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Kevin Kilhoffer, Journal Gazette/Times-Courier
A farmer harvests a field in Cumberland County last fall.
Farmer optimistic about coming year DAVE FOPAY JG-TC Staff Writer
MATTOON — One local farmer doesn’t share the somewhat pessimistic outlook some of his colleagues have about the upcoming growing season. John Doty was a Coles County delegate at the Illinois Farm Bureau annual meeting last month and said a survey of some delegates showed “a pretty good feel” of the farmers’ mood. Low prices because of last year’s record harvest led to the less-thanoptimistic outlook, but Doty said he thinks that will change. “It really created a phenomenal
demand with the dip in prices,” he said. About 500 delegates and other attendees at the annual meeting, which took place Dec. 6-9 in Chicago, responded to the survey, according to a news release from the Illinois Farm Bureau. It said the number of responses came to about 60 percent of the people who attended. The fall in commodity prices led the survey to show that “farmers are more uneasy going into the year,” state Farm Bureau President Richard Guebert Jr. said in the release. It said 70 percent of the farmers who responded to the survey
indicated they planned to reduce input or expenses this year. The most frequently mentioned method for that was delaying equipment purchases, followed by delaying or reducing chemical and fertilizer purchases, the release said. Doty, who’s been farming since 1972 and owns land on the Coles-Moultrie county line, said many farmers he knows already made needed equipment purchases before the New Year to take advantage of a federal tax incentive. “Basically, the only thing we can do in our operation is delay some equipment purchases,” he said.
He also said he hasn’t heard of any local farmers planning to cut purchases of farm chemicals. He said it’s good to rely on local agricultural service agencies for recommendations on how much to buy and where to use it. The survey at the annual meeting also asked participants if they thought drones or other unmanned vehicles would be useful in farming and if they planned to use them. The majority, about 70 percent, said they could be at least somewhat useful but 77 percent also said they don’t plan to use them, the news release said. Doty said he heard discussion about
unmanned vehicles at the meeting. Many think it’s “a technology looking for a use” but he thinks they could be a benefit, possibly with drainage and scouting crops. He also said there was “quite a bit of lively discussion” at the meeting about wind energy and how it might impact land use. The delegates got to met Gov. Bruce Rauner, then the governor-elect, and a state legislator from the Chicago area who serves as a liaison on agricultural issues for the state’s metropolitan areas. Contact Fopay at dfopay@jg-tc.com or 217-238-6858.
‘The more dedicated you are, the better things are for you’ Amish man talks about his farm; Horse Progress Days scheduled DAWN JAMES JG-TC Staff Writer
It’s all in a day’s work. For Eldin Schrock of rural Arthur, farming has been in his blood since he was born. He was raised on the farm that he currently runs. This hard-working young man left his family farm for nine years in his early married years, but returned to manage it 15 years ago. The job of operating his family farm is 24/7. “The more dedicated you are, the better things are for you,” said the lifetime Amish farmer.
He has 65 dairy cows and 25 horses. All of his equipment is horse-drawn, and he farms 80 acres of corn, 60 acres of hay, and 10-20 acres of beans annually. He said the beans are typically just a rotation item, and he sells them. All of his other crops are fed to the livestock and horses. For the past 15 years, he has been in charge of the daily operations at the farm located about a mile south of Arthur. His day starts at 4 a.m. and begins with milking the dairy cows. The livestock have always been his favorite part of his occupation. On a good day, he said he can have his duties done by 7 p.m., but most days he said it’s more like 10 or 11 at night, and just a few nights ago, it was midnight before he was able to call it a day’s work. He also enjoys being his own boss. Different seasons bring different
challenges all relating to the weather, he said. In the summer, the challenges are the hot and dry conditions. On the reverse side of that, wet weather can also be a battle. It can be tough getting the crops in the ground, he said. When making hay, the cloudy, wet weather can also pose problems. Eldin and his wife have seven children, and their oldest child is married.
Horse Progress Days
Hotfitting, a process that uses hot raw steel and allows for immediate reshaping, to shoe a horse is one of the newest topics at this year’s Horse Progress Days event planned for July 3-4 in Daviess County, Ind. According to one of the organizers of this year’s event, Dale Stultzfus, there have been classes shared in the past for shoeing a horse, but nothing like this one.
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The technique uses heated raw steel that can be reshaped as the shoe is being placed on the horse’s foot for the best fitting. After recently finishing the information guidebook, he said it’s not all-inclusive as there are always special or different topics that show up on the first day, adding a bit of a surprise element to the itinerary. Last year’s gathering in Holmes County, Ohio, attracted more than 32,000 attendees to the event that showcases the newest equipment in the 21st century for the horse farming industry. This is the founding principle of the event, said Stultzfus. The event continues to grow each year. The 22nd annual event is probably the biggest horse event in this country and possibly the world, he said. “It really is quite amazing,” he said. According to horseprogressdays. com, the mission statement is, “To encourage and promote the
combination of animal power and the latest equipment innovations in an effort to support sustainable small scale farming and land stewardship. To show draft animal power is possible, practical and profitable.” Educational seminars and clinics will be highlighted in the two-day happening. Schrock, who is one of six members on the board that oversees the program, said it’s not just for the Amish. More and more people are starting to become small farmers with often just an acre or two, he said. There are so many things going on that it’s hard for those attending to see everything in the two-day period. “You have a lot of different avenues you can go down,” he said. Some of the featured topics this year are as follows: AMISH/5