A winner was selected from each of the organization’s ten districts. The state winner was chosen from the ten district winners. In 250 words or less, students were asked to address the importance of Georgia agriculture to them personally, their community, the state and the world. Essays were judged on clarity of thought and creativity. The contest was open to students in sixth, seventh and eighth grades and drew 53 entries statewide.
“Our goal in conducting the essay contest is to give Georgia students a chance to creatively explore Georgia agriculture, the number one industry in our state,” said Georgia Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall. “Makayla is to be commended for her insightful essay on the many contributions agriculture makes to her life and to the economies of Georgia, the United States and the world.”
The contest was administered by the Georgia Farm Bureau Women’s Committee and locally by the Gordon County Farm Bureau.
Founded in 1937, Georgia Farm Bureau is the state’s largest general farm organization. Its volunteer members actively participate in local, district ad state activities that promote agriculture awareness to their non-farming neighbors. GFB also has 20 commodity advisory committees that give the organization input on issues pertinent to the major commodities grown in Georgia.
Makayla’s essay is reproduced below:
How Many Hats Does a Farmer Wear?
When I hear the word farmer I think of an old man that has overalls and flannel shirts as his main wardrobe and wears a straw hat. Someone who puts food on our table as he harvests his crops. Someone who cares for farm animals and someone who was raised in a barn. But when researching this, I found it is a whole lot more than that. I found out that a farmer can be a man or a woman. They are not just raised in a barn and they do not wear overalls and flannel shirts all the time. Here are just a few of the many hats they must wear: planner, planter, harvester, “mini” vet, salesman, buyer and problem solver.
They have to planners/planters. They plan how they can plant their crops, when to plant them, and what crops to plant. Also they have to know how to fertilize and spray them for bugs and funguses.
They are harvesters. They have to harvest their crops in a neater, quicker way. They have to be able to tell if vegetables are ripe and ready from ones that are not.
They have to “mini” vets, so when one of their animals is sickly they can fix it without calling the vet and spending all that money on a sick animal when it is just a little problem. Although they need to know that if the animal is in a condition that is worse than they can handle to call a vet.
They also have to be a salesman. They have to know how to sell their crops, what to ask for them and how to make them profitable. But on the other hand, they have to be a buyer also. They have to know what to buy, how much to buy it for and the quantity to purchase and if they even need a particular product.
Finally they have to be a problem solver. They have to know how to fix a small problem or a large problem. Like if a hinge breaks loose off a gate or if a tree falls and takes out a whole section of a fence. They have to be creative with the supplies and tools they have with them to fix the problem at hand at that time.
When I was doing research, I decided to go and work on my small farm. I worked with our small garden, cattle and goats. We had a group of baby goats born and when they got a month old we gave them a shot called CDT. It is so they will not overeat and bloat. This shows ‘planner, mini-vet and problem solver’ characteristics. Then in our small garden, I started growing tomatoes and cucumbers. I got to experience the job of planting, fertilizing and spraying them so that no bugs or fungus would kill them. This shows ‘planner/planter and buyer’ characteristics. Finally, I started working with my cattle. I started out with a small herd because I had not interest in them. Now I’m showing cattle and have increased my herd by 23 percent. I’m loving the farm life. It has taught me a large responsibility and showed me how hard it us to be a farmer and just an example of a few of the many different hats a farmer must wear. So in answer to my question “how many hats does a farmer wear?” my answer would be- a lot and they definitely aren’t made of straw.
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