25yearchanges

1985

Averagesizefarmwas312acres

Averageageoffarmerwas48.5yearsold

The MAGAzine of MinneSoTA AGriCulTure in The ClASSrooM • VoluMe 25, iSSue 3— 2010/2011

Minnesota, “The Land of 10,000 Lakes,”isreallythelandof20,000

lakes,pondsandmarshesoffiveacresormore.Forestscoverone-thirdofourstate.Ourriversend-

to-endcouldreacharoundtheworld.OurcroplandwouldcoverallofRhodeIsland,Massachusetts,

ConnecticutandVermont.Freshair,richsoil,lotsofwater,goodclimate,crops,livestock—ourstate

hasthemall.

Minnesota’snatural resourcesareourtreasurestoprotect.Ouragriculturalindustriesdependon

thesenaturalresources.We,thepeople,dependonagriculture.That’swhyourfarmersandothers

mustactasstewardsoftheland,orEarthKeepers,protectingtheseimportantresources.

• Whenweprotectoursoilnow,itcangrowgoodfood,fiberandfuel(energy)

forthefuture.

• Whenwecleanupourair,wemakelifehealthierforpeople,plantsandanimals.

• Whenwepreventwaterpollution,wehelpkeepwatersafe

forcooking,swimming,drinkingandaquaticlife.

Nearlythree-fourthsofthelandinMinnesotaisownedbyfarmersand

otherprivatelandowners.Whyisitimportantthatalllandownersand

usersbegoodEarthKeepers?

There's just no way!What natural resources can you find in these pictures?

What connections to agriculture do you see?

Could you have an ag-less day?

Caring for our Natural Resources

Earth Day is always on April 22. How will you celebrate?Th

e Minn

esota

DNR (

Depa

rtment

of Na

tural R

esourc

es) st

ocks o

ur lak

es wit

h over

260 m

illion f

ish ea

ch yea

r.

Years

how do you like taking a shower in the same water molecules the dinosaurs waded in?

It’s true! The water we use today is the same water that has been recycled for millions of years since the earth was formed. We will never have any MORE water. That’s why we need to keep our water clean.

If all the world’s water could fit into a gallon jug, including salty oceans and frozen glaciers, only a single drop would be fresh and usable for human needs. The amount of fresh water isn’t all we care about. We want the water we drink and use to taste good, smell good and look good. We want it to be safe for all human uses and for aquatic creatures, too.

• Theearthrecyclesthesamewateroverandover.Thisprocessisthewatercycle,orhydrologiccycle.Waterchangesforms—fromsolidtoliquidtogas—overandoveragain.

• The earth recycles one trillion tons of water every day. A gallon of water weighs 8 pounds. How many gallons are in just one ton (2,000 lbs)?

• The federal Clean Water Act requires states to set water quality standards. These rules protect the nation’s waters. They regulate how much pollution can be in lakes, rivers, streams or groundwater before the water becomes unsafe for drinking, fishing, swimming and more.

fOr the WATER

ON

THE WEB

2

Turnonafaucet.Wheredoesthewatercome

from?Isitfromyourlocalpublicutilities

company?Isitfromyourbackyard

well?Eitherway,itcomesfrom

Minnesota’ssurface water,

groundwater,orboth.

WhereDoesOurWaterComeFrom?

Guesswhat?Rain,snow,sleet,hail:Allofthewaterwedrinkorusefallsontheearthfirst.Someendsupinlakes,wetlands,riversandstreamsassurfacewater.Someseeps,creeps,percolatesandtricklesdownintotheground,becominggroundwater.Itfindsitswayintoopeningsinrock,sandandgravelthatcatchandholdit.Theseundergroundwaterstoragespacesarecalledaquifers.(Waterinwellsispumpedfromaquifers.)Waterlevelsinaquifersareconnectedtohowmuchrainwegetandhowmuchwaterwedrawfromtheaquifers.

Aquiferscanbesmallinsizeorstretchmorethantenthousandsquaremiles.Sometimeswefindwateronlyafewfeetbelowtheground.Othertimesitmaybehundredsoffeetdeep.

Imaginehowharditistofindandmapaquiferswhenwecan’tseethem.Drillingwellsgivesussomeinformation.Butaquiferexpertsarestilllearning!

Minnesota’s Water Wealth Precipitation and AquifersAlthoughwehavesomedryyears,Minnesotaisblessedwithgoodprecipitation mostyears.Asoursnowmelts,soilssoakupthemoistureeachspring.Duringthegrowingseason,weusuallygetagoodamountofrainattherighttimeforplantstothrive.Thewaterinrivers,lakesandstreamsmaychangelevels,butovertimewehaveenoughsurfacewater.

Wealsohavenaturalundergroundstoragetoholdourgroundwaterinaquifers.Theglaciersthatcoveredmuchofourstatemanythousandsofyearsagoleftbehinddifferentkindsofrockandsoil.Somepartsofourstatehavealotofhardrocksandclay.Rainwaterandsnowmeltcollectincracks,crevicesandshallowaquifersthere.SoutheasternMinnesota,notcoveredbyrecentglaciers,haslotsofsand,gravelandsoftersedimentary rocks.Precipitationtrickleseasilyintothegroundandcollectsinlarge,deepaquifers.Minnesota’sprecipitation,surfacewaterandgroundwaterallmakeusawater-richstate!

Where does YOUR water come from? Find out!TheGroundwaterFoundationKidsCornerwww.groundwater.org/kc/kc.html

Surface Water

Transpiration

Groundwater in Openings(Shallow Aquifers)

Groundwater in Deep Aquifers

Rock

Rock

Precipitation

Evaporation

Phot

o Co

urte

sy d

anm

arsh

all.c

om

• holds roots in the ground so plants don’t fall over• holds water so roots can absorb moisture• holds minerals and nutrients that plants use for food • is home to other living things helpful to plants Without it, life on land would come to a dead stop!

What is it? _______________________________________

The soil beneath our feet is as important as the air we breathe and the water we drink. Farmland and forested land represent two-thirds of our state’s landscape. Whose responsibility is it to care for the soil? Farmers and foresters have a big role to play. But each of us must also help. These soil care tips are things we all can do:

1. Grow plants on bare soil or cover it with mulch so it won’t wash or blow away.

2. Stay on sidewalks and trails. What happens when people don’t? Do you see any places where sidewalks should be built to protect the soil?

3. How can you help protect the soil of football and soccer fields, parks and other public places?

What four-letter word does all these things?

fOr the SOIL

ON THE

W

EB

Form

ore

ons

oils

see

: ww

w.n

rcs.

usda

.gov

/fea

ture

/edu

catio

n

Air travels. That means polluted air can blow in from near and far. Lucky for us, many people work hard to clean up the air. Car makers build engines that pollute less. Laws regulate industrial waste disposal. Many people—including farmers—are making electricity from cleaner, renewable energy sources instead of coal or petroleum. They are using solar power, wind and field crops as energy sources for our cars, homes and factories. It all adds up to cleaner air!

Thanks Plants!

Did you know that green plants help to clean air? They take in carbon dioxide, trap fine dust and release oxygen during photosynthesis. Those green plants include grasses on prairies, algae in oceans, crops in fields and trees in forests. About one-third of the oxygen released comes from grasses and other non-woody plants. One-third comes from ocean plants. Another third comes from forests. Take a breath . . . and thank the plants!

fOr the AIRTake a deep breath. Can you tell the difference

between fresh air and polluted air?

3

AgricultureandWaterYoualreadyknowthatagricultureprovidesourfood,fiberandsomuchmore.Allplantandanimalagriculturedependsonwater.

ThankstoMinnesota’sgoodrainfallandsoil,onlyahalfmillionofour22millionacres(1%)ofcroplandneedirrigation.Comparethattorainfall-poorCalifornia,where90%ofcroplandmustbeirrigated.

Try this!Make an Aquifer in a Tank.www.beg.utexas.edu/education/aquitank/tank01.htm

Try this! Awesome Aquifers www.groundwater.org/kc/activity8.html

M

inne

sota

has

the

mos

t wat

er re

sour

ces o

f the

48

conn

ecte

d st

ates

. We

have

mor

e sh

orel

ine

than

any

stat

e ex

cept

Ala

ska!

Theagricultureindustryknowsitmusttakegoodcareofwater.Farmersarelearningsaferwaystousecropprotectionchemicalstokeepthemoutofwatersupplies.Theyplantcropsinwaysthathelppreventwaterfromwashingsoilintostreams,lakesandrivers.Theyplanandtimeirrigationtosavewater.Theykeeplivestockawayfromriverbankstopreventtrampledsoilandanimalwastefromendingupinthewater.Theymanageanimalwastesfromfeedlots.Someagindustries,suchasethanolplants,areexploringwaystouse“reclaimedwater.”Reclaimedwater(treatedmunicipalwastewater)maybeabletoreplacehighquality(fresh)waterandstillmeettheneedsofsomeindustries.

Think and Discuss:

Manysouthernandwesternstateshavelimitedwaterandexplodingpopulations.Findingenoughwatertomeettheirgrowingdemandsforagricultureisachallenge.

1. Whatneedsmustbemetfirstifthereisnotenoughwaterforeverything?

2. ShouldMinnesotashareourwaterwealth?Explainyourthinking.

3. TheOgallalaAquiferundertheGreatPlainsspreadsacross174,000squaremiles.Itisunderpartsofeightstates.Researchtodiscover:Howisthisaquifersuper-importanttoagriculture?

Photo Courtesy University of Minnesota Agricultural experiment Station

Adv

entu

res

in G

arde

ning

Plan Ahead:

1. D

oyo

uha

vea

spa

cefo

rag

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ick

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apl

oto

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each

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hatg

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you

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type

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illy

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aily

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illy

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elp

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lear

nw

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eed

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now

?7.

Any

thin

gel

se?

Dig

In:

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Prep

are

the

soil.

Wha

tdo

you

need

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o?D

oyo

une

ed

toa

dda

nyth

ing

tom

ake

your

soi

lhea

lthie

rfor

gro

win

gpl

ants

?

2.

Plan

t!D

irect

ions

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your

see

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plan

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owm

uch

spac

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es

each

pla

ntn

eed?

How

can

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mak

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urg

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nco

lorf

ul

and

attr

activ

e?H

owc

any

oup

airp

lant

sth

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ell

toge

ther

,orm

atur

eat

diff

eren

ttim

es?

(Pac

kage

ste

llyo

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wm

any

grow

ing

days

are

nee

ded.

)

3.

Labe

lthe

row

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you

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lant

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sth

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row

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arn

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cogn

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type

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Wat

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eed

and

wat

chy

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rep

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ome

plan

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g?Is

ther

ean

ype

std

amag

e?A

skfo

rhel

pw

hen

you

need

it.

Gar

dens

are

Goo

d fo

r You

!

Y

ouw

ill:

•ge

texe

rcis

ean

dfr

esh

air

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enu

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esh

food

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abou

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pla

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grow

ing

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gs

•__

____

____

____

____

____

____

_

•__

____

____

____

____

____

____

_

So

you t

hin

k yo

u m

ight

wa

nt t

o gr

ow a

ga

rde

n a

t hom

e o

r a

t sc

hoo

l. W

ha

t th

ings

must

you

thin

k a

bou

t?

All

Kind

s of

Gar

dens

! M

aybe

you

’dli

keto

gro

wju

sto

nety

peo

fth

ing

iny

ourg

arde

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heck

them

ega

rden

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atin

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sty

ou.

Photo Courtesy U of M Extension Master Gardener Program

Photo Courtesy danmarshall.com

h

Just

flow

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bles

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ativ

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som

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Ag

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just

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col

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4

Farm

s & School

s:

New

Partner

ships

Did

you

kno

w th

at m

any

scho

ols

and

farm

s ar

e te

amin

g up

to m

ake

food

bet

ter f

or k

ids?

The

y ar

e ge

tting

food

gro

wn

by lo

cal f

arm

ers

onto

sch

ool l

unch

tray

s. K

ids

in m

any

scho

ol d

istric

ts se

e w

inte

r squ

ash,

cor

n on

the

cob,

mel

ons,

pot

atoe

s an

d ap

ples

from

loca

l far

mer

s on

thei

r lun

ch

trays

. Les

s sa

lt, m

ore

fruits

and

veg

etab

les

and

who

le g

rain

s ar

e al

l par

t of t

he g

oal o

f hea

lthie

r ea

ting.

Bes

t of a

ll, lo

cally

-gro

wn

food

taste

s gr

eat a

nd is

mile

s fre

sher

. Her

e’s

an e

xam

ple:

Hop

kins

sch

ools

buy

loca

l pro

duce

from

Riv

erbe

nd F

arm

s, a

30-

acre

org

anic

veg

etab

le fa

rm.

Hop

kins

invi

tes

the

farm

ers

into

the

scho

ols

so s

tude

nts

mee

t the

peo

ple

who

gro

w th

eir s

choo

l m

eals.

Farm

-to-sc

hool

pro

gram

s m

ake

ever

ybod

y w

inne

rs. L

inki

ng s

choo

ls w

ith lo

cal f

arm

s m

eans

he

alth

ier m

eals

in s

choo

l caf

eter

ias.

It m

eans

impr

oved

stu

dent

nut

ritio

n. It

mea

ns le

arni

ng li

felo

ng

heal

th h

abits

. It h

elps

figh

t chi

ld o

besit

y, a

nd it

sup

ports

loca

l far

mer

s. D

o yo

u kn

ow w

here

YO

UR

scho

ol lu

nch

com

es fr

om?

Even

Clo

ser

Than

the

Farm

Som

e sc

hool

s ar

e gr

ower

s, to

o. A

t Sib

ley

East

Hig

h Sc

hool

in A

rling

ton,

MN

, coo

ks u

se fr

esh

prod

uce.

The

y ha

rves

t the

ir ow

n bu

tterc

up s

quas

h, p

umpk

ins,

tom

atoe

s, c

abba

ge, p

otat

oes

and

bean

s—str

aigh

t fro

m th

e sc

hool

’s g

arde

n. A

lexa

ndria

’s F

ood

and

Nut

ritio

n sta

ff pl

ante

d ap

ple

trees

at t

wo

scho

ols

to p

rovi

de H

oney

crisp

and

Sw

eet 1

6 ap

ples

for s

choo

l mea

ls an

d sn

acks

. D

over

-Eyo

ta s

tude

nts

plan

ted

appl

e tre

es w

ith th

e he

lp o

f loc

al a

pple

gro

wer

Jerry

Kat

han

of

Kath

an’s

Rid

gevi

ew O

rcha

rd.

Gar

dens

are

Goo

d fo

r You

!

Y

ouw

ill:

•ge

texe

rcis

ean

dfr

esh

air

•im

prov

enu

triti

onth

roug

hre

ally

fr

esh

food

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arn

abou

teco

syst

ems,

pla

nts

and

grow

ing

thin

gs

•__

____

____

____

____

____

____

_

•__

____

____

____

____

____

____

_

Why

gro

w a

gar

den?

“I

wou

ld g

row

a g

arde

n to

ex

perie

nce

the

thril

l and

ex

cite

men

t of f

eedi

ng th

e pl

ants

and

eat

ing

your

ow

n fo

od. S

eein

g yo

ur p

lant

sp

rout

s gro

win

g to

war

d th

e lig

ht

is in

spiri

ng a

nd u

niqu

e! A

lso, I

love

the

thou

ght

of e

atin

g yo

ur o

wn

food

, and

gar

dens

are

ver

y pl

easin

g to

the

eye!

It m

akes

our

fron

t and

bac

kyar

d lo

ok a

nd fe

el so

wel

com

e.

“I w

ould

like

to h

ave

a sq

uash

, lik

e a

pum

pkin

or

som

e br

ight

ly c

olor

ed o

ne, d

aisie

s, pe

apod

s, m

orni

ng

glor

ies,

stra

wbe

rrie

s, an

d ca

rrot

s.”

Anna

K.,

Min

neap

olis

Aft

er the Ha

rvest

Imag

ine

it’s

the

end

ofth

ega

rden

ing

seas

on.T

hink

abo

utth

is:W

ere

your

ex

pect

atio

nsm

et?

Wha

twer

eso

me

surp

rises

?W

hatm

ight

you

do

diffe

rent

ly

next

tim

eyo

uha

vea

gar

den?

Harvest and En

joy

!

How

will

you

cle

an,p

repa

re,c

ook

and

serv

eyo

urfo

od?

Do

you

have

ext

ra

prod

uce

tos

hare

?

Ga

rden

ing

is a

bu

sin

ess

for s

om

e g

row

ers.

Vis

it

a fa

rmer

s’ m

ark

et a

nd

yo

u’ll

mee

t th

em.

Phot

o Co

urte

sy M

inne

sota

Gro

wn

Prog

ram

Lots

ofg

reat

hel

pis

just

am

ouse

clic

kor

a

phon

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llaw

ay.C

heck

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libra

ry,o

rch

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eb.

ww

w.k

idsg

arde

ning

.com

5

ON THE

W

EB

Phot

os C

ourt

esy

Nor

th t

rail,

Sib

ley

east

, Peq

uot L

akes

and

Dov

er-e

yota

scho

ols.

What’smostimportanttotheKuballs?That’seasy:careoftheirlandandanimals.Keepingsoilhealthyandpreventinglosstoerosionisayear-roundeffortandnotjustforEarthDay.Goodnutritionandmedicalcaretopthelistforanimalcare.Animalnutritionistsdevelopspecialfeedmixes(calledrations)tomeeteachcow’sneeds.VeterinariansworkwiththeKuballs

tokeeptheirherdintophealth.Farmersknowthevalueofkeepingcowscomfortableandcontented.TheKuballcowssleeponrecycledrubber-filledmattressescoveredwithdrybedding.Thecowskeepcoolinthesummerthankstofans,sprinklersandgoodventilation.Roll-downcurtainsandtheirownbodyheatkeepthemwarminwinter.

TheKuballFamilyFarm

Yearsago,alltheadultsandchildreninafarmfamilywereneededtodothemanyfarmjobs.Technologyhaschangedthat.Computers,milkingmachinesandmodernmachinerydomuchoftheworktoday.(You’velearnedaboutmuchofthetechnologythatchangedfarminginyourtwoearlier

AgMags.)Technologyhasmadeitpossibletodomorefarmworkwithfewerpeople.Somefarmmenandwomennowhavetimetoworkother

jobsoffthefarm.NathanKuballworksfulltimeinthefamily’sfarmingbusiness.Shannonworksparttimeatthelocalelementaryschoolaswellasonthefarm.Onsomefarms,thechildrenareveryinvolvedindailywork.TheKuballchildrenhelpwithcalffeeding.

6

All Photos Courtesy Kuball family

AFamilyFarm,AFamilyBusiness

Kelsey feeds a Holstein calf.

Black-and-white Holsteins are

the main dairy breed in the US.

Q.What’sthebestthingaboutbeingafarmer?A.

Farmersgettoseetheresultsoftheirwork.Weworknotonlyforourownfamily,butforpeopleeverywherewhowantwholesomeproductsfortheirfamilies.Wehaveanawesomeresponsibilitytobegoodstewardsofthelandandtheanimalsinourcare.Whenwedothat,theanimalsandthelandgiveusthethingsweallneed.Afarmer’sworkfeedsthousandsofpeoplearoundtheworld!Asafamily,weworktogether.Weareateam,helpingeachotherandourfarmbusinesssucceed.

Shannon and nathan Kuball are dairy farmers in Waterville, Minnesota. Kuball Dairy was started by nathan’s great great grandfather, Albert, in 1902. nathan is the fifth-generation Kuball family farmer on this land. Children Kelsey (9), emma (6) and Keegan (3) are the sixth generation to live on the farm.

ChangingTimes,ChangingFarms

In 1964 the Kuball farm was 120

acres. Today it is 700 acres. How

do you think this compares with

the national trend in farm size?

Forthefirst62years,youcouldseechickens,hogs,horsesandcowsonthefarm.In1964,thefamilydecidedtospecializeonlyindairyproduction.Theyhad50cowsinatie-stallbarn.Thecowsate,sleptandweremilkedintheirstalls.Todaythefarmhas180milkcows.Thecowsareinafree-stallbarnwheretheycanroamaroundthebarn.Theyeatfreshfood,drinkfreshwaterandsleepwhentheywantto.Theyaremilkedtwiceadayinaseparatebuildingcalledamilkingparlor.

CaringfortheLandandtheAnimals

Discover more about farming“Then and Now.”

Ask your teacher for a copy of page 5

in the AgMag Teacher Guide.Kids!

Electronic InnovationsFromcomputersandmonitorstoGPSandgreenhousecontrols,electronicsareeverywhereinmodernagriculture.Computerchipsinanimaleartagsareoneexample.Farmersuseeartagstoidentifyandkeepinformationonindividualanimals.Eartagscomeinmanydifferentstylesandcolors,andcanbesetuptorecorddifferentkindsofinformation.Thelargenumberonthisidentificationtagisthecow’suniquenumberintheherd;itfunctionslikeaname.Thisnumberisonlyusedwhentheanimalisonthefarm.The15-digitsmallernumberandthematchingnumberonthebuttontagatthetopfollowstheanimalevenwhentheanimalleavesthefarmorcountry.Thefirstthreenumbers“840”tellusthattheanimalisfromtheUnitedStates.Theothernumbershelpfurtheridentifywheretheanimalisfrom.

Agriculture’s Biggest Leaps (PartIII)

AgriculturehaschangedinamazingwaysintheyearssinceNativeAmericansfirstfarmedtheland.Whathavebeenthebiggestachievementsinthepast100years?Sometopagriculturalengineersaskedthemselvesthat

question.Theycameupwithalistthatwe’veexploredinyourthreeAgMagsthisyear.Here’sPartThree!

The Top SixYou’velearnedaboutmostoftheengineers’choicesforbiggestagricultureachievementsinthepast100years.Canyouguesswhichtheythoughtweremostimportant?Rearrangethelettersanddiscoverwhattoppedtheirlist.

1. ctartro ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. rrlau tniocafilircdeet _________________________________________________________________________________________

3. mbnieoc _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4. gnilkim ienhcma________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. octtno ipkcre ______________________________________________________________________________________________________

6. avtonirescno lialteg _________________________________________________________________________________________

CircletheonethatisnotpartofMinnesotaagriculture?Why?

Phot

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Soybeans Biodiesel

Self-Propelled CombinesMowersandthreshersweregoodmachines,butfarmersmadeseveraltripsacrossthefieldtoharvesttheircrops.Self-propelledcombinescameintouseinthemid1900s.Theybothcutcropsandharvest(separatethegrainsfromthestalks)inthesametripacrossthefield.Manycombineshavechangeableheadssotheycanbeusedforseveraldifferentkindsofcrops.Wheat,oats,rye,barley,cornandsoybeansareallharvestedbycombines.Combinessavetimeandfuelenergy.Theyhelpfarmersharvestmanymoreacreseachday.

BiofuelsBoostingtheamountoffuelwegetfromrenewableresourcesisabigachievementinagriculture.Fuelsmadefromcropssuchascorn,sugarcaneandsoybeans,orfromtreesandgrasses,arecalledbiofuels.Biofuelscutairpollution,providejobsandbuildnewmarketsforfarmcrops.Becausetheycomefromrenewableresources,theyhelpconservetheearth’ssupplyofnon-renewablefuelresourceslikenaturalgasandoil.

Irrigation Improvingwaterusecouldbeoneofag’sbiggestchallengesinthiscentury.irrigation(wateringthesoil)allowscropstogrowinplaceswithlimitedrainfall.Keyinventionsarecenter-pivotirrigationandtrickleordripirrigationsystems.Center-pivotirrigationsystems(shownabove)spraywateracrosslargeareasoffieldswithoutusingmuchwaterpressureorfuel/energy.Intrickleordripirrigation,tubesorhosesslowlyandsteadilydeliverwaterclosetotherootsofplants.Waterissavedbecauseitisappliedonlywhereit’sneeded.Lessevaporationalsosaveswater. What Do You Think?

Whatdoyouthinkwasthebiggestneedorreasonbehindeachnewinvention?

It’syourturnsoon.WhatwouldYOUinventtohelpfeedtheworldortomakefarmingmoreefficient?

Ten percent of the gasoline used in Minnesota

contains ethanol made from corn. Ethanol is an early biofuel but others are following. Biofuel comes from other forms of biomass as well: the fiber of sticks and trees, prairie grass, wheat straw, sugar cane, paper pulp, rice hulls and more.

Farmers can swipe ear tags to track animal blood lines, health, age, vaccinations, milk production, weight and more. When the animal leaves the farm, it can be traced all the way through processing.

7

Label these 8 rivers h Minnesota hRainyh Mississippi hRumh St.Croix hSt.Louish Red hRoot

Howcan you helpprotectourrivers?

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Makealistofallthewaysyourfamilyuseswaterinaweek.Thenguesshowmuchwateritisingallons.

Next,findyourfamily’swatermeter.Takeanotepadandjotdownthedate,

timeandthenumbersonthemeter.(Aparentcanhelpyoureadthedials.Thewaterismeasuredincubicfeet.Onesweep-handrevolutionisonecubicfootofwater.)Readthemeteragainafteroneweekandseehowyourpredictioncheckedout.

One cubic foot of water is about 7.5 gallons.

Celebrate Minnesota Water

Date_______________________Time_________________No.______________

Date_______________________Time_________________No.______________

ON

THE WEB

 

Therearenearly 7 billionpeopleintheworldtoday.Whichcountriesdoyouthinkrankfirst,secondandthirdinpopulation?

Whyisitevenmoreimportanttoprotectnaturalresources

aspopulationrises?

8

Green SquadIsyourschoolasafe,healthyplacethat

doesn’thurtyouortheenvironment?ThekidsontheGreenSquadknowhowto

findout!Theyhaveamissionforyou.

Caring for our Natural Resources

Answers:1.China;2.India;3. UnitedStates

Baseball-Ag ConnectionEverytimeaMinnesotaTwinspitcherbreaksthebatofanopposingplayer,100 trees will be planted inaMinnesotaStateparktohelpbeautify,restoreandenhanceTwinsTerritory.

when the AgMag began, there was no “On the Web.” Your school would not have had computers, and the Internet did not exist!Yea

rs

ExploretheUniversityofMinnesota’sFarmtoSchoolToolkitanddiscoverall

kindsofactivitiesandexperimentswithfood.Doyouknowhoweasyitistomakeanacidindicator

totestfoods,suchasfruit,salt,vinegar,bakingsodaandmore?Howcouldyoufindouthowfastacarrotcanrot?Trya

scienceprojecttestingcarbonatedwater,colaandvinegaraspicklingsolutionsforcucumbers.FindallthisandMORE:

www.mn-farmtoschool.umn.edu/default.htmON

THE WEB

What is Arbor Day?When is it?

Date __________________________________

Keeping rivers clean is

“eggsactly” what we need.

Water from 31 states

drains into the Mississippi River.

It all ends up in the Gulf of Mexico

and the Atlantic

Ocean.

The Minnesota AgMag is a publication of Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom, 625 Robert Street North, St. Paul, MN 55155. The program is a public/private partnership between the Minnesota Department of Agriculture and the Minnesota Agriculture in the Classrom Foundation. Statistics courtesy U.S. Department of Agriculture and Minnesota Agricultural Statistics Service. MAITC Program Director: Al Withers. Writers: Jan Hoppe and Jane Duden. Design and Production: Northern Design Group. Printed in the U.S.A.

www.nrdc.org/greensquad/intro/intro_1.asp