Last week the country celebrated the 51st annual Earth Day, a time to reflect on our impact on the environment. What started as an event to highlight our need to clean the air and the water has evolved some, and we heard plenty about the climate too. But what do farmers think?

We turned to the Farm Progress PANEL to get their thoughts on the idea of "Earth Day" and the attention it brings to the environment. Of course in farm country planters are rolling and there's plenty of 'earth contact' going on but we got a solid response on the question we posed.

We asked: With Earth Day, how do you see all this attention to the environment one day a year?

About 14% noted that celebrating environmental focus is a great idea. That's not a big number, but read on to see why that may be true.

Just under one-quarter noted that this annual event brings uninformed attention to agriculture. In a business, where farmers know the average consumer hasn't been near a farm in their lifetimes, this is a rising concern. Attention to agriculture isn't always bad, but uninformed attention can challenge a business. It can also, however, be an opportunity to inform that public and many farmers did that through social media channels.

And perhaps that's because nearly two-thirds of those responding to this latest PANEL noted "I've been doing 'Earth Day' all my life." Farmers are conservationists, working to preserve land and with many farmer-readers at Farm Progress on their land for several generations Earth Day isn't just a one-day event.

Interesting responses to this environmental question. Thanks to everyone who responded to this PANEL.

Be a part of the PANEL

The Farm Progress PANEL is your chance to share your thoughts on key issues. To take part, start by signing up for our daily mobile text service Farm Progress NOW. Just text FARM to 20505, then respond to the text you get back. Later in one of our daily texts we'll provide information about how to sign up for the PANEL. And thanks to the respondents for helping us out.