04/07/08 Nature Collision & Concerned About Conservation

Nature Collision & Concerned About Conservation plus Food Forethought. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. What happens when civilization and nature collide? In this case, it was one scared bruin. A young black bear decided it was picnic time in the park in Puyallup, WA and that prompted officials to close the park last Friday. Authorities tried to corral the bear but the frightened animal escaped. Once captured the bear will be taken away from the city and released back into the wild. Lawmakers are again trying to come to an agreement on the Farm Bill but many groups are worried that some programs will suffer. Wisconsin Democrat Ron Kind was sharply critical of Senate plans to add a four-billion dollar permanent disaster program. KIND: Even though the disaster programs still a part of the discussion it is so isolated and so targeted to such a narrow region of the country it is the grand-daddy of earmarking in my perspective. And I think we can do a much better job justifying this final farm bill to consumers of America and taxpayers but also family farmers. Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Lacy Gray. I don't know about you, but it's that time of year where I start getting the itch to plant a garden. After pouring over the seed catalogs all winter, my planting desires range anywhere from how to grow the largest tomato ever, to color coordinating the ground cover! And like my Grandfather, his father and his grandfather, I'll consult my Old Farmer's Almanac. There are a lot of us out there still that won't plant, prune, till or toil without consulting the almanac. Being the oldest continuously published periodical in North America; it's been around since 1792, The Old Farmer's Almanac has more than proven its trustworthiness. Not only did I learn from Grandpa that I should garden by the almanac but that it holds a wealth of other useful information regarding tides, household hints, cooking, and an uncanny knack for predicting the weather; which the folks at The Old Farmer's Almanac say they use a secret formula based on climate trends, solar science and lunar cycles. Sounds good to me! Well, time to head to the local nursery. Did I check my almanac? YOU BET! Thanks Lacy. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.