How to run a tractor on fire wood

     First you have to turn it into ethanol. About 1975 or so I had a several conversations with Mile Fry, a forward-thinking nurseryman and farmer from the tiny settlement of Frysville here in Lancaster County. Fry, who was probably in his seventies at the time, had a vision of the hybrid poplar as a wonder tree for both energy and conservation. It grows just about anywhere and could be used, Fry believed, to reclaim land that had been strip-mined.
     He also believed it could be a renewable fuel source decades before anybody had even heard the term "renewable fuel source." Miles is gone, but every once in a while his vision for poplar trees pops up again. The latest pop is a story in the Seattle Times this week by reporter Hal Bernton.
     People from a wide range of disciplines are questioning the practicality and even the ethics of using corn - a food crop - for the production of ethanol. Bernton dug into the issue and found a company, ZeaChem, that breaks wood down with the same chemistry termites use to digest wood. The process ends with the production of commercial quantities of ethanol. There are a lot of start-up issues to be overcome before it's a viable business, but it's an interesting story.
    But not exactly new.
    Bernton's story is here: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009772319_ethanol30m.html

     It's tough to stay in the dairy business when every cow on your farm is losing $100 a month. But many dairymen are committed to staying the course, no matter what.
     A crowd of 200 people, farmers and others with ties to the dairy industry, gathered at Genesee Community Collge in Batavia, New York, last week to talk about the current dairy crisis, and to share their views with U.S. Senator Kristen Gillibrand and U.S. Representative Eric Massa. There were  a lot of interesting ideas thrown around. A story about the meeting, by Lancaster Farming New York correspondent Maegan Crandall, appears in the issue due in your mailbox tomorrow.
     
     Yes, Johnny, it's okay to play with your vegetables. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Alfrn3NVc78&feature=player_embedded