I still am too.

According to wikipedia:

Young pokeweed leaves can be boiled three times to reduce the toxin, discarding the water after each boiling. The result is known as poke salit, or poke salad, and is occasionally available commercially.

And poke salad is also referred to as POLK salad. And it's apparently NOT called PORK salad. It's been around for decades in the south. But before any blog readers go searching out pokeweed and mixing a salad, some caution is in order: it's poisonous.

So is poke/polk (not pork) salad the same as callaloo? Again, according to wikipedia, yes. Poke weed is one of the vegetables used in the dish called callaloo. So callalloo is a dish, not a vegetable? Well, it's both, according to wikipedia:

Because the leaf vegetable used in some regions may be locally called "callaloo" or "callaloo bush", some confusion can arise among the different vegetables and with the dish itself.

Some confusion?

Annie's still making money selling her poke salad/callaloo to folks at the Brooklyn farmers market. It's quite popular, not matter what it's called.

Of all of my questions about this weed would have been answered if I would have just listed to the lyrics of this classic 1969 song by Tony Joe White:

Yes, the name of the song is "Poke Salad Annie." Not POLK Salad Annie like is displayed on the video. And, as far as I know, not Annie Wyche.

Jason

High Definition Youtube Clips

2009-01-06T15:44:00.000-08:00

You may have noticed that we have our own channel on youtube. It's a great way for more people to learn about our show. It's also good for embedding videos in other sites. If you really love one of our segments, just embed the youtube video in your blog,site,facebook page, etc. Be sure to include a link to our site americasheartland.org!

We're taking advantage of one of the latest youtube advancements: HD video. Our show is already shot in HD, so uploading clips in HD is a great option for us.

Check out episode 417 "Journey of the Corn" in all of its HD goodness.
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.

Just click on "Watch in HD" at the bottom right of the video window. You'll need to have a high speed internet connection to watch the videos in HD.

Jason

Kudzu Goats

2008-12-22T10:05:00.000-08:00

Who knew a pesky weed could cause so much problems?? Kudzu is a non-native species that came to the U.S. from China back in the late 1800’s. It was originally used for livestock forage and then for erosion control, but the wet, humid, hot climate in the southeast made for the perfect breeding ground for this noxious pest.

I had never even heard the word kudzu before working on this story, much less knew it was a problem plant for farmers. I was amazed to see how this “miracle vine” as they sometimes call it, took over the land…wrapping itself on and around everything in sight.

The University of Kentucky’s College of Agriculture partnered with Barry and Virginia Arnett to use their goats (and farmland) to help eradicate this fast-growing vine. The idea…let the goats eat the kudzu (they like it and it’s good for them) and we solve two problems at the same time. Goats now have a new food source and farmers get rid of kudzu. Of course, all of this will be monitored as part of a 2-year study to see how many goats are needed per acre to either manage or deplete the kudzu.

If this works, the University of Kentucky will then expand the program to include other farmers and they may have solved the kudzu conundrum once and for all.

The Arnetts were an interesting couple as well. Barry worked as a corporate executive for years traveling around the world. When he retired, he and his wife decided to spend their golden years on her family’s historic farm in Rockholds, Kentucky. It took some time for them to get used to farm life, but Barry drew on his “research background” to gather information on goat farming. Today they are one of 3,000 meat goat producers in the state of Kentucky. Meat goat has quickly become a worthwhile agricultural option after the decline of tobacco production in Kentucky. The Arnetts treated their goats like family, calling each one by their given name. It was fun to tour their property, but what tickled me to death was when Barry did his half-yodel/half-caterwaul scream to call out to the goats. They responded by coming to his side….and he seemed to be thrilled by all the attention. Of course, it probably helped that he had a little food in his hand. Barry and Virginia are doing what most people hope to do when they retire….work a little when they want to, have a little fun and relax amongst family and friends (or a few hundred goats)!

Yolanda Vazquez

Another Behind the Scenes Interview

2008-12-17T15:16:00.000-08:00

Let's meet Jim Finnerty, the series producer for America's Heartland.

Clamming in Alligator Harbor - 415

2008-12-17T10:37:00.000-08:00

This was some of the most fun I've had on a shoot in a while. We could have done a half hour show on the clammers working the waters of Alligator Harbor. A.D. Folks and Tanglefoot have been working the water their entire lives in one way or another. So when we climbed aboard A.D.'s small pontoon boat I knew we we're in good hands. Although I was a little concerned about the boat supporting all of the people on board.

Here's a rundown: Myself, photographer Steve Riggs, production assistant Tyler Bastine, A.D., A.D.'s wife, Tanglefoot and two other friends of A.D.'s who came along for the ride. I wasn't concerned about one of us falling in and getting wet as much as Steve falling overboard with the camera. Our week-long shoot in the "Forgotten Coast" would have turned into a vacation (not that anyone would have minded too much).

Fortunately the only people going into the water were clammers and not the intrepid teevee crew.

Our day on the water was only made better when we got to enjoy a paella dish cooked up by Chef Chris Hastings of the "Hot and Hot Fish Club." We're talking about fresh clams, shrimp, vegetables here...great stuff.

Jason

Large Animal Vet

2008-12-17T08:03:00.000-08:00

I seem to notice a trend. Anything relating to cows requires early morning work. So again, we met our large animal vet, Dr. Frederick Hess, at the crack of dawn at his home in Amherst, MA. Hess is a likable guy, no-nonsense and good at what he does.

I’ll be honest before this story I never thought twice about large animal veterinary medicine. I mean, it only makes sense. There has to be someone who’s caring for the cows that provide milk for us and eventually become part of the food supply chain. There are so many issues that can come up…and you don’t want a sick cow anywhere in the midst of it.

Dr. Hess is a busy man. On the day we visited with him, he had more than a half-dozen house calls to make within a 100-mile radius and he told me that’s a light day for him. I got to see the birth of a new foal (well, we were within hours of the birth), a lame cow who needed to have its hoof trimmed down and removed of disease, a sick cow with a DA (that’s short for displaced abomasum) You learn this lingo as you go through the day, and a last-minute C-section on a pregnant cow. Now that is one thing I surely wasn’t expecting. Thank goodness Dr. Hess had some smelling salts on hand because that is a one amazing surgical procedure to witness. Well, I got to see most of it before I half-fainted. Betcha didn’t even know cows needed c-sections, did ya?

Dr. Hess was fortunate to have two intern/resident techs in tow to help him out, but he’s part of a dwindling breed. There aren’t many large animal vets practicing these days and it’s a huge issue for the American Veterinary Association. They are working hard to recruit new large animal vets while in vet school, but the interest just isn’t there. That’s part of the reason why, after 40 years, Dr. Hess is still practicing. He has so many farmers that rely on him for his services and expertise that it would be difficult for him to retire. He also loves what he does…and that shows on his face and his work. I truly enjoyed spending time with Dr. Hess and his crew…and have a newfound admiration for large animal vets and the tremendous work they do in keeping our food supply safe.

Yolanda Vazquez

Young Farmer

2008-12-15T23:04:00.000-08:00

I can honestly say that Andrew Orr is quite a remarkable, young man. I have never met a more dedicated, hard-working teenager in my life. I just knew he was the kind of kid that played video games, talked trash with his friends…and maybe took a daring spin down a deserted road in his hometown. No, you won’t find that Andrew Orr in Westport, MA.

Last year Andrew, with the help of the community and several organizations, purchased a 13-acre parcel of land for growing fruits and vegetables for his local farm stand. He had already spent most of his teen years working on a friend’s farm and couldn’t wait to do it for himself. Andrew told me he was fully aware of the realities of his chosen profession, but pressed on saying, “this is what he feels he was born to do.” I got a kick out of watching Andrew plow his field and ready it for planting. He worked so meticulously, riding on his newly-bought tractor, making sure each row had equitable spacing. I practically had to beg him to interview with me. He’s a little camera shy, but he would rather be tending to the land than talking into a microphone.

As a result of being the town’s youngest farmer, Andrew garnered a lot of media coverage, including a nice spot on NBC’s Today Show. The lanky teen was non-plussed about his celebrity status, focusing instead on removing rocks from his plowed land. He talked about the huge learning curve he endured during his first harvest and how he planned on doing things a little differently this time around. We also talked about the financial side of things: how to finance his first tractor, expensive cost of seeds and hiring helping hands.

I tried to find out if there was anything that excited Andrew beyond farming and he really didn’t reveal much. He works the farm with his girlfriend and they sometimes hang out with friends and watch a movie. But that’s about it. Safe to say, he’s not your typical teen, but that’s what makes Andrew such a great farmer. He’s got a lot of support from the community and I think with his strong focus and determination, he’ll become one of the best farmers in this quaint, little town.

Yolanda Vazquez

Some great photos

2008-12-11T14:12:00.000-08:00

One of the best things about our program is the videography. We've got a team of talented photographers. It also helps that we often are shooting in truly beautiful areas.

We also take some really great photographs on our shoots, most of which don't end up being seen by viewers...until now! We want to share some of these great photos with you. To do that, we've created a page on flickr.com. We'll keep adding more photos to the site as we shoot more stories across the heartland.

Check it out!
Jason

Rhody Fresh

2008-12-10T10:56:00.000-08:00

Dairy farmers are some of the most ingenious people I know. Talk about milking a product for all its worth. There are so many by-products you can make from milk: cheese, ice cream, butter -the list goes on and on. The story behind Rhody Fresh is not uncommon. Dairy farmers all across the country are facing the same situation: loss of farmland to urban development, competition against huge dairy processing plants and the generational decline of family members who are unable to support/run the farm. Some farmers succumb to their dwindling prospects, but others rise to the occasion by demonstrating their entrepreneurial spirit.

The Rhode Island dairy farmers, worried about their future, decided to pool their resources together to create their own brand of milk, but what makes Rhody Fresh so special is that the idea actually worked. And it worked big time.

I’m not much of a morning person so the idea of heading to a dairy farm at 5am was not too appealing. However, the cows are on such a milking cycle (they have to be milked every 12 hours) that there’s no way to avoid expelling them of all the creamy, white stuff at this early morning hour. Fortunately, I got to try my hand with the milking apparatus and I was pleased as pie that good ‘ole Bessie didn’t try to kick me in the process. In case you don’t know, cows are pretty finicky animals. And they’re smart, too.

I spoke with some local townspeople about the Rhody Fresh brand and they seemed to be big fans. The cartons come in these nicely-designed packages and the milk does taste a little different from the traditional, store-bought brand. The chocolate milk was my personal favorite!
There were a lot of lessons to be learned at the very beginning of Rhody Fresh, but now the RI Dairy Co-op seems to be on a roll with dozens of stores (including large chains) selling their product. They hope to expand their line into cheeses and other products, but in the meantime they’ll take it one day at a time - thankful for the tremendous support they get from the local community.

Yolanda Vazquez

Ambush interviews continue

2008-12-09T11:59:00.000-08:00

We're continuing our look at the people behind the scenes who make this show happen. Today we're meeting production assistant Tyler Bastine.

Mushroom Mania - Episode 419

2008-12-08T10:05:00.000-08:00

This, by far, was one of the most fascinating stories I’ve ever covered. How does a spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus end up being a diner’s delight in restaurants across the country? You do know mushrooms are a fungus?

For our story, we spent the day with the Webb family in Salt Lick, Kentucky. Their 200-acre commercial mushroom farm is located in the heart of Daniel Boone Forest. It is a wonder to see. It’s taken several years for them to build up their log operation, but in the process they discovered an even, better way to grow their organic mushrooms---inside a temperature-controlled greenhouse-style facility. The humid temperatures and misty sprays made for a bad hair day. Oh, and if you’re an asthma sufferer, please bring along your inhaler as the spores will get you good!

The one thing you quickly discover about Billy, Becky and their brood of boys is that they love working on the mushroom farm. There are so many daily tasks at hand and each one of them handles their chores with excitement. The older boys have even started to sell their mushrooms at local farmers markets….conjuring up the entrepreneurial spirit of their father.

My new favorite word that I learned while shooting this segment was “mushroom spawn.” It’s similar to mushroom seed, but has a much better ring to it. I could say it all day….mushroom spawn….mushroom spawn. As someone who has only eaten a single button mushroom in her lifetime, I can now say that I have a greater sense of appreciation for this versatile food source.

Yolanda Vazquez

America's Heartland on Facebook

2008-12-05T11:40:00.000-08:00

It seems everyone has a social-network page these days. One of the most popular is facebook.com. So in our effort to keep up with the times here at America's Heartland we have joined the herd.

We now have a facebook page for the show. If you are a viewer (and a member of facebook) you can become a "fan" of the show and link to our site. We'll keep it updated with photos from the road, blog entries and other cool stuff.

Check it out!

Jason

Rhody Warm Blanket - Episode 415

2008-12-04T16:12:00.000-08:00

I love a good, warm, wool blanket!! To be honest, I purchase them by the dozens each winter, but I never thought twice about all the work that goes into crafting such a simple covering. Rhody Warm is a locally grown, handmade, all-natural wool blanket that is produced by sheep farmers in Rhode Island. Sadly, the textile mills have closed up in New England and wool prices were so low that most farmers chucked the wool instead of doing anything useful with it.

Working with several state agencies, the RI sheep farmers figured out a way to turn their leftover wool into a useful product. This is another story where we spent several days shooting at various sheep farms, textile mills and learning the do’s and don’ts of spinning and weaving. I felt like I had just passed a course in blanket-making 101 by the time it was all said and done. The behind-the-scenes process is absolutely amazing…from shearing a sheep to seeing how all that discarded wool gets turned into material. Let’s just say I will never look at my favorite blankey the same way again.

In their first year, (2006) the RI sheep farmers collected 1,400 pounds of wool from 20 farmers. They were able to turn that wool into 370 blankets, most of which were sold right back to the local community (and given to friends as gifts). The best part is for the first time in years, sheep farmers were paid for their donated fleece. It wasn’t much, (somewhere around 40-50 cents a pound), but they were grateful for the extra cash.

The state-funded program for Rhody Warm comes to a close at the end of this year….so hopefully folks in the area will continue to support their local sheep farmers…turning their fuzzy fleeces into a homegrown favorite. I know what I’ll be using this winter to keep me warm and toasty!

Yolanda Vazquez

A new blog feature!

2008-12-02T09:37:00.000-08:00

I'm starting up a new feature on the America's Heartland blog. We're "ambushing" staff members. We want to find out more about the people who make this show happen.

Some people call this "video blogging" or "vlogging." I'll just call it a video. Our first video is of Jenna Cederburg, an associate producer for the show.

Jason

When visiting Apalachicola...

2008-12-01T10:18:00.000-08:00

In episode 411 I visit Crescent Moon Organic Farm in Sopchoppy, Florida. It's a small operation run by a couple of non-farmers who decided to try their hand at working the soil. They've found success selling their produce at local farmers markets and restaurants in the region.

One of those restaurants is "Avenue Sea" in Apalachicola, Florida. (side note: how about those town names in the Florida panhandle? Sopchoppy. Apalachicola.) The restaurant is located inside the Gibson Inn hotel.

We met the owners of Avenue Sea David and Ryanne Carrier on our first night in Apalachicola. David hails from New York City. Ryanne near Pittsburgh via Chicago. Both have very impressive culinary resumes...we're talking "The French Laundry" in California and "Blackbird" in Chicago. But we didn't find out about their passion for excellent cuisine until the second night. Our first impression was David's karaoke skills at a nearby neighborhood bar. This town of 3000 knows how to have a good time, and a big part of that involves impressing friends and neighbors with singing prowess.

We visited the restaurant after spending the day harvesting Tupelo Honey (episode 403). Ryanne is the pastry chef for the restaurant and she features the honey in her delicious delicacies. David uses fresh vegetables from Crescent Moon in his dishes. After we spent an hour or so in the crammed kitchen shooting footage, we decided it would be best to get out of the way...and eat.

I can honestly tell you that this was one of the best meals I've ever eaten. And I've eaten quite a few places traveling for this show! If you are a "foodie" you need to make your way down to Apalachicola and check it out.

Why is the restaurant named "Avenue Sea", you ask? Any ideas?

Jason

Kentucky Horseshoeing School - Episode 409

2008-11-24T17:08:00.000-08:00

Tucked away in the rolling hills of Mt. Eden, KY sits a school most people have never heard of and probably never knew existed. The Kentucky Horseshoeing School is a place where wanna-be farriers come (from all over the country and the world I might add) to learn the basics of horseshoeing. The training is intense (sometimes 8-22 weeks) with classroom instruction and several hands-on activities. Basic forging principles is a must to be a good farrier along with hoof trimming, shoe shaping and a good understanding of equine anatomy.

Most of the students are young guys who either grew up around horses or hoped to one day carve out a career shoeing horses. But there was one young lady in the school who seemed to be holding her own against the guys. She hailed from California and was quite an interesting sight to see amongst a sea of grungy guys. Truth be told, several women enter the program. Unfortunately, most drop out citing the grueling work and long days. I hope our gal passed with flying colors.

I couldn’t believe how physically demanding the work was and how much effort went into shoeing a horse. I also didn’t realize a horse must get new shoes every 5-6 weeks—it’s kinda like how we need a new pedicure every few weeks to keep the toes shining. Plus Old Trixie walks a lot better with new shoes and she’s a happier horse with them on.

By far, the most shocking aspect of training…involved the use of cadaver legs. Yes, you heard right. The school uses several cadaver legs to practice on….so they don’t maim a horse with a nail or some other implement. It’s a good practice standard to have, but you don’t want to be around when it’s time to go to the freezer to grab the newest cadaver leg.

The Kentucky Horseshoeing School is the brainchild of owner Mitch Taylor. He hopes to open a bigger, better school in Lexington, KY. Nothing pleases him more than to train the next generation of farriers - with a lifelong dream to further the development of this sometimes forgotten craft.

Yolanda Vazquez

A cheesy story

2008-11-24T15:10:00.000-08:00

We're up to episode 410 now on America's Heartland.

Depending on where you live, you might have just tuned in to see me sampling cheeses in Wisconsin. The state has a reputation for it's cheeses. We wanted to know exactly what makes Wisconsin cheese taste so good. I'm not sure we ever really found out. But I had a good time investigating. We visited several places that have a passion for all things cheese. The Beechwood Cheese Company has been at it for decades. The Real Cheese Place in Janesville is the place to go for a history lesson. (Side note: the owners of The Real Cheese Place get huge online props for snatching up the website www.wisconsincheese.com ) And if you are traveling to Milwaukee from Chicago, I suggest stopping by the Mars Cheese Castle.

What's your favorite type of cheese? Cheddar? Swiss? Havarti? Use the comments section and let me know why you love your Colby Jack. Let's have a debate about cheese. Right here on this blog.

Jason
(I prefer a good, aged cheddar)

There's no place like home

2008-11-12T14:46:00.000-08:00

We see lots of interesting things along the byways the heartland. We're usually inclined to stop at the odd roadside attractions if we have time. Of course most of them don't end up in the show. But there's something about the oddities of Kansas that called out to us. They demanded an audience. And in season four, those roadside wonders get their due on America's Heartland.

In Goodland, Kansas it's the huge sunflower painting. We discovered it while looking for a place to eat dinner. We didn't find any place to eat besides the hotel restaurant, but did stumble onto the sunflower painting.

But "isn't that a Pizza Hut in the background? Why didn't you eat there?"

Why yes, it is a Pizza Hut. What good eyes you have. The Pizza Hut was closed "due to lack of management" according to a note on the door.

So with no luck finding a place to eat we headed back to the hotel. No...not the "K Inn" across the street from the painting. Despite it's value (less than 20 bucks a night), it appears the K Inn hasn't seen any guests besides stray cats for a while.

There are plenty of interesting things to discover in Kansas. But it takes time. The states tourism motto "As big as you think" is quite appropriate. It's the only state I know that uses its actual geographic size to entice visitors.

Probably wouldn't work for most other states...
Delaware: Yes, we're small. Get over it.
Hawaii: Can't get here by car.

But I digress. You'll also find the geographic center of the U.S. near Lebanon, Kansas. It's at the end of a country road and surrounded by corn fields. While we were there a couple stopped by and snapped a couple of photos. Geography again...

Photographer Steve Riggs asked me to capture the moment. Over his shoulder is the actual marker for the actual geographic center of the U.S. Well, the lower 48. If you throw in Alaska and Hawaii you'll the center is in Butte County, South Dakota. Yes, they have a marker too. No, we haven't been there. Yet.

Our final stop on our Kansas Oddities Tour was the "Garden of Eden." This place is hard to do justice with words. Think lots of cement + kooky old guy trying to make a political statement. He died before it was completed.

His sculptures leave visitors asking lots of questions. And if you want, you can ask them directly to him, despite his decaying state. His body is on display for visitors to see. His plan to support his family after he died: have people pay admission to see his body. And they do...although it doesn't appear that anybody is getting rich off of the Garden of Eden today.

So that's a small slice of the interesting stuff we found in Kansas. You'll see a complete wrapup in episode 409. Oh...I forgot about the World's Largest Ball of Twine. We had so much great stuff from Kansas we had to do a separate story on the giant twine ball. That's coming up in episode 422. Patience. It'll be here before you know it. It'll give you time to plan your trip to Kansas.

Jason

Janesville on my mind

2008-10-28T13:08:00.000-07:00

Our America's Heartland travels are once again intersecting with news events. A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the timeliness our Asia episode that featured Chinese milk issues. This time it is closer to home.

The General Motors SUV plant in Janesville, Wisconsin is shutting down by the end of 2008. At one time this plant was responsible for rolling out hundreds of thousands of large SUVs. As gas prices skyrocketed earlier this year demand for these SUVs died. So GM shifted focus away from the SUV market. The New York Times Sunday Business section reported on the impact to Janesville.

"The workers there are stunned by the plant’s sudden demise. After building 3.76 million S.U.V.’s over the last 18 years, Janesville is headed for the automotive scrap heap."

We happened to be in Janesville when the plant closing was annouced in June. We were shooting a story about a very successful Pheasant farm in town. Before getting to the farm we had to stop at the post office, where I first heard the news. The clerk behind the counter told me just how big of an impact it would have on his town. At one point 5,000 people worked at the plant.

As we shot our story that day we tried to stay focused on the pheasant farm, but you couldn't escape the difficult news.

Layoffs and plant closings aren't isolated to Janesville. Times are tough in the heartland. Please know that you all are in our thoughts.

Oysters on the Half Shell - episode 407

2008-10-21T11:46:00.000-07:00

Fried clams, fried calamari, fried shrimp, fried catfish...all standard fare in the heartland. If a person only ate seafood in those greasy-spoon roadside diners they might think that fish swim through a vat of batter before getting to the table.

But the closer you get to the coasts, the more fresh seafood you find. And in the Apalachicola Bay in the Gulf of Mexico I discovered the freshest oysters. The folks at "13 Mile Oysters" have been harvesting and selling oysters for several generations.

A oysterman named Kendall Schoelless took me out to "tong" some oysters off the bottom of the bay. Kendall makes it look easy, but trust me, it takes some skill to pick them up.

Once we got some on the boat we chipped off the extra shell pieces and cracked open a couple. We even ate some right on the boat!

13 Mile ships their oysters all over the Southeast. But if you are ever near Apalachicola Bay, be sure to look them up.
Kendall piloting his small boat.

Another day, another hairnet - Jason Shoultz

2008-10-14T13:50:00.000-07:00

In episode 406 I learn how to make butter...lots of butter. I visited the AMPI butter plant in New Ulm, Minnesota. That's the same New Ulm where I learned how to make beer in episode 405.

Mmmm. Beer and butter.

AMPI churns out 120 million pounds of butter a year. We're talking giant tubs, cartons and tiny packets used in restaurants. If you have ever eaten butter at a restaurant, chances are you've eaten AMPI butter.

Rather than go through the details of how to make butter...I'll share some photos from the tour...
Steve Riggs and I conferring on how silly we look.

Manager Bill Swan and a fellow AMPI employee discussing how silly Steve and I look.

Bill Swan explaining that pink hairnets are actually in style now.

I need a drink - Jason Shoultz

2008-10-08T10:42:00.000-07:00

In episode 405 we visit Schell's brewery in New Ulm, Minnesota. The President, Ted Marti showed me around their historic brewery on the Minnesota River. The operation has been in the family for more tha 145 years. It's the second oldest family owned and managed brewery in the U.S.

I admit, I'm a beer drinker (have to stay true to my German roots), so I was looking forward to this story. There was another reason why I was excited about visiting Schell's. Frankly, I needed a beer. Take a look at this photo and you'll get an idea why...

The "no whining" sticker inside my production folder turned out to be a perfect sentiment for the first part of our Minnesota trip. A late-season winter storm blasted the state on our first day of our shoot there.

We typically shoot a handful of segments in each state during our visit. The storm hit while we were learning how pickles were made in Chaska, Minnesota. Fortunately making pickles is done inside, so we didn't have to do any shooting in the blizzard.

But we did have to drive...and that was a little challenging.

That was left to photographer Steve Riggs. He's comes from a news photographer background, so I'm usually telling him, "slow down, there's no fire." In this case I was just trying to convince him that talking on the cell phone while driving in a blizzard isn't the best of ideas.

But we made it to our hotel in Hutchinson...

...decided against a romance package and went for two standard rooms.

We took comfort in hearing the locals tell us that the winter had been generally pretty mild, until this storm hit.

A few days later, the weather warmed up a bit just in time for a tall cold one with Ted Marti at Schell's.

It's safe to say beer is in Ted Marti's blood. Not in a "blood alcohol content" kind of way. It's just that brewing beer has been in his family for generations. Ted is a pretty no-nonsense guy who takes his beer-making pretty seriously. I don't consider myself an afficianado, but I learned quite a bit about brewing beer on this visit.

If you are ever near New Ulm, Minnesota be sure to stop by the brewery. It is open for tours and there is a very nice museum and gift shop. Even if you aren't a beer fan, the historic buildings are worth your time. And if you ARE a beer-drinker, I recommend trying the "Maifest." It's a seasonal brew sold in the Spring...which I THOUGHT was in April.

And tell them Jason sent you!

Time for some viewer feedback...

2008-10-07T10:08:00.000-07:00

We love hearing from viewers. Please send along your comments, questions and ideas!

From Libby in Georgia:
I have recommended your series to all the agriculture education teachers in the State of Georgia. It sounds like some of them may even order the CD sets.
Why not do an episode on making linen from flax?

Thanks for watching, Libby! And thanks to all of the teachers out there who use the educational materials. You can easily download them from our website. Of course each segment is viewable on the website, so if purchasing all the DVD's isn't possible, just click-n-view.

Make sure you tune into episode 414! We've got your "flax into linen" covered! Paul Ryan visits The Landis Valley Museum in Pennsylvania and gets a lesson on linen making from flax. It was an education for me...I didn't know you could do that.

Unfortunately Paul did not bring back a flax shirt for me. Maybe next time...

Jason

Chinese Milk and America's Heartland

2008-10-03T16:08:00.000-07:00

You've likely read it in the newspaper and caught it on the TV news...Chinese milk contaminated with the dangerous chemical melamine. The facts are shocking: More than 50,000 kids sickened and 4 babies killed. The crisis has spread outside of China's borders as milk and dairy products are discovered to contain the chemical.

So what does this have to to with our show? Coming up on episode 417 we take a look at the dairy industry in China. As incomes rise in that region more people are drinking milk. Historically China's milk only went to the elite. Because of the low demand, the dairy industry in China has been about 50 years behind the U.S. We visited China as part of our special looking at overseas grain trade. US farmers see opportunity in that increasing milk demand. More milk = more cows. More cows = more feed. You get the idea.

It's hard to guess what kind of long term impact the current milk crisis in the country will have on the dairy industry (and US interests). But after seeing the a small traditional dairy farm in our program, you'll get an idea why there are some serious challenges in the country's dairy industry.

Check your local listings for episode 417! In the meantime, here are some photos from the trip:

Interviewing Charles Shao, co-founder of HuaXia Dairy Farm. HuaXia is US owned and uses western-style dairy management practices.

The milk from HuaXia Dairy Farm is tested at a laboratory for quality and safety. The lab is a joint project with the U.S. Grains council, an organization that works to improve trade for U.S. grain products.

HuaXia sells it's milk under the "Wondermilk" brand name. They charge about 25 percent more because of its higher quality.

Season Four is Underway

2008-09-22T16:40:00.000-07:00

We've been hard at work over the past several months...and you finally have the opportunity to see the fruits of our labor.

Season 4 is now underway...in high definition. I hope you'll enjoy watching the stories this season as much as I did putting them together.

Here are a few highlights from my travels:

- Beer-sampling in Minnesota. The good folks at Schell's Beer in New Ulm, Minnesota showed us around their historic brewhouse. It's been in the family for several generations, and they are darn proud of their brew. My only mistake was doing the sampling BEFORE the interview with the president of the company. Not all of the questions made sense!

- Visiting the world's largest balls of twine. Yes there are two of them. A town in Kansas and a town in Minnesota both lay claim to the title of possessing the giant twine balls. "One has to be bigger, right?" Yes...one is bigger, but by using some interesting stipulations they both get the title.

- Clams from Florida's "Alligator Harbor." What is it about Florida and alligators? For some reason I always end up hanging around them when I visit that fine state. This time chef Chris Hastings from the "Hot and Hot Fish Club" in Birmingham, Alabama introduced us to some interesting clammers. Then he cooked up a fantastic paella dish with all local ingredients. Good stuff.

So there's a small sample of what to expect from me this season. We really do appreciate the loyal viewers who tune in each week. You're support keeps this show going strong!

Jason

Time for something cheesy

2008-06-03T19:04:00.001-07:00

When you think of Wisconsin, what comes to mind? If you are like me...it's cheese. So we are in Wisconsin this week working on stories for our upcoming season. (In high definition...did I mention that already?)

We're exploring what makes Wisconsin cheese so delicious. From sharp cheddar to swiss, folks here take their cheese quite seriously. Yesterday we visited the Beechwood Cheese Company in Beechwood. The small cheese maker is known for its monthly "curd day." On the first Saturday of each month people line up (in the pre-dawn darkness) for hot, fresh curds. We'll be there this Saturday to try the curds too.

Today I got to visit the "Real Cheese Place" in Janesville, Wisconsin. It's easy to spot along the highway (painted like a cow).

And once inside you'll likely met Roger Schumacher. The retired cheesemaker is an expert of sorts on everything yellow here. At his store you'll find all types of cheeses...all made in Wisconsin. (with one exception, made in Illinois. But close enough to the border you could hit it with a baseball according to Roger.) I'm learning quite a bit about cheese. You'll have to tune in this Fall to find out about how limestone may actually impact the taste of cheese here. But until then, here's a preview of how things are going this week...

Travelin' Man

2008-05-30T15:41:00.000-07:00

My updates to the America's Heartland blog have been few and far between lately and I hope loyal viewers forgive me for that. I've been traveling all over the US shooting segments for our upcoming season. I'm going to be trying some new things in the upcoming weeks...like blogging from the road. Maybe even some video-blogging. Stay tuned for that.

We've been shooting some great stories lately. We've got turkey poop being turned into electricity in Minnesota, clamming off of the Florida panhandle and the beautiful paintings of artist Bonnie Mohr.

Next week I'm off to Wisconsin for some interesting stories. First topic: what else? cheese! We'll also be visiting a pheasant farm and a gourmet dog treat factory. Dog treats on America's Heartland? Well the bar is set high after Paul Ryan's visit to the Yummy Chummies factory in Anchorage, Alaska.

See you on the road!

On The Road Again!

2008-05-06T16:24:00.000-07:00

May 5, 2008

On the road again.

Got an email from a viewer suggesting some story ideas and asking just how we pick the stories we feature. Well, as the series producer, I look for stories that focus on the important crops to our farmers, growers and to our country. We often forget that American agriculture plays a major role in our global economy and in providing the food that people depend on in many parts of the world.
We’re always looking for “people” stories as well. There is a joy bringing viewers a story with someone who is excited about what they do and the impact is has on others. So we look for visual, engaging and emotional stories. We are shooting some stories in Florida this week on “harvesting” the seas for clams and oysters. We’ll also meet a man whose bees make a very special kind of honey. Then we’re off to North Carolina to see how furniture is made from soybean foam instead of petroleum products. We’ll also stop by a huge greenhouse operation that supplies plants to a major portion of the U.S. We did some background research on floriculture and were amazed to find it is a multi BILLION dollar agricultural industry in the United States. Small plants...big business!
Jim Finnerty
Series Producer
America’s Heartland

Planting Season

2008-04-21T16:21:00.000-07:00

April 21, 2008

Planting Season.

We’re all across the country these days getting ready for a new season of America’s Heartland. Jason Shoultz was just in Minnesota where he did a story on a community where turkey litter is being converted to electricity. He also captured a wonderful story about a woman whose rural art features the plants and animals that are iconic to America’s Heartland. We’ll be heading across the Midwest and Southeast very soon as planting begins on corn, wheat, soybeans and sorghum. It’s been a late season for planting in some areas thanks to spring snow and lots of rain that keep the fields too wet to plow. I was just shooting some stories in Texas where the cotton crop is just going in. We also did a story on Texas winemaking. Texas wine? As one grower told me, “In this part of Texas we have cotton, we have cattle and we have cabernet.” They are moving into viticulture in a big...big way. But hey, it’s Texas. This will be our fourth season and we did a back of the envelope tally and came up with close to 350 stories that we’ve shot and produced for our viewers on PBS and RFD TV. A lot of people love the visuals...wide open spaces...fields of grain....rich dark soil on the plains....and we’re shooting the new season in High Definition, so those images should be even more striking in season four.
Jim Finnerty
Series Producer
America’s Heartland

Happy Holidays

2007-12-11T10:47:00.000-08:00

It's December 11th, and as my 3 year old son reminds me, just days until Christmas. This is a busy time for everyone (shopping, decorating, baking) so it's important to take a moment and reflect.

Much of the Midwest is dealing with a snow and ice storm right now and hopefully safe in their homes. If the ice hasn't knocked out power to your home, what a perfect time to sit back and watch all of those TiVo'd episodes of America's Heartland!

I recently did a tally of all the places I've visited over the past couple of years and it's quite impressive! 18 states...32 airports! In each one of these places I've met some of the nicest, most welcoming folks a person could ask for. If you are one of the people who has been a part of the TV show, thanks again for your hospitality. If we haven't yet had the occasion to tell your story and you'd like to share it, please drop us a line! And to the millions of viewers across the U.S. who have honored us with your loyal viewership, thank you.

Nearing the End of (our) Growing Season

2007-11-02T14:53:00.000-07:00

It seems hard to believe, but it's already the time of year when leaves turn golden and the combines finish their non-stop rumbling through the fields of America's Heartland. Fall is upon us -- time to reflect on the season's successes and failures, to enjoy the crisp cold evenings and tardy sunrises, and to ponder what lies ahead next season.

Here at the America's Heartland, we're busy putting the finishing touches on the last four episodes of our third season. This year, we're proud to report that we achieved our goal of visiting all 50 states (you can feel special, Rhode Island -- we saved you for last!).

We were constantly amazed at the incredible variety of crops, commodities, and kinds of people we encountered. We were repeatedly impressed with the ingenuity, resourcefulness and business savvy of the average American farmer. And most of all, we were touched time and again by the warmth and hospitality of everyone we met.

Thanks to everyone who opened up their farms, homes and hearts to our production teams. And thanks to all of our viewers who've found us on their local PBS station, on RFD-TV, or here on our website. We hope you'll agree we did our job and covered this fascinating topic just a little better this season than last. We'll offer our promise that we will strive to improve even more next season!

Now, as most of you know, each local PBS station runs America's Heartland on its own schedule, so some of you may have quite a few season 3 episodes left to watch. But keep an eye out for some of our themed shows: the one where we spent "dawn to dusk" with a North Dakota farm family turned out pretty well, we think...and we learned a lot about how American ingenuity helped bring water to some of our country's most arid (but potentially fertile) regions. We were astounded by what we learned about the Hoover Dam, and we think you will be too.

For now, we'll say thanks once again, and please remember to write us with your comments and story ideas.

Mike Sanford
America's Heartland

Behind the Scenes

2007-10-08T14:35:00.000-07:00

We often hear how much viewers appreciate the beautiful images of America's Heartland. It is truly of the best things about the show. Here's my chance to introduce you to the two guys who capture most of that great footage.

Brad White (that's him there with the black t-shirt on) is a veteran photojournalist who has traveled to more countries than I dare begin to count. This photo is myself, Brad and Corky Cooprider at the Kansas State Fair. Corky was our guide/chaperone/historian for our season one segment. After 12 state fairs, she knows her way around the grounds. (Just stay out of her way when she's driving the golf cart). If Brad were looking at that photo, he would likely say, "Too much headroom. Zoom in!"

Brad's right hand man is a guy named Steve Riggs. He started shooting segments for America's Heartland in season two and is responsible for most of the video in season three. Steve and I often laugh about all of the corners of this great country that we've seen! Look for Steve's attention to detail in upcoming segments about abandoned grain elevators in Buffalo, New York, crop-dusting in Mississippi and the Hoover Dam.

That's Steve there cradling his baby ('er camera) at the "Geographic Center of the USA." It seems some of our best adventures on the road for this show happen in Kansas. The geographic center is located a few miles from the small town of Lebanon.

(A clarification is in order for you geography buffs. This is the center of the LOWER 48 STATES. Factoring in Alaska and Hawaii puts it in Butte County, South Dakota. There are websites dedicated to both if you are interested.)

But enough about geographic centers and state fairs. If you are impressed with the images you see in America's Heartland you are not alone, and these are the guys to thank.

Harvests, Hondas, and All Things Heartland

2007-09-14T10:45:00.000-07:00

It’s harvest time throughout much of the Heartland, and of course that means the show's staff is running at maximum rpm. It's a good time of year for us. Besides having that once-a-year chance to capture all the frantic harvest activity on Heartland farms and ranches, the temperatures are back down to a rational level, and the light -- that primal element governing all photography -- is at its most beautiful. The pictures we're getting now will warm the hearts of Heartland fans during the cold months of winter, when many of our stations and RFD-TV are airing the later batch of our 22 new episodes.

So will a number of the stories we have lined up: the winter wheat harvest in Oklahoma, the durum wheat harvest on the plains of North Dakota. Both awesome spectacles evoking that iconic American image of "amber waves of grain." Durum wheat being milled into semolina, then into some of the best pasta your supermarket dollar can buy.

There's a fishing village in New Jersey and a "you-pick" farm in Alaska, where customers have one chance to get fresh greens for their table in an incredibly short growing season. There's one of the world's biggest peanut butter processing plants in New Mexico, of all places. By the way, we learned there is actually a word to describe the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of one’s mouth! Track down episode number 305 this fall, and you'll be able to impress your friends with that bit of trivia all winter long.

Following shows will fill you in on the challenges of growing the ubiquitous soybean, and an unusual relationship the Honda car company has with soybean growers in Ohio.

Some offbeat stories are coming your way as well. A veritable city of mammoth grain elevators on Lake Erie's edge in Buffalo, New York -- completely abandoned, and pretty weird. A south Florida "farm" that grows tropical fruits. One favorite fruit reveals what looks like raw kidney when it's cracked open. And our first ghost story will close out one coming episode: a not-quite-right restaurant in a tiny Great Plains town.

Our crews are still out there. If you see us, say "hi" and tell us what YOU would like to see on America's Heartland. We love getting your ideas. They help keep us down to earth, where America’s best television program about agriculture belongs!

Pat on the Prairie

2007-08-27T11:10:00.000-07:00

Pat’s Blog for North Dakota

This is my second trip to the great state of North Dakota. What an agricultural state it is. It’s especially evident this time of year when the sunflowers are in bloom and the fields stretch as far as the eye can see. A person can’t help but feel good when you see a sunflower. They’ll be ready for harvest in a few weeks and off to a plant to be turned into oil.

Sunflowers are sharing the landscape with wheat. It’s the height of harvest for those “amber waves of grain”. I was impressed by the fact that virtually everything else stops for the farmer and his family during this busy time of year. Harvesting continues way into the night. One motel where we stayed the manager had to leave that evening so she could help her husband in the fields.

Seeing that dedication will help me appreciate my bread and pasta even more!

Something Fishy Going On...

2007-08-22T15:54:00.001-07:00

Keep your eye out for an upcoming segment in season 3. America’s Heartland recently visited the state of Mississippi as part of our effort to cover all 50 states. And a trip to Mississippi wouldn’t be complete without visiting one of the dozens of catfish farms. Yes, they “farm” catfish. Fly over the Indianola area and you get a sense of just how important catfish farming is to the region. Giant ponds filled with thousands of catfish stretch for miles. Where I grew up, in Iowa, folks used to catch catfish in the Mississippi River. It was served fried, whole. But in catfish country, it’s all filleted! It’s fried, of course, and on almost every restaurant menu in the area. But we did find one restaurant where they don’t fry the fish, and are proud of it. At the Crown Restaurant in Indianola, Evelyn Roden shares her “Catfish Allison” recipe. The fillet doesn’t go anywhere near grease. Instead it gets poached and then baked with a creamy sauce. Evelyn says catfish is the perfect fish for this kind of preparation. It just soaks up all the buttery flavor. And boy does she use a lot of butter! So if you happen to be driving through catfish country, stop at The Crown and tell Evelyn that Jason from America’s Heartland sent you!

Of Presidents and Season Premieres

2007-08-20T12:34:00.000-07:00

News & Notes Season 3, Edition 4

It’s been an exciting and extremely busy couple of weeks. Our reporters and producers are back from assignments all across the Heartland, including Indiana, Illinois, Mississippi and New Jersey. As I write this, host Paul Ryan’s just back from North Dakota, and reporter Pat McConahay’s is in West Virginia. That means, by the end of next week we will have been to 49 states! Only our smallest state, Rhode Island, remains on our to-do list, and we’re researching stories right now for a September shoot.

Meantime, we’re putting the finishing touches this week on our eighth episode, and it’s a special one. Paul hosts the program from Monticello, the longtime home of our third president, Thomas Jefferson. There, we learn that Jefferson was much more than a statesman, scholar, president, and founding father: he was an avid farmer and gardener.

For more than a decade, he happily toiled in his thousand foot long “kitchen garden,” experimenting with over three hundred varieties of vegetables and more than 170 different kinds of fruit! It promises to be an episode rich in history and stunning images. As I’ve mentioned before, season 3 episodes will be available to PBS stations across the U.S. starting the week of September 3. Some stations will begin airing these new episodes right away; others may still be wrapping up their broadcasts of the season 2 programs. Our website is a good way to check your own station’s broadcast schedule. And, season 3 of America’s Heartland will also begin airing on the RFD-TV cable and satellite network about the same time. Some other stories to watch for this new season: Jason Shoultz discovers how lovable but determined beagles are providing the first line of defense to keep potentially destructive ag pests from entering the U.S.; Pat finds out how important bees are to many of our crops, and what beekeepers and scientists are doing to combat the decline of healthy hives; and Gabriela Zaragoza introduces us to the oldest agricultural experiment in America (hint: it’s part of an agricultural research project at the University of Illinois). Please keep sending us your story ideas, suggestions, and recipes! Please send recipes to Jennifer Iida at jiida@kvie.org for consideration. For questions and comments, go directly to the “Feedback” section.Thanks for all your support, and for watching America’s Heartland!

Seth Alspaugh

Now that's a lot of food!

2007-07-24T11:21:00.000-07:00

There are times when being a reporter for America's Heartland has its perks.

For an upcoming segment, we recently visited the Bellagio Hotel Buffet and got an exclusive tour of the facility from Executive Chef Wolfgang Von Weiser. Wolfgang is a native of Austria who began cooking Sunday dinner as a young man so he could get out of going to church with his family. Now he's in charge of dozens of chefs in all of the the Bellagio's restaurants.

When you watch the segment, you'll get a chance to see the heartland's harvest on display. Fresh vegetables, meats, cheeses, fruit...it's all there. And folks eat it up!

Of course I couldn't visit this bountiful buffet without picking up a plate myself!

Jason Shoultz / Reporter-Producer America's Heartland

News & Notes 3

2007-07-18T19:08:00.000-07:00

Season 3, Edition 3

Welcome to the latest edition of the America’s Heartland newsletter!

We’re very excited about the impending launch of our third season. As this is being written, we’re putting the finishing touches on our fifth episode. That leaves seventeen more to go. As I may have mentioned before, this season we’re doing twenty-two half hour episodes, two more than in previous seasons.

The season 3 episodes will be available to PBS stations across the U.S. starting the week of September 3. Some stations will begin airing these new episodes right away; others may still be wrapping up their broadcasts of the season 2 programs. I’d encourage you to visit our website to check your own station’s broadcast schedule, or how to contact them directly for more information. And, don’t forget, America’s Heartland also appears on the RFD-TV cable and satellite network.

Some of the stories appearing early in season 3 include two Nevada ranch families whose future plans cover both ends of the spectrum: one is selling his land to developers, while the other is undertaking a great effort to keep his ranch for future generations. We’ll also meet a Delaware farm family that’s turning down the developers in favor of a more community-minded transaction: their property will soon become a new high school.

Also, look for a story about how two generations of an Iowa family continue a lifelong, yearly ritual of harvesting their abundant corn crop; how Michigan researchers are finding new crops to convert into biofuels; and a California farm family who returned to their Italian roots to successfully raise an ancient crop: olives.

News from our website: we’ve launched a new effort to greatly expand our recipe section, which is always popular with both viewers and web surfers. Look for many more traditional family recipes and regional specialties in the weeks to come! Please send recipes to Jennifer Iida at jiida@kvie.org for consideration.

Remember, please click on the “Watch Heartland” link on our website to see where you can catch the program, or go to your own local PBS station website for even more details. And, as always, you can always e-mail us directly via our website with your questions and comments.

Thanks for watching, and we’ll see you on the farm!

Seth Alspaugh
Executive Producer
America’s Heartland

News & Notes 2

2007-06-29T19:18:00.000-07:00

Season 3, Edition 2

I hope you had a chance to read our last newsletter outlining some of the exciting plans underway for the launch of Season 3 of America’s Heartland.

As we noted, we’re on target to complete our goal of visiting all 50 states to learn more about the unique crops, commodities, challenges and rewards that farmers and ranchers create and experience in each.

For example, our Pat McConahay is just back from New Jersey, where she was surprised to learn just how farmland still exists in that industrialized state. Of course, farmers in the Garden State, like so many others, still face challenges in maintaining their essential presence in the face of increasing urbanization. But one of the stories you’ll see in season 3 is Pat’s report on new efforts in New Jersey to preserve farm land for future generations.

Meantime, reporter Jason Shoultz just returned from Mississippi, where he was blessed with good weather and a bumper crop of excellent stories, including flying with an old-fashioned crop duster who still takes to the air to help farmers achieve a successful harvest. Jason also visited a huge catfish farm to see how that unique specialty crop is raised. And, he joins a specialized “ag crime unit” doing its best to help farmers prevent thieves from stealing their hard-won product.
The first episode of Season 3 is now complete and will start appearing on many PBS stations across America in September. Next newsletter, we’ll tell you more about what new stories to look for in the first few weeks of the new season. In the meantime, please click on our “Watch Heartland” link on our website to see where you can catch the program, or go to your own local PBS station website. You can also watch segments online at americasheartland.org
Thanks for watching!

Seth Alspaugh
Executive Producer
America’s Heartland

News & Notes 1

2007-06-18T19:14:00.000-07:00

Season 3, Edition 1

Greetings!

As Executive Producer of America's Heartland, I'm pleased with this opportunity to bring you up to date on our coming new season.

While involved as the program's line producer through our first two seasons in 2005 and 2006, I was privileged to be part of the series' evolution into an informative, entertaining half-hour that celebrates American agriculture in its spectacular variety, and one that illuminates and honors the lives of America's farmers and ranchers.

In the 40 half-hour episodes produced throughout its first two seasons, America's Heartland reporters and crews brought in stories from more than 40 states. By the middle of our new third season, we will have completed our first "tour" of all 50 states. All across the U.S, we've discovered unforgettable people and places in the world of agriculture.

Back in 2005, we opened our first episode with the line "America's heartland is more than a place; it's a state of mind."

More than 200 stories later, it's still true. Providing food, fuel and fiber for America and the world is an act of passion on the part of our farmers and ranchers big or small, mainstream or specialized. In season three, you'll hear more from the food producers themselves and see a bit more about what motivates them and how they live their lives.

This season, you'll see a special show examine a busy springtime day in the lives of five members of a hard-working North Dakota ranch family in a remote corner of our least-populated state.

America's Heartland also has some thrills and entertainment in store this season: a sky-high view of an agriculture aviator's risky aerial ballet; a fascinating and slightly spooky tour inside Nevada's fabled Hoover Dam; a 3:00 a.m. boat ride on Chesapeake Bay pursuit of blue crabs; even a night with some hardcore Mississippi blues musicians in some classic deep south juke joints.

And there will be new features as well: commentary from some of our farmers and ranchers at their outspoken best; favorite farm pets and animals, curious roadside attractions throughout the Heartland, and some of the Heartland's most scenic farms and ranches.

For season 3, look for new faces among our on-camera contributors. Host Paul Ryan and reporters Pat McConahay and Jason Shoultz are still doing the lion's share of the "roadwork," but this year they'll be joined from time to time by fine reporters Yolanda Vazquez, Gabriela Hidalgo Zaragosa, and others.

Production for season three is in full swing and our first programs are "rolling out." Chances are they'll be showing up in the local listings for your PBS station come late August or early September. We hope you're there to "grow" along with the ride with us. Please check our website for frequent updates on our broadcast schedule, partner stations, and rich new web content.

Seth Alspaugh
Executive Producer
America's Heartland