MPT series Maryland Farm & Harvest visits Cecil, Frederick, and Washington Counties During March 5 Season Finale

ANNAPOLIS, MD (March 1, 2024) – Maryland Public Television’s (MPT) original series Maryland Farm & Harvest  will feature farms and locations in Cecil, Frederick, and Washington counties during the series season 11 finale episode premiering on Tuesday, March 5. A preview of the episode will be available 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 on the free PBS App and MPT’s online video player following their broadcast premiere. Encore broadcasts 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.

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. 

The March 5 season finale episode features the following segments:

• Peace and Plenty Rural Historic District (Frederick County). Authorized by the Frederick County Council in April 2023, the Peace and Plenty Rural Historic District in New Market covers more than 1,000 acres of farmland and consists of 10 historic parcels and structures built between 1760 and 1940. The district’s structures and landscapes have been studied by certified historians and are considered excellent examples of the changing pattern of farm life and architectural preferences over the years. Viewers enjoy a bird’s eye view of the landscape that has stayed nearly the same for the past 200 years, meeting some of the farmers and property owners who are maintaining American history while keeping their farms working towards a bright future. 

• Long Green Farms, Leopold Conservation Award (Cecil County). Caleb Crothers is an eighth-generation farmer leading Long Green Farms, the Rising Sun-based dairy farm and winner of the 2022 Leopold Conservation Award. The farm boasts a herd of 300 Holstein and Jersey cows producing more than 10,000 pounds of milk each day, as well as 425-acre animal feed operation that grows corn, soybeans, triticale, rye, and grass hay. The farm uses no-till planting techniques and cover crops to prevent run-off and maintain soil quality. In 2020, Crothers planted 60,000 trees to create a buffer to protect the North East River, a Chesapeake Bay tributary. 

• The Local Buy: Pathfinder Farms (Washington County). Segment host Al Spoler visits Pathfinder Farm Distillery in Keedysville, where veterans Nate and Natalie Kraft are using heritage Bloody Butcher red corn and Appalachian Mountains spring water to distill whiskey and moonshine. The spirits and their ingredients are grown, harvested, mashed, distilled, and bottled on site in a small batch operation. During his visit, Al lends a hand in the distilling and mashing process before tasting a cocktail or two. More information about Pathfinder Farm Distillery will be available at mpt.org/farm.  

More than 16 million viewers have watched Maryland Farm & Harvest on MPT since its debut in 2013. The series has traveled to more than 450 farms, fisheries, and other agriculture-related locations during its first 10 seasons, covering every Maryland county, as well as Baltimore City and Washington, D.C. 

Past episodes can be viewed at video.mpt.tv/show/maryland-farm-harvest/, while episode segments are available on the series’ YouTube channel at youtube.com/c/MarylandFarmHarvest/featured. Engage with the show 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; a grant from the Rural Maryland Council Maryland Agricultural Education and Rural Development Assistance Fund; Maryland Agricultural Resource-Based Industry Development Corporation (MARBIDCO); a grant from the Maryland Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Program; Farm Credit; Maryland Soybean Board; Maryland Association of Soil Conservation Districts; Wegmans Food Markets; Maryland Nursery, Landscape & Greenhouse Association; Maryland Farm Bureau; The Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment; and a contribution made by the Citizens of Baltimore County. Other support comes from the Mar-Del Watermelon Association and Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation. 

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