JOANNE CLENDINING: It is a big wide agricultural world out there from the shore to the mountains and all points in between.

Did you know that 4H plants the seeds to succeed?

That some advocates wear crowns?

And the Eastern Shore is home to a sweet festival?

Don't go anywhere, stories about the people who work our land and feed our state are coming up next on "Maryland Farm and Harvest."

NARRATOR: Major funding for "Maryland Farm and Harvest" is made possible in part by the Maryland Grain Producers Utilization Board, investing in smarter farming to support safe and affordable food, feed and fuel, and a healthy Bay.

Additional funding provided by Maryland's Best.

Good for you.

Good for Maryland.

MARBIDCO, helping to sustain food and fiber enterprise for future generations.

A grant from the Maryland Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Program, Farm Credit, lending support to agriculture and rural America.

The Maryland Soybean Board and Soybean Checkoff Program.

Progress powered by farmers.

The Maryland Nursery Landscape and Greenhouse Association, The Maryland Association of Soil Conservation Districts.

The Maryland Farm Bureau Incorporated.

The Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment.

The Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation, promoting the importance of agriculture in our daily lives.

And by Baltimore County Commission on Arts and Sciences.

(theme music playing).

(bird chirping).

JOANNE: In Maryland, family farms are the backbone of the agricultural landscape.

Hi, I'm Joanne Clendining, welcome to "Maryland Farm and Harvest."

This week we're in Howard County at Sharps at Waterford Farm where the Sharp family has a farming history that goes back 120 years.

Alan and Julia Sharp are fourth generation farmers and while many of their 565 acres of cropland are leased to a neighboring grain producer, Alan and Julia continue their farming legacy by hosting educational farm tours, fall festivals and open houses.

Coming up, advocating for agriculture can be a royal experience, but first, a 4H family's future farmers are preparing their prized animals for competition and while they're at it, learn a few life lessons.

(tractor engine).

♪ ♪ The competition is on at the Carroll County 4H Fair.

Today 4H kids from five to 18 will be competing in the swine showmanship event.

They'll be judged on their ability to present the hog that they have raised.

16-year-old Caleb Chamelin is just moments from entering the show ring and he's hoping his hard work over the last year leads to the grand championship.

CALEB CHAMELIN: I was born and raised at the fair and my aunt, she showed pigs.

I mean, I was always around them.

So when I was able to get my own, you know, it was really cool for that experience.

I didn't really have any desire to win or anything at that point, I just wanted to do it, started getting better and better and prove myself.

You know, every year comes more and more of a goal for me this year, it's a really big goal.

I wanna win the most of anyone else I know.

JOANNE: Maintaining eye contact with the judge is important in showmanship and Caleb's eyes burn with competitive fire.

CALEB: You're there to win.

You look like you want to be there because you want to be away from the pack, basically, elevate yourself from everyone else.

JOANNE: Every exhibitor is looking for that little bit of separation to impress Judge Boone Schmitz.

BOONE SCHMITZ: I'm just looking for a kid that has put the work in at home and has that kind of air of confidence, uh, with them and the relationship that they have with, with that animal.

Making long smooth passes with your hogs across the ring, utilizing the whole ring and getting that pig's head up at an elevated position.

It just allows the hog to present itself a little bit better.

JOANNE: This first round is made up of the exhibitors who are all 15 at the beginning of the year.

Judge Boone will eliminate one by one before deciding who will be class champion.

Even as the ring empties out, the pressure for those remaining only seems to intensify, especially when it comes down to the final two.

♪ ♪ BOONE: In my opinion, these guys are flat good.

Uh, this is as competitive of the top three as we've had all day.

In my mind, I think out of these top two gentlemen, there was one that was a bit more intentional in terms of his spacing.

The young man with the Duroc, gonna go ahead and win.

(crowd cheering).

JOANNE: It's a hard earned victory for Caleb, but his day is just beginning.

Next, he'll vie for the senior championship and square off against the winners of the 14 to 18-year-old divisions.

The competition is ramping up.

But back at his grandparents' farm, Caleb has put in the work to be a champion.

4H is a family affair for the Chamelins.

CHARLOTTE CHAMELIN: Ooh, bite.

(squealing).

(laughter).

JOANNE: Caleb's sister Charlotte raises sheep and sews with wool.

Little sister Brenna is raising hogs, cows and goats.

JENNIE CHAMELIN: It's pretty cool to be able to watch your kids work together as a team and just really find what they're passionate about.

SAM CHAMELIN: Everybody thinks that 4H is cows and cakes and it is rooted in our agricultural past, but it really is about helping kids find a passion and then using that to help them to develop the 4Hs in their life, which is head, heart, hands and health.

JOANNE: And parents, Sam and Jennie even met in 4H.

The Chamelin's are showing that the family that 4Hs together stays together.

JENNIE: Our kids give tremendous care to these animals that we have here.

They, they actually take better care of their animals, I think, than they do themselves some days.

Um, you have to still remind them to brush their teeth, but you don't often have to tell Caleb he has to feed and do his barn chores.

SAM: It's hard to understand what farrowing looks like in January when it's, when it's 10 degrees out here and our kids are out here at two o'clock in the morning.

And so this is the one shot we have to say to folks, what you see in a show ring is the culmination of so much work.

JOANNE: Caleb is back in the ring and now competing for the senior championship one round away from his dream of the grand championship.

(crowd cheering).

It's another win for Caleb as senior champion, he'll compete against the intermediate and junior winners while he has the age advantage, anything can happen and these are the best of the best.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ BOONE: Well folks, uh, if this group of showmen out here doesn't give you the absolute chills, I don't know what will.

You guys got killer livestock, you got even better individuals, let's give these kids a big round of applause.

(applause).

(crowd cheering).

JOANNE: Caleb is grand champion.

CALEB: Tired, exhausted, but a whole lot of emotions at once.

Just a lot of relief, I mean this is 24 hours a day every day a week kind of thing for most of my life.

And it's kind of one that just kind of hadn't happened yet, so it's just a huge sigh of relief for me.

JOANNE: It's been an exciting day at the fair.

And while both buckles and championships are important, sharing it with family is special.

The Chamelin kids have shown what it takes to be a winner in and out of the ring.

We'll see more of them at the state fair later in the season.

And did you know 4H animal science projects teach young people life skills like decision-making and taking personal responsibility as well as animal management and societal issues.

♪ ♪ All right, it's time to test your agricultural expertise, here is our thingamajig for the week.

Do you think you know what it is?

Well, here's a hint, despite this tool's harsh iron exterior, it was used to protect something very delicate.

Stay tuned and we'll have the answer at the end of the show.

Maryland winters can be a mixed bag of weather, but when we get the white stuff, there's nothing like the beauty of a snow covered farmscape.

Here are some pics of those winter wonderlands, enjoy.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Advocates for agriculture are found in the legislative halls of Annapolis, at county and state fairs, and on the farm, but only a select few wear a crown and sash to promote their cause.

(tractor engine).

♪ ♪ This is a story about two queens in the land of Mary.

Maryland that is.

And the two queens are Lindsey Jacobs 2024s Ms. Agvocate USA and Karli Abbott 2024s Mar-Del Watermelon Queen.

Now these young women have taken their passions for farming community and the environment to royal levels.

They are agriculture queens and it's their duty to represent the AG industry and the commodities that Maryland farmers are growing at events all over Maryland.

BYSTANDER: Hey, how was it?

KARLI ABBOTT: It's amazing, this is my second one.

Today we are at the Governor's Buy Local Cookout and I'm just walking around, trying some different foods and talking to a few different people and I'm just hoping to have a good time.

Can you tell me a little bit about this cookie?

I come from a farm family, so I knew I wanted to do something to give back and the Mar-Del Watermelon Association gives me a platform to be able to do that.

BOTH: We love watermelon!

JOANNE: And talking to the right people like Governor Wes Moore about her watermelon farmers can be a little daunting, but Karli is one calm queen.

That's because this is not her first royalty rodeo.

So I was the Trappe Fire Prevention Queen, so that is a local competition with my local fire station.

JOANNE: That was back in 2018 when Karli was just 15 years old.

KARLI: I am a firefighter actually, so I decided I wanted to do that to kind of promote awareness about fire safety.

JOANNE: As Mar-Del's Watermelon Queen, she is the voice of watermelon farmers across Maryland and Delaware.

KARLI: I am mainly promoting consumption of watermelon, to kind of talk about the healthy benefits, and then also promoting locally grown watermelon, so I am bridging that gap between farmer and consumer because the consumer doesn't always have all the facts.

JOANNE: For Lindsey Jacobs 2024s Ms. Agvocate USA, some facts were eye-opening.

LINDSEY JACOBS: My eyes hadn't really been open to what the public didn't know until we started going to our local county fairs and things.

JOANNE: It was at one of those fairs that Lindsey heard about the US dairy study that found 7% of Americans were confused about where their milk came from.

LINDSEY: So they thought that white and black cows make white milk and that brown cows make chocolate milk, which is astounding to me.

But they've never seen anything other than the Chick-fil-A cows, so why would, so they wouldn't know any better.

JOANNE: Lindsey's been bridging the gap between farmers and consumers way before she won her crown.

As a kid growing up on her family's Millersville, Maryland farm, she quickly discovered that the kids in her class weren't farm kids.

LINDSEY: When I did kindergarten and first grade and I'd say, oh, I have to go feed cows or feed the horse or cut hay or do these different things.

And they would look at me like I was insane, 'cause there's no way there would be cows in Anne Arundel County.

So then I'd have to go through my thing, oh, there's cows, here they are, here's what a cow and a bull and a steer is, and kind of explain my daily life to everybody.

JOANNE: While Lindsey was a natural at explaining AG life, she never pictured herself doing it in a ball gown and crown.

LINDSEY: Oh no, being an AG queen had never really crossed my radar.

I had never thought a pageant would even be in my realm of things that I could do in my life.

JOANNE: But then her college professor sent her a link to an AG pageant.

LINDSEY: She kind of encouraged me to go out and get out there and try to do these different things.

So I figured I'd take a leap and try something different.

And here we are.

JOANNE: She makes it sound easy.

But most AG pageants require a lot of time and skill in order to win the crown.

KARLI: We say that we are the, it's a pageant and we are a queen title, but it is really a job interview, it's just showing that you can speak and you can perform your duties well.

JOANNE: As far as job interviews go, Karli and Lindsey had similar tasks to perform and there are a lot of them.

KARLI: There is a few different portions of our pageant, most of our competition is based on public speaking, it's about 75%.

So we have our interview with the panel of judges.

LINDSEY: Do an interview and then you had to do a little video about yourself.

KARLI: We have a three-minute written speech that we have to do.

We have to write a 30-second commercial and just show that we can speak in front of a camera and be okay.

LINDSEY: These three are probably going to the fair.

JOANNE: If you're thinking that's a lot, well that's maybe half of what they need to do.

LINDSEY: So if you wanted to go for the national title, you had to keep track of your service hours and appearances.

JOANNE: And social media.

LINDSEY: Make Instagram and Facebook posts and prove that you were doing these things.

Take your pictures and things of that nature to prove that we would be able to uphold the national title should we win it.

KARLI: But other than that, it's really focused on, you know, what you can do and what you can give back to the association.

JOANNE: And in that regard, it appears that both queens have gone above and beyond.

Oh, and how about Karli's attempt to bend Governor Moore's ear?

KARLI: Hi, Governor Moore, hi.

WES MOORE: Hi.

KARLI: My name's Karli Abbott.

WES: Hi, Karli.

KARLI: I'm the Mar-Del Watermelon Queen, how are you?

WES: It's so nice to see you.

KARLI: You too.

WES: And congratulations.

KARLI: Yes, thank you.

WES: And thank you for representing us so well.

KARLI: Of course.

WES: Thank you.

DAWN MOORE: Hi, how are you?

KARLI: Good, how are you?

DAWN: Nice to meet you.

KARLI: Good to meet you as well.

DAWN: You look beautiful.

KARLI: Thank you.

DAWN: Absolutely.

WES: It's such an honor.

KARLI: Thank you.

WES: Such an honor, God bless you.

KARLI: I'm glad, it's an honor to meet you.

WES: Thank you for representing us so well.

JOANNE: Both Lindsey and Karli have bright futures ahead.

Lindsey is working on her master's in AG and Life Science at Virginia Tech.

While Karli is at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County studying environmental science and has hopes of going into AG law.

And did you know the original Queen of American Agriculture was Virginia Claypool Meredith, a 19th-century Indiana livestock breeder and farmer who also campaigned for women's education?

Coming up, Al has a peach of a time in Caroline Count.

AL SPOLER: ...In there.

JOANNE: But first, one of the things I love most about driving through Maryland is catching a glimpse of barns adorned with quilt paintings.

The story on those iconic barn sides, on this week's "Then and Now."

(wind howling).

♪ ♪ Hex signs originated from Dutch settlers in the 1700s.

These designs were believed to usher in good fortune, foster prosperity, and ward off evil spirits.

Inspired by these hexes she saw as a child and hoping to spruce up an old tobacco barn, Donna Sue Groves hung the first barn quilt.

The simple patterns and bold colors of the quilt were a nod to her main source of inspiration, her mother, a renowned quilter from Appalachia.

Donna Sue's creation, proved popular among her rural Ohio community.

Soon the first close line of quilts was born.

Composed of 20 unique barn quilts, this display breathed new life into old barns throughout the countryside.

This small grassroots campaign caught on, soon other communities began creating their own barn quilts.

Harford, Carroll, and many other counties in Maryland even have their own guides to local barn quilts.

In 2008, Donna Sue was diagnosed with breast cancer, to help with the payments, the Garrett County Barn Quilt Club raised over $6,000.

While she passed away in 2021, the movement she started persists.

In Maryland alone there are over 50 barn quilts dotted throughout the state.

Their vibrant colors and patterns, a testament to Donna Sue's enduring creativity and community spirit.

On this week's, "The Local Buy," Al makes his way to an annual peach festival that has him working for his sweet reward.

Al?

♪ ♪ (crowd chatter).

Every year, hundreds of people flock to the Preston Volunteer Firehouse, where handcrafted goods, adorn local stalls, and a team of church volunteers work around the clock to feed hungry event goers.

VOLUNTEER: Welcome to utter pandemonium.

AL: But today the star of the show is the peach cobbler cooked by the church volunteers.

PATRON: I think it's very fresh and a good consistency and um, full of flavor.

PATRON 2: Oh, it's delicious, I really like it.

(laughing).

PATRON 3: Oh, the cobblers are phenomenal, considering we have the local peach orchard, we sell out of them every year.

AL: Oh my goodness, they were right, this peach cobbler is really good.

And I gotta tell you, the peaches are superb, but they're not from Georgia, they're from the Heritage Orchard right down the road, and I should know, 'cause I helped pick 'em yesterday, that's where they started and this is where they ended up.

KATIE WHAPLES: It's a little chilly this morning, isn't it?

CUSTOMER: A little windy?

KATIE: A little windy, a little chilly.

CUSTOMER: Yeah.

KATIE: What can I do for ya?

CUSTOMER: Peaches.

KATIE: I can do that.

AL: Here at Heritage Orchard, owner Katie Whaples has her hands full with the festival only one day away.

She still has hungry customers lining up to order boxes of their fresh peaches.

KATIE: My position at Heritage Orchard would be farm mom and general manager of all the chaos.

AL: But Katie has some generational backup while she manages this farm's finances, her son Andrew manages the orchard with a little help from grandpa.

RICHARD ANDREW: I started growing peaches in 1983, then I planted this little plot here for my grandsons in 2010.

ANDREW WHAPLES: All of the proceeds goes to paying the bills, of course, the remaining amount, uh, goes to our college fund, which pays right now for me to go to Geneva College.

AL: But with the festival only one day away, Andrew and Richard have to pick a few baskets of peaches.

ANDREW: We've picked about 450 baskets this week, about which 1/8th goes to the festival.

AL: So they're gonna need all the help they can get.

And that's where I come in.

Today I'm gonna be working with my friend Andrew Whaples to pick peaches for our big festival.

ANDREW: Yeah.

AL: And you got some gear for me here?

ANDREW: I do.

Lookey there.

AL: All right, this goes here, and got a basket, perfect.

Here we go, I guess I'm ready.

ANDREW: We're all set.

AL: Okay.

ANDREW: Let's go.

AL: Equipped with the latest in peach-picking technology, I was so excited to begin, I sprinted over to the fields, but you'll have to take my word for it.

Boy, look at this, uh, why are these so dark?

They're, they're dark as like an Arkansas black apple.

ANDREW: Yeah, these, this variety called All-Star is about 75 to 95% red.

We grow a total of 27 different varieties, Al.

AL: Seriously?

ANDREW: Yep.

AL: Wow.

ANDREW: 22 yellow and five white.

AL: Mm-Hmm.

What's the trick on, on picking these?

ANDREW: A little twist and pull.

AL: Okay and I guess... ANDREW: Looking for the ones on the outermost of the branches.

AL: Okay, like right in here.

ANDREW: Because peaches ripen from the outermost to the innermost.

AL: Okay.

ANDREW: And we're looking for the biggest ones.

AL: Uh-huh.

ANDREW: And the ones that give with just a little bit of a squeeze.

AL: Little squeeze to them, okay.

Holy moly, all the way in there it's like Treasure Island.

ANDREW: It is.

Oh, here we go.

♪ ♪ AL: This is a hot corner down here, you found some good ones.

ANDREW: Yeah.

AL: By the end of the day, both my basket and my back were in a state of emergency.

Hey Andrew, I'm getting full.

ANDREW: Uh-oh.

AL: And with the peaches picked, it was time to get baking so I ran over to the Bethesda Methodist Church.

By the time I arrived with my fresh picked peaches, dozens of church members were packed into a small kitchen.

VOLUNTEER: Now, last year we ran out by noon with 73, and this year we're making, um, at least 100, I've lost count.

AL: Where I met up with Kari Farnell, member of the church and Katie Whaple's sister.

KARI FARNELL: All right, that looks good.

AL: You know what struck me, Kari, is that this whole event seems like such a family affair.

KARI: It's, it did start out that way, yes.

KARI: Yes, my sister, um, started an orchard, Heritage Orchard... AL: Heritage Orchard.

KARI: And then we got kind of continued getting the peaches from them so for the Peach Festival.

AL: Peaches, family and friends.

KARI: Yes.

AL: That's what it's all about.

KARI: Yes.

AL: Came out clean.

So I declare these cobblers done.

Well Kari it's amazing how much sweeter the cobbler tastes when you use locally sourced peaches and eating it with the community to put it all together.

KARI: Yes.

AL: It's really, really nice.

And Andrew, I think people would love to come visit your orchard.

ANDREW: Yeah.

AL: And, and then come on down and see what it's all about, can we put some information on our website?

ANDREW: Please, it's a great way to reach the community.

AL: It is.

It's the Heritage Orchard near Preston and we're gonna put it on our website at mpt.org/farm.

You can come on down and visit.

For "The Local Buy," I'm Al Spoler, Joanne?

JOANNE: Thanks Al.

Be sure to check out mpt.org/farm for all our recipes and resources.

Plus you can watch all "Farm and Harvest" episodes there as well.

Also, don't forget to follow us on social media for show updates, pictures, and videos.

Now hold on, we're not done yet.

Remember our thingamajig?

Did you guess it?

Our hint was, despite this tool's harsh iron exterior, it was used to protect something very delicate.

This is an egg carton maker.

It was used to mold cardboard into the shape of the carton.

Cardboard is placed here, then the handle is pressed as iron spokes fashion the shape of the carton.

Congratulations if you got it right.

Join us next week for another thingamajig along with more stories about the diverse, passionate people who feed our state.

I'm Joanne Clendining, thanks for watching.

(music plays through credits).

NARRATOR: Major funding for "Maryland Farm and Harvest" is made possible in part by the Maryland Grain Producers Utilization Board, investing in smarter farming to support safe and affordable food, feed and fuel, and a healthy Bay.

Additional funding provided by Maryland's Best.

Good for you.

Good for Maryland.

MARBIDCO, helping to sustain food and fiber enterprise for future generations.

A grant from the Maryland Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Program, Farm Credit, lending support to agriculture and rural America.

The Maryland Soybean Board and Soybean Checkoff Program.

Progress powered by farmers.

The Maryland Nursery Landscape and Greenhouse Association, The Maryland Association of Soil Conservation Districts.

The Maryland Farm Bureau Incorporated.

The Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment.

The Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation, promoting the importance of agriculture in our daily lives.

And by Baltimore County Commission on Arts and Sciences.

(bird chirping).