4-H’ERS TOUR LOCAL AG OPERATIONS
Washington County Farm Bureau held their eighth annual summer Ag tour for county 4- H members recently. Twenty-two 4-H members & eleven leaders toured two Ag operations in Washington County. The first location was the Raymond & Pauline Kettler dairy in William Penn. Son Douglas and grandson Matthew explained the family-owned and operated business that has been in the Kettler family since Raymond was one year old.
The milk room at the dairy sees 80 milk cows twice daily producing 2200 pounds of milk per day. The dairy is self-stocking and mills their own feed. The Kettlers took the group on a trailer ride through their farmland and viewed the ranch, cattle and 100 acres of cotton they grow. Ice cream cones were served by the Kettlers as a thank you for the interest in the dairy business, as only three remain in the entire county.
The second tour was at the Antique Rose Emporium field station and retail shop. Glenn Schroeder explain how 300,000 cuttings fill just one of their green houses. They feature 433 rose varieties which go back to antiquity, up to the 2015 Thomas Afflack, the rose of the year winner- created at the Emporium. Their mail orders can go worldwide.
4-H’ers were able to smell samples of the roses to experience the different fragrances that are due to genetics. The 7.5 acres in the growing fields host one quarter million roses -. At the retail center Gail explained how the Emporium is a destination business. Trips, gatherings & weddings are planned with the Emporium as the destination. A tour concluded with a barbecue hamburger meal under the canopy of the lush trees.
Washington County Farm Bureau President Larry Winkelmann said "The Farm Bureau is proud to show our future Ag leaders different and diverse business opportunities in the county that involve agriculture."
