Fresh Food Abounds on a Six Acre Mississippi Farm

From the USDA:

Posted by Judi Craddock, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Mississippi, on January 27, 2015 at 3:00 PM

Priscilla Williamson, NRCS supervisory district conservationist, (left), enjoys seeing all the varieties of tomatoes ripening in the newly constructed seasonal high tunnel.

Hattie Thompson has a heart for growing healthy food for her community thanks to the help of her new seasonal high tunnel.

“My mission is to network throughout the local community with other growers who might be interested in doing the same thing, and to teach children and mothers about nutrition,” said Thompson, who farms in Leake County, Mississippi.

After 50 years of city life in Wisconsin, Thompson and her husband moved to the country near Carthage, Mississippi, when they inherited some land 10 years ago. The small six-acre farm is landscaped with fruit trees and an abundance of beautiful flowers. Chickens, guineas and turkeys also call the farm home.

It was Thompson’s neighbors who told her about USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), who could help her with conservation practices on her farm. When she visited with Priscilla Williamson, NRCS supervisory district conservationist, she learned about the agency’s Seasonal High Tunnel Initiative available through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP).

Seasonal high tunnels are plastic-covered structures that enable farmers to have crops ready earlier or later in the season. Plants are grown directly in the ground, and the sun’s heat regulates the temperature inside. High tunnels are a cornerstone of USDA’s Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Initiative, which coordinates USDA’s work on local and regional food systems.

Thompson immediately realized that a high tunnel was a perfect fit for her small acreage farm. It would also fulfill her desire to produce healthy food. Working with Williamson, Thompson was approved to receive financial assistance through EQIP on a high tunnel and construction soon began. It was a family project with one of her five sons, Kevin, helping construct the high tunnel, also helping Thompson save some money.

Hattie Thompson of Carthage, Mississippi, shows the huge crop of string beans she produced in her new seasonal high tunnel on her small farm.

“She is a very energetic lady and one who gets things done quickly,” Williamson said.

An amazing variety of tomatoes, string beans, cucumbers, peppers, watermelons, squash and herbs are grown and ready for farmer’s markets, as well as the entire Thompson family. Pollinator-friendly plants, such as huge sunflowers, surround the tunnel helping to attract bees to aid in pollination.

“Using the high tunnel enables me to grow healthy food almost all year long,” Thompson said.

She does her own composting of chicken litter, wood chips and other organic material and uses it for fertilizing the naturally grown vegetables and fruits in the high tunnel. Through EQIP, a micro-irrigation system was also installed inside the high tunnel. This irrigation system allows water to be delivered near the roots of plants, ensuring water is used wisely.

“A lot of hard work goes into all this, but it’s worth it to give something to the community,” Thompson said.

Thompson planted rows of sunflowers and cut flowers along the outer edges of the high tunnel to serve as pollinators for all the plants inside.

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Providing the Gift of Water for Poinsettias and Other Ornamental Crops

From USDA:

Posted by Scott Elliott, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, on December 12, 2014 at 10:00 AM

How much do you know about this iconic plant that brightens lots of homes this time of year?

Happy Poinsettia Day!

Of the countless iconic holiday season images in American homes, perhaps the most popular and colorful of them started off as a humble bush from our neighbors to the south.

The poinsettia was introduced to this country in the late 1820s by Joel Poinsett, the first American ambassador to Mexico, but only started on the path to holiday season superstardom in the early 1900s.  By 2013, poinsettias accounted for 23 percent of sales for flowering potted plants – to the tune of $146 million.

Floriculture, the aspect of horticulture than relates to ornamental crops, ranks fifth in U.S. agriculture.  Production of these crops – which includes cut flowers, both potted and landscape plants, and green roofs – occurs in open fields, nurseries, greenhouses, and high tunnels.

The high demand of these crops for irrigation water is a major challenge for growers, with household use and traditional agriculture as the major competitors for water.  This competition is especially severe when coupled with drought.  Growers must have effective and efficient ways to both provide the quality and quantity of water they need to ensure the health of their plants and to limit the flow of nutrients and chemicals through runoff into watersheds.

That’s where USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) comes in.  NIFA has provided funding for several floriculture research projects that address a variety of irrigation concerns.  One example is a $2.7 million project in which researchers from Virginia Tech have developed protocols to manage pathogens in reclaimed water sources.  As of August 2014, researchers have categorized nine new species of Phytophthora – a primary cause of plant root and crown rot – from nursery irrigation systems in Virginia and Mississippi.

Right outside of our nation’s capital, University of Maryland researchers are using a NIFA-administered grant of more than $5.1 million to develop a wireless sensor network capable of supporting the intensive production system requirements of field nurseries, container nurseries, greenhouse operations, and green roof systems.  After only three years, the system has helped growers make more informed irrigation scheduling decisions and reduced average water applications by more than 50 percent.  Smarter scheduling decreases runoff and means better production with less water.

Better production means more flowering plants, including the pink, white, red, or multicolored beauties that bring so many added holiday cheer.   The next time you gaze at a poinsettia, you can thank Joel Poinsett, America’s nursery industry, and NIFA for adding color to the season, reducing the demand on U.S. water supplies, and protecting the nation’s waterways.

Through federal funding and leadership for research, education, and extension programs, NIFA focuses on investing in science and solving critical issues impacting people’s daily lives and the nation’s future. For more information, visit www.nifa.usda.gov.

The Pham Family Farm, Immigrants Making a Good Life in Mississippi

From USDA:

Posted by Judi Craddock, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Mississippi, on December 8, 2014 at 1:00 PM

Nancy and Hung Pham stand in front of one of their many fruit trees with branches so full they almost hit the ground. NRCS photo by Judi Craddock.

Just outside Hazlehurst, Mississippi, a community of 4,000 about 30 miles south of Jackson, lies a poultry farm owned by a Vietnamese farm family whose lives are an amazing story of survival and determination.

Hung and Nancy Pham are refugees who fled the former South Vietnam as teenagers in a shrimp boat during the fall of Saigon in 1975. They were rescued by the U.S. Navy and brought to America. Years after arriving in the United States, the two were reunited through family friends and soon married. Today, the Phams attribute their journey through hardships, their work ethic and positive attitude to the happiness and success they’ve enjoyed as poultry farmers.

“We spent most of our lives in the city after coming to America, but we have loved returning to a healthier, country lifestyle and taking care of the land,” Nancy said.

The Phams were living in Texas when they heard about an out-of-date 105-acre poultry farm for sale in Mississippi. Hung was already working on a poultry farm owned by a family member. After gaining some operational experience, attending poultry seminars and researching the industry, they bought the Mississippi farm in 2006.

“With the old chicken houses not up to modern standards, no compost to manage litter and so many repairs to be made, the place looked more like a junkyard than a farm and was in really bad shape,” Hung said.

A waste storage facility built last year is used to properly store poultry waste or litter. NRCS photo by Judi Craddock.

Luckily, some neighbors invited Hung to a local meeting where he heard about USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, or NRCS, as well as Farm Bill conservation programs. NRCS has played a vital role in providing technical assistance and guidance to the Phams in using and benefitting from the agency’s Environmental Quality Incentives Programs, or EQIP.

The Phams applied for and received financial assistance through EQIP and began implementing conservation practices on their farm. This included a waste storage facility, also known as a dry stack, which is used to properly store chicken waste or litter, and an animal mortality facility, which composts chicken carcasses to create organic fertilizer for pastureland and cropland.

At full capacity, the Phams can raise 200,000 chickens five times a year for a buyer, which provides the chicks, feed and medicinal requirements. The operational expenses are the Phams responsibility. Their poultry houses are built according to the buyer’s specifications. Every 58-65 days, the grown chickens are picked up, and new chicks delivered to the Phams.

With Hung being the handyman and Nancy keeping a close eye on their finances, they have turned the farm completely around, making it a successful family farm for themselves and their three children.

“The Phams are one of the best landowners and producers we have had the privilege of working with,” said Bill Russell, a supervisory district conservationist with NRCS, who helped the Phams apply for assistance. “They have readily taken every opportunity available from NRCS, plus invested so much of themselves to boost their productivity as well as become environmentally friendly.”

New, modern poultry houses on the Pham Farm. NRCS photo by Judi Craddock.

A Census Story from Benton County, Mississippi

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Hubert Hamer, NASS Statistics Division Director, on April 17, 2014 at 1:00 PM

Cattle graze on a farm in Benton County, Mississippi. Cattle and calves ranked as the top livestock inventory item for the Benton County in the previous census of agriculture – what will the 2012 Census results reveal? (Photo courtesy of Dennis Garner)

The Census of Agriculture is the most complete account of U.S. farms and ranches and the people who operate them. Every week USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service will highlight new Census data and the power of the information to shape the future of American agriculture.

The final 2012 Census of Agriculture release is just around the corner. My passion for Census data is rooted not only in the benefits the Census results provide for agriculture as a whole, but also in the value it provides at the local level. To help you see and share all the ways Census data are working for you, USDA is kicking off a dialogue to share how the Census is working for you and your community.

Through Your Census. Your Story., you can become engaged in the Census Story.

My Census Story begins in Benton County, Mississippi. I grew up on a small livestock and row crop farm in Benton County. Like the trends in farming that continue today, I left the family farm to go to college. After graduation, I joined USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).

At NASS, I maintained my roots in agriculture by collecting and providing ag data to all those who serve farmers and rural communities. Through the Census, I worked directly with the farmers, ranchers, agribusinesses and community based organizations (CBOs) that rely on the information that only the Census provides.

For the 2012 Census of Agriculture, I personally visited many of these local organizations across the country and listened to their stories about how the Census can help the people and communities the CBOs represent.  From CBOs in the West who depend on the data to improve production and rural services in their communities, to agribusinesses in the East who depend on the results to improve facilities and diversify marketing options in their areas.

Regardless of which county or community you represent, the real impact of the Census can be found at the local level. When the 2012 Census data are released all the way to the county level, I will look at what has happened in Benton County, where my passion for agriculture began.

I will also look at how I can continue to use census data to serve agriculture off the farm, just as I did when I ventured away from the farm many years ago. I will ask, “How can I continue to empower others with Census data to help benefit farmers, ranchers, and rural communities?” This is my Census Story.

What’s your #AgCensusStory? How does the Census benefit you, your operation, and your community? I encourage you to read and listen to more stories and share yours at www.agcensus.usda.gov/Census_Story/.

Beginning Farmers Cattle Operation Benefits from Initiative for Underserved Farmers

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Beverly Moseley, NRCS, on August 29, 2013 at 11:00 AM

Emma and Percy Brown of Vicksburg, Miss., are beginning farmers whose lives have benefited from funding through the USDA StrikeForce for Rural Growth and Opportunity initiative.

For over a year, Mississippi retirees Percy and Emma Brown traveled 50 miles roundtrip three times a week from their home in Vicksburg, Miss. to their farm in Port Gibson in order to water their cattle. It was a time consuming process that involved filling up eight barrels with many gallons of water for the growing cattle herd.

That all changed when the Browns, who were new to farming, heard about USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, an agency that helps private landowners implement conservation. They visited the Port Gibson field office and learned that they could receive funding from NRCS for livestock water troughs through the USDA StrikeForce for Rural Growth and Opportunity initiative.

The Browns were able to install the farm’s first-ever water troughs with StrikeForce funds. The farm now has two water troughs located in separate pastures. That means that the Browns’ days of hauling water are over, and they can now spend that time on other farm projects.

The national StrikeForce initiative addresses high-priority funding and technical assistance needs in rural communities in 16 states, including Mississippi, with a special emphasis on historically underserved producers and communities in designated counties with persistent poverty. The initiative provides an opportunity for NRCS to work with underserved landowners to determine how to best leverage available financial assistance. Beginning farmers like the Browns are considered historically underserved.

Farmer Percy Brown and Patrick Smith, NRCS district conservationist in Port Gibson, Miss., visit about conservation planning on Emma and Percy Brown’s farm.

“We just really wanted to get started and we didn’t really know how,” Percy says.

StrikeForce also helped the Browns install conservation practices such as cross fencing, one key to implementing a rotational grazing system which can help reduce the pressures caused by overgrazing. Negative effects of overgrazing include soil compaction, decreased soil organic matter and reduced forage availability for the livestock.

The Browns now have peace of mind knowing their 15 head of cattle will always have drinking water. The water troughs have also freed up more time for the Browns to enjoy their retirement days working on the farm.

Since the Browns installed two water troughs and heavy use pads on their farm from additional EQIP funds through the USDA StrikeForce for Rural Growth and Opportunity initiative, they are no longer spending hours using a water hose to fill up eight water barrels for their cattle.

Appeal of Diverse Side of Ag Statistics

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USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Troy Joshua, National Agricultural Statistics Service, on August 27, 2013 at 9:40 AM

Troy Joshua (left) visited Matty Matarazzo’s (right) farm. Matarazzo owns and operates the Four Sisters Winery in Belvidere, N.J.

This post is part of the Science Today feature series on the USDA blog. Check back each week as we showcase stories and news from USDA’s rich science and research portfolio.

2013 is the International Year of Statistics. As part of this global event, every month this year USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service will profile careers of individuals who are making significant contributions to improve agricultural statistics in the United States.

Growing up in the rural community of St. James, Louisiana, I always had a passion for agriculture. In 1992, I earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Business from Southern University A&M College in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and earned a Master of Science degree in Agricultural Economics from Washington State University two years later.

For my master’s thesis, I created an economic model analyzing the profitability of the Washington state asparagus industry. To get the data for my thesis, I created and mailed questionnaires, editing and analyzing all of the responses. This experience sparked my interest in the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), and I joined the agency’s California Field Office in 1994.

The California office opened up new horizons for me. Growing up in Louisiana, I was used to what we call “conventional” farming. But California agriculture is much more diverse, giving me a chance to learn about different crops, such as grapes, almonds, and oranges. That was just the beginning of my NASS career. I expanded my knowledge of American agriculture, accepting assignments over the next few decades in Mississippi, Washington, D.C. and New Jersey offices.

These experiences also honed my statistical skills and prepared me for my current role as the chief of the Environmental, Economics, and Demographics Branch. Diversity is truly the nature of my branch. We publish all of the agency’s data on farmer demographics, farm income, prices, labor, as well as on pesticide and herbicide use in agriculture. Just a few weeks ago, for example, we published updates to farm expenditures figures, which showed that producers’ expenditures topped $350 billion for the first time in history.

It is the diversity of statistics that appeals the most to me about my current role. One day I may meet with farmers who talk to me about their increases in farm inputs as compared to the value of their crops sold. The next day, I may handle one of our frequent requests from university professors looking for farmer demographics data for the U.S. and specific regions. To me, that’s the true beauty of statistics – the fact that these numbers touch every facet of our lives.