Mass Agriculture in the Classroom

Get to Know Us	Cranberries Overview	Cranberries History
Cranberry Habitat	Seasons in the Bog	Cranberry Harvest
Cranberry Management Practices	Build A Mini Bog	Cranberry Water Usage
Cranberry Resources		Contact Us

GET TO KNOW US

Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom (MAC, Inc.) is part of a national effort committed to fostering awareness and education in all areas of agriculture. MAC, Inc. was incorporated as a non-profit corporation on December 26th, 1984.

The major goals of the MAC, Inc. Board are "to promote a better understanding and appreciation of the food and agricultural enterprise as a user and supplier of resources essential to survival; to increase understanding of the contributions of agriculture to the people of this state, the nation and the world; to identify current issues relative to the consumption and use of food and the need to maintain a sustainable agricultural system." We do this through work with the general public, however the emphasis is to concentrate on school age children through classroom resource support.

Massachusetts agriculture remains a large, diverse economic force in the Commonwealth. Yet, agricultural resources are diminishing due to increasing competition for land use and a lack of understanding about the food and fiber system. MAC, Inc. provides: commodity resource information to educators statewide, an opportunity to get involved in agriculture education in local communities, a forum through which each commodity will be equally represented on our board and increased visibility and public relations opportunities through direct participation in local agriculture education projects.

MAC, Inc. is currently guided by a 33-member Board of Directors who represent Massachusetts' agricultural commodities, associations and State and Federal Agencies involved in agricultural awareness programs. The Board operates on a one and three year plan of work.

All programs rely heavily on the volunteer Board, and other interested parties. Currently, one part time consultant administers existing programs. MAC, Inc's educational offerings include: Workshops on the Farm for Teachers, Mini-Grants, Seasonal Newsletters, Resource Guides and a School-to-Farm Network. During the past two years, MAC, Inc. has offered 18 workshops for more than 250 teachers on farms throughout the state. Each workshop offers insight into the operation of a different type of farm and also provides related educational activities. During the past three years MAC, Inc. has awarded sixty mini-grants, amounting to more than $50,000 to educators throughout Massachusetts. Grants of up to $1,500 are awarded three times during the year to projects that support our goals. More than one half of the dollars raised by MAC, Inc. each year go towards the Mini-Grant program.MAC, Inc. publishes a seasonal newsletter three times a year. Each newsletter offers a diverse variety of educational resources and features in- depth information on one Massachusetts agricultural commodity. A Teacher's Resource Guide provides information on local and national agricultural commodity groups and their educational offerings. A school- to-farm resource list is available for Massachusetts dairy farms, apple orchards and squash and pumpkin farms. For more information or a copy of any of these resources write to us at P.O. Box 345, Seekonk, MA 02771.

Cranberries

Cranberries are one of three commercially grown fruits that are native to North America. The other two are blueberries and Concord grapes. The cranberry is a unique fruit; its vines thrive on the special combinations of soils and hydrology found in wetlands. Natural bogs evolved from glacial deposits which left impermeable kettle holes lined with clay. These beds became filled with decaying matter. As the ice melted it created the ideal environment for cranberries.

Cranberry History

The cranberry has helped sustain Americans for hundreds of years. Native Americans used cranberries in a variety of foods. The most popular was pemmican - a high protein combination of crushed cranberries, dried deer meat and melted fat. They also used cranberries as a medicine to treat arrow wounds and as a dye for rugs and blankets.The pilgrims learned to use cranberries from the native Americans during the 1600's. The first cranberry juice was made by settlers in 1683. Cultivation of the cranberry began around 1810, shortly after Captain Henry Hall, of Dennis, Massachusetts, noticed that the wild cranberries in his bog grew better when sand blew over them. Captain Hall began transplanting his cranberry vines, fencing them in, and spreading sand on them. The technique was quickly copied. By the 1820's, cranberries were being shipped to Europe for sale.

Cranberry Habitat

It takes more than a bog to grow cranberries. They also rely on a surrounding network of support acres of fields, forests, streams and ponds which make up a cranberry wetland system. Massachusetts' cranberry growers preserve over 63,500 acres of open space, of which only 14,200 acres are cranberry beds.

The vast cranberry system offers an ideal refuge for many plant and wildlife species. In Massachusetts, cranberry wetland systems are home to rare wildlife, such as the red-bellied turtle and osprey. Endangered plant species that thrive in cranberry growth systems include the Plymouth gentian, slender arrowfoot and redroot. Other wildlife that thrive in and near cranberry bogs include great blue heron, wild turkey, otter, mallard and, wood duck, geese, mink, muskrat, fox and deer.
Like all wetlands, the cranberry wetland system filters groundwater, recharges aquifers and controls floods by retaining storm-water runoff. Cranberry growers are, by nature and necessity, masters of water management and careful environmental stewards.

Seasons in the Bog

Cranberry bogs are flooded from late December through mid-March to protect the vines from winter injury. Growers sprinkle sand evenly atop the ice, and as the ice melts, this sand layer helps control insects and stimulate the vines to propagate. Normally, growers do not have to replant since an undamaged cranberry vine will survive indefinitely. Some vines on Cape Cod are over 150 years old.
As warmer weather arrives, growers remove the winter flood. The vines slowly come out of dormancy and the growing season begins. Sometimes a bog is reflowed between mid-April and mid-May as a cultural practice to manage insects, weeds and disease. Water is also applied through the sprinkler system to protect the cranberry bud from frost in the spring and to protect the fruit in the fall.
Cranberries require up to one inch of water per week during the growing season. If rainfall is inadequate, water is applied through the sprinkler system. From mid-June through July, when the vines bloom, growers bring in one or two beehives per acre to insure good pollination. The flowers are pale pink and resemble the head and neck of a sand crane in appearance. It is believed that the name is derived from "craneberry."

Cranberry Harvest

The cranberry harvest takes place from mid-September through early November. There are two methods of harvesting cranberries. The "Dry Method" involves using a walk behind machine to rake the berries off the vines into boxes or bags. Berries are removed from the bog by either bog vehicles or helicopters. These cranberries are sold as fresh fruit. The "Wet Method" involves flooding the bog with up to a foot of water and using a water reel to free the berries from the vines. The berries are corralled and removed from the bog by pumps or conveyors. More than 85% of the harvest is "wet harvested". "Wet harvested" berries, which do not keep as well as "dry harvested" berries, are sent to be processed into juice, sauce, craisins or other cranberry products.

Cranberry Management Practices

Innovative irrigation techniques enable cranberry growers to recycle water from bog to bog and from grower to grower. Through sustainable agriculture programs such as Integrated Pest Management, cultural practices, biological controls and organic fertilizers, Massachusetts cranberry growers strive to balance economic viability with environmental protection. The sanding and flooding of bogs are at the heart of Integrated Pest Management and other low-input agricultural methods. These include the use of fish fertilizer and parasitic nematodes, tiny worms that prey on insects.
Cranberry growers may sell their cranberries directly to market, to a cranberry processing company or they may be part of a farmer's cooperative. Ocean Spray, Inc. is one example of a cooperative of cranberry growers. The cooperative processes the fruit, develops new products, handles marketing and conducts research to improve the industry.

Information for this cranberry article was adopted from All `Bout Cranberries, published by the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association

Cranberry Facts - Did You Know...

Most of the world's cranberries are cultivated in just five states: Massachusetts, Wisconsin, Oregon, New Jersey and Washington.
Massachusetts is a leading producer of cranberries, with an average crop of 1.8 million barrels per year, representing 35% of the world's cranberries.
The average yield per planted acre in Massachusetts- over the past five years is 135 barrels. A barrel equals 100 pounds. Americans consume 340 million pounds of cranberries per year.
The cranberry industry contributes over $200 million in payroll to Massachusetts workers. The industry employees 5,500 people.
Of the approximately 1,000 cranberry growers in North America, 560 are in Massachusetts. Seventy percent of Massachusetts cranberry growers are small family farms with less than 20 acres of bogs.

Materials: Give each student 1 recyclable plastic cup (about 8 ounce size). As you talk about the formation of a natural bog, ask each student to layer the materials in the cup as follows: