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March 2015 May 2015 January 2017 12 March 2015

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Creed third place place winner winner and and greenhand greenhandsecond secondplace placewinner winnerMickayla MickaylaJohnson Johnsonaccepting acceptingan anaward awardatatthe the Creed third state convention in Billings. state convention in Billings. competing they went went to to various various workshops workshopspresented presentedby bypast paststate stateofďŹ cers ofďŹ cersand andeven evennational nationalofďŹ cers. ofďŹ cers. competing they Three of our younger members, Elise Strommen, Chaykota Christensen and Halle Beil Three of our younger members, Elise Strommen, Chaykota Christensen and Halle Beil served on the courtesy corp and helped out with contests whenever needed. Our five seserved on the courtesy corp and helped out with contests whenever needed. Our five seniors, Lukas Johnson, Brett Johnson, Dallas Capdeville, Kyle Albus and Wyatt Pattiniors, Lukas Johnson, Brett Johnson, Dallas Capdeville, Kyle Albus and Wyatt Pattison were awarded awarded their their State State Farmer Farmer Degrees Degrees at at the the State State Degree Degree dinner dinner on on Friday Fridaynight. night. son were There were over 500 members, advisors and their families attending that dinner. Mickayla Johnson There were over 500 members, advisors and their families attending that dinner. Mickayla Johnson competed for star star greenhand greenhand and and received receivedsecond secondplace. place.She Shealso alsocompeted competedwith withother othercreed creedspeakers speakers competed for from around the state and received third. from around the state and received third.

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Lih-An Yang, Merlin, Iris and Ellis Ellis McKean McKean work workon onclearing clearingout outaabeaver beaverdam damalong alongthe theLittle LittleBrazil BrazilCreek, Creek, southwest of Glasgow.

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Surviving Winter Weather: Tips from the NWS

GINEVRA KIRKLAND FOR FARM & RANCH Decemberâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s snow saw drifts measured in feet, not inches. There were also hundreds of miles of roads closed, and a coming forecast of a cold front sweeping through the area means that we all need to be weather-ready. Januaryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s outlook is for much colder than average temperatures, but with normal amounts of precipitation. Here are some winter safety tips from the National Weather Service: Tip 1: Know the difference between watches, warnings, and advisories. These products are issued for all kinds of winter weather hazards from snow and sleet to freezing rain, as well as bitter cold wind chills. A Winter Storm Watch means that severe winter conditions, such as heavy snow or ice, may affect your area, but where, when and how much is still uncertain. NWS issues a watch to provide 12 to 36 hours notice of possible severe winter weather. A watch is intended to provide enough lead time for you to prepare. A Winter Storm Warning is issued when NWS scientists forecast 4 or more inches of snow or sleet in the next 12 hours, 6 or more inches in 24 hours, or 1/4 inch or more of ice accretion. Winter Weather Advisories are intended to inform you that winter weather conditions

are expected to cause signiďŹ cant inconveniences that may be hazardous. If caution is exercised, advisory situations should not become life-threatening. Blizzard Warnings let you know that snow and strong winds will combine to produce a blinding snow (near zero visibility), deep drifts, and life-threatening wind chill. Tip 2: Have a winter survival kit handy and keep some safety tips in mind. Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s some ideas for what you could add to a winter survival kit. At home and work: Flashlight, extra batteries, NOAA weather radio, extra food, water, extra medicine, baby items, ďŹ rst-aid supplies, emergency heat source, heating fuel, ďŹ re extinguisher, smoke alarm, food, water, shelter for pets/ animals. In Your Car: Mobile phone/charger, blankets, ďŹ&#x201A;ashlight, extra batteries, ďŹ rst-aid kit, extra clothing, shovel, windshield scraper, brush, tool kit, tow rope, battery, boostercables, water container, compass, road maps, high-calorie non-perishable food, small can, waterproof matches to melt snow for drinking water, knife. For the latest info and tips, please check the NWS website at wrh.noaa.gov/ggw or call the NWS Glasgow ofďŹ ce 24/7 at 406228-2850.

Winter Grazing Seminar Set for Jan. 17-18 Glasgow Stockyards, Inc. Linda & Mark Nielsen, Owners Iva Murch, Manager 263-7529 Dean Barnes, Yard Manager 263-1175 Ed Hinton, Auctioneer 783-7285

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PENNY SHIPP FOR FARM & RANCH Montana ranchers interested in boosting cattle performance, hearing an overview of sage-grouse conservation efforts, or getting a long-term perspective on the cattle market will not want to miss the 2017 Winter Grazing Seminar, set for Jan. 17-18 at the Cottonwood Inn & Suites in Glasgow, Mont. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seminar will offer in-depth discussions of topics such as winter feeding and forage management, mineral supplements, and stock management before and after calving,â&#x20AC;? said Stacey Barta, Rangeland Resources Program Coordinator with the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation

(DNRC). â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a great opportunity to meet with other producers and hear from the specialists in a relaxed setting,â&#x20AC;? she added. The $40.00 registration fee includes lunch on both days, and a banquet on the evening of Jan. 17. The banquet will include a no-host social, and guest speaker Bruce Vincent, a nationally-recognized voice for agriculture, rural communities and conservation. This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Winter Grazing Seminar is hosted by the Valley County Conservation District. For more information, including an agenda and link to online registration, visit http://dnrc. mt.gov/divisions/cardd/conservation-districts/ rangeland-resource-program/winter-grazingseminar

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Glasgow's Loaded Toad coffee shop is a haven for locals in the know. Located on 2nd Ave. S, the cafe is considered by many to be the best year-round spot for lattes, cappuccinos, mochas, etc., in Northeast Montana.

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A participant in this year's Hinsdale Rodeo shows off for the hometown crowd at Milk River Days.

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USDA Streamlines Organic Cost Sharing A.J. ETHERINGTON FOR FARM & RANCH The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that starting March 20, 2017, organic producers and handlers will be able to apply for federal reimbursement to assist with the cost of receiving and maintaining organic or transitional certiďŹ cation by visiting a local Farm Services Agency (FSA) ofďŹ ce. â&#x20AC;&#x153;USDA reimburses organic producers up to 75 percent of the cost of organic certiďŹ cation, but only about half of the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s organic operations currently participate in the program,â&#x20AC;? said FSA Administrator Val Dolcini. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Starting March 20, USDA will provide a uniform, streamlined process for organic producers and handlers to apply for organic cost share assistance either by mail or in person at USDA ofďŹ ces located in almost every rural county in the country.â&#x20AC;? USDA is making changes to provide more opportunities for organic producers to access other USDA programs, such as disaster protection and loans for farms, facilities and marketing. Producers can also access information on nonfederal

Photographer Sean R. Heavey kicks back earlier this summer at The Pines Recreation Area along the Fort Peck Reservoir. Heavey shot this month's cover image; taken on Aug. 1 in Valley County.

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The Northeast Montana Veterans Memorial in Fort Peck was dedicated during 2016 4th of July festivities. This bronze statue was designed by Harvey Rattey and Pamela Harr.

agricultural resources, and get referrals to local experts, including organic agriculture, through USDAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Bridges to Opportunity service at the local FSA ofďŹ ce. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) and the National Organic Program look forward to this exciting opportunity to leverage the Farm Service Agencyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rural footprint to reach more organic producers and handlers,â&#x20AC;? said AMS Administrator Elanor Starmer. â&#x20AC;&#x153;At the same time it is important to recognize and continue the valuable partnerships with states that remain at the core of the program.â&#x20AC;? Once certiďŹ ed, producers and handlers are eligible to receive reimbursement for up to 75 percent of certiďŹ cation costs each year up to a maximum of $750 per certiďŹ cation scopeâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; crops, livestock, wild crops and handling. The announcement also adds transitional certiďŹ cation and state organic program fees as additional scopes. To learn more about organic certiďŹ cation cost share, please visit www.fsa.usda.gov/organic or contact a local FSA ofďŹ ce by visiting http:// ofďŹ ces.usda.gov.

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Cold weather brings early feeding Tim Leeds tleeds@havredailynews.com Some breaks have come in the cold weather recently, but cold and snow have had local ranchers feeding cattle early and forecasters expect that weather to remain for a while. Les Rispens, the Hill County executive director of USDA’s Farm Service Agency, said it looks like ranchers at least in this county should be able to see the cold through. “We had a pretty decent hay crop last summer,” Rispens said. But whether that will see cattle producers through depends on how the weather goes, he added. “It”s hard to tell where we’ll be in 60 days,” he said.

Lots of moisture and snaps of cold The year has been banner for moisture in this area — too much in some cases — with the Havre National Weather Service recording station at the Havre City-County Airport reporting more than 19 inches of precipitation by the last week of December. The normal total for the year is about 11.25 inches. While that helped with crops, including hay, it did cause problems with fall seeding for some and also with hay in some areas. Rispens said flooding hurt hay production in some parts of Blaine and Phillips counties, although he said most producers there don’t seem to be having serious problems with amounts of hay available. But the precipitation in the last month has been snow, which, coupled with cold snaps, has made many cattle producers start feeding and bedding their cattle down a month or more earlier than usual. “The snow cover forces the feeding issue,” Rispens said, adding that people not only started earlier, but many have had to feed substantially more to combat the bitter cold. Warmer-than-usual weather in late

Havre Daily News/Colin Thompson A yearling licks its nose Dec. 18 while standing in the snow in Hill County. Early December cold and snow has forced cattle producers in north-central Montana to start feeding early this year, although a good year for putting up hay may see them through the winter. November was followed by a cold snap in early to mid-December that put highs in the single digits and lows below zero and snow on the ground. That was again followed by a warm spell broken only by a cold snap centered on Christmas. But the forecast, as of this publication going to the press, called for more cold weather in January with below-zero lows expected to start New Year’s night and sin-

■ See Winter Page 6

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Hay bales in West Texas make festive holiday artwork canvas   RONALD W. ERDRICH Abilene Reporter-News ANSON, Texas (AP) — Yellow bales, yellow bales; it’s Christmastime in Jones County. Kaci Murphy said she and her husband Justin found themselves with a surplus of hay this year. “We have a coastal field outside of town and we bale a lot of hay,” she said. “With all the rain this year, usually we sell it. But so many people have their own hay this year that we had a lot left over.” Murphy is also a counselor at Anson Middle School. It wasn’t that long ago that hay was more scarce in these parts than the rain which makes it grow. Drought conditions in 2011 decimated hay production statewide, and bales were being trucked in from northern states. But that was then, and this is now. If the cows don’t need them, put ’em to use somewhere else. In this case, they were turned into seasonal décor. “It all started with our Chamber of Commerce, where Justin Murphy and Larry Lytle wanted to do something a little more festive for the town,” said Erica Jones. This is Jones’ first year as the art teacher at the middle school, her classes took on the donated bales as a fall project. “It started off that it was going to be 10 hay bales and we were going to decorate them for Halloween,” Jones said. “We were just going to do 10, but then people were calling and calling, so we put out more,” Murphy added. They ended up quadrupling their original number, setting out 41 bales that were sprinkled mostly along U.S. 277 both north and south of the Jones County Courthouse. “There were some local businesses that decorated some on their own and organizations like the FFA and the National Honor Society,” Jones said. “The middle school is decorating them for Christmas.” Each bale got its own design. As the holidays progressed from Halloween, to Thanksgiving and now Christmas, the illustrations changed, too.

“The kids come up with the ideas that they want to put on the bales,” Jones said. “We research images, come up with color schemes to where we don’t repeat the same color over and over again, and we go from there.” The students who have more artistic talent than their classmates sometimes assist Jones in outlining the shape. After that, everyone participates in coloring the illustration using spray paint. Rolled hay isn’t the easiest medium to use, but the fact that it’s a large surface helps. Theoretically, mistakes could be removed with a set of pruning shears if it came down to it. But Jones seemed more inclined to just paint over any errors. After the holidays the Murphys will take back the bales. Despite the paint on the outside they’re still good for feeding cows. “We just tear off the front,” Murphy said. “The straw just falls right off. There’s wrapping around (the bale), so when you feed the cows you cut that off anyway. We’ll just use it for our personal cows.” Jones’ classes started converting the Thanksgiving bales into Christmas-themed ones Nov. 29. Fortunately the weather that week proved helpful for getting the lion’s share of the work finished. Jones kept her kids to a tight schedule that day. Driving the kids to the north side of town, she assigned the boys to a double-stacked bale in front of the former Peacock’s Mesquite Grill restaurant that at the moment featured Charlie Brown as a pilgrim. Jones outlined the new image, Snoopy laying on his doghouse, and then took the girls across the street to paint mistletoe on another bale. “There are times when the kids would come up with stuff that I would never think about,” Jones said. “Like the Charlie Brown and Snoopy; the kids really wanted to do that.” Two bales per class was the pace she set for the most part that Tuesday. But middle schoolers being who they are, those boys working on Snoopy seemed to hit a wall after a while. Jones returned to provide a little motivation and helped polish it off.

Ronald W. Erdrich/The Abilene Reporter-News via AP A complete hay bales sits Nov. 29 on the courthouse square in Anson, Texas. Anson Middle School art students painted 41 bales around town for the Christmas season.

Water: Some ag interests looking at challenging Endangered Species Act Central Valley during the presidential campaign, he cited complaints from water districts and farmers that easing pumping after

heavy rains wastes storm water that could be captured for the heavily agricultural region.

Environmental groups say allowing winter rains to flow to the Pacific Ocean is essential to the health of the West Coast’s largest estuary, the San Francisco Bay. Among other changes, the new law is expected to require biologists to show more hard data on endangered fish in real time when they ask for a reduction in pumping. Moyle, the Delta smelt expert, believes that’s possible because of “smelt cams” and other monitoring systems already in place. Jay Lund, longtime water policy expert at the University of California, Davis, expects the law to provide up to an additional halfmillion acre-feet of water for human users. That’s roughly equal to enough water to supply a half-million homes for a year and would be worth several hundreds of millions

AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File Julian LePelch paddles his kayak past a flooded field Dec. 15 at Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley, Calif. California's first winter storm of 2017 will shed welcome rain over the rivers, pumps and pipes that move California's water from north to south, and it may open a new era of tensions over where that water goes under a new federal law dictating that the state's farmers get the biggest possible share.

of dollars to agricultural interests in drought years. Both fish and farms received less water during the worst of California’s drought. Fish advocates were expected to go to court if the law takes away water from native species under the state and federal Endangered Species Acts and related court orders, said Doug Obegi with the Natural Resources Defense Council. Some agricultural interests hope to challenge the U.S. Endangered Species Act itself, loosening or doing away with its restrictions on pumping in California. More pumping for farms and less water in the two rivers would be bad news not just for smelt but for other California fish listed as endangered, from salmon to sturgeon to steelhead, Moyle said. All of that could bring the Trump administration and its supporters in Congress into conflict with California over the state’s protections for threatened wildlife. “Dueling legislation between Congress and the state Legislature, and parallel legal battles in state and federal courts, and everyone’s paying attention to that instead of paying attention to making the system run better — that’s my worry,” Lund said.

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Stormier times for California’s water expected under new law  FL agriculture industry can’t shake citrus fall, land loss  ELLEN KNICKMEYER Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO — The first winter storm of 2017 to drop welcome rain over the rivers, pumps, pipes and canals that move California’s water north to south likely will open a new era of tension over how much water goes to fish or farms under a new U.S law. Legislation signed Dec. 16 by President Barack Obama dictates that the federal portion of California’s heavily engineered water systems gives agricultural districts and other human users the biggest possible share of the most fought-over resource in a state with a six-year drought. Water experts and conservationists

expect that new mandate to conflict with state and federal laws and court orders meant to ensure enough water stays in Northern California’s Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers and delta for endangered native fish. Dueling interpretations over what the new law means for water deliveries could foster tensions between the state and the incoming Trump administration and worsen the water wars among farmers, fishing industries and conservation interests. “There’s going to be fighting, and it is going to commence almost immediately,” said Peter Moyle, a professor emeritus of biology at the University of California, Davis.

Moyle has spent much of his career tracing the decline of the minute fish called the Delta smelt and dozens of other native species since operations at California’s giant state and federal water projects started more than a half-century ago. Paul Wenger, president of the California Farm Bureau Federation, is one of many, including farming groups and agricultural water districts with considerable political strength, that welcome the water bill. As heavy winter rains ease the drought, “this bill is going to help us catch some of this water and move it down south,” Wenger said. And if the state’s fishing groups and conservationists try to stop that, “shame on the

environmentalists,” he said. “Lawsuits haven’t helped the fish.” The law includes new directions on how hard to run giant water pumps during the winter storms that bring much of California’s rain for the year. Typically, the storms trigger recommendations from wildlife officials to ease up on pumping. That is meant to help keep the nearly extinct Delta smelt and waning native salmon on course as the fish take advantage of the storms to move up or downstream. When Donald Trump visited California’s

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Florida: As Sunshine State declined, Georgia flourished freezes and competition with Brazil in the 1980s, then a waning demand for orange juice, which has dropped year after year since the late 1990s. Nothing prepared them, however, for a bacterial infection called citrus greening that began to seep into Florida’s orange groves in 2005 and eventually caused the loss of nearly 40 percent of citrus acreage throughout the state. And the crisis isn’t over. “There’s no good news at all in the citrus industry,” said Hodges of the University of Florida. “The industry could shrink to less than half of what it is now even in the next 10 to 15 years unless there’s substantial reinvestment.” If his prediction were to come true, Florida’s new king of agriculture would be indoor house plants, sold at national retailers like Home Depot and Lowes. They’re the state’s second-most valuable commodity, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In fact, the Florida horticulture industry, which includes products like sod, succulents and outdoor plants, is gaining on citrus. It produced more than $1 billion in 2015 sales, approaching the $1.3 billion generated from oranges and grapefruit. Rick Brown, owner of the Riverview Flower Farm in south Hillsborough County, which sells plants to Home Depot, said it doesn’t feel like he is producing the hottest commodity around. “It feels pretty steady,” he said. “If the weather’s good, we sell plants. If the weather’s not good, we don’t sell plants.” As the Sunshine State scrambles to fill the gaping void left by citrus’ decline, its northern neighbor has flourished. In the early 2000s, Georgia tobacco farmers, using government subsides intended to move them into new crops, invested in blueberries. The fruit was becoming popular after a study found it improved brain function in aging rats, and fetching high prices on grocery store shelves. “They gambled and it paid off,” said Frankie Hall, director of the agricultural policy division for the Florida Farm Bureau. Georgia farmers now make more money from blueberries than they do from the state’s signature crop — peaches. Florida hasn’t been so lucky. The state’s

blueberry industry, while lucrative, has a relatively short season. Florida growers make their money during the few weeks between the end of Latin America’s season and when Georgia’s massive crop hits the market. A variety of peach developed for Florida’s climate has yet to take off. Similar attempts to grow olives have sputtered. As insurance for rough times, many crop farmers also manage herds of cattle, raising calves that are then sold to slaughterhouses up north. This year, cattle prices are down sharply, adding to the financial frustration. On the front lines of the agriculture battle, farmers are grappling with two major issues that were both central to this year’s presidential campaign: international competition and immigration. Diehl, the tomato farmer, said cheap foreign imports drove prices so low last year that he purposefully cut back production this season. “We’re hoping (Donald) Trump can put a flat surcharge on everything coming in from Mexico,” he said of the president-elect. “Otherwise we won’t survive.” Struggling to find domestic labor, Florida’s farmers have turned to the pricey H2A visa program, which brings in temporary agriculture workers from Latin America. Diehl recently completed construction on about a dozen new trailers that will be used to house H2A workers, who will help to pick his fields. He estimates that he spends more than $1,000 in transportation and government visa fees for each laborer, not counting the cost of housing or the workers’ hourly pay, which by law has to meet or exceed that of American laborers’. “I don’t know any other way of doing it,” Diehl said. A shortage of immigrant workers has turned severe in some cases. “The flow of new arrivals (to work on farms) has stopped,” said Gary Wishnatzki, owner of Plant City strawberry grower and berry packinghouse Wish Farms. “It’s the people newly in this country who will do the work people here don’t want to do.” Low wages aren’t the issue, he said. Wishnatzki pays strawberry pickers a commission of $2.50 a box. “A good picker can do 10 or 12 boxes per hour,” he said, earning

more than $200 a day, though the average is about half that. “It’s skilled work,” he said. The immigrant labor situation is already so dire, Wishnatzki said, that upcoming changes to U.S. immigration policies won’t make much of a difference. He pointed to Mexico’s falling fertility rate, which dropped from 7.2 children per family in the early 1960s to about 2.5 in 2000, according to data from the United Nations. “We’ve got to find something other than humans to do this work,” he said, pivoting to a school of thought that robots may be the best option. Amid such challenges to keep operating, Florida’s farmers are under constant pursuit from developers eyeing their land, and it’s getting harder to say no. “We’ve done our share (adding) to the urban sprawl,” said Diehl’s wife, Ora. About a decade ago the couple sold 932 acres off Big Bend Road and U.S. 301 in Riverview. It is now occupied by dozens of homes, with parcels owned by St. Joseph’s Hospital. Hundreds of new Floridians are finding their homes in coastal metro areas like Tampa Bay. And as the population swells in those regions, rising land value puts pressure on farmers to sell and relocate to less expensive tracts in the center of the state. “I could see us moving to the interior of the state,” said J.D. Porter, a Pasco County rancher and developer whose family ranch included what’s now the Shops at Wiregrass, Florida Hospital at Wesley Chapel and other prominent properties. The family still raises hundreds of cattle on its remaining acreage. Some Florida farmers who sold to developers have relocated their operations to other states like Alabama, where land is less expensive, said Hall, from the farm bureau. A recent UF analysis on behalf of the nonprofit 1000 Friends of Florida predicted that development is on pace to cover more than a third of the state by 2050. Once farms and fields disappear to make way for houses, shopping centers and schools, “it’s gone forever,” said UF’s Hodges. “You can’t ever reverse that.” From the research labs at UF to the agriculture commissioner’s office in

Tallahassee, there’s optimism of an agriculture comeback hinged on the marketing of new crops like blueberries and hopes for a new variety of orange resistant to citrus greening. But near-term, the challenges they face are only compounding: • The latest citrus crop projections are discouraging. Kissimmee-based citrus consultant Elizabeth Steger has predicted growers will produce just 60.5 million boxes of oranges in the 2016-17 season that began in October, which would be a stunning 26 percent drop in one year. • Some state environmental experts and economists think a burgeoning water shortage could lead to more stringent water restrictions, or fees, within 10 years. • There are three times as many Florida farmers over the age of 75 than there are millennials — ages 34 or younger — according to the 2012 Census of Agriculture. Farmers say that the federal inheritance tax, combined with increasingly attractive offers from real estate developers, are drawing younger generations out of the business. Dewey Mitchell said he sees the transformation occurring from multiple perspectives. He’s a real estate magnate for Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Group and former chairman of the Pasco County Economic Development Council. He’s also scion to a ranching family that still owns more than 1,000 acres in northern Pasco. Mitchell said that when his father, Jim, had been approached to sell his land in years past, he would “just smile and say. ‘Thanks but no thanks.’ To him it was more valuable as a ranching operation than any other use.” After Jim Mitchell died in 2010, his children struggled to keep the family’s ranch afloat. But it was too expensive to hire someone to fill his void. “It got to the point where we just couldn’t make it happen,” Dewey Mitchell said. The family sold its cows and has begun to shed land parcels as well. About 300 acres are under contract for a mixed-use development. The remaining 700 acres are being leased out to another cattle operation — for now. “It’s a great way of life,” he said. “It’s a shame to see it going away.”

ALLI KNOTHE JEFF HARRINGTON Tampa Bay Times DADE CITY, Fla. (AP) — Painted scenes of lush, rolling hills with cattle, orange groves and hay fields cover the walls of the Black Eyed Pea restaurant along Pasco County’s U.S. 301. Matt McKendree, 29, orders a burger, as does everyone else at the table after a morning of penning and deworming cows. “In 20 years, I don’t think there will be any real cattle operations around here,” says the seventh-generation cattle rancher and father of two young boys. “There won’t be enough land.” It has been a long time since farmers and ranchers could turn their spreads of land into big moneymakers. Many of them, like McKendree, have little faith that their children will be able to scrape together a living if they stick with the family business. Florida has a long and rich agricultural history, a bond so ingrained in the state’s identity that the venerated orange emblazons the state’s license plate. But decades of an accelerated decline have taken a toll, and agriculture has now shriveled to the point that it’s no longer a major part of the state’s economy. The citrus greening disease has obliterated roughly 75 percent of the state’s orange and grapefruit crop. Farmers specializing in tomatoes, berries and cattle have lost ground to other states and countries. Big Sugar production has been stagnant in Florida amid continued global competition and the emergence of Louisiana as a player. And as family farms look to pass on to the next generation, the high cost of business has convinced more farmers and ranchers to simply give up and sell to developers, who have gobbled up 1 million acres of farmland in the last 10 years alone. How far has agriculture fallen from its lofty perch? Here are a few benchmarks: • Out of the 20 industries in Florida tracked by the federal government, the only one smaller than agriculture today is mining. • If the plunge of citrus continues as expected, indoor house plants could become the state’s biggest agricultural product over the next several years. • Farms, livestock, timber and fish combined have an average monthly employment of about 77,000 — or less than 1 percent of the state’s workforce of 8 million. • As Florida mushroomed into the third most populous state in the country, its agriculture sales figures have lagged. It has been overtaken by Georgia, Washington, Ohio and South Dakota in agricultural sales since 2008. Alan Hodges, an extension scientist with the University of Florida, saod he doesn’t see the situation reversing, as more agricultural land is lost to development every year and crops and livestock become an even smaller slice of the economy. “For us who have been here a long time, it’s part of our identity,” he said, “and it’s going to change.” Agriculture, tourism and construction used to be the three legs that held up

Florida’s economy. Agriculture, however, has been the most politically influential. Farming families have been represented in all levels of government, from mayors to county commissioners, senators and governors. Perhaps most telling is the prominence of the state’s agriculture commissioner, who serves alongside the attorney general and chief financial officer in the triumvirate that makes up the Florida Cabinet. The current agriculture commissioner, Adam Putnam, and promoters like the Florida Farm Bureau still trumpet agriculture as the state’s second-largest industry, one pumping more than $120 billion a year into the economy. But some say that’s perpetuating a rural myth. Hodges, the University of Florida researcher who came up with that economic impact figure, said he’s concerned it’s being “abused” and misrepresented by Putnam and others. His estimate includes everything that remotely touches on agriculture, from food product manufacturing to the forest service to activities like golfing, recreational fishing and hunting guides. The reality: Crops and livestock — the essence of the agricultural industry — now account for less than 1 percent of the state’s economy, about $6 billion a year according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, and their relative contribution has been dropping fast. Just since the early 2000s, the value of agriculture as a share of the state economy has been nearly cut in half. “It’s not much of a factor at all,” said

Hector Sandoval who heads economic analysis for the University of Florida’s Bureau of Economic and Business Research. Farmers are seeing the industry’s decline as their peers vanish. “There used to be 55 major (independent) tomato growers in Florida,” said Frank Diehl, owner of a 1,600-acre tomato farm in Wimauma. “Now there’s two or three.” Putnam, who has overseen Florida’s Department of Agriculture since 2011, said he’s aware of the “strong headwinds” threatening statewide: pests and disease that have decimated citrus; a drop in dairy and cattle prices; a looming water shortage; a tomato industry “under constant assault” since the passage of NAFTA; and widespread labor shortages for one of the lowest-paying industries in Florida. While he acknowledges citrus is in dire straits, Putnam says it would be “hyperbole” to suggest agriculture is in crisis. He points, for example, to investors from California, Argentina, China and other regions who have bought ranchland and farmland in places like Kissimmee and North Florida. New strains of peaches and blueberries have been developed for Florida that will help make up for the decline of citrus, he said. And the popular farm-to-table movement is spurring demand for fresh fruits and vegetables. “Agriculture is changing as it has always changed,” Putnam said. “But we will have 10 billion mouths on Earth to feed by 2050 and there are very few places on Earth that have the natural soils, climate and technology to

(be) an abundant supplier of food on the scale that Florida can.” A Bartow native whose family business runs large citrus and cattle operations, Putnam said he is confident that farmers and ranchers will adapt and fend off all challenges. “Farmers are accustomed to fighting multiple fronts at once,” he said. That optimistic outlook doesn’t mask the fact that Florida’s agricultural standing has been losing ground, even within the U.S. borders. Among the 20 biggest agriculture states, Florida performed the worst based on sales growth between 2008 and 2015, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. While Georgia added $1.8 billion in agriculture sales, expanding from the 17th biggest agricultural state to the 15th, the Sunshine State added only about $500 million, dropping from the 13th largest producer to the 17th. Much of the state’s agriculture woes can be blamed on its signature crop: oranges. It’s Florida’s largest and most valuable commodity. Oranges have inspired the state song, state beverage — orange juice — and state flower — the orange blossom. A map of Florida includes the counties of Orange and Citrus. Growing oranges has never been an easy job. Farmers battled through hurricanes,

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www.havredailynews.com FARM & RANCH Winter: Rispens: Quality not the best, but producers put up a bunch of hay

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gle-digit highs predicted through Friday and beyond, with a slight chance of preciptiation. National Weather Service’s long-range forecast called for below-average temperatures through February and above-average precipitation through March. The forecast predicted temperatures returning to average by March with warmer-than-average temperatures starting to hit Montana by May and June and remaining through the start of 2018. Precipitation is expected to be near-average for Montana from April through the start of 2018.

KATRINA J.E. MILTON The (DeKalb) Daily Chronicle GENOA, Ill. (AP) — One hundred years ago, World War I was raging in Europe, Weeghman Park, now known as Wrigley Field, opened in Chicago and the dwarf planet Pluto was photographed for the first time. A little more than 100 years ago, in 1913, Otto Peterson of Sweden settled in Genoa. Soon after becoming a landowner, Peterson started hauling lumber from the Kishwaukee River to build a barn. The barn was built in 1914, and the Petersons’ farmhouse was completed in 1915. The 160-acre Peterson farm, 33210 N. State Road in Genoa, now is owned and operated by Otto Peterson’s grandson, Donald, 77, and Donald’s wife, Nayna, 71. Donald Peterson started working on the farm when he was in high school, and he said he plans to continue running the farm — and fixing antique tractors during the winter months — for as long as he can. To honor the family’s 100 years of farming, the Illinois Department of Agriculture gave the

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January 2017

More hay but not great quality Rispens said that, although more hay has gone up in this region in the last two years, this year’s crop was not the best, in general. “The quality wasn’t the highest because

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January 2017

FARM & RANCH

Peterson family farm in Genoa reaches Centennial Farm status   farm Centennial Farm status. In August, the Peterson family was invited to attend the Illinois State Fair to be recognized and to receive a sign commemorating their farm. To qualify for Centennial Farm status, an agricultural property must have been owned by the same family for at least 100 years. More than 9,500 Illinois farms have been named Centennial Farms since the program was created in 1972. The Peterson family has been farming on its property through two world wars, the Great Depression and various floods and droughts. “We have been farming the land through feast and famine,” Donald Peterson said. “For three generations, we have always farmed. For us, it’s our legacy — our family’s history.” Although the land and family have remained the same, the Peterson farm has changed through the years. Until 1972, the farm raised livestock, including chicken, pigs and cattle. Other changes include the building of additional barns and the addition of three retention ponds that act as a conservation wet-

of the rain on the hay, but we did put up a bunch,” he said. Rispens added that some people put up enough that they were exporting hay out of the area — they weren’t too worried about the supply at that point, he said. Right now, he said, he isn’t hearing about Hill County producers being at a critical point for hay on hand. If the weather doesn’t turn cold and snowy for a long period, and is more like the middle of winter has been the last few years, most prob-

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ably won’t have serious problems, he said. But that could change if the weather turns cold. “If it stays like this for 60 days, there could be a problem, Rispens said. The price of hay at the moment also is not a major problem, he said, although that also relates to quality. Hay prices were listed in Montana the last week of December from $90-$100 a ton for fair-quality grass hay to $105 to $150 for grass-alfalfa hay, depending on the quality

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land and an attraction for deer and pheasants. To celebrate the farm’s centennial, the Petersons built a windmill. “There have been monumental changes since my grandfather bought the farm a little more than 100 years ago,” Donald Peterson said. “Science has advanced, there are new varieties of corn and soybeans, and farmers trade around the world. “We used to have cow pastures, horses and plows and a threshing ring, and now we have combines and tractors that are automatic and use GPS,” he added. “It makes me wonder, ‘What will farming be like in 100 years from now?’” Reading through his grandfather’s farm ledger, he remembers seeing a bag of seed cost between $15 and $25. “Now, a bag of seed costs between $300 and $400,” he said. “Our seeds now are very different. We have double or triple their yields and use less chemicals.” Donald Peterson said that one of the largest changes to the farm involves people, not land. “Before, neighbors used to work together to

plant and harvest,” he said. “Now, we still help each other, but it’s not like before. Farmers are now more independent.” Through the years, the farm has been a meeting place for the family. During the summer, the family often camps on the farm. Every year, the Petersons host a family picnic for Labor Day. When Donald and Nayna Peterson celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, they hosted a party on the farm underneath a large tent. For the Petersons, keeping their family’s farming legacy alive is important. Their two children, Bill Peterson and Deanna (Peterson) Bazon, and four grandchildren often visit and help out on the farm. Donald and Nanya Peterson’s 13-year-old grandson, Cody, has his own tractor and helps with the harvest. “Too often you see farms being divided and sold because the kids don’t want to farm,” Nayna Peterson said. “It’s important that our family still cares, that they’re interested in and involved with the farm. We’ll be here until we die, and then we’re going to pass it on and keep it in the family for at least another 100 years.”

Winter: If the weather stays cold, could cause hay shortages

Havre Daily News/Colin Thompson Cattle standing in the snow near some sheltering brush in Hill County Dec. 18 look at the camera as their photograph is taken. Whether ranchers have enough hay to get through the winter will depend on weather conditions. Forecasters are predicting colder-than-usual temperatures through February and above-normal precipitation through March.

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Havre Daliy News/Colin Thompson The early cold weather has not only forced cattle producers to start feeding as much as a month earlier than usual, it also has upped how much they normally feed, FSA Hill County Executive Director Les Rispens said.

and size of bales. Alfalfa ran from $90 to $200 for fair to supreme quality, depending on the size. Timothy ran from $110 to $240 a ton. Utility hay ran from $65 to $80 a ton, while barley straw was selling for $35 to $65 a ton.

That is lower than a few years ago, Rispens said, adding that many ranchers learned a lesson then which is why many are in better shape this year. “I think guys are, after those big prices we had a couple of years ago, making sure they have enough on hand,” he said.