JOANNE CLENDINING: It's a big, wide agricultural world out there, from the shore to the mountains, and all points in between.

Did you know farmers look to the sun for power?

America's first whiskey was born in Maryland?

And an annual cookout brings chefs and farmers together?

Don't go anywhere, stories about the people who work the land and feed our state are coming up next on "Maryland Farm and Harvest."

NARRATOR: Major funding for "Maryland Farm and Harvest" is made possible in part by: The Maryland Grain Producers Utilization Board, investing in smarter farming to support safe and affordable food, feed, and fuel, and a healthy Bay.

Additional funding provided by: Maryland's Best, good for you, good for Maryland.

A grant from the Rural Maryland Council, Maryland Agricultural Education and Rural Development Fund.

MARBIDCO, helping to sustain food and fiber enterprise for future generations.

A grant from the Maryland Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Program.

Farm Credit, lending support to agriculture and rural America.

The Maryland Soybean Board and Soybean Checkoff Program, progress powered by farmers.

The Maryland Nursery, Landscape, and Greenhouse Association.

The Maryland Association of Soil Conservation Districts.

The Maryland Farm Bureau Incorporated.

The Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment.

The Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation promoting the importance of agriculture in our daily lives.

The Maryland Pork Producers Association proudly works to educate consumers and advocate for farmers.

Taste what pork can do.

(theme music playing).

(bird chirping).

JOANNE: The Maryland agricultural landscape is made up of rich and diverse products.

Hi, I'm Joanne Clendining, welcome to "Maryland Farm and Harvest."

This week, we're in the Long Green Valley area of Baltimore County, where farmers have reaped the benefits of this fertile valley for centuries, including the oldest winery in Maryland, Boordy Vineyards.

This year, they're celebrating 80 years of winemaking.

Coming up, libations abound with local rye at McClintock distilleries.

But first, since the birth of agriculture, farmers have relied on the sun to grow their crops.

Now that energy is being harnessed to power homes and businesses.

But finding that delicate balance of using solar to power farms and using farmland for solar farms has divided families, friendships, and farmers.

(tractor engine).

The sun.

We've been working on making it work for us for centuries.

First as a fire starter, then as a weapon, an oven, and then in 1839, solar panels were invented.

It's been a race of innovation ever since.

By 2023, solar accounted for over half of all new electricity-generating capacity added to the grid.

Currently, Maryland has a renewable energy goal to have 50% of its electricity come from clean, renewable sources by 2030.

To meet that goal, Maryland, like two-thirds of states across the country, have turned to farmland.

And that has some farmers concerned.

CHRIS DAVIS: You're always thinking, what's the next farm that might disappear?

JOANNE: Kent County's Chris Davis is a seventh-generation farmer who co-owns Rich Levels Grain with his brother Rob.

CHRIS: So, we till about a total of 5,000 acres.

1,000 of that is owned, 4,000 leased from about 19 or 20 different landlords.

And um, we have two farms that are under contract to a developer.

JOANNE: Concerned by neighboring farmland converting to solar, Rob Davis co-founded Farmers Alliance for Rural Maryland, a group lobbying against solar farms.

ROB DAVIS: What I'm afraid of is the large-scale commercial solar projects that swallow up four or five, 600-acre farms at a time.

When you take that acre out of farm production, it takes money out of many businesses in the community.

CHRIS: You know, that's a big concern, and you, you kind of can't blame 'em for, for seeing the big flashy numbers that are, that are being thrown at 'em.

JOANNE: In 2024, the USDA reported the nation's average cash rental for cropland was $160 per acre.

While Maryland's solar lease rates ranged from $700 to $5,000 per acre annually.

ROB: At least about two or three times a week, we get something in the mail from a solar company offering what is 20, 30 times more than we could afford to pay in rent.

If we don't start to kind of pump the brakes on the solar sprawl today, I'm afraid that in the future we'll be taking opportunity away from the next generation to farm.

JOANNE: While there may be cases of landowners going solar for simply the financial benefits, there are also landowners who went solar in order to save their farm for the next generation.

SAMANTHA DIXON: I think it's really important to continue this legacy.

JOANNE: Samantha Dixon grew up on Howard County's Triple Creek Farm.

SAMANTHA: And especially here on my family farm, where my family had grown up here for over 200 years.

So I want to continue, uh, to raise either a, a feeder operation, uh, and continue to grow our brood cow and cow calf operation from here.

JOANNE: But she had mixed feelings about her family leasing 27 acres to a solar developer.

SAMANTHA: I was kind of torn just because I personally, at first, uh, didn't want panels 'cause I would rather continue using that for our crops and such.

But as I grew older, I realized how much we needed it and how much actually it was saving our farm.

JOANNE: Teresa Stonesifer and her mom Denise were born and raised on this 92-acre farm, and it's never been easy.

TERESA STONESIFER: The struggle to raise a family and try to live off the farm, it wasn't working for my mom and dad.

JOANNE: To keep the farm going, her father and, later, Teresa drove school buses.

TERESA: And I had school buses until my husband was severely hurt on the job, in 1989.

JOANNE: For generations, the family worked off farm, but by the late 2000s, they were forced into a hard decision.

TERESA: When my mother passed away, and we had to settle the estate, it became apparent then if we had to come up with another way of some other income in order for us to stay here.

We had our blood, sweat, and tears in this place, I've farmed it with my grandfather and my father, so it was a hard decision for us to make, but it was even harder to think that we would have to sell and go.

JOANNE: Teresa's story shows that there are no easy answers when it comes to solar on farmland.

And Rob Davis's story shows that this issue is not so cut and dry.

ROB: We're not anti-solar, as you can see, we're pro, pro-solar, we've got it here in our backyard.

JOANNE: This one and a half acre of solar panels powers six poultry houses, two grain storage systems, five irrigation pivots, and four homes.

ROB: Here we feel like it really made sense, uh, to, to complement our, our needs, our electricity needs.

JOANNE: But Rob still worries about large-scale solar development in his community.

ROB: Our neighbor, sold out to a solar company, and uh, their solar field's over 400 acres.

There are still a lot of young farmers who would love the opportunity to get started on a 400-acre farm.

JOANNE: Teresa Stonesifer's decision to add solar to their farm was both financial and preservative for future generations.

And she knows not everyone will agree.

TERESA: And it's not something that everyone can do.

I wouldn't tell someone that you should do this or you should do that.

ROB: I'm actually like impressed with the, the fact that there aren't more solar fields spread across the shore because I think a lot of these landowners realize that it's more important to leave this land in ag production and in supporting the local ag community rather than just taking the, the highest bidder.

JOANNE: In Maryland, those decisions being debated over solar aren't just about land; it's about legacy.

Finding a future where green energy and green fields can grow together.

As of August 2025, federal funding for large scale solar projects on farmland has been haulted.

But the solar debate is ongoing.

If you'd like to learn more about solar energy and if it's right for your application, visit our website for more information.

♪ ♪ All right, it's time to put your agronomical thinking cap on, here is our thingamajig for the week.

Do you think you know what it is?

Well, here is a hint.

This tool comes in handy at a winery and at your next birthday party, stay tuned, and we'll have the answer at the end of the show.

The beauty of farming is to taste the fruits of your labor.

For this week's farm picks of the week, we got literal; we asked you to send us pics of your favorite fruit.

Enjoy.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ JOANNE: Maryland has a historic yet nearly extinct rye whiskey tradition that is seeing a resurgence in popularity.

And if McClintock Distilling in Frederick has anything to say, it's back to stay.

(tractor engine).

♪ ♪ BRAEDEN BUMPERS: We want to create unique spirits that taste great and honor the legacy and history of Maryland whiskeys, and showcase the beauty of Maryland-grown grains.

JOANNE: McClintock Distilling in Frederick, Maryland, is crafting spirits like gin, vodka, and whiskey.

And as the only certified organic distillery in the state, they're taking an approach that hearkens back to yesteryear, when Maryland rye was world-renowned.

BRAEDEN: Maryland in the 1700s and, and early 1800s was producing some of the most volume of whiskey in the United States.

And even up until the early 1900 was regarded as some of the best American whiskey coming out of here of the time.

ZAC KENNEDY: Maryland made the best rye whiskey worldwide.

Um, there were some of the Titanic; it went across the oceans, you name it, it was coming from Maryland at the time.

JOANNE: The rye industry fell into hard times during Prohibition, despite being known as a wet state and not enforcing the nation's ban on alcohol, Maryland distillers never recovered from that period, leading to a slow and steady decline through the 1970s when Maryland's last rye distiller closed shop.

But Braeden Bumpers and the team at McClintock are hoping to put Maryland rye back on the map and recapture the taste that defined a region.

BRAEDEN: Reading through the tasting notes of these old Maryland whiskeys is nothing like what you would read from the tasting notes of a modern-day rye whiskey.

So, if you pull most rye whiskeys off the shelf, you'll see as a tasting note, black pepper, that's from a lot of the grains that are being grown today have one very specific compound that has been engineered into most ryes, and that gives you that black pepper flavor.

But if we're looking at old school Maryland ryes, you see candy notes, you see plums, cherries, a lot of these sweeter notes, and there is a lot of different people who argue why that is.

JOANNE: Braeden believes that the taste came from the varietals of rye that were being grown in Maryland at the time.

In an effort to reproduce it, McClintock has partnered with farmers like Wallin Organic Farm in Chestertown, where they're growing organic rye to recreate the sweeter fruit-forward taste that made Maryland whiskey iconic.

PAUL DRUMMOND: This is a certified organic field, and we're growing organic rye.

Uh, specifically, it's a variety called Spooner, it's a lesser-known variety, it's not really grown in the state, we may be the only ones growing it in the Mid-Atlantic, for as far as I know.

It's considered more of an heirloom type, even though it might not be that old; it could have been bred from other parent varieties of rye that were historically known as the original rye varieties.

JOANNE: Over the next several months, the rye will grow up to six feet tall and begin to pollinate.

As seed heads form, the rye will begin to lodge down, which means it's getting closer to harvest.

PAUL: Primarily, though, and what's most important is, um, the dryness of the seed.

So, if you pull out a couple of these seeds and you kind of put them in between your fingernails, if you can still squish them, they're not ready, right?

Um, but once they move to past the milk stage, into the dough stage, they become harder and harder, and once they're hard like this, we know they're very, very close, if not ready.

JOANNE: Paul will harvest the rye in his custom modified PTO pulled combine.

PAUL: Since this is a pull-behind combine, you gotta be really careful 'cause you're offset, so you have to cut into the field where you can, so because the tractor's old and the combine's old, I don't have a great gauge on how much is being yielded from this right now.

So, the only gauge I'm using is how quickly the hopper fills up on the combine.

JOANNE: Once the harvest is completed, it will be dried down and sent to McClintock, where head distiller Zac Kennedy will inspect it, ensuring a quality harvest.

ZAC: First and foremost, we need to make sure that our, our the grain that's coming in is good grain.

If it is, if it is crappy grain, you're gonna get a crappy product.

If it looks like crap on the truck, it stays on the truck.

JOANNE: The grain will then be put into a stone burr mill, where it will be turned into a baker's quality like flour that maintains the natural flavors.

It will then be heated in the mashing process, where the grain starches are converted to fermentable sugars, which will be distilled into alcohol.

The whiskey will age in barrels for two years.

It's a long process, but not as long as the history that Braeden is hoping to honor.

BRAEDEN: Everybody knows about Kentucky Bourbon, but Maryland rye predates Kentucky bourbon by 100 years.

It really is the first American whiskey, and our goal is to really restore a lot of that history and keep growing Maryland rye across the whole country.

And we think across the whole world, eventually.

McClintock Distilling's Old Etzler Straight Rye Whiskey took home an award for the "Best Whiskey" in a blind taste test in 2024.

Coming up, Al savors, the taste of summer.

But first, there are nearly 6,000 colleges and universities in the United States, and many of them open their doors by way of Act of Congress.

This 19th-century new wave of higher education would be called land-grant universities.

We explore the history of these colleges on this week's "Then and Now."

(gunfire, shouting) In the midst of the Civil War, a new kind of institution quietly took root, one that would forever change American education.

In 1862, Congress passed the Morrill Act, introduced by Vermont Congressman Justin Morrill.

It granted at least 30,000 acres of land to each state to create public colleges focused on agriculture, engineering, and military science.

These new institutions were called land-grant colleges, unlike elite private universities, they welcomed young men and women from farms, small towns, and working families.

In 1890, a second Morrill Act extended the land-grant model to historically Black colleges and universities.

Decades later, in 1994, tribal colleges joined the system, bringing the land-grant mission to Indigenous communities.

Today, land-grant universities serve every state and territory, including our own University of Maryland.

Combining research, education, and outreach, they remain true to a radical promise that knowledge should be useful and available to all.

From cornfields to classrooms, the land-grant legacy endures, rooted in service and growing towards the future.

From "Then to Now."

On this week's "The Local Buy," Al Spoler samples, the annual pairing of farms and chefs at the Governor's Buy Local Cookout, Al?

♪ ♪ AL SPOLER: Now there are many things I love about Maryland; there are so many traditions, particularly in food and drinks, and one of my personal traditions, buying local.

CONSUMER: Nothing like local.

AL: Shopping at local farms, farmers' markets, roadside stands, wineries, breweries, and grocers that stock local products supports our farmers and strengthens the local economy.

And that's what brought me to the Maryland Department of Agriculture campus.

To experience a tradition dating back to 2008, the Maryland Governor's Buy Local Cookout.

The Buy Local Cookout celebrates Maryland agriculture, and it features dishes and libations prepared by Maryland chefs using locally Maryland sourced ingredients.

And these are farm-raised?

FARMER: These are all farm-raised, yep.

Both grown in St.

Mary's County on the lower Potomac River.

CONSUMER: Oh, alright.

AL: Hosted by Governor Wes Moore and Maryland's Secretary of Agriculture Kevin Atticks, the event officially kicks off Maryland's Buy Local Week, which takes place mid-July.

KEVIN ATTICKS: It's our opportunity to remind folks every year, right in the heart of the season when everything's available, that they should be choosing to buy local and supporting restaurants that buy local.

WES MOORE: Because when we're talking about buy local, what we're talking about is supporting Marylanders, supporting our farmers.

AL: During Buy Local Week, Marylanders are encouraged to add at least one locally grown, produced, or harvested product to their meals each day.

Even the governor's taking part.

Now, what I want to know at the governor's mansion, do you have the chef trained to buy local?

WES: Oh, yes.

AL: Good enough.

WES: Very much so, and to buy local and to buy a lot of catfish too.

AL: There you go.

Speaking of blue catfish, blue catfish ceviche, that's a brilliant idea.

FARMER: Yeah, and it's made with heirloom tomatoes from our farm.

AL: Fabulous.

Now, where'd you get the blue catfish?

FARMER: So, we get it from Tilghman Island Seafood.

AL: Oh, bless their hearts.

I noticed you're getting a lot of votes here.

FARMER: Yeah, we're hoping to win!

AL: That's right, it's not just a barbecue, it's a serious competition.

Each chef is battling to win the People's Choice Award.

Let's meet some of the contenders.

Follow me 'cause we're gonna visit the gold standard of Maryland delicacy, softshell crab.

What water did this come from, do you know?

CHEF: Miles River.

AL: Miles River.

I know where that is.

It's on the way to St.

Michaels.

CHEF: On the way to St.

Michael's, you got it.

I've been coming to this event for years, and for me, it's like a buy local paradise.

Oh my gosh.

Well, we have two traditions here, Baltimore Peach Cake and Chef John Shields.

And this time of year, Baltimore peach cake is the king.

JOHN SHIELDS: It's king.

I mean, it's amazing how many people never knew of peach cake.

And you know, around Maryland, they grow some of the best food, as you know.

And the peaches we work with Black Rock Orchards.

AL: My buddies.

JOHN: Yes, they're, they're phenomenal.

AL: Which reminds me, it's time to see which one of these phenomenal dishes will be taking home the People's Choice Award.

So, it looks like we have a winner.

TALLIER: We do have a winner!

AL: Do you mind saying who it was?

TALLIER: Yeah, I was... WES: Drum roll, please.

(drum roll).

The crispy Maryland catfish sliders with hot honey drizzle from Faidley's Seafood!

AL: Well, we have a winner.

Congratulations, Faidley's.

DAYME HAHN: Thank you, thank you so much.

AL: You're upholding a very old tradition.

DAYME: I know I had big shoes to fill.

AL: You sure did.

Tell me how you put this together.

DAYME: So, we've done Maryland catfish, and we bread it with our Faidley's breading, it's spiced with J.O.

And then we have our Faidley's coleslaw on brioche bun, and the drizzle on top is made with McCutcheon's honey in Frederick, Maryland.

AL: Oh, no kidding?

DAYME: Tobacco Barn Bourbon.

AL: How about that?

DAYME: From Southern Maryland.

And Old Bay hot sauce.

AL: You're touching all the bases.

DAYME: Yes, I am I, I, I, gave it to everybody.

It's delicious, isn't it?

AL: It is.

And it deser, it deserves the blue ribbon.

DAYME: Thank you so much, thank you.

AL: And in my opinion, everyone here was a winner today, and you could be a winner too if you keep buying local.

Joanne, I'd like to bring something back to you.

Don't think I can quite swing it, and so I'll just say for "The Local Buy," I'm Al Spoler, Joanne?

JOANNE: Thanks, Al.

Be sure to check out mpt.org/farm for all our recipes and resources.

Plus, you can watch all "Farm and Harvest" episodes there as well.

Also, don't forget to follow us on social media for show updates, pictures, and videos.

Now hold on, we're not done yet.

Remember our thingamajig?

Did you guess it?

Our hint was this tool comes in handy in a winery and at your next birthday party.

This is a wine press cake slicer.

Once the grapes are pressed of all their juice, a cake is formed from the skin's seeds and pulp.

This long knife slices it apart, and the cake can be used as an ingredient in baked goods or as garden fertilizer.

Congratulations if you got it right.

Tune in next week for or next thingamajig, and more stories about the diverse, passionate people who feed our state.

I'm Joanne Clendining, thanks for watching.

(music plays through credits).

NARRATOR: Major funding for "Maryland Farm and Harvest" was made possible in part by: The Maryland Grain Producers Utilization Board, investing in smarter farming to support safe and affordable food, feed, and fuel, and a healthy Bay.

Additional funding provided by Maryland's Best, good for you, good for Maryland.

A grant from the Rural Maryland Council, Maryland Agricultural Education and Rural Development Fund.

MARBIDCO, helping to sustain food and fiber enterprise for future generations.

A grant from the Maryland Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Program.

Farm Credit, lending support to agriculture and rural America.

The Maryland Soybean Board and Soybean Checkoff Program, progress powered by farmers.

The Maryland Nursery, Landscape, and Greenhouse Association.

The Maryland Association of Soil Conservation Districts.

The Maryland Farm Bureau Incorporated.

The Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment.

The Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation promoting the importance of agriculture in our daily lives.

The Maryland Pork Producers Association proudly works to educate consumers and advocate for farmers.

Taste what pork can do.

(bird chirping).

♪ ♪