Orange Country Fair 2010

Did You Know? - A centennial farm is a farm or ranch in the United States that has been owned and operated by the same family for 100 years or more. A number of states have established Centennial Farm programs honoring the significant role that these families have had in settling and shaping their state.

The essential requirement is that the property must have remained in the same family continuously for 100 years or more and currently be a working farm or ranch. Some states stipulate a minimum numer of acres or annual agricultural sales.

Did You Know? - The Centennial Farm is a working farm for educating youth about agriculture located in the southwest of the property. The Farm has fruit and vegetable gardens as well as livestock barns.

Did You Know? - What is usually called the flower is actually a head (formally composite flower) of numerous florets (small flowers) crowded together. The outer florets are the sterile ray florets and can be yellow, maroon, orange, or other colors. The florets inside the circular head are called disc florets, which mature into seeds. ~Wikipedia

The sunflower is native to the Central Americas. The evidence thus far is that it was first domesticated in Mexico, by at least 2600 BC. It may have been domesticated a second time in the middle Mississippi Valley, or been introduced there from Mexico at an early date, as maize was. The earliest known examples of a fully domesticated sunflower north of Mexico have been found in Tennessee and date to around 2300 BC.

Did You Know? - To grow well, sunflowers need full sun. They grow best in fertile, moist, well-drained soil with a lot of mulch. In commercial planting, seeds are planted 45 cm (1.5 ft) apart and 2.5 cm (1 in) deep. Sunflower "whole seed" (fruit) are sold as a snack food, after roasting in ovens, with or without salt added. Sunflowers can be processed into a peanut butter alternative, sunbutter. In Germany, it is mixed together with rye flour to make Sonnenblumenkernbrot (literally: sunflower whole seed bread), which is quite popular in German-speaking Europe.

Did You Know? - It is thought that bulbs from the onion family have been used as a food source for millennia. In Bronze Age settlements, traces of onion remains were found alongside fig and date stones dating back to 5000 BC.

Did You Know? - Greywater gets its name from its cloudy appearance and from its status as being neither fresh (white water from groundwater or potable water), nor polluted (sewage). Wastewater containing significant food residues or high concentrations of toxic chemicals from household cleaners, etc., may be considered "dark grey".

Did You Know? - Sushi (寿司, 鮨, or 鮓 ^? ) is a Japanese dish consisting of cooked vinegared rice which is commonly topped with other ingredients, such as fish or other seafood,or put into rolls. Sliced raw fish by itself is called sashimi, as distinct from sushi.