- Real Virginia is
probably produced
by the Virginia Farm
Bureau Federation.
Since 1926, Farm
Bureau has been working
to preserve Virginia farms
and our rural heritage.
Visit our website at vafb.com.
- Hello everyone and
welcome to Real Virginia,
a show about Virginia
agriculture and the people
who produce the wonderful
local products we enjoy,
brought to you by the
Virginia Farm Bureau.
Virginia farmers are
helping food banks
supply fresh food
during the pandemic.
If your hostas are too crowded,
Mark Viette has the cure.
And Virginia peanut farmers
are urging consumers
to eat more peanuts.
(light cheerful music)
♪ Home will always be Virginia ♪
♪ 'Tween the Blue Ridge
and Chesapeake bay ♪
♪ Atlantic to Appalachia ♪
♪ Home in my heart always ♪
- Welcome back to Real
Virginia, everyone.
We're coming to you this
week from Parker Farms
in Westmoreland County.
Thousands of Virginians are
visiting local food banks
to stretch limited food dollars.
Burke Moeller reports,
many farmers are doing
their part to help,
but more are needed.
- Food banks across Virginia
are seeing an increase
in clients across the state
due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But farmers are helping
to meet that demand.
Long lines at local
food banks have become
an unwelcome sign of
the times this summer.
Layoffs and furloughs
mean more consumers
are trying to stretch
their food dollars.
Farmers have their own problems
caused by the coronavirus,
but they're still
trying to help.
- This year was a
challenging year for growing.
We had a late frost, and it
became extremely hot later on.
So it punched a lot of our
separate plannings together.
We were supposed to
harvest wheat corn
over a seven-week period,
and it was condensed
into a four-week period.
That made us not
have enough labor
to get everything done on time.
So rather than pass all of
it that we couldn't pick,
we were glad to have the
Healthy Harvest Food Bank
get some of their
volunteers out.
And that way it
didn't go to waste.
- [Burke] Virginia food banks
are grateful for any
donated farm produce,
especially with more
people than ever
coming to them for help
feeding their families.
- Boy, we've seen about
a 20, 25% increase.
- [Burke] Mark Kleinschmidt
and Cindy Balderson
run the Healthy Harvest Food
Bank in Warsaw, Virginia.
They've been working with
Parker Farms in Colonial Beach
for the past eight years.
Based on experience, they're
expecting a rough fall.
- Come September and
October, it's gonna spike.
I think it's going to stay
that way throughout the winter.
So right now, you
know, we've been trying
to get all the food we can
to allow for those
difficult months
that we're assuming are
going to come up soon.
- [Burke] One thing that
helps Virginia farmers
address this increased
demand for fresh food
is a state food bank
donation tax credit,
the Virginia Farm Bureau
and other farm organizations
supported the tax credit in
the General Assembly in 2016.
The program allows farmers
to claim a credit up to 30%
of the value of
their food donations
to a nonprofit food bank.
The maximum individual tax
credit allowed is $5,000 a year.
And the statewide
program is capped
at a quarter of a million
dollars worth of credits
each fiscal year.
- We just hate to see
anything go to waste
when it can be used.
- [Burke] Farmers like John
Marker in Frederick County
say they'd likely be
donating extra produce
with or without the tax credit.
Still every bit of help
for the growers is welcome.
He's been working with
gleaning operations for decades
to help get unsold produce
to families in need.
It's still a little early
in the season for him,
but Miller anticipates
more activity
and more donations
as fall approaches.
- We really had
anything to glean yet.
Most of early peaches
have been various light
because of the
freeze damage early.
And so, we usually have
some garden vegetables
and things like
that, they can glean.
But then the big thing
is apples later in this.
- [Burke] The Federation
of Virginia Food Bank
says with the pandemic one
and eight Virginia families
is experiencing hunger,
and the need for fresh food
donations is greater than ever.
Farmers hate seeing the product
of their hard work go unused.
- There's a lot of
food that goes to waste
simply because it's not perfect
or it's a slightly off-grade.
So it makes us feel good that
somebody can utilize that.
And for us, it's
not a lot of work.
The trick comes with getting
the volunteers to come.
So we're very fortunate
to have a group
that will coordinate that effort
and make good use of something
that's perfectly
good and nutritious.
- [Burke] The Federation
of Virginia Food Banks
distributes more than 120
million pounds of free food
to almost a million
Virginians each year.
Farmers are proud to
be part of that effort.
In Fredericksburg, Virginia,
I'm Burke Moeller reporting.
- [Norm] Virginia is blessed
with a statewide
network of food banks
that coordinate their
efforts to collect donations
and distribute food
to households in need.
Seven regional
warehouse facilities
collect government food supplies
along with corporate and
individual donations,
then distribute them to
smaller feeding programs
like senior centers, soup
kitchens, and food pantries,
as well as distributing
to individuals
in their respective communities.
They've developed
their own distribution
and shipping networks,
all to make those food donations
stretch as far as possible.
In addition to donations
like fresh produce
and canned goods,
food banks also welcome
financial contributions.
- I'm Mark Viette, coming
up on In the Garden.
I'm gonna talk about how
you can have lots of hosta
in your garden.
Stay with us.
- [Announcer] We're
stronger together.
Especially at this
difficult time.
For over 90 years, we've
watched our membership grow
and we're honored to be part
of such a special community.
Thank you to the farmers who
provide for us every day,
Virginia Farm Bureau is
proud to serve our members,
their families, and to give
back to our local communities.
That's the Farm Bureau way.
- Hostas are one of the
hardiest shade plants.
Mark Viette says they're also
one of the easiest to divide
in order to expand or say or
your plantings in the garden.
(upbeat banjo music)
- Some of the
smaller leaved hosta
really produce a lot
of stems and shoots.
You can make lots
out of this plant.
This one's called
golden nakiana.
I'm gonna treat this one
a little differently.
I'm gonna dig part of this
plant, one of the crumps,
and I'm gonna shake the soil off
and then I'm gonna divide it.
So you just come in
and dig just like this.
And I've always got to make
sure I fill the holes back.
You know, my dad gets mad
because I dig these things,
then I leave the holes,
and he trips into holes.
So fill back on the holes.
So here I am going to
shake the soil off.
It's a little different
than the other one.
And usually I have
a plastic bag,
so I could put it
right in a plastic bag.
So the roots don't dry out
and I'm going to
pull them apart.
One, two, three, four, five,
six, seven, eight,
nine, 10 plants.
Now you can make
them a little bigger.
One, two, maybe three,
if you don't want
to wait a long time,
you can put them in pots
or you can plant them
right back in a garden.
Now will tell you, by
shaking off all the soil,
I have removed all
the root hairs,
so carefully, what I'm gonna
do is come in and trim them,
cut them back like this.
Now, if for some reason you
have got a very old hosta
that you really can't
do anything with,
you know, a razor's
not gonna work,
a knife will not cut through
it, but I love meat cleavers.
You know, we used to
use these little axes,
but they would crush
a lot of the plant
because they really wide.
And you can see how
narrow a meat cleaver is.
So when you go to a yard
sale, or if your grandmother,
or your parents have an old
meat cleaver, save them.
And you just want to make
sure that they are sharp.
(cleaver clanks)
You can use it for
a couple things.
You can come in here,
if it's a real
established plant,
now this one, I wouldn't
need a meat cleaver,
don't hold a plant with
your fingers in your hand,
but you can come right in
and easily cut your hosta.
And you'll get used to
this, line them all up.
And you can turn the
follows like these.
Make lots of hosta.
If I want out of that, I
probably could make 60 plants.
But for our gardens, we
probably want to start out
with a little bit bigger plant,
and you can fill your
shade gardens with hosta.
I'm Mark Viette.
Join me next time In the Garden.
- [Norm] For more garden tips,
go to inthegardenradio.com.
- Coming up on
Heart of the Home,
we're gonna deconstruct
some eggplant, stay with us.
- [Ad Narrator] And now
a sneak peek into a day
in the life of a
Virginia dairy cow.
They get their day started.
They have some lunch,
get some exercise,
spend time with their friends,
and then end their day
with dairy sweet dreams.
Real dairy, real
life, real delicious.
- Tomatoes and
cucumbers are easy,
but many consumers don't know
what to do with eggplant.
Chef Tammy Brawley has the
recipe for this garden treat
in the Heart of the Home.
(light uplifting music)
- Hi, I'm chef Tammy
Brawley, the Green Kitchen.
We're doing a special
outdoor shoot today
at Old Tavern Farm in New Kent.
I'm gonna show you
guys how to work
with some great
summer vegetables.
Old Tavern got some beautiful
vegetables out here.
We've got some graffiti
eggplant that I'm gonna use.
And I love this recipe
because it doesn't have a lot
of the goopy sauce and stuff.
It's delicious, but came up
with this a few years ago,
we're gonna take the eggplant
and we're gonna cut slices.
And what you want to do
is you want to put them
either on a grill pan or
on your outdoor grill.
Make sure the heat came on.
You want to grill them
until some nice grill marks
pop up on the outsides
of the eggplant.
And you can also grill a tomato.
I wouldn't do the tomato
as long as the eggplant,
but a couple of slices
to get a little warmth
in there is great.
We'll toss those on the grill
right next to the eggplant.
(tomato hisses)
Now, once your
nice grill slices,
grill marks, excuse me,
you grill marks have
popped up on your eggplant,
you can pull that off.
You want to put
these now on a pan
that you're gonna
put in the oven.
We're going to just melt
some mozzarella cheese.
But before the
mozzarella cheese,
we're gonna get
some fresh basil.
Again, we're using fresh basil
from out here at New Kent.
Basils are my favorite
herbs to work with.
Place the basil right on the
eggplant that you've grilled.
And then we're gonna
pull the tomato slices
off of the grill,
put those on top of the
eggplant and the basil.
And now it's time
for some delicious
fresh mozzarella cheese.
This is actually a
mozzarella cheese
that has been done here
in Virginia as well
from curds and whey.
Pull that out onto your
cutting board, couple slices.
Put that right on
top of the eggplant
with the tomato and the basil.
And now you want to
pop it in a warm oven,
roughly about 300-350 degrees,
just lightly 'till the
cheese melts over the top.
And then one of the things
I love to add to this dish
is grilled carrots.
That was the first thing I
learned to grill years ago.
Carrots have a very
natural sweetness,
and I love cutting them in half
and putting it with a
little bit of olive oil,
salt, and pepper, pop them
on the same grill pan.
And then they come
nice and soft.
And it makes a nice
little addition.
So now you have a
great summer dish
that you've barely
used the stove for,
deconstructed eggplant.
Join us next time on
Heart of the Home.
- [Announcer] Recipes
from the Heart of the Home
can be found on the
Virginia Farm Bureau website
at vafb.com as well as on
chef Tammy Brawley's website,
greenkitchenrichmond.com.
- [Norm] Eggplant is
raised for commercial sale
across 77 acres on
232 farms in Virginia.
Those are the producers that
sell to farmer's markets,
grocery stores and distributors.
Many more backyard gardeners
also raise eggplant,
which is a good source
of vitamins and minerals,
as well as being
rich in antioxidants.
It's a popular staple in the
so called Mediterranean diet.
Eggplant grows well in
raised beds or containers.
It's a warm season fruit
and their principle pest
is the eggplant flea beetle.
Some producers prefer
smaller eggplant varieties
because they're easier to
manage and protect from pests.
(light cheerful music)
- Peanuts and baseball go
together like peas and carrots.
But this year, half the
partnership is missing.
Ricky Gibson reports, many
Virginia peanut farmers
are urging folks to eat more
of their favorite
baseball snacks.
- [Commentator] Bayas comes set
next to his ear, now delivers.
- [Ricky] The crack of a bat
and the roar of the crowd
are just some of the experiences
baseball fans are
missing this summer,
as the pandemic has canceled
all minor league
baseball ballgames
and major league games
are closed to the public.
And that means tens
of thousands of bags
of Virginia-style peanuts
are still in storage.
- Baseball and peanuts
go hand in hand.
There's some things in life
that are synonymous
with each other,
Starsky and Hutch,
Butch and Sundance,
baseball and peanuts.
When they wrote the song,
"Take Me Out to the Ballgame,"
they put peanuts in
there for a reason.
And I'm certain that
just as no games
are affecting the
baseball industry,
there are so many
trickle effects to that
and peanuts are
certainly one of them.
- The baseball season
being canceled or delayed
has greatly impacted
the Virginia in-shell
peanut situation.
The minor leagues'
ballpark consume
a heck of a lot of peanuts
and there's absolutely
no fans there.
And major league absolutely
is like 30,000 people
a game in major leagues,
and there's no baseball
peanuts being displayed,
being eaten there,
consumed there.
- [Ricky] Paul Rogers
raises seed peanuts
in Sussex County and serves
on the National Peanut
Board, a peanut trade group.
He says the good news is
growers have already been paid
for the peanuts
that are uneaten,
they came from last year's crop.
But peanuts are
an important part
of Southeastern
Virginia's farm economy,
and a glut of peanuts
on the market this fall
is not a good sign.
Especially since this year's
crop is looking good so far.
- We have been very
blessed in the last decade
with great peanut crops.
The weather has been
very good to us,
and the breeding along
in the peanut varieties
that's come a long ways from
what it was decades ago.
This year's crop was
started out slow.
We got a late start because
of wet cold weather.
And then we went
through a very dry July.
Within the last 10 to 12
days we have been blessed
with adequate moisture.
And as you can see behind me,
these peanuts are
well on the way
to a potential for
having a very good crop.
- [Ricky] Dell Cotton
with the Virginia
Peanut Growers Association notes
that Virginia-style peanuts
have a unique marketing niche.
They're only raised
in eight counties
in Southeastern Virginia
and North Carolina,
and are the only
nuts sold in-shell.
All other peanut varieties
are typically crushed
for peanut butter or used in
candies and processed foods.
The lack of sales at the
ballpark is significant,
but Cotton says
consumers and sports fans
can still get their peanut fix.
- we're very fortunate
in that at least
many of your in-shop processors
also deal with other
markets of peanuts too.
One of the major ones
also makes peanut butter.
So, instead of putting
peanuts in the baseball game,
they may well choose
to do peanut butter,
which peanut butter has
gone through the roof
since this pandemic
has taken place.
So, you lose on the one hand,
you gain on the other hand.
But they are also
supplying grocery stores,
just like they always have,
with plenty of in-shell peanuts.
They're seeing more moved
through the grocery stores
than they have in the past.
So, it seems like to me,
what people are doing
is instead of going
to the baseball game
and eating peanuts,
they're instead possibly
staying at home,
watching baseball
or something on TV,
and buying their own
in-shell peanuts,
and eating them at home.
All you got to do is go
to a produce department
of any grocery store and
you can buy all you want.
- [Ricky] Rogers
says, that's exactly
what peanut farmers
want to hear.
Peanut growers have supported
local baseball teams for years
with special promotions
at ball games.
Those special events
are gone for now,
but both farmers and
sports fans can still enjoy
some Virginia peanuts.
- I love all sports,
but baseball is special
in its own individual way
for every single person.
And it's so much a family thing,
like how many
people were taught,
how to crack their peanuts
at a ball game by their dad?
How many people would have
peanuts on the picnic table
after having a catch
with their dad?
You know, how many people
have experienced things
at a ballpark because of
family situations? A ton.
And as much as football,
basketball, NASCAR, other sports
means, if you paint a family
picture of experiences,
a ballpark usually has
way more to do with it
than any other sport.
And peanuts fits
right into that.
- I mean, the growers
are just asking consumers
to eat peanuts in any
way, shape or form,
you can eat peanuts.
Of course, Virginia Peanuts,
we are, like I said before,
we are mostly in-shell,
but we do have a lot
of Virginia peanuts that
are going to gourmets
and to your local
peanut gourmet shops.
Anything you can do to
eat peanuts, eat peanuts,
make peanuts, eat peanut
recipes, peanut butter cake,
anything you can
do to eat peanuts
and to help us get
through this pandemic,
to get the supply and demand
back where it needs to be.
- [Ricky] Few people
are more optimistic
about the future then farmers.
As the pandemic continues,
both peanut growers
and sports fans alike are hoping
for better luck next year.
- But as it often
said that old saying:
Tough times don't
last, tough people do.
So we just have to remain tough
and we have to be
there for each other.
So, my word of positivity
is out to those farmers,
out to the sales people,
out to the vendors,
out to the people who
keep the peanuts on stock,
hang in there.
We're gonna be filling
this place up in 2021.
I think the peanuts are never
going to taste so great.
The beverages are never
going to be so cold.
There are brighter
days ahead, folks,
and just wake up tomorrow
hoping that we're one step
closer to those brighter days.
- [Ricky] Some minor
league ballparks
are holding special event nights
for socially distant
parties, movies,
and camp outs this year,
featuring all your
favorite ballpark foods,
including of course, peanuts.
In Sussex County, Virginia,
I'm Ricky Gibson reporting.
- We're so glad you
could join us this week
to celebrate all the bounty
Virginia has to offer.
From the kitchen, to
your home and garden,
to our beautiful
wide open spaces,
we are proud to say
this is Real Virginia.
For everyone from the
Virginia Farm Bureau,
thanks for watching.
Make it a great week.
(light cheerful music)
♪ Home will always be Virginia ♪
♪ 'Tween the Blue Ridge
and Chesapeake bay ♪
♪ Atlantic to Appalachia ♪
♪ Home in my heart always ♪
- [Announcer] We have 37
parks across the Commonwealth.
Every year, 10 million
visitors enjoy 600 miles
of trails from
beaches to mountains,
hundreds of cabins and
campsites, even yurts.
(bright cheerful music)
We are Virginia state parks.
- All right, give me a spot.
You know my motto: safety first.
(rodents squeaking)
- They could be dangerous.
I think we should
call animal control.
- Animal control!
- To be safe.
- Don't worry.
I got this.
It's a new motto.
- [Narrator] You don't
have to be perfect
to be a perfect parent.
There are thousands of
teens in foster care
who don't need perfection.
They need you.
- [Announcer] There are
30,000 roadway accidents
each year involving
cars and farm machinery.
Farmers will be moving equipment
for planting and harvest season.
The slow moving
vehicle triangle in red
and fluorescent orange
colors and flashing lights
allow for quick identification.
When you see an S and V
sign on farm equipment,
slow down, prepare for
sudden stops and slow turns.
- Patience will save lives.
Just remember we all
need to share the road.
We all need to be responsible
and we need to be
guided by the law.
- [Announcer] Motor vehicle
safety starts with you.
(metal screeching)
- [Narrator] Did you
know dragging chains
can spark a wildfire?
Only you can prevent wildfires.
