Presidents' Day: Farming & Our Founding Father

For some, Presidents' Day is about a sale on bed sheets or a day off from school, but for Illinois farmers, it can mean so much more.  After all, for some of our founding fathers, agriculture was not only critical to our national's growth, but also a personal passion.  For example, George Washington's love for farming was evident in a letter written by his granddaughter Nelly in 1797: "Grandpapa is very well, and much pleased at being once more Farmer Washington."

Seven of our country's Presidents were farmers, including our first four. That makes sense. In Washington's time, most Americans were farmers - 90% in fact. By 1880, the number of farmers dropped below 50% of the population. Nowadays, less than 2% of Americans are farmers. Today's diminishing farm population is able to feed, clothe, and even fuel our nation, thanks to their commitment to constant learning and improvements - the same principals our first President found critical. 

Washington said, "I know of no pursuit in which more real and important services can be rendered to any country than by improving its agriculture, its breed of useful animals, and other branches of a husbandman's cares." And that's just what he did.

Washington experimented with planting crops other than tobacco, crop rotation, plowing, manure management, and breeding animals.  He was even the first person in the United States to own mules! Washington was also generous with his findings - even his failures. Up until four days before his death, he wrote to his farm managers, other farmers, and to farm publishers about his experimentation. 

Washington's approach isn't a thing of the past. Today's farmers continue to explore new and better ways of doing things. Since the invention of agriculture, farmers have strived to improve crop genetics. Today, many Illinois farmers plant biotech corn and soybeans.

These plants help reduce the number of pesticides needed to maintain a healthy crop. According to Dr. Newell-McGloughlin, a Food System Expert with Best Food Facts, a program of the Center for Food Integrity, the "pesticides' footprint is down by about 35% for corn."

And just like our first President, today's farmers are finding it important to share how they do things. Social networks such as Facebook and Twitter help farmers connect with each other and with consumers. (Visit Illinois Farm Bureau's "One Byte at a Time" website to learn how to get started with online networking.)

On Presidents' Day, it's easy to think about Washington's military prowess, but it's also time to remember his passion for farming and how that continues today.   

As President George Washington once said: "It will not be doubted that with reference either to individual or national welfare, agriculture is of primary importance."