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A Celebration of Florida Fun and Food at the Annual Fundraiser From fried dill pickles, to sweet potato fries, to venison tacos, this year’s 11th Annual Beast Feast and Auction was quite the culinary success. Living up to its name, the Beast Feast had countless varieties of exotic foods and a great string band, to […]

Family Life for the Lasseters at Triple L Farms Elijah Lasseter was seven years old when he announced to his parents one evening, “I’m going to get a diesel when I turn 16.” Amused, his dad Ron told him he better find a job. Elijah paused, but only briefly. “If I buy a calf now

Barthle Brothers Ranch and the American Quarter Horse Sometimes “good” is a way of life. Such is the case at Barthle Brothers Ranch in Dade City where you’ll find cattle, quail, and turkey hunting, some timber and a lot of good horses. American Quarter Horses, to be exact. The bread and butter of the ranching

The Spirit of Service in Two 4-H Volunteers Earlier this year, Polk County 4-H recognized two exemplary young volunteers in our community: Erica Curtis and Grace Colston. Both of these young students turned teachers were honored as recipients of the Prudential Spirit of Community award. Their honorable volunteer work and extraordinary display of leadership made

At the Polk County 4-H Open Horse Show Responsibility. Confidence. Devotion to excellence. Every parent, teacher, and mentor desires their young minds to acquire these qualities, which are essential to anyone’s success in life. Young riders who recently took part in the Polk County 4-H Open Horse Show, which concluded in early February, acquired these

Q&A with Industry Experts on the latest USDA Cattle Inventory Report The USDA’s National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS) released the Cattle Inventory Report on January 31; unable to release a mid-year report in 2013 due to government furloughs, the latest report confirmed the fact that the US’s—and Florida’s—Beef Cattle Herd is smaller than it has

| Adding freshness and flavor to otherwise ordinary items | Your unwanted citrus peels can easily be put to good use in your garbage disposal, where they clean your blades and send a fresh fragrance throughout your kitchen. But technology has expanded the possibilities for what otherwise might be discarded. [emember_protected custom_msg=”Click here and register

The What, How, and Why of BMAPs Acronyms, acronyms! We are always hearing acronyms from the different government entities. Well, here’s one that we’ll be hearing more and more: BMAP (basin management action plan). A BMAP, as described by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), is a “blueprint” for restoring impaired waters by reducing

Why 4-H, FFA, and Other Programs Are More than Just Ag Projects Training tomorrow’s leaders is a big job. But working together, Agri-Fest, 4-H, and the National FFA Organization along with countless volunteers are doing their part to cultivate character in the next generation.[emember_protected custom_msg=”Click here and register now to read the rest of the

Citrus Growers Teach the Skills of Trade to Highlands’ Youth As Florida growers explore alternatives to citrus, industry leaders in Highlands County are continuing to teach the next generation how to grow trees. Through the Highlands County Youth Citrus Project, teens like Hanna Farr, a junior at Avon Park High School, are growing their own