Elise Lankford

    This summer has helped me connect a lot of environmental concepts to the work happening in agriculture every day. While I’ve been learning hands-on skills like mixing and spraying pesticides and identifying common weeds, what’s stuck with me most are the environmental challenges farmers face. We watched videos about topsoil erosion, and that’s when I learned more about how powerful vegetation like cover crops can be. Cover crops don’t just help suppress weeds; they also prevent erosion, absorb surface water, and return nutrients to the soil. That’s important when storms are getting worse and more frequent. I’ve also learned how excess phosphorus runoff affects the Chesapeake Bay. Even if I don’t end up spraying pesticides in my future career, I know that the future of agriculture depends on how well we protect the environment now. These lessons are going to stick with me. 

    This week I wrapped up cleaning the Talbot County Corn Club data and started exploring visualizations and started asking questions about why certain results turned out the way they did. I also helped measure vine lengths in the field, where I caught a photo of a bee pollinating a watermelon plant. The rest of the week was a mix of data entry and working on computer tasks, both in the office and from home. 

A bee pollinating a watermelon flower

    On Thursday, I visited the Kent County Fair, which was a nice change of pace. I walked around the fairgrounds and saw all kinds of livestock, pigs, goats, cows, horses, rabbits, chickens, and ducks. Kent County has beautiful fairgrounds, and it was fun seeing the ag community come together in that space.

Adorable kids from the Kent County fair

    As I look ahead, I’m excited to take what I’ve learned this summer and keep building on it. Both in school and outside of the academic world. This internship has made me more aware of how everything in agriculture is connected, from the soil all the way to the environment around it. I’m leaving this experience with a stronger sense of curiosity, and a deeper motivation to be part of the solutions agriculture will need for the future.