Maryland Farm & Harvest visits locations in Anne Arundel, Carroll, and Prince George’s counties during March 4 episode
OWINGS MILLS, MD – Maryland Public Television’s (MPT) original series Maryland Farm & Harvest, currently in its 12th season, will feature farms and locations in Anne Arundel, Carroll, and Prince George’s counties during an episode premiering on Tuesday, March 4. An episode preview can be found on the series’ webpage at mpt.org/farm.
Maryland Farm & Harvest airs on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. on MPT-HD and online at mpt.org/livestream. Episodes are also available to view live and on demand using the free PBS app and MPT’s online video player.
The popular weekly series takes viewers on a journey across the Free State, telling engaging and enlightening stories about the farms, people, and technology required to sustain and grow agriculture in Maryland, the state’s number one commercial industry.
Joanne Clendining, who has earned two Emmy® awards from the National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for her work on Maryland Farm & Harvest, serves as series host. She is joined by Al Spoler, host of “The Local Buy” segments, and by a variety of local chefs who serve as guest hosts of the series’ “Farm to Skillet” segments.
With introductions filmed at Church View Farm in Millersville (Anne Arundel County), the March 4 episode features the following stories:
- Maring Farm Soybean Harvest (Carroll County) – At Maring Farm in Woodbine, Donald Maring is adjusting his harvesting tactics to contend with increasingly volatile weather conditions. With periods of heavy rains and excessive heat during key reproductive crop cycles, yields have been down across the state. But farmers don’t dwell, they overcome, and Maring’s adoption of double-crop soybeans and implementation of cover crops to limit runoff and erosion serve as shining examples of farmers’ perseverance. Maring’s hard work and adaptability – as well as his exemplary land stewardship and community service – earned him the 2024 Mid-Atlantic Master Farmer of the Year award.
- Brandywine Cow Cuddles (Prince George’s County) – As a former executive of a vascular surgery center, Aiden Dart is very familiar with stress. Cow cuddling – or “bovine-assisted therapy” – involves interacting with cows for therapeutic benefit. After seeing the solace her daughter found being around cows in high school, Dart purchased three highland cows for her family’s six-acre property in Brandywine. Then, she started Brandywine Cow Cuddles to help others experience the same calming effect. Today, Dart operates Brandywine Cow Cuddles as a full-time job, introducing people to the scientifically proven benefits of interacting with cows.
- Farm to Skillet: Chef Matt Lego (Anne Arundel County) – Chef Matt Lego of Leo in Annapolis leads viewers through the Anne Arundel County Farmers’ Market, where he finds fresh ingredients including meats from P.A. Bowen Farmstead (Brandywine) and vegetables from Knopps Farm (Severn) and Shlagel Farms (Waldorf). Back at the restaurant, Lego uses the locally produced ingredients to cook up a continental chicken dish he’s honed since childhood. The recipe will be available to download at mpt.org/farm.
More than 19 million viewers have watched Maryland Farm & Harvest on the statewide public TV network since its debut in 2013. The series has traveled to more than 500 farms, fisheries, and other agriculture-related locations during its 11-plus season run, covering every Maryland county, as well as Baltimore City and Washington, D.C.
Encore broadcasts of Maryland Farm & Harvest air on MPT-HD on Thursdays at 11 p.m. and on Sundays at 6 a.m. Episodes also air on MPT2/Create® on Fridays at 7:30 p.m. Past episodes can be viewed on the free PBS app and MPT’s online video player, while episode segments are available on the series’ YouTube channel at youtube.com/c/MarylandFarmHarvest/featured.
Audiences are invited to engage with the series on social media @MarylandFarmHarvest on Facebook and @mdfarmtv on Instagram.
The Maryland Department of Agriculture is MPT's co-production partner for Maryland Farm & Harvest. Major funding is provided by the Maryland Grain Producers Utilization Board.
Additional funding is provided by Maryland's Best; MARBIDCO; a grant from the Maryland Department of Agriculture, Specialty Crop Block Program; Farm Credit; Maryland Soybean Board; Maryland Nursery, Landscape & Greenhouse Association; Maryland Association of Soil Conservation Districts; Maryland Farm Bureau; The Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment; Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation; and by the citizens of Baltimore County.
