FFA nurtures student interests

FALLS VILLAGE — The FFA program at Housatonic Valley Regional High School lets students explore aspects of agriculture they’re interested in, preparing them for careers. On Wednesday, May 22, students in the agriculture education program had a chance to showcase what the program has meant for them at an FFA open house.

There were 127 students with exhibits; that’s almost  a quarter of the total student population. For most of them, the projects didn’t feel like schoolwork because they chose topics they’re interested in and devote their time to anyway.

For example, Madison Long, a freshman, took Intro to Ag this year. She made her project about grooming horses because she rides at least twice a week and does a lot of grooming. She researched both everyday grooming and the grooming that’s required for a horse show, and brought Captain (a horse) as part of her demonstration.

FFA Secretary Sara Jack said there were 100 judges at the Open House, comprised of alumni, faculty and some community members she recruited for the job. Each judge used the same list of criteria to evaluate the student presentations. They asked plenty of questions so the students could demonstrate their expertise.

The topics ranged from invasive plants and wildfires, to ice cream and cheese making, to guinea pig health and first aid for pets.

There was an abundance of cute animals for observing and petting: lambs, calves, horses, rabbits and guinea pigs, to name a few. Senior Megan Foley stood by the barn with her friend Peanut, a heifer she’s been raising. Her project was about the importance of establishing a relationship with the cow you’re raising. She made a banner for her display that read “Hanging with my Heifer.”

There were many plant-related projects as well. Karlee McGhee is a freshman who’s excited to take floral design 1 and 2 next year. “I’ve had such a great experience with FFA” she said. Her project was all about corsages, so she was an expert on how to make them beautiful, functional and long-lasting. She knew all about the different sizes of ribbon and wire, how to wrap the stems of different flowers, and what to pair together for a striking corsage. While doing the project, she discovered it was more complicated than she had thought, but “it’s completely worth it because they come out so beautiful.”

While some projects focused on the aesthetics of plants, some students are interested in growing plants to eat. 

Logan Cables is only a freshman, but has some big plans and aspirations for his micro greens growing endeavor. 

He covered a large table with various sprouts that he grew in the school greenhouse. His inspiration for the project came from working for Bruce Zinke, vegetable farmer and owner of Zinke’s Homegrown in North Canaan. 

“If I could make it a full-time job I would”, he said.

He hopes to grow them in the wintertime as well and maybe sell them in stores eventually. 

The greens require careful watering and monitoring. Cables lost the first crop he planted because they got too much sun, but he quickly planted more on Friday. Within two or three days the sprouts came up, and by the Open House on Wednesday they were showing their bright leaves. In two to three weeks, they’ll be ready to harvest.