Legacy Farms | Century Farms | The Ag Expo & Fair | Farm of the Year | Farm Listings
Supplement to Hagerstown Magazine
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WASHINGTON COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Leslie Hart, Business Specialist, Agriculture, Tourism, and Hospitality Industries
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Grown Local (ISSN #1555-337X), is an annual publication of Hagerstown Publishing, LLC. ©2024 by Hagerstown Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. The magazine is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or photographs. Subscription price: $18.87 per year which includes Grown Local. Single issues $3.71. Prices include 6% Maryland state sales tax. To subscribe, send a check or money order to the business office payable to Hagerstown Magazine, call 301-662-8171 or visit www.hagerstownmagazine. com. Periodicals Postage Paid at Frederick, MD, 21701 and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to P.O. Box 2415, Hagerstown, MD 21741. Distributed through subscriptions, advertisers, and sold at newsstands and other locations throughout Washington County, Md., and the surrounding area.
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4 CONTENTS ABOUT THE COVER Dale Price and his granddaughter Reagan stroll through the buildings of the family farm where generations of the Price family have worked. 6 Commissioners Message 8 Century Farms 13 Farm of the Year 18 Legacy Farms: Price and Price 24 Legacy Farms: Long Delite 30 Legacy Farms: Poffenberger 34 Legacy Farms: Shank 38 The Ag Expo and Fair 46 Farmers Markets 50 Farm Listings 56 Farm Wineries, Breweries & Distilleries 62 Recipes from the Farm 8 24 38
Greetings Washington County residents and surrounding communities. Thank you for living, working, and playing in Washington County. This third edition of the Grown Local agricultural magazine is dedicated to all our farmers and producers of the past, present, and future. This “Legacy” Grown Local edition looks back at the roots of agriculture and the last several generations of farmers.
In Washington County in the year 1910, there were 2,466 farms operating. Fast forward to the year 1950, and that number had reduced to 2,025 farms. Today there are less than half that number with 958 local operating family farms in Washington County continuing the proud heritage of agricultural endeavors.
Washington County’s agricultural industry is the backbone and today is still at the heart of the county’s landscape. Founded in 1776, agriculture and farming were a necessity for every person to feed their families. Fast forward a few hundred years and Washington County is still rooted in agriculture and feeding the community, state, nation, and world. Today, the work of one farmer feeds 155 people worldwide. By 2050, the global population is expected to reach 9.8 billion people. To meet that increased need, farmers will need to grow about 70 percent more food than what is being produced today.
The Washington County Commissioners would like to thank you for living, doing business, and raising your families in Washington County. Our county is very rich in historically significant landmarks, world-class businesses, awardwinning educational facilities, and a rich strong agricultural community. We value the needs of our citizens to provide our residents with the highest quality of life including safety, infrastructure, and community services. You do not have to travel very far in our county to see our vast land heritage. The Washington County landscape is rich in agricultural
enterprises, and we value each landowner and farmer who provides the beauty that is our community. The Washington County agricultural landscape has kept pace to provide for local and global demands.
We are proud of the largest industry and economic driver in Washington County: agriculture. Agri-Tourism operations continue to grow to provide the community with ways to connect with the land, the food, and their farming neighbors.
Additionally, the farm craft beverage industry, including wineries, breweries, and distilleries, represents one of the fastest growing agricultural business sectors.
Technology continues to expand in the agricultural sector to allow farms and farmers to be more profitable, efficient, safe, and environmentally friendly.
The Washington County Board of County Commissioners and the Washington County Department of Business and Economic Development would like to recognize the diverse agricultural landscape of Washington County and thank the farmers that provide us with life sustaining food, fiber, and fuel. We would also like to thank you, the local citizens, for supporting our local farms and farmers and choosing to raise your families in Washington County.
The Grown Local magazine is published once per year and is dedicated to the hard work, commitment, and passion of the Washington County farms, farmers, and related agricultural businesses. This publication is created in partnership with Hagerstown Magazine and The Washington County Department of Business and Economic Development. Leslie Hart and Carmen Harbaugh have dedicated countless hours to showcase the depth and breadth of the farming community and reflect on the agricultural legacy of those who have gone ahead of us.
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It’s been almost 300 years since Othmar Schnebly immigrated from Switzerland and settled in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the late 1720s. Schnebly set up a farm, which was eventually sold or lost so one of his sons, John Schnebly, made his way to Washington County. He set up his own farming operation which has been handed down from generation to generation and remains in the family today.
The farm is now owned by J.C. Schnebly and his father, also John, who the family believes are the seventh and eighth generations to farm the land. J.C.’s children are the ninth generation to live on the farm.
As with most local land records going back hundreds of years, not everything is perfectly clear. But what is known is that
the Schnebly’s Crown Stone Farm has been around long enough to apply for Maryland’s Century Farm status. J.C.’s daughter, Emma, is working with her
grandmother to get that done. The farm will be the 12th Washington County farm to be accredited as a century farm.
“As long as my grandfather and dad remember, the date the farm was established was 1845. But when my grandmother got courts documents we saw it actually said 1819,” Emma says. “Now we’re not really sure where the 1845 came from, but as far as we can see our ancestor, John Schnebly, maybe six generations back, is the one who established the farm as it is today.”
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If the 1819 date is confirmed, it would make Crown Stone, a dairy farm that milks about 200 cows of various breeds, the oldest farm in the county. The farm was originally called Pleasant Springs Farm, but when a crown stone monument marking the Mason-Dixon Line was found, the name was changed. The monument would have been one of the original markers set by the two famous surveyors. They placed marking stones every mile and crown stones—more elaborate markers with an “M” on the Maryland side and a “P” on the Pennsylvania side and the coat of arms of each state on the other two sides—every five miles along the line that established the border between Pennsylvania and Maryland in one of the most historic American surveys.
The family farm, which grows all the grains to feed the cows, crosses the Mason-Dixon line into Pennsylvania.
Maryland’s Century Farm Program was established in 1994 by former Gov. William Donald Schaefer with assistance from the Maryland Department of Agriculture Secretary Lewis Riley. The purpose of the program is to honor families whose farms have been in the same family for at least 100 years and continue to be productive.
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A Farming Legacy
Creek Bound Farms named Washington County Farm of the Year
Jim and Bonnie Weddle knew from an early age they wanted to be farmers.
Jim grew up on a horse farm and Bonnie on a dairy farm. They met in college and that seemed to seal the deal. After graduating they married and worked for Bonnie’s father for two years before starting their own dairy farm, Creek Bound Farm, in 1980.
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In the beginning they carried milk in buckets by hand to tanks, but as the business expanded they built a milking parlor, and silos and over the years massaged Creek Bound Farm into the 4,500 acres that has been named the 2023-24 Washington County Farm of the Year.
Creek Bound Farm raised dairy cows for 25 years before the farm transitioned into crop farming and custom heifer farming. The Weddle family owns 730 acres and rents or leases more than 3,900 additional acres, all dedicated to crops like corn, soybeans, wheat, grass hay, and straw.
The Washington County Farm of the Year program recognizes a farm that showcases excellence in agriculture and promotes a greater understanding of the challenges faced by today’s farmers. Production, conservation, preservation, community involvement, and dedication to farming and agriculture, are the gold standard for this award.
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Members of the Weddle family and the team at Creek Bound Farms, which was named Washington County Farm of the Year for 2023-24.
Proficiencies in production methods include spraying utilizing an agricultural drone that allows for precision application and cost reduction and savings, and a newly added 11-bin grain system that provides additional storage and grain drying capacity to maintain high quality crops. These are just a few proficiencies found within the Weddle operations.
“Agriculture is our passion, and we feel as though it is what we were intended to do with our resources and our lives,” says Jim Weddle, who served on the Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative Association board of directors for 12 years. “Our family has been blessed with opportunities in agriculture for previous and future generations and we want to pass on those opportunities.”
Jeremiah and Janelle Weddle, along with their family, have dedicated their lives to agricultural preservation programs to
restrict development on prime farmland. Conservation programs exist on all the Creek Bound Farms locations to help maintain soil fertility, stability, and pest control along with nutrient management plans adhering to government regulations for land, water, and air quality.
All commodity products produced by the Weddle Family are fertilized, the land is prepared, sprayed, maintained, harvested, dried, and hauled by a Weddle family member or Creek Bound Farms employee.
Creek Bound Farms LLC will receive a Farm of the year plaque for display on the farm, a Board of County Commissioner proclamation, an on-farm photoshoot, and Creek Bound Farms LLC will be used in the 2023-2024 promotions and marketing efforts by the Washington County Department of Business and Economic Development.
Applications for the Washington County Farm of the Year are accepted annually from August to September and after judging, the winner is announced in October. For more information, please contact Leslie Hart, Business Development Specialist with Washington County Department of Business and Economic Development at lhart@washco-md.net or (240) 3132284 or (301) 573-7039.
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When Chester Price started farming in Washington County during the Depression era, he had no idea what kind of legacy he was beginning. It was a time when folks did whatever you needed to do to survive, and Price became a sharecropper before deciding to try farming on his own.
“That began the legacy,” says his grandson, Dale Price, who is continuing the legacy at Price and Price Farm in Keedysville.
Chester had five sons and continually acquired land for farming. As each son got old enough to go out on his own, Chester would leave the farm, 30 head of dairy cows and enough equipment to keep the farm going and move on with
his other sons to start a new farm. It was up to each son to keep the farms Chester established going.
One son married into a farming family in Clear Spring, but the other four all got farms. Two of the farms are still active.
Terry Price was the youngest of the five boys and the last to get a farm, this one in Keedysville where his son, Dale, continues the family farming tradition.
Terry Price had been a dairy farmer for decades before he turned to crop farming, and now Dale grows corn, soybeans, and wheat on the 76 acres of the original farm. They farm a total of 2,100 acres in Washington County.
But for Dale, it wasn’t always clear that he would carry on the legacy.
“I was one of those farm kids who just had to get away,” he says. “When you’re young, you’re sure there’s something better out there for you.”
Dale worked in construction for two years and as a diesel mechanic for two more, both handy skills when he returned to the farm.
“At some point you decide home is where you want to be, and four years later I felt the need to come back,” he says. “That was 1989. My father took me on as partner in 1996 and turned everything over to me in 2003.”
Now Dale and his wife have four sons and a daughter. All have gone off to college and started careers in other fields. Dale’s oldest son, Chet, along with his wife Annie and their daughter Reagan, has returned to the farm. Chet continues his career as an engineer and is working his way back into farming full time. Dale says the door is always open for his other sons, and his daughter who is still in college, to return if they want to. Together the Prices are hoping to add acreage to expand their retail beef and corn sales.
For Dale, he doesn’t spend a lot of time worrying about how long the Price family farming legacy can go on, he just wants his grandchildren to have the farming experience.
“We’ve been here three generations now. My grandchildren would be generation five,” he says. “Our goal, I guess, is not to worry about whether they want to farm or how long the farming operation can go on, but to preserve the family atmosphere and the opportunities to run on the farm and play in the straw that I know will mean a lot to them for years to come.”
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Long Delite Farm
By Crystal Schelle
Since 1831, Long Delite Farm, just north of Downsville, has been traditionally passed from father to son. Brooks Long is the seventh generation to take the reins of the dairy farm. It was passed from his father, Galen Long, 71, who still helps milk the herd. The farm was passed to Galen from his late father, Lawrence Long, who passed away in 2015 at the age of 92. And he had received the farm from his father, and so forth.
Brooks Long says he has fond memories of working alongside his father and grandfather on the 160-acre property. And when it came time for him to take over the property, Brooks said he knew what he wanted to do.
When he graduated from Williamsport High School in 2001, Brooks decided to work with his father full time on the farm.
“I mean, it sounds cliche, from the time I was old enough to get out and ride on the tractor, there was never really a time in my life where I was like, maybe I’ll do something else,” Brooks says. “It wasn’t really something that crossed my mind.”
I always said from a long time ago that you can’t be a farmer unless that’s really what you want to do. “ ”
— Brooks Long
Brooks has a sister and brother but says both really wanted to pursue a life off the farm. Luckily, Brooks was eager to take it on.
“There really wasn’t a plan B for me,” he says.
Long Delite Farm is a rotational grazing operation, which they made a transition to in 2002.
“We milk cows year round, but our primary source of feed is grass, either through grazing during the grazing season or through hay that we made in the summer to feed through the winter,” he says.
They typically milk between 50 and 60 head of dairy cows, with some additional young stock. He said he mainly has Jersey cows, but he also does a lot of crossbreeding with other dairy breeds. Although their focus is dairy, he also has a small herd of beef cattle, some are dairy cattle and the rest is beef cattle that he raises for beef sales privately or through their store, Deliteful Dairy. The total of all cattle both dairy and beef, he said, is about 100 head total.
In 2004, Brooks, 40, married Katie, who is also from a generation of farming.
Her family owns Misty Meadow Farm in Smithsburg. They grew up showing cows together in 4-H.
He says it was “pretty special” to marry a woman who grew up on a farm. “It made it nice for me to marry somebody who knew what she was getting herself into,” he says.
Farming isn’t for everyone and Brooks says he understands how lucky he was to find a partner willing to live the farm life.
“It’s a lifestyle. You have to have somebody (who) understands the lifestyle and buys into it,” he says.
Today, he and Katie, 41, are keeping the legacy alive and raising their children, Kaleb, 17, and Brielle, 16. Galen Long says he’s glad to see his son and his family working the farm. Galen was born in the farmhouse.
Like his son, Galen felt like taking over the family farm was a lifestyle he was used to, and wanted to continue. “It just seemed the natural thing to do,” he says.
He says he always enjoyed working with the animals, plowing the fields, and harvesting crops. “I just thoroughly enjoyed running the farm equipment, and that was part of the thing that drove me to stay on the farm.”
Galen says Long Delite Farm has been a father-son operation from the beginning. He said when his grandfather died in 1967, Galen was a sophomore in high school. He said his father came to him and told him to help the farm survive he’d have to do more than his regular chores around the farm. And he did that full time before Brooks and his family took it over.
Although Brooks took over the farm in 2009, Galen still enjoys milking. He says since Brooks has hired a farm hand, he has scaled back tremendously. “But I’m still the first person in the barn in the morning,” he says.
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Dairy has always been the type of farming that his family has done on the farm. He said he remembers shipping milk commercially in metal cans that were put in ice banks and later put on milk trucks when he was younger. What milk they don’t process is then sent to a milk co-op. For 60 years, Brooks says they have shipped to Maryland and Virginia milk producers. Prior to that, he says, they shipped locally.
In 2019, Brooks and Katie decided to take a leap and start processing their own milk with Deliteful Dairy, which is also a store where customers can come and purchase fresh milk, cheese, butter, eggs, and more. They also wholesale in the Tri-State area and down into Washington, D.C. He said starting a business just one year before the pandemic led to “some stressful and interesting times, but we’re still standing as of now and we’re making the best of it.”
Galen says there are other farms in Washington County that are generational as well, but as times have changed so have people staying on the farm.
“The next generation has found that life outside the farm is a whole lot less work and a whole lot more prosperous,” he says, adding that when Brooks took over the farm “it was my greatest achievement.” But he says with the economy he sometimes regrets pushing him too hard. “I’m still very proud of the fact that the farm is still in the family, and he has started the dairy and has a reputation that he has. It’s been very gratifying.”
Galen says it’s hard to see into the future, but he predicts a future when production agricultural will be tailored so closely to the consumer, meaning farming won’t look quite the same as it did when he was farming. He guesses farmers will be able to set prices because they will be the only game in town.
But, he says, who knows what the future might hold.
Brooks admits he isn’t sure if the farm will see an eighth generation, for a number of reasons including the agriculture community dwindling and the interest of his own children. He says his son wants to major in psychology in college and his daughter is at Boyd J. Michael III Technical High School for cosmetology. But he feels that the farm will carry on with someone who loves farming whether they are a Long or not.
“I always said from a long time ago that you can’t be a farmer unless that’s really what you want to do,” he
says, “because nobody’s choosing to be a farmer because they want to get rich, or it’s a really easy good-paying job. That’s not what farming is, so it has to be in your blood. It just has to be a desire that you have. And it’s not something you can force.”
Until that time, Galen says “there’s no place like a farm to raise a family.”
“It wasn’t so much that we were looking to be at the top of the game to make the most money that anybody had made or anything,” he says. “It was a lifestyle. I raised my kids and I grew up there, and it’s just the kind of thing that is very satisfying.”
cot Poffenberger admits it took a little conjuring by his parents to come back and work the family farm MM Ranch in Sharpsburg.
He had gone away to Virginia Tech to earn an animal science degree with plans to enter veterinarian school, but says he got “sidetracked with a job and money.” He finished his degree, but decided to drop the idea of vet school. He did put that new degree to good work.
“I pretty much just started managing farms straight out of college,” he says.
None of those farms, through, were MM Ranch. In 1996, his parents, Mary Margaret Poffenberger and his late father Bill Poffenberger wanted him to come home and continue the legacy of the ranch on Mondell and Powell roads in Sharpsburg. At the time, he was working and living in Baltimore County.
By the time Poffenberger was talking to his parents, he was married to Christie Wilt Poffenberger, and was raising two children, Seth and Tori. It took a lot of conversations to convince him after 20 years to come home. One that sealed the deal for the younger Poffenberger was that the land would be protected for future generations. They agreed. In 1999, Scot and his family moved back home.
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Mary Margaret, Christie, Scot, and Seth Poffenberger.
“And with a little bit of money and a lot of a lot of giving, I now have the farm,” Scot says.
In 2017, MM Ranch was recognized as a Century Farm by then-Gov. Larry Hogan. The title of Century Farm is awarded in Maryland to families who have farmed
the same land for more than 100 years. In 1998, MM Ranch was one of the first farms in the county to be entered into Maryland’s Rural Legacy Program that “provides funding to preserve large, contiguous tracts of land and to enhance natural resource, agricultural, forestry, and environmental protection…” according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources website.
MM Ranch has been passed through Mary Margaret’s family, the Swains. The ranch is named after her, MM for Mary Margaret. Her grandfather, Benjamin Swain
purchased the land originally, then her parents Raymond and Anna Swain took over the farm.
Mary Margaret, 87, says her husband Bill “always had an interest in farming” and she bought two acres of ground on MM ranch where they built a house. When her parents passed away, she and Bill took on the farm.
Today, Scot and Christie are continuing the family tradition in their own home on acres cut from the MM Ranch plat.
Mary Margaret says she and her husband were delighted when Scot decided to take over the farm. Bill Poffenberger came from a long line of farmers as well. The historical Joseph Poffenberger Farm that sits on Antietam National Battlefied was part of his lineage. Bill passed away in 2013 at the age of 78.
Scot says when his father was younger, Bill worked for his grandfather on the
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The Poffenberger Farm.
The Poffenberger Farm. The family farming legacy includes the Joseph Poffenberger farm, which is now preserved as part of Antietam National Battlefield.
farm. Mary Margaret says when Bill was about 14, he was horse-plowing fields in Sharpsburg. They were married in 1954 when she was 17 years old.
Growing up on MM Ranch, Mary Margaret says they raised dairy cows.
“We used to milk the cows in the orchard instead of taking them back to the barn,” she says. “We called it the orchard because it was where we had apple and pear trees.”
Mary Margaret says she and her sister’s job was to milk the cows by hand in the evening. Eventually, they stopped with the dairy farm and raised stockers, or young male and female cows.
While Bill tended to the cows, Mary Margaret raised six children, Jeff, Debbie, Doug, Lisa, Scot, and Brian.
Today, cows are still at MM Ranch, but Scot leads a beef cow-calf operation with 60 heads of cows, which he thinks is “too many” because they have to be grazed on 90 acres of pasture. He hopes to rectify that by clearing some wooded area for more grazing spots.
In addition to MM Ranch, Scot says his father managed Antietam Meadows Farm, across the road. Today, Scot’s brother, Brian Poffenberger, manages that land. Bill also worked at Mack Trucks to help supplement their income.
Just like his dad, Scot also works off the farm. For 20 years, Scot’s full-time job is farm manger and oversees roughly 3,000 acres of crops for Wiliam F. Willard Farms, LLC, in Poolesville, Maryland. The farm was inducted into the Governor’s Agriculture Hall of Fame on Feb. 1. Scot and his wife of 34 years run MM Farm, tag-teaming duties when it comes to overseeing the cattle and calves.
Mary Margaret says her mother, Anna, was still alive when Scot took over the farm and they were able to have land protected through the Rural Land Program.
Scot Poffenberger on the farm in a pasture.
“I say that’s my job and this farm is my hobby,” he says.
As the forth generation farming family, Scot hopes that his son Seth might eventually want to take over the farm and make it fifth generation. His daughter, Tori, has already pursued her passion and is the head women’s lacrosse coach for Fredonia State University in New York State.
“My mom, she was very excited that it was staying in family and it wasn’t going to be sold,” she says.
Although farming is long hours and backbreaking work, Poffenberger loves what he does.
“I like walking out my back door and being on the farm,” he says. “It’s not like I’m even going to work.”
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and the
heese may seem an odd way to keep a family together, but that’s where the legacy of now five generations that began in 1923 when William and Mary Shank married and laid down agricultural roots in the county has landed. The Palmyra Farm and the cheese made from its world-class herd of Ayrshire cows has become ingrained in the local food scene.
William and Mary Shank began the family farming lifestyle with a 36-acre patch of land near Huyetts Crossroads in Hagerstown. By 1943, they had four kids Ralph, Robert, John, and Geneva and had purchased the 105-acre Rocky Spring Farm just south of Funkstown.
It was here the young Shank brothers grew old enough to work on the farm, beginning by milking the cattle by hand. In 1952, the Shanks purchased the Palmyra Farm on Wagaman Road. The farm name is derived from the original deed that references the nearby historic National Highway and includes
properties granted in the early 1700s.
The family worked the Rocky Springs Farm and Palmyra together
Young Ayrshire calves grow up to produce milk that makes especially creamy cheeses on the Palmyra Farm.
until Ralph and his wife, Patricia, bought the Palmyra farm, and John and his wife, Beth, stayed on the Rocky Spring Farm. Today Ralph, Jr. and wife, Terrie, and Mary Creek and husband Mike oversee the development of the herd and cheese business with their children and grandchildren. Robert and his wife, Mildred, purchased Cool Hollow Farm, while Geneva and her husband, Ray Clark, purchased the Faith Road Farm. The four families continue to operate the dairy farms.
The Shank family has an extended history with the Ayrshire cattle breed, beginning at the Rocky Springs Farm. William, John, and Ralph showed cham pion cattle at the Maryland State Fair. This tradition continues today at the Palmyra Farm with Ralph and Patricia’s children involved in showing.
Shrine. Mary and Ralph Jr. were honored as master breeders by the National Dairy Shrine. Ayrshire cows are known for their unique milk qualities that yield a smooth, creamy, somewhat sweet-tasting cheese.
Ralph Sr., his wife and children have all been inducted into the Maryland Dairy
The Palmyra Farm’s emphasis on breeding for production has been widely successful, having bred more than 150 cows with lifetime production of 100,000 pounds of milk or more. Another 40 bred at Palmyra have produced more than 150,000 pounds and five have produced more than 200,000 pounds. Four have been World Dairy Expo champions. Palmyra is a progressive Ayrshire herd, being the first in the country to utilize embryo transfer, and the farm has showcased its genetics internationally by exporting embryos to 10 countries. In 2022, the Palmyra Farm
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won the Robert ‘Whitey’ McKown Master Breeder Award.
Currently, William and Mary Shank’s descendants farm more than 5,000 acres. The families own approximately 2,000 acres, with half of that land in farm preservation. Scott Shank, grandson of Beth and John Shank, believes preserving his family’s land is important for sustainability for farming and agriculture.
He says it is important to have all his land and natural resources preserved for generations in the future. Today, the original farm at Rocky Spring is a rotational crop farm and Palmyra Farm still has worldclass show cattle whose milk produces the farm’s own brand of cheese.
Ralph Shank’s family runs the Palmyra Dairy Farm that has four clones of their World Champion cow, Ruth, along with the Palmyra Cheese. The Shank family also operates Beaver Creek Farm and Shenandoah Jerseys, a dairy farm,
which uses robotic milkers and calf feeders. John Shank’s family also operates Valley Ho Farm, which focuses on dairy and two-crop farming. Also included are Creek Bound Farms and Rocky Spring Farm, both operated on Shank land.
Geneva Shank’s family runs Mountain Brook Farm and Sky Wind Farm. Lastly, the Shank women are all known for their amazing cookies, cakes, and pies.
Mary Shank makes melt-in-your-mouth meringue cookies from a family recipe and a locally famous walnut cake. Mary’s tradition of making homemade noodles for Salem Reform Church is still carried out by family members today for their annual soup sale.
Scott Shank says he remembers walking to his grandmother Beth Shank’s house to help make meringue cookies and the family traditions of the 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s of getting together for Sunday family dinners on the farm. In the 1980s and ‘90s all the families had a big Christmas party at Ray and Geneva Clark’s farm.
And the legacy of William and Mary continues on strong, now more than a century later.
• 2 cups (1/2 pound) black walnuts, finely chopped
• 4 eggs; beat whites and yolks separately
• 1/2 cup of butter
• 2 cups of sugar
• 3 cups of flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. of baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. of salt
• 1 cup of milk
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.
3. Bake in a tube pan lined with wax paper for 45 minutes.
4. Turn oven up to 350 degrees and bake for another 30 minutes or so.
5. Let cool, serve, and enjoy!
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&
History Heritage
In Washington County, agricultural fairs have been held for more than 150 years
by crystal schelle photos by turner photography studio
“
The cattle barn, when I was a kid, farmers would come and there would
be 10 to 25 head in there.
– Michael Guessford, Williamsport
Since before the Civil War, Washington County has celebrated its agricultural history by hosting fairs.
The first fairs were hosted by the Agricultural and Mechanical Association of Washington County in what is now referred to today as City Park. During the Civil War years fairs were suspended until 1880. That’s when the Great Hagerstown Fair was resurrected and moved across town to the North End where the Hagerstown Fairgrounds are today at North Cleveland Avenue. It continued there until 1980.
But in 1985, four partners decided to revive the fairgrounds and bring back the fair. The first year, it was only a carnival. But by the next year the fair added animals and exhibits.
Michael Guessford, 58, of Williamsport was part of that ‘80s revival. He and his family were long-time Great Hagerstown Fair exhibitors, and when he heard there was a movement to restart the event, he volunteered to help.
He said he volunteered to help with the household departments, horticultural, and exhibits. And when he asked about his vision of the fair, he said, “I’d like to take it back to what it used to be.”
through old fair books and figure out how much money certain ribbons winners would receive. At the time, he was working at a local bank and volunteering, but it grew into a more permanent position.
Being part of helping to resurrect the fair was something that held a special meaning because of his family’s long history with the fair. He said his great uncle had
Guessford remembers the exhibition area filled with entries and ribbon-winning items. In the commercial area, he said, people would sell commercial items. “People were just walking the grandstands,” he said.
He also remembered that when people talked about bringing back the Great Hagerstown Fair there was an excitement. But, he said, it didn’t have the
Guessford said he started helping to rebuild the exhibitors’ roster by going
The hard work of farming sometimes requires a little relaxation, even if it is with your animals at the fair.
been in the fair as a 4-H member and his great aunt had three suitcases filled with ironed and tissue-wrapped ribbons she had won over the years in several categories.
Under the grandstand was where the exhibitors for flowers, pies, canning, quilting, and the like would be displayed.
community support that the original fair had because during the ‘80s many family farms were closing.
“The cattle barn, when I was a kid, farmers would come and there would be 10 to 25 head in there,” he said. “When I was in charge of it, we didn’t have a lot of farms that showed cattle anymore.”
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And, he said, 4-H wasn’t as much a part of the fair as it once was. Guessford said without the kids, the fair lacked the excitement. Even farm equipment that once was a large display had dwindled. “It just didn’t have the pizzazz that people wanted because they always thought it used to be like this,” he said.
The last Great Hagerstown Fair eventually moved to the Hagerstown Speedway and was renamed the Washington County Ag Expo and Fair.
Tom Shaw, 83, of Sharpsburg was the Ag Expo and Fair’s first president and held that position for 15 years. He said he and a group of friends who had grown up showing animals through 4-H had heard the Hagerstown Fair was ending. They wanted to continue the tradition.
That’s when Frank Plessinger, owner of Hagerstown Speedway, offered the use of the Speedway’s parking lot. Plessinger said he would build and exhibition barn if the group that was renewing the expo would built a livestock barn. Shaw said they had a deal.
At the time, they were all volunteers. “They were all farmers and they’d work all day and in winter at night and work on the barn,” Shaw said.
By fair time, Shaw said they had a tent to show, an exhibition hall for the exhibits, and a barn for the cows.
A Christmas Day fire ended the event at the Hagerstown Speedway. Shaw said some homeless boys had snuck into the barn and had started a fire to keep warm. Before they knew it, the fire overlook the barn with two tractor-trailer loads of hay. No one was hurt. “We had absolutely nothing left,” he said.
Shaw credits the Washington County Government for allowing the Ag Expo & Fair to relocate to the Washington
“It was fairly nice, and we didn’t charge any crazy prices,” Shaw said. “We charged a buck in the beginning. We were very successful.”
County Agricultural Education Center, south of Hagerstown, which was completed in the mid 1990s.
Although Shaw has seen changes in the agricultural community over the years, he’s pleased that the event is still going on.
“I just think the current boards do a real good job. And I still support them as much as I possibly can,” he said.
There are always plenty of blue ribbons to be passed out for the best jams, preserves, and pickled vegetables at the fair.
42
The last Great Hagerstown Fair eventually moved to the Hagerstown Speedway and renamed the Washington County Ag Expo and Fair.
2024 Washington County Ag Expo & Fair
Boonsboro
July 13-20
The event has become a Washington County summer tradition with a week of tractor pulls, carnival rides, bull riding, demolition derbies, live music, and, of course, livestock showcases by 4-H and Future Farmers of America members as well as baking competitions. There are plenty of ribbons and awards throughout the week. One of the highlights is the crowning of the Ag Expo Queen. For visitors who aren’t involved in agriculture, walking through the barns to see how kids interact with the animals is a look inside their world. The kids are always willing to answer questions.
45
WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY, FRIDAY, AND SATURDAY
The Market Hub
Operating since 2022
The Barn at the View 14113 Pennsylvania Ave., Hagerstown
Open every Wednesday to Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Contact: Jill Hudson at www.the markethub.net or 301-991-7736
Vendor Fees: varied monthly fees
TUESDAY MARKETS
Boonsboro Farmers Market
Operating since 2015
241 Potomac Ave, Boonsboro
Tuesdays from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Open April 30 to October 29
Contact: Jen Raab at farmersmarket boonboro@gmail.com
Vendor Fees: $15 per day, $125 for full season; partial season $60
Meritus Medical Center
Farmers Market
Operating since 2009
Robinwood Professional Center
Atrium Area
11110 Medical Campus Road, Hagerstown
Open year round
Contact: Cindy Missling, Cindy. missling@meritus.com or call 301-7908964
Vendor Fees: $10 per week
WEDNESDAY MARKETS
Elks Farmers Market
A producer’s only market, operating since 1991
Elks Lodge No. 378
11063 Robinwood Drive, Hagerstown
Open Wednesdays from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Open from May 15 to Sept. 25
Last market is Oct. 9 for fall
Contact: Rich Calimer at 240-215-7956 or Laurie Waltz 301-730-7225
Vendor Fees: $10 per day
https://www.facebook.com/ Washington-County-Farmers-Market-114150795445/?fref=ts
THURSDAY MARKETS
Historic Hagerstown City Farmers Market
Operating since 1783
The Central Lot
14 N. Potomac Street, Hagerstown
Open the third Thursday, 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
June 20, July 18, Aug. 15, Sept. 19
Contact: mainstreethagerstown.org/ farmersmarket
Vendor fees: Free for full season
Williamsport Main Street
Farmers Market
Parking behind town hall
2 N. Conococheague St., Williamsport
Open second and fourth Thursday
monthly from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
May 9, May 23, June 13, June 27, July 11, July 25, Aug. 8, Aug. 22, Sept. 12, Sept. 26, Oct. 11, Oct. 24
Contact: Rachael at 301-573-0459 or mainstreet@williamsportmd.org
Vendor fees: $50 for the season or $10 per day
Arc Farmers Market
Monthly market operating since 2017 820 Florida Ave. Hagerstown
Open second Friday: July 12, Aug. 9, Sept. 13 from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Contact: Janis Williamson at jwilliamson@arcwc-md.org or call 301-797-2121 ext. 2236
Vendor fee: Free
FRIDAY MARKETS
Fort Ritchie Farmers Market
Castle Drive, Fort Ritchie, Cascade, Starting at the Flagpole
June 28, July 26, Aug. 23, Sept. 27 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Contact: ritchierevival@gmail.com
Vendor fees: Drop-in rate $25 monthly or $100 for full season
SUNDAY MARKETS
Sharpsburg Farmers Market at Battleview
Opened in 2023, parking behind Battleview Market
5331 Sharpsburg Pike, Sharpsburg
Open first and third Sunday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
April 7, April 21, May 5, May 19, June 2, June 16, July 7, July 21, Aug. 4, Aug. 18, Sept. 1, Sept. 15, Oct. 6, Oct. 20
Contact: Deanna Adkins at 301-9920751 or sharpsburgfm@gmail.com
Vendor fees: Free for the season
46
BECKLEY FARMS
Steve Beckley leased his first farm east of Hagerstown when he was fourteen years old and has spent his life in support of the agricultural community in Washington County.
Growing soybean, corn and wheat, Steve is the steward of over 3700 acres in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.
The experienced team at Beckley Farms is always interested in new farm land opportunities. Beckley Farms is equipped with a fleet of tractor trailers, and a grain storage facility to store commodities for delivery to end users in the tristate area.
Competitive Prices Paid For Crop Land Rental For more information contact Steve Beckley at 301-573-2979 or sbeckley@myactv.net
Washington County
GROWN LOCAL NEAR YOU 2024
These farms represent a portion of the 900+ farms in Washington County
3 Clovers Ranch
13720 Cearfoss Pike
Hagerstown 717-360-0460
EQUINE
78 Acres
Matt and Mary Harsh
23340 Fruit Tree Dr
Smithsburg 78 acres
FRUIT, VEGETABLE
Above and Beyond Farm 13228 Greencastle Pike
Hagerstown
301-801-6952
EQUINE
Antietam Creek Vineyards
George Warmenhoven
4835 Branch Avenue
Sharpsburg
240-490-2851
WINERY
Arlin Diller Farms 21347 Leiter’s Mill Road Hagerstown 301-733-2195
EQUIPMENT DEALER
Avondale Farms 14337 Broadfording Road
Clear Spring CROPS
Barefoot Farm
Sherri Massie 17826 Lappans Road Fairplay 301-582-5786
PLANTS, VEGETABLES
Belle Prairie Big Pool
301-300-0340
belleprairiefarm@gmail.com ORGANIC PRODUCE
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Belle Prarie Farm
Bogley Farm
John Bogley
20166 Benevola Church Road
Boonsboro
BEEF
Bragunier Orchard
Clayton Armstrong
12775 Indian Spring Road
Big Pool
301842-2444
FRUIT
Breezy Acres Herbst Farm
Cook Family
20204 Old Forge Road
Hagerstown
301-797-8157
DAIRY
C & J Acres
3120 Valley View Ct
Rohrersville
240-529-7777
guardianpropertiesllc@gmail.com
EQUINE
Cedar Cliff Farm Supply
13722 National Pike
Clear Spring
301-842-2022
EQUIPMENT
Clever Cattle Farms
Sharpsburg 240-405-2120
clevercattlefarms@gmail.com ANIMALS
Cockleshell Farm
Mary Zastrow
19218 Deer Path Knoxville 301-343-7265
cockleshellfarm@gmail.com FLOWERS
Corwell Farm
Neal Corwell 11702 Rocky Meadow Road Clear Spring CROPS
Dartraigh Farm 4105 Mill Road
Sharpsburg 443-864-1234
David R Keadle Farm
David Keadle
7345 Wheeler Road
Boonsboro
301-432-8186
DAIRY
Deep Meadow Farm
19515 Beaver Creek Road
Hagerstown
301-733-0612
Deo Volente Stables 16709 Broadfording Road
Hagerstown 301-337-0348
STABLES
Double H Farm 6606 Gilardi Road
Boonsboro
301-432-6852
Dry Run Ranch
13010 Wolfsville Road
Smithsburg 240-405-2512
Dyer Farm
20524 Benevola Church Road Boonsboro 240-675-1530
Evergreen Holsteins
13735 Greencastle Pike Hagerstown
301-791-1690
DAIRY
Family Tree Nursery 9915 Garis Shop Road
Hagerstown
301-745-4222
NURSERY
Gary’s Dairy Farm
19836 Reidtown Road Hagerstown
301-739-2341
DAIRY
Green Acres Farm
Curvin Eby 19534 Reidtown Road
Hagerstown
301-992-7785
DAIRY, CROPS HAY PASTURE
52
Hidden Creek Pastures
Grove Farms or Mount Airy
17201 Shepherdstown Pike
Sharpsburg
HISTORIC
H & M Greenhouse
17450 Garden View Road
Hagerstown GREENHOUSE
Halteman’s Homegrown Harvest
12635 Flying Duck Ln
Clear Spring
301-964-0039
VEGETABLES, FLOWERS
Hidden Creek Pastures
22046 Old Forge Road
Smithsburg
301-491-3154
GOATS
Hillenbruck Farm
Bernard Hellenbrand
Sharpsburg
HISTORIC, AGRI TOURISM
Hoffman Family Farm
14013 Broadfording Road
Clear Spring
301-842-2888
HISTORIC
Hoffman Farm
18651 Keedysville Road
Keedysville
HISTORIC
Honey Hole Apiary
Carrie Capezuto
13324 Blairs Valley Road
Clear Spring
301-491-2986
honeyholeapiary@gmail.com
BEES, HONEY
Hooks Mill Farm
5419 Creek Road Hancock
301-678-6778
EQUINE
Hope Valley Farm & Retreat
Cindy Smith
1069 Valley Road
Knoxville
301-514-5268
hopevalleyfarmretreat@gmail.com
FLOWERS
Ivy Hill Farm
Steve and Karen Martin 13840 Smithsburg Pike
Smithsburg
301-824-4658
FRUIT, FARM MARKET
James Horst Farm
11800 Ernstville Road
Big Pool
301-842-3458
DAIRY
King’s Farm
10702 Mapleville Road
Hagerstown
804-721-5681
BEEF
Lancaster Dairy Tri State
Jerry Poffenberger
10142 White Hall Road
Hagerstown
301-416-7340
CROPS
Lappans Springs Farm
Fairplay
LIVESTOCK
Milk Barn LLC
11606 Greencastle Pike
Hagerstown
301-223-6877
DAIRY EQUIPMENT
Miller’s Farmstead 14506 National Pike
Clear Spring
301-842-0330
EVENT VENUE
Misty Meadow Farm
Dave and Betsy Herbst 14325 Misty Meadow Road
Smithsburg
301-824-2112
DAIRY, EXPERIENCE ICE CREAM
MM Ranch
Scott and Christie Poffenberger 17116 Powell Road
Sharpsburg
240-446-1359
BEEF, CROPS
Mountain Valley Orchard
Leroy and Sharon Tracey 22541 Jefferson Boulevard
Smithsburg
301-824-2089
ORCHARD, VEGETABLES
Mountain View Stable 23025 Ringgold Pike
Smithsburg EQUINE
Old Springhouse Farm, LLC
Micro Dairy Designs
Frank Kipe 13339 Smithburg Pike
Smithsburg
301-824-3689
frank@kipe.com
DAIRY, EQUIPMENT
Poor Boy Stables 16419 Woburn Road
Sharpsburg
301-223-9089
EQUINE
Prather Farm 11118 4 Locks Road
Clear Spring
HISTORIC
Price and Price Farm
Dale and Wendy Price 17314 Bakersville Road
Boonsboro
301-791-3998
CROPS
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Purifying Pastures
Carl Hatch
19612 Albert Roelkey Ln
Knoxville
240-505-3517
info@purifyingpastures.com
MEAT, EGGS
Quantum Leap Eventing
Katie Carr
16811 Shaffer Road
Sharpsburg
301-223-6956
EQUINE
RD Farms and Livestock Hauling
Dale Longerbeam 15662 Falling Waters Road
Williamsport
304-820-5466
HAULING
Red Heifer Winery
Kevin Ford 24606 Raven Rock Road
Smithsburg
301-824-5210
WINERY
Reid Farm
Paul Reid 4410 Harpers Ferry Road
Sharpsburg
Rhoderick Family Farms
10401 White Hall Road
Hagerstown LIVESTOCK
Rocky Hollow Farm 17317 Reiff Church Road
Hagerstown
301-797-3133
FLOWERS
Rooster Vane Gardens
Denny Warrenfeltz
36 Frederick Road
Funkstown
301-739-2439
FLOWERS
Runaway Bull
17163 Lappans Road
Hagerstown
BEEF, AGRI TOURISM
Sam Petre
8306 Mapleville Road
Boonsboro
301-791-9326
CROPS
Saratoga Farm
17842 Carter Ln
Hagerstown
301-797-5319
SCL Farms
13010 Wolfsville Road
Smithsburg
301-293-2024
EQUINE
Serenity Crown Horse Farm
17907 Spielman Road
Fairplay
301-256-4995
EQUINE
Shenandoah’s Pride Dairy
1433 Oakmont Dr
Hagerstown
301-739-3210
DAIRY
Shepherds View Show Cattle
The Crawford Family info@themulchman.com
CATTLE
Slice of Heaven
Clear Spring
301-842-0034
RETAIL
Spitfire Equine LLC
Williamsport
301-573-9003
spitfire.equine.md@gmail.com
EQUINE
Stoneleigh Equine
Clear Spring
301-302-5234
stoneleighequine@gmail.com
EQUINE
Stoney Creek Farm
Brandon Green 19223 Manor Church Road
Boonsboro
301-432-6272
FRUIT, AGRI TOURISM
Summer Rose Horsemanship
5618 Mt Briar Road
Keedysville
240-625-6424
EQUINE
Summer Rose Horsemanship
Lindsay O’Brien
5618 Mt Briar Road
Keedysville
240-625-6424
borntopboogie@yahoo.com
EQUINE
T & C Agri and Cattle Co
Carrie Ammons
Smithsburg
BEEF
Tammany Spring MicroFarm
240-527-8652
tammanyspringmicrofarm@gmail.com
VEGETABLE
Thomas and Son Farm
Tracy Thomas 7249 Monroe Road
Boonsboro
301-432-4261
BEEF, CROPS
Timber Valley Farm Barn
Tom Grosh
12731 Big Pool Road
Clear Spring
301-573-0948
AGRI TOURISM
54
Twelve Oaks Farm
16215 Woburn Road
Sharpsburg
240-818-1297
PLANTS, VEGETABLES
Twilight Homestead LLC
Deanna Adkins
6239 Appletown Road
Boonsboro twilighthomesteadllc@gmail.com POULTRY
Tyler Toth
Tyler Toth 6321 King Road
Boonsboro
DAIRY
Valley Farms Lamb
8306 Reichard Road
Fairplay
240-347-3145
valleyfarmslamb@gmail.com
LAMB
Valley Meadow Farms
Trails Getaway 14702 Mountain Road
Hancock 301-678-6584
info@valleymeadowfarms.com
EQUINE AGRITOURISM
Velisek Farm
Doug and Pam Velisek 18125 Lappans Road
Fairplay
BEEF, POULTRY
Vixen Hollow Equestrian Center
Caiti Kuczynski 13030 Bikle Road
Smithsburg
301-302-1284
caitikeventing@gmail.com EQUINE
Waltz Family Farm
Jay and Laurie Waltz
12063 Waltz Road
Smithsburg 301-714-0584
BEEF, HOGS
WD Hatcher Farms LLC
13405 Windsor Dr
Hagerstown 240-818-9451
TRANSPORT
Whispering Flower Farm
Rohrersville
yeon@whisperingflowerfarm.com FLOWERS
Whistling Wren Farm
5601 Mt. Carmel Church Road
Keedysville 240-815-7131
AGRI TOURISM
Wilde Thistle Farm
The Nichols Family 18040 Pashen Dr Fairplay 240-625-4793
bbnichols6@gmail.com
LIVESTOCK
Willow Run Farm
Brian Babington
19347 Dog Street
Keedysville
301-491-8885
LIVESTOCK, CROPS, LANDSCAPING
Willow Run Farm and Landscaping
Bryan and Debbie Babbington 19347 Dog Street Road
Keedysville
301-432-7656
BEEF CROPS
Wilmer Keener Farms
13859 Cearfoss Pike
Hagerstown
301-733-9328
Winder’s Diary Inc
Kirk Winders 12551 Itnyre Road
Smithsburg DAIRY
Winding Root
Caroline Selle 4939 Raspberry Road
Rohrersville 410-549-7878
windingrootffarm@gmail.com FLOWERS
Windy Rock Equine 12324 St Paul Road Clear Spring nonakayt8@gmail.com EQUINE
Yours Florally
Kayla McShea 21821 Black Rock Lane
Hagerstown yoursfolorraly.flowers@gmail.com FLOWERS
55
Hoffman Farm
Still Growing
Viticulture in Washington County’s farm vineyards keeps getting better
By Charles Jeffries
56
In 2008 Gretchen Simard got tired of teaching in Virginia and made an unusual career switch. She got her contractor’s license and began remodeling homes. Her business was going along fine, but she uprooted her life again to move to Washington County to start a new life with her fiancée, who owns two farms. Now she’s on to the next segment of her life.
Three years ago, she planted the first vines at The Vineyards of Mapleville Manor and then broke ground on an event center, which will include what she describes as a wedding barn.
“It will be very European,” she says. “It will look like a barn on the outside, but it will be a very exquisite place for weddings on the inside.”
She hopes to have the complex open later this summer and that her wedding will be the first the venue hosts. She hopes to start booking weddings for the fall and 2025. For now, she also has her hands full with the vineyard near Stottlemeyer Road north of Boonsboro. “I’ve spent seven days a week out there for the last two summers,” she says.
In that time she’s learned that growing wine grapes is not as simple as planting vines and watching them flower and produce fruit.
“Growing grapes is full of a multitude of challenges and requires the dedication of someone willing to work on growing grapes almost every day all spring, summer, and fall,” she says. “Even then,
it is not a sure thing, as grapes are a sensitive crop.”
Indeed. Growing Vitis vinifera, the species of grape used to make quality wine, in the Middle Atlantic has been hundreds of years of failure. Although that is changing as viticultural experts start applying science to the process and experimenting with varietals that might adapt to the soil and climate conditions of the region. For much of the past vineyard owners have just planted European varietals and hoping to make European-style wine.
Simard has planted some traditional grapes like Cabernet Franc and Malbec but, interestingly, she’s trying some new varietals, hybrid grapes bred for terroir similar to that of Washington County. Not many will recognize the varietal Chelois, a late-budding, early ripening red grape that will have a better chance of avoiding potential damage from both spring frosts and fall rain. She has also planted Diamond, a white grape bred in 1855, which is having success in
the Finger Lakes region of New York where it produces still and sparkling wine. The varietal hasn’t migrated far from upstate New York, so Simard is one of the few to plant the grape in the Middle Atlantic.
She will also feature a much more recently developed hybrid from New York. Aravelle, also known as New York 81 for the year it was bred. Aravelle is a cross of Cayuga, another successful Finger Lakes grape, and
The progress at the Vineyards of Mapleville Manor of setting the posts for trellising.
Riesling, a white grape that makes worldclass wines in the Alsace region of France.
Joe Fiola, a specialist in viticulture at the University of Maryland Extension, has been working with Simard and many other vineyards in Maryland and has been testing these grapes’ viability around Maryland and in Washington County.
“I have had them in trial at multiple sites around Maryland [including the Western Maryland Research and Education Center in Keedysville] and they have proven to be cold hardy and disease resistant, two critical issues when sustainably growing grapes in Maryland,” Fiola says.
Simard is betting that he’s right.
“Our goal is to eventually produce our own estate wines and specialize in sparkling wines,” Simard says. “That goes along with
weddings. Brides can come in and do a tasting of sparkling wines and decide what they want for their wedding.”
In the beginning, she will have her wine made by an outside production facility. Like many such projects, Simard’s is costing more than she expected, but eventually she hopes to have a production facility and tasting room.
“Our building that is going to host exquisite weddings is going up now. Our event center will host weddings and will eventually become our winery and tasting room,” she says.
Try a Bottle of Something Different
There are four farm vineyards in Washington County open for tastings or
The process of growing the young vines and nurturing them into growing grapes.
just enjoying a glass or a bottle (some are by appointment only). Each has spent time studying the local terroir and discovered there are grapes other than standard varietals that can grow well here. Here’s something a little different from each of them.
Cool Spring Vineyard: Gruner Veltliner is the most significant white grape in Austria. At Cool Spring it delivers a light, acidic wine with aromas of citrus zest and notes of stone fruit and spice on the palate.
Antietam Creek Vineyard: Vidal Blanc is a hybrid white grape proven to survive cold winters and produce high sugar levels in cooler growing climates. (Despite our sometimes oppressively hot summers, Maryland is a cool-weather climate in viticultural terms.) Antietam makes this in an off-dry style with notes of honeysuckle and lychee.
Big Cork Vineyard: The flagship wine here is made with the spectacular Italian grape called Nebbiolo, where in its spiritual home of the Italian piedmont it produces world-class wines like Borola and Barbaresco. Big Cork’s version might not reach those heights, but its strong tannins and complexity make it perhaps Washington County’s best red.
Red Heifer Vineyard: Blaufrankisch is an Eastern European grape and makes elegant light- to medium-bodies reds in Hungary. Red Heifer’s Winemaker’s Reserve Blaufrankisch is fruit forward with red fruit on the palate and an earthy, herbaceous finish.
58
Antietam Creek Vineyards
4835 Branch Avenue, Sharpsburg 240-490-2851
Big Cork Vineyards 4236 Main Street, Rohrersville 301-302-8032
Cool Ridge Vineyard 19638 Cool Hollow Road, Hagerstown 301-991-9246
Red Heifer Winery
12840 Red Heifer Winery Lane Smithsburg 301-824-5210
Frog Eye Vineyard
19612 Albert Roelkey Lane, Knoxville www.frogeyevineyard.com
Wine Makers
Blue Mountain Wine Crafters 117 East Baltimore Street, Funkstown 301-791-2882 or 240-675-0845
Stone House Urban Winery
12810 Shank Farm Way, Hagerstown 240-513-4565
Farm Breweries
Upper Stem Brewery
20150 Leitersburg Pike, Hagerstown upperstembrewery.com
Other Breweries
Antietam Brewery
140 Western Maryland Parkway Hagerstown Antietambrewery.com; 240-513-4490 2 3
Cushwa Brewing Company
10210 Governor Lane Blvd., Williamsport Cushwabrewing.com; 301-223-3434
Thick-N-Thin Brewing Co.
18330 Spark Drive, Hagerstown www.thickandthinbrewery.com; 240-366-4147
Hub City Brewery
25 West Church Street, Hagerstown www.hubcitybrewery.com, 301-302-3717
Farm Distilleries
Pathfinder Farm 5515 Mount Carmel Church Road Keedysville www.pathfinder.com 301-799-4455
Slick & Letts Distillery at Elmwood Farm (Open Soon) 16311 B Kendle Road, Williamsport 240-684-8655
Other Distilleries
Meinelschmidt Distillery
54 S. Potomac Street, Hagerstown www.meineldistillery.com
60
Recipes From the Farmers
Orange Creamsicle Pound Cake
By Alexandria Spithaler
Cake Ingredients
1 cup softened butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons fresh orange zest
2/12 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cup whole milk
4 ounces white baking chocolate
Icing Ingredients
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon prepared powdered milk
Additional orange zest with granulated sugar to garnish
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch bundt pan.
2. In a small bowl, melt the white chocolate in 30 second increments in the microwave on full power, stirring in between bursts, until melted and smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt and set aside.
4. Cream the butter together with the sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat the eggs into the creamed mixture, one at a time until combined. Stir in the vanilla extract, orange juice, and orange zest into the creamed mixture to incorporate.
5. Gradually mix the flour mixture into the creamed mixture, alternating with the milk, in three separate additions of each, beating each addition well.
6. Stir in the melted white chocolate until thoroughly combined. Transfer the batter into the prepared pan.
7. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
8. Allow cake to cool completely.
9. To prepare the icing, mix all the ingredients well. Use more or less prepared powdered milk until desired consistency. Pour over cake.
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Cantaloupe Bread with Praline Glaze
By Alexis Iseminger
Ingredients
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 cups cantaloupe puréed
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup butter
1 2/3 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease and flour two 9x5-inch loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, beat eggs, vegetable oil, sugar, vanilla, and cantaloupe. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and ginger. Stir flour mixture into cantaloupe mixture, stir to combine. Pour batter into prepared pans.
Meringue cookie recipe
By Beth Shank
Ingredients
4 egg whites
¼ teaspoon of salt
¼ teaspoon cream of tarter
½ teaspoon of vanilla (can add more and add gradually).
½ cup of sugar
12 ounce package of chocolate bits
3. Bake in preheated oven for one hour, until a toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.
4. Meanwhile, combine butter and brown sugar. Microwave for three minutes, stirring at one-minute intervals; mix in pecans. Pour sauce over warm bread. Let cool for one hour before serving.
Directions
1. Beat the first three ingredients until
2. Add in vanilla gradually.
3. Add in chocolate bits
4. Form into cookies and bake at 300 for 25
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