Publications

There is increasing interest in the sale of local farm products in county and city school systems. Students can benefit from fresh, local produce and farmers can benefit from diversifying markets and increasing sales. However, increasing the sale of local farm production to schools – also known as Farm to School – has its challenges. This fact sheet examines different ideas for overcoming those challenges and improving farm to school sales.

Unless you’re an expert and have been trained in wood stove installation, it’s better to have your stove put in by a certified hearth professional. Attempting to do the job yourself, while it may seem cheaper, is full of safety risks. Needless to say, it’s not recommended. And, there is a chance that your insurance policy will not cover any fire related damage. This fact sheet will provide important considerations to follow.

Wood stoves are one of the appliances that generally should be purchased new. This fact sheet reviews why and why not to buy a used stove, and how and where to buy one. For example, if you’re going to use the stove more than twice a week during the winter, get a new one. You will end up paying less in fuel and getting more heat with less fuss and mess.

People chose to heat with wood for many different reasons. Your own personal priorities will help you decide what type of heater is best for you. Are you mainly looking to save money or decrease your fossil fuel consumption? Do you have a large or small space to heat? Do you value automation or want something hands-on? Do you live in an urban or rural area? These are all questions that will likely determine what type of wood,pellet stove, or boiler you should get.

Whether you buy or cut your own firewood, chances are that you still have plenty left to learn. Even people who have been heating with wood for decades often say “I wish I knew that years ago!” after reading tips like the ones contained here. Every year, hundreds of thousands of Americans are sold substandard cord wood. This sheet will help you avoid getting a raw deal next time you buy firewood. And if you heat with pellets, there are new developments you should know that will impact the fuel you buy.

It’s late spring and corn has emerged. For much of the state, heavy rains have continued for several days, bringing flooding to low lying areas and causing ponding in fields. In this scenario, farmers are faced with the question of whether their corn will recover, or should they proceed with replanting.

Of the many species of thrips commonly found in greenhouses, flower thrips (Frankliniella tritici), western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis) and chilli thrips (Scirtothrips dorsalis) are most problematic. Chilli thrips is the fastest spreading thrips and is found throughout North America, but mainly in Florida and Texas. Adults of these three species are about 1 - 2 mm long, slender and just visible to the naked eye. Adult thrips are hard to notice flying in the greenhouse, but both nymphs and adults can often be detected in the open blossoms of your greenhouse crops.

This checklist is designed to assist residential energy auditors in providing recommendations to homeowners about their wood stove, which may be their primary or secondary heating system. This publication was produced by the Alliance for Green Heat, a non-profit educational organization, with funding from the University of Maryland Extension. 

On May 22, 2012 Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley signed a bill into law to ban the use of arsenic additives in poultry feed. This is the first such ban passed in the United States. The Maryland State Legisiature requested researchers from the University of Maryland to conduct a literature review on the Environmental Concerns of Arsenic Additives in Poultry Litter. This proved useful to the legisiators in their discussions of banning the use of arsenic in poutlry feed. This report provides a short summary of the findings of the reviews.

This factsheet contains a listing of important resources as you consider developing a new farm enterprise.