JOHN ALLEN, 35, of Iredell County, is a finalist for the second year in a row. A tree farmer, Allen holds patents on two varieties of trees and is developing several other tree varieties to patent next year and in coming years.
“Plant patents are expensive to get and enforce, but the royalties can be a nice supplemental income if marketed correctly over the 20-year period of the patent,” Allen says. “The intangible benefits are great as well, because they become an advertisement for your nursery by every other nursery that grows those trees.”
Furthermore, Allen helped form a regional marketing group that won a $30,000 Commodity Community Investment Fund grant from the Rural Advancement Foundation International. The money will be spent on educational field days, pesticide courses for credit, tours and literature at local nurseries.
Allen is manager and part-owner of his family-run, 365-acre operation, which was recently incorporated.
The economic downturn posed a challenge to the nursery, as less homebuilding meant less demand for landscaping.
“Shade trees were very popular, (and) now flowering trees have taken more market share, so plant diversity has mitigated the downturn for our nursery,” he says.
A past president of the State Nursery and Landscape Association, he led an executive search committee for that group last year, and is serving on an N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services advisory committee. He continues his interest in politics and remains active as a volunteer firefighter and member of his church.

ANDREW AND ASHLEY BURLESON, both 31, of Stanly County, met while studying agronomy (him), and animal science (her), in college. Marriage and two kids later, the couple and his family have 3,411 acres primarily devoted to cotton, but they also grow soybeans, corn and wheat and have 24 head of cattle.
The Burlesons farm the land his grandparents bought in the 1940s, and today they farm with Andrew’s dad, uncle and cousin on that land as two limited liability corporations. Ashley also runs a home-based embroidery business and is a homemaker and full-time mother.
The farm is also partial owner of a family-owned cotton gin and warehouse, which serve farms in the seven surrounding counties.
“This past year the farm cooperated with the gin and manufacturers to produce T-shirts that are produced entirely within our state,” Andrew says. “Cotton grown on our farm and ginned at our cotton gin was spun, dyed, sewn and screen-printed locally.”
The Burlesons farm has used some innovative methods to reduce the need for seasonal labor. Andrew worked with a welder and the gin manager to modernize a tarping system to allow them to harvest with two workers, instead of four.
A challenge for the Burlesons has been urban development, yet they’ve taken steps to ensure the future of farming in their family. They’ve purchased land in areas with less commercial and residential growth to provide a stable land base for the next generation.
The Burlesons are involved in the Cotton Producers Association, County Environmental Health Board, the State Agriculture Foundation, Cooperative Extension, Southern States and their church.

LUCAS RICHARD, 29, of Catawba County, bought his first calf at 5 years old, when his grandfather sold it to him for two cents. He reinvested his proceeds from the sale of that cow’s calf and has been investing in his diverse farm operations ever since.
“I’m a firm believer in reinvesting in the operation first,” he says. “This has allowed me to achieve the growth that I have over the past 10 years.”
Until he got out of high school, Richard farmed alongside his grandfather. Then he started with 50 acres of row crops. Today his businesses, L.F.R. Farms & Greenhouses and L.F.R. Grain Chemical, Inc., require three greenhouses, 1,600 acres of his own and 1,000 acres of custom work for other farmers. Richard has 10 full-time employees.
Richard grows wheat, barley, corn, soybeans and strawberries, and started a grain division that includes a grain elevator and chemical and seed store three years ago.
Furthermore, to keep up with the latest chemical and seed products, Richard became a commissioned agent for Coastal Agribusiness.
Richard started farming just out of high school and typically puts in 16-hour-or-longer days but recently decided to make time to go back to school. He is finishing up an associates degree in business administration this semester.
Looking ahead, Richard plans to add more grain storage, add row crop acres, and possibly buy or build another location.
Richard is president of the Small Grain Growers Association, and is involved with the National Wheat Growers Association, his local fire department, and is an Eagle Scout.

BLADEN COUNTY Farm Bureau Board Member Danny McDuffie (center) and his son Dan (right) received this year’s Peanut Yield Champions Award from Bob Sutter with the N.C. Peanut Growers Association. In addition to winning on the county level, the McDuffies were also awarded the North Carolina State Yield Award. The McDuffie’s average yield for the 2007 growing season was 5,700 pounds per acre, which is an accolade to their farming and production practices.

In other activity…The Bladen County Farm Bureau Women’s Committee donated photosynthesis promenade kits to county schools. Denise White, left, is shown here teaching her class using the kit. Students enjoyed the kits and learned about agriculture.

CARTERET COUNTY Farm Bureau awarded two scholarships of $500 each to Amber Nead and Hannah Mical.

In other activity…Carteret County Farm Bureau recently hosted a two-day meeting of the N.C. Department of Public Instruction. The county provided refreshments for breakfast, afternoon snacks, and the use of its county board meeting room in the Beaufort office.

CARTERET COUNTY Farm Bureau President Mickey Simmons was awarded a plaque “in recognition, appreciation and support for reading in the schools of North Carolina.”

CASWELL COUNTY Farm Bureau member Von “Mac” Baldwin, a beef and poultry farmer from Yanceyville, was recently named the 2008 North Carolina winner of the Swisher Sweets/Sunbelt Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year award. He is one of 10 finalists for the Southeastern Farmer of the Year Award, which will be announced Oct. 14 at the Sunbelt Ag Expo farm show in Moultrie, Ga.

Baldwin has more than 400 grass-fed Charolais cows, which he sells through his Web site, www.baldwinbeef.com, at Whole Foods stores in North and South Carolina and at the Carrboro Farmers Market. Caswell County Farm Bureau President Hester Vernon nominated Baldwin for the award because of his active participation in Farm Bureau and other agricultural activities.

In other activity…Caswell County Farm Bureau participated in “Aging with Gusto,” a seminar for senior citizens held June 11 at the Caswell County Civic Center. Farm Bureau representatives handed out 120 bags containing information about member services to the more than 100 seniors and other vendors in attendance.

CHOWAN COUNTY Farm Bureau members recently took part in a Farm Safety Day at the Chowan County Recreation Department in Tyner. About 300 third-through-fifth-graders from D.F. Walker Elementary School attended the event. The schoolchildren visited a variety of booths and learned ways to stay safe when dealing with combines and tractors, lawn mowers, fire, RVs, chemicals, bad weather and water. Willy the Safety Squirrel was on hand to greet the children as they arrived and passed out coloring books, crayons, safety tattoos and stickers.

CUMBERLAND COUNTY Farm Bureau held a water quality meeting June 3 at the Charlie Rose Center. Twenty-six people from several counties attended. Cumberland County Farm Bureau’s YF&R Committee sponsored the meeting.

DARE COUNTYFarm Bureau’s Board of Directors and special guests feasted on a fresh seafood dinner, which included soft shell crabs that were hauled in by veteran board member Edward Etheridge earlier in the day. The group gathered to congratulate Thomas Pratt-Lozupone on receiving a $1,000 scholarship from the county Farm Bureau to be used toward his expenses at N.C. State University.

EDGECOMBE COUNTY Farm Bureau awarded five $1,000 scholarships to local high school students. The scholarship recipients were: Matthew Drake, son of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Drake of Pinetops; Caroline Pilgreen, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James T. Pilgreen of Whitakers; Jacob Pearce, son of Mr. and Mrs. James Pearce of Tarboro; Eric Parker, son of Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Parker of Rocky Mount; and Michele Smith, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Kent Smith of Rocky Mount. Drake, Pilgreen, Pearce and Smith all plan to attend N.C. State University in the fall. Parker will attend N.C. A & T State University.

FRANKLIN COUNTY Farm Bureau and the United Way co-sponsored the 14th Annual Ag Field Day Tuesday, Sept. 16 at Riverbend Park. Every third-grader in the county was invited to attend the event, which offered a morning of hands-on experiences with agricultural life.

Top row, from left, Farm Bureau’s Kay Sims was on hand as Franklin County Farm Bureau’s Vice-President Steve Nelms presented a contribution on behalf of Farm Bureau and United Way to event planner Martha Mobley. United Way’s Priscilla Henderson is pictured far right. On hand for the check presentation were the children of Farm Bureau members Alyssa and Matthew Dorsey, who operate Bahemah Angus Farm in Louisburg. They are, from left, Micah, Leah, Anna and Silas.

MECKLENBURG COUNTY Farm Bureau Board Members Johnny and Shelby Wallace picked up an award for Wallace Farm in Huntersville at the Charlotte Business Journal’s Green Awards. The event took place April 16 at the Charlotte Convention Center. Wallace Farm, along with Linda Construction and R.T. Dooley, was presented the Green Entrepreneurial Effort/Innovative Idea award. The program was sponsored by the Charlotte Business Journal and the Charlotte chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council.

NASH COUNTY Farm Bureau former board of director’s member Elmer Daniel received a certificate naming him an Honorary Director. County President Greg Bunn presented Daniel with the certificate and a plaque “In Appreciation and Honor” of his service during a directors’ meeting April 3 in Nashville. Daniel joined the Farm Bureau in 1947 and served on the board of directors from 1961 to 2007. He also served as a county commissioner and on the board of Nash General Hospital.

American Farm Bureau Federation’s American Farm Bureau Federation’s Foundation for Agriculture awarded North Carolina teacher Sandra Hatley with a $1,200 White-Reinhardt Fund for Education scholarship to attend the National Agriculture in the Classroom conference in Costa Mesa, CA.

Hatley was one of 10 teachers recognized for outstanding efforts to promote agricultural literacy. American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture sponsored the awards in cooperation with the AFBF Women’s Leadership Committee.

RICHMOND COUNTY Farm Bureau Board Member Myers Waddell and his wife, Earlene, participated in Washington Street School’s N.C. Heritage Day, June 6. Mrs. Waddell spoke to nine classes of fourth-graders about North Carolina agriculture and how people farmed in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The students learned about the many different commodities produced by N.C. farmers, such as chicken, turkey, cotton, tobacco and corn. Afterward, Mr. and Mrs. Waddell presented each class with donated Frisbees.

RUTHERFORD COUNTY Farm Bureau recently awarded scholarships to three students starting college this fall. Tiffany Brown, of Rutherfordton, is a graduate of Chase High School and is the daughter of Michael and Kathy Brown. She will attend N.C. State University and will receive $1,000 per semester for four years. Haley Lovelace, of Bostic, is a graduate of East Rutherford High School and is the daughter of Ronald and Debora Lovelace. She will also attend NCSU and will receive $1,000 per semester for four years. Tramell Forney, of Union Mills, is a graduate of R-S Central High School and the son of Tramell and Sandra Forney. He will attend N.C. A&T State University in Greensboro and will receive $1,000 per semester for four years.

STANLY COUNTY Farm Bureau held a Member Appreciation Day May 31 at the local Farm Bureau office.

Georgia and Michael, the children of Andrew and Ashley Burleson, milk a cow at Member Appreciation Day.

WARREN COUNTY Farm Bureau’s Board of Directors held its Second Annual Legislative Dinner recently. Among the 60 attendees at the event were four of the five county commissioners, farm advisers from the Washington, D.C. offices of U.S. Sen. Richard Burr and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole, N.C. Rep. Michael Wray and N.C. Sen. Doug Berger.

In other activity…Women’s Committee members participated in the National Education Association’s Read Across America this spring at Mariam Boyd Elementary School in Warrenton. They served refreshments and lunch to 35 teachers at a workshop co-led by Pat Riethmier, local N.C. Teacher of the Year for Ag in the Classroom. In April, the group visited the Ronald McDonald House in Chapel Hill and donated $200 in supplies and home-based goodies. Women’s Committee members also sponsored local Relay for Life activities.

Also…The board of directors focused on community aid this year and donated $700 to the local 4-H for the spring five-county livestock show and sale. They also donated $5,000 to a Jaycees fundraiser for a local Farm Bureau member, a dairy farmer, who was involved in a farm accident.

And…The board of directors awarded $1,000 scholarships to high school seniors Lauren Lesas and Lindsay Varnadore. The scholarships are renewable for three years as long as the students continue to major in an agriculture-related field and maintain a specific GPA. The board awarded one-time $500 scholarships to seven other worthy students majoring in a variety of fields.

WAYNE COUNTY Farm Bureau Board of Directors sponsored a team in the 2008 Wayne County Relay For Life May 16 and 17 on the Wayne Community College campus in Goldsboro. Activities were held throughout the year to raise money for the annual American Cancer Society event.

The team’s theme for its tent at the relay was “Sowing Seeds for a Cure.” The group paid tribute to team members who were cancer survivors. They encouraged event-goers to pay tribute to loved ones who either survived or succumbed to battles with cancer by sowing a seed in a planter and writing their loved one’s name on a paper flower.

In its rookie year, the team, through its fund-raising efforts, donations and corporate sponsorships raised $6,500.

“I am so proud of all the hard work that our team members and volunteers have put in to make our first year participating in the Relay a success,” said team captain Amy Shivar. “On behalf of the Wayne County Farm Bureau Relay For Life team, I would like to thank everyone who has donated to this event.”

ALAMANCE CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Burlington
Aug. 26–30, 2008

ALEXANDER CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Taylorsville
Sept. 30–Oct 4, 2008

ALLEGHANY CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Sparta
Aug. 16–23, 2008

ATLANTIC DISTRICT FAIR
Ahoskie
Oct. 27–Nov. 1, 2008

AVERY CO. FAIR
Newland
Sept. 9–13, 2008

BETHWARE COMMUNITY FAIR
Kings Mountain
July 29-Aug. 2, 2008

BURKE CO. FAIR
Morganton
Aug. 5–9, 2008

CABARRUS CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Concord
Sept. 5–13, 2008

CALDWELL CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Lenoir
Sept. 23–27, 2008

CAPE FEAR FAIR & EXPO
Wilmington
Oct. 30–Nov. 8, 2008

CENTRAL CAROLINA FAIR
Greensboro
Sept. 12–21, 2008

CHATHAM CO. FAIR
Pittsboro
Sept. 17–20, 2008

CHOWAN CO. REGIONAL FAIR
Edenton
Sept. 23–27, 2008

CLEVELAND CO. FAIR
Shelby
Sept. 25–Oct 4, 2008

COASTAL CAROLINA AGRICULTURAL FAIR
New Bern
Oct. 16–26, 2008

COLUMBUS CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Whiteville
Oct. 6–11, 2008

CUMBERLAND CO. FAIR
Fayetteville
Sept. 18–28, 2008

DAVIDSON CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Lexington
Sept. 15–20, 2008

DIXIE CLASSIC FAIR
Winston-Salem
Oct. 3–12, 2008

DREXEL COMMUNITY FAIR
Drexel
Aug. 19–23, 2008

HALIFAX-NORTHAMPTON CO. FAIR
Roanoke Rapids
Oct. 21–25, 2008

HAYWOOD CO. FAIR
Waynesville
Sept. 22–29, 2008

HICKORY AMERICAN LEGION FAIR
Hickory
Aug. 27–Sept. 1, 2008

IREDELL CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Statesville
Sept. 1–6, 2008

LEE REGIONAL AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Sanford
Oct. 6–12, 2008

MOORE CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Carthage
Oct. 7–11, 2008

N.C. MOUNTAIN STATE FAIR
Fletcher
Sept. 5–14, 2008

N.C. STATE FAIR
Raleigh
Oct. 16–26, 2008

ONSLOW CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Jacksonsville
Oct. 6–11, 2008

PITT CO. AMERICAN LEGION
AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Greenville
Sept. 29–Oct. 4, 2008

RICHMOND CO.
AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Hamlet
Oct. 14–18, 2008

ROBESON REGIONAL
AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Lumberton
Oct. 2–11, 2008

ROCKY MOUNT AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Rocky Mount
Sept. 8–13, 2008

ROWAN CO. AGRICULTURAL
& INDUSTRIAL FAIR
Salisbury
Sept. 15–20, 2008

STANLY AMERICAN LEGION POST #76 AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Albemarle
Sept. 16–20, 2008

STOKES CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
King
Sept. 8–13, 2008

SURRY CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Mt. Airy
Sept. 1–6, 2008

WARREN CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Warrenton
Sept. 23–27, 2008

WAYNE REGIONAL AGRICULTURAL FAIR
Goldsboro
Sept. 25–Oct. 4, 2008

WILKES CO. AGRICULTURAL FAIR
North Wilkesboro
Oct. 14–18, 2008

WILSON CO. AMERICAN
LEGION FAIR
Wilson
Sept. 16–21, 2008