Georgia Farmers Celebrate Agriculture Week

Pictured from left, Jimmy, Jerry, Phenna, Chris and Don Petty are shown on their family farm near Chatsworth, Ga. Petty’s Dairy received the first Governor’s Agricultural Environmental Stewardship Award presented at the statewide Ag Week Celebration on March 21.

Representatives of every segment of Georgia agriculture participated in an Agriculture Week Celebration, March 21, at the Georgia Freight Depot in Atlanta.

Guests included state legislators, 4-H and FFA members and commodity beauty queens. The sound of country music and the tantalizing aroma of roasted corn, fried chicken and peach cobbler drifted through the air at the fair-style celebration hosted by Gov. Sonny Perdue and the Georgia Agriculture Advisory Committee in honor of Georgia Agriculture Week, March 19-25.
Those attending the event were able to enjoy the taste of Georgia-grown commodities as they visited educational exhibits highlighting Georgia agriculture. Ag celebration attendees also had the opportunity to see how agriculture impacts urban areas. Tours of Turner Field spotlighted Georgia’s turfgrass industry.

“It’s important that we acknowledge the contributions Georgia farmers make to our state economy with programs such as Georgia Agriculture Week,” Georgia Farm Bureau President Wayne Dollar said. “Georgia farmers work hard year round to grow commodities that feed and clothe not only Georgians but people around the world. Being able to produce our own food supply is a matter of national security because it prevents us from being dependent on other nations for our food.”

During the ag celebration, Jimmy, Don and Jerry Petty, owners of Petty’s Dairy in Murray County, were named the inaugural recipients of the Governor’s Agricultural Environmental Stewardship Award. The award was sponsored by the Governor’s Agriculture Advisory Commission to honor farmers who are good stewards of all aspects of the environment in their farming practices.

Other district winners were: Asa “Dick” Philips, owner of Wakefield Farms in Hart County; Glen, John and Russ Walters, owners of Walters Farm, in Lamar County; Bob Rawlins, owner of Rawlins Farm in Turner County; and Kenneth Durrence, owner of W.K. Durrence Farms, in Evans County.

The Petty brothers and their four sons run a dairy and grow corn, soybeans and wheat on the farm that has been in their family since 1915. The Pettys were praised for creating a 15-mile (170 acres) stream buffer to protect the Canasauga River, which runs through their 4,000-acre farm. The family has created a 35-foot forested buffer and a 30-foot green buffer to protect the river that is home to endangered fish and mussel species. The tested water that exits their farm is cleaner than water that enters.

“I always say that farmers were the original conservation stewards of the land,” Perdue said when presenting the award.
The Pettys have also utilized the USDA’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program to install a waste application system for their dairy operation. They use recycled water to wash out the dairy barns and no-till their crops.

As a result of their conservation efforts, the Pettys say they have seen an increase in the wildlife population on their farm, particularly quail, bobcats and bears.

---

Georgia 4-H Horse Auction raises $9,400

The 12th Annual Georgia 4-H Benefit Horse Auction, held Feb. 25, raised $9,400 for the state 4-H Horse Program. Eleven horses were sold for an average price of $854.54. The proceeds from the auction are used to support 4-H Horse activities such as the 4-H Horse School, Quiz Bowl, Judging Contest and state 4-H Horse Show.

A chestnut Irish Sport Horse donated by Susan Gonzalez of Fairfield, Conn., brought the top bid of $3,050. Preston Wofford, of Jackson County, purchased the chestnut gelding named Video. Wofford said he was glad to be able to call the horse his own after taking care of the gelding for another owner before Gonzalez. Other top horses included a sorrel American Quarter Horse gelding which brought $1,250 and a Thoroughbred chestnut mare which sold for $1,050.

The Georgia Farm Bureau Equine Advisory Committee cosponsored the auction with the University of Georgia as it has since the auction began in 1995. The auction is held annually at the Georgia National Fairgrounds in Perry during the Georgia National Junior Livestock Show.

Prior to the sale, a special ceremony was held in memory of Wayne Morris, one of the founders of the annual sale who served on the GFB Equine Advisory Committee from 1988 until 2005. Morris died earlier this year. A horse with an empty saddle was led around the ring while GFB President Wayne Dollar paid tribute to Morris for his dedicated service to Farm Bureau and the sale. A moment of silent prayer was held for the Morris family.

GFB Equine Committee members assisting with the sale are pictured left to right: GFB 3rd District Field Representative and Equine Committee Secretary Ricky Lane, Tom Kerlin, Fayette County; Gerry Weaver, Gordon County; GFB Equine Committee Chairman Danny Hogan, Laurens County; GFB President Wayne Dollar, Jan Fulton, Spalding County and Beverly Nation, Oglethorpe County.