The March of Dimes is asking Eastern Shore residents to save the date in Spring 2009 for the March for Babies. Wicomico County will host a walk on Sunday, April 19, 2009, starting from the Salisbury Moose Lodge at 10:00 AM. Caroline County will be the site of a march on Sunday April 26, 2009, starting at 10:00 AM in Federalsburg. Worcester County has selected Assateague as the site for the walk on Saturday, May 2, 2009, beginning at 10:00 AM. For more information, visit March of Dimes or March for Babies, or call 410-546-2241. The goal of the March of Dimes is to “help moms have healthy pregnancies and give hope to families of babies born too soon or sick.”

A partnership between several Maryland tourism and natural resource groups has resulted in a new web site called Wilds of Worcester. WoW offers information on outdoor activities including kayaking, birding and exploration away from the usual beach scene in Ocean City. Visitors can also find information on camping, hiking, boating and biking. Check out the Wilds of Worcester and add some adventure to your next visit to Worcester County, MD.

I ran across a web site for Chesapeake Bay Farms, an operation that touts itself as the only dairy farm in Worcester County, MD. The farm is located just a couple of miles west of Berlin, MD, on Route 50. CBF is a family operation that has branched out from the main dairy operation into cheeses, ice cream and butter which are offered through their farm store. If you are traveling east from Salisbury, take the first left after the Rt. 90 split onto Logtown Rd. and look for the cows. The store is currently open Wednesday thru Sunday from 11:30-5:30.

Our ALL NATURAL gourmet cheese, ice cream, butter and milk are top quality because we control every aspect of the production - from growing the feed to placing the labels on each individual pack. Our milk also contains no synthetic hormones, antibiotics or chemical compounds.

These local products are also available for wholesale and fundraisers. Support local cows.

The Worcester County Public Works Department’s Recycling Division, in conjunction with Maryland Environmental Services and the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), will conduct Household Hazardous Waste, and E-Cycling (electronics recycling) Collection Day on Saturday, November 1, from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. at the Ocean Pines Public Works Department, located by the South Station Fire House in Ocean Pines.

Gather up those old or unusable cans of pesticides, pool chemicals, gas and other fuels, oil-base paints, thinners and everyday hazardous wastes accumulating in and around the home and bring them to the recycling center for safe disposal. Electronic items, such as computers, monitors, keyboards, printers, radios, televisions and VCR’s, will be collected and later recycled.

Because household hazardous waste and electronics don’t break down readily, recycling those items saves much-needed landfill space. Furthermore, many of the items contain poisonous materials that could seep out of the landfill and contaminate surrounding soil and groundwater. Proper disposal of these items is among many simple tasks we can practice to further protect our environment and ultimately our own health.

This event is open to Worcester County residents only. A representative from MDE will be on-site checking vehicle registration. Clean Venture of Baltimore will be responsible for the safe dispose of all hazardous waste collected. The electronics will be shipped to an electronics recycler for dismantling. For more information, contact Worcester County Recycling Coordinator Ron Taylor at (410) 632-3177.

Worcester County has released a new publication titled Rain Gardens in Maryland’s Coastal Plain.

Rain gardens, are depressions in the ground that are strategically placed to capture runoff from impervious surfaces like rooftops, driveways, sidewalks, and even lawns. A strategically placed rain garden can intercept the runoff, allow the water to infiltrate into the soil, and filter out pollutants like oils, fertilizers, and pesticides before entering the bays.

The brochure suggests ideas regarding the construction and plant selection for a rain garden that will maximize the effect on water runoff from properties in Maryland’s coastal plains. The publication is available for free at the Worcester County Department of Comprehensive Planning office in Snow Hill, MD. An electronic version is available online.

SNOW HILL, MD. An Heirloom Tomato Tasting will be held at Furnace Town on Sunday August 3 from 1 - 4 pm. Tomatoes in shades of yellow, red and combinations, with names like Azoychka, Bloody Butcher, Garden Peach, and Mortgage Lifter are being grown for this event popular with those who treasure the summer flavor of fresh-from-the-garden tomatoes.

The various tomato varieties will be lined up on picnic tables beneath the Pavilion, where the tasting of about a dozen varieties such as Mr. Stripey, Yellow Pear, Jaune Flammee, Black Krim and more will take place. Actual tomatoes featured will depend upon the weather. Staff and volunteers, including tomato growers Jeff and Melissa Bacon, will be busy cutting bitesize samples of each heirloom variety, placing the samples in individual cups, and placing them on the tasting table in front of the un-cut tomatoes. Information about growing tomatoes will be shared by Extension Educators Ginny Rosenkrantz and Laura Hunsberger, along with Master Gardeners.

The set-up will be similar to a wine tasting, and judging cards will be available for each taster. The tomatoes may be rated from 1 - 5 (5 being best) on initial taste, texture, after-taste and overall - with room for comments. Comments from the 2007 tasting included: tastes better than it looks, bland, more acidic than expected, nice, sweet taste, yummy, wonderful and ew! The 2007 winner was a tie between Hogs Heart and Brandywine, followed by German Queen, Big Rainbow and Mariannas Peace.

The Heirloom Tomato Tasting is included in daily site admission of $4.00 adults/$3.50 AAA or over 60/$2.00 age 2 - 18. All proceeds benefit Furnace Town’s educational programs. Call 410-632-2032 or visit www.furnacetown.com.

Today marks the beginning of the 2007 Worcester County Fair. Events are centered around Byrd Park in Snow Hill from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Sunday. Admission to the fair is free. New events for the 2007 fair include a lawn tractor pull, vintage motorcycle day, and a horseshoe tournament. There will be exhibits and entertainment to satisfy fair visitors of all ages. Fair goers can take a river cruise on Miss Rai, as well as enjoy food, games and the requisite livestock displays.

The 2007 White Marlin Open is under way in Ocean City, MD. The event has attracted almost 400 boats with over $3 million dollars in prize money awaiting the winners at the end of the week. Event organizers are opening up the weigh ins to the world with Marlin Vision. The White Marlin Open web cam will be showing the weigh ins from 4:00-9:15 p.m. everyday until the final on August 10th. The current leader in the White Marlin division is eligible for $1.4 million in prize money if the 71 1/2 pound catch can hold the lead.

UPDATE for 2008: The address for the White Marlin web cam has changed.

SNOW HILL, MD. What do artists, artisans, musicians, crafters, food vendors and farm animals have in common with 10 sixteen-ton farm combines? All will be gathered in downtown Snow Hill between Market Street and the Pocomoke River to celebrate and honor Worcester County’s agricultural community on Saturday August 4, 2007 at the 9th Annual Blessing of the Combines.

Streets are decorated with corn and black eyed susans. Church bake sales are set up well before Noon and sidewalks and side streets fill with people enjoying children’s games, the Petting Barnyard, a straw maze, face painting and displays from area businesses and organizations. A Custom Car and Truck Show, along the Pocomoke River, is set up from 11 until 4. Just before 1:00, the crowd moves to line Washington Street to watch the approach of the Parade of Combines cross the bridge and move slowly to turn onto Green Street. Each combine takes its place, literally turning on a dime, to face the Speaker’s Platform on Pearl Street. At a signal from the placement director, regulars to this event cover their ears as a roaring “throttle thrust” ensues, followed by a complete and impressive silence.

Event master of ceremonies, Ron Brittingham, sees that the program of Presentation of Colors, singing of the national anthem, welcomes and recognitions moves smoothly toward the introduction of this year’s keynote speaker, local farmer and Maryland Secretary of Agriculture, Roger Richardson. Following his address, the Rev. Shirley Evans of Bowen/Trinity Methodist Churches will say a few words leading up to the real reason for being here: The Blessing of the Combines. Her “Amen” is echoed by the crowd, who fully realize the importance of agriculture for Snow Hill and for Worcester County.

From about 1:45 until 4:00 the focus is on chatting with combine drivers, visiting Artist’s Alley and Crafter’s Row, taking hayrides, watching or being part of the children’s tractor pull or the pie eating contest, seeing Scales and Tales, checking out various booths, patronizing local businesses, purchase the 2007 Combines T-Shirt and more. For most, it is also a time to enjoy great food: BBQ chicken and BBQ pork, burgers, fries, lemonade, sno-cones, water and sodas are available from local civic organizations. Throughout the afternoon, musicians including God’s Country Crossroads and Danny Jackson will be on stage.

By 4:00 the thinning crowd comes alive as the combines start their engines as they get ready to head for home. These drivers/owners spend hours cleaning and polishing their combines, which will soon be seen in the farm fields shelling corn and cutting beans. There is just time for visitors to head to John Walter Smith Park for the Antique Tractor Pull which begins at 4:30. For more information about this down-home family-friendly event, contact Becky Payne at 443-783-1715.