Farming in the Winter

Farming in the Winter

EVER WONDER WHAT FARMERS DO DURING THESE COLD, SNOWY MONTHS? YOU MIGHT BE SURPRISED.

By Darcy Maulsby

Winter has been called the quiet season, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to do on Iowa’s farms.

“It’s easy to look at farming as an April-throughOctober job, but that’s not accurate,” says Aaron Putze, chief officer of brand management and engagement for the Iowa Soybean Association.

Let’s take a tour across the state to see what farmers are working on this time of year.

Aaron Henderson, Southern Iowa Cattle Producer

Since some Iowa winters are mild while others are rough, cattle producers like Aaron Henderson must be ready for anything.

“We got 16 to 18 inches of snow in late January/early February last year,” says Henderson, whose family has a cow-calf operation with 500 cows in southeast Iowa near Albia. They also raise cattle to market weight. “We had to plow out spots in our pastures to feed the cattle.”

Once forage crops go dormant in the winter, supplementation is essential to provide the animals with proper nutrition. Henderson chops cereal rye for feed in the spring. The rye is seeded in the fall after corn harvest. “In the winter, we use a system called swath grazing, where the cattle are allowed to graze small portions of the field at a time,” Henderson says. The Hendersons also set out large plastic tubs filled with vitamins and minerals that the cattle can access anytime.

Providing adequate water supplies in the winter can be challenging. The Henderson family uses automatic cattle waterers that operate like a geothermal home heating system. “A tube is installed 6 to 8 feet in the ground,” Henderson explains. “The plumbing equipment is underground and connects to the cattle’s water container, which sits on top of the ground.”

Designed by farmers, the waterers are supplied by a company in Lorimor. “These waterers don’t require electricity and are virtually maintenancefree,” Henderson says. “We’ve installed a lot of these geothermal units in the last five years.”

Henderson explains that all this care helps cattle maintain their body condition scores (which measure the animals’ fat reserves and energy balance) so they can raise the next crop of calves successfully. “If your animals are in good condition and have adequate food, water and shelter, they’ll be fine through the winter,” says Henderson.

Brad Moline, Iowa Turkey Federation President

Ensuring a clean, dry and warm environment with proper ventilation is key for livestock like turkeys that live inside barns during the winter.

“We make sure that each barn’s side curtains, circulating fans and exhaust fans are in good shape,” says Brad Moline, who raises turkeys northwest of Manson with his father, John, and brother, Grant.

The Molines have five brooder barns where baby turkeys, or poults, live during the first few weeks of their lives. “We get 35,000 new birds every nine weeks,” Moline says. “We get them the day they are hatched when they are just a bit bigger than a golf ball.”

The birds gain 3.5 to 4 pounds in five weeks. Ensuring the proper temperature in the barns is essential as the birds grow. “We keep the barns around 92 to 93 degrees when we get the babies, but we lower the temperature as the birds grow,” says Moline, a fourth-generation farmer. “My target is to keep the barns in the low 70s during those five weeks.”

The Molines also have 10 finishing barns for larger turkeys. “Commercial turkeys are most comfortable at 58 to 61 degrees,” Moline notes.

Feeding those growing birds requires extra planning when inclement winter weather approaches. “We coordinate with the feed mill in Newell to make sure our bins are full,” says Moline, whose family makes sure they have enough propane for heating the barns and diesel to power the backup generators.

Winter winds can be brutal in the country, so having a good windbreak is essential. It functions like a living snow fence and helps protect the barns, says Moline, whose windbreaks include Norway spruce trees, dogwood shrubs and more.

When it’s time to transport the turkeys to different barns or to market during the winter, the Molines follow a strict paneling protocol with the semi-trucks that haul the birds. “Once the outside air temperature drops below 40 degrees, truckers add panels to the sides of the trailers,” Moline says. “Everything we do revolves around keeping the birds comfortable.”

Aaron Juergens, Pig Farmer

Keeping livestock comfortable during the winter is a job that starts months earlier, notes Aaron Juergens, a Carroll-area pork producer. “You get ready for winter year-round.”

In the fall, that means winterizing swine barns by putting insulation on the side curtains. Juergens also inspects his barns’ ventilation systems, which control humidity levels and help prevent respiratory issues in pigs.

“You triple-check all your electronic controls and alarms and make sure they’re set at the proper levels,” says Juergens, who monitors this technology with his smartphone.

When 50-pound pigs move into the finishing barns, Juergens keeps the temperature at 74 degrees. During the next 13 weeks, as the hogs grow, the inside temperature must drop gradually to 62 degrees.

“The key is to not make big jumps in temperature because you want to keep the environment comfortable for the pigs,” says Juergens, an Iowa Master Pork Producer and president-elect of the Iowa Pork Producers Association.

Snowstorms require extra management. Farmers use powerful tractors, payloaders and snowblowers to clear out driveways and roads so feed and livestock trucks can get through. “There are approximately 1 million ‘pigs on wheels’ in Iowa each day, as pigs are being moved from barn to barn or going to market,” Juergens says. “Snow removal can be a big job.”

Jackson Drost, Corn and Soybean Grower

Staying competitive drives farmers like Jackson Drost year-round. “We put in way more than 40 hours a week in the winter,” says Drost, who raises corn, soybeans, hay and cattle in the New Sharon/Oskaloosa area. “I keep a winter to-do list of jobs I don’t have time to do the rest of the year.”

These jobs can range from repairing farm equipment to attending farm meetings. Drost also hauls grain to markets from Des Moines to Burlington. “When we market grain in the winter, we try to capture higher prices.”

Making sure his truck operates properly on those cold winter days is essential. “I use the winter blend of diesel and anti-gel products to keep the engine running,” Drost says.

Drost and his wife, Amanda, also try to carve out time for a short winter vacation with their sons Richard, 10, and Andy, 4. “One of the toughest things in farming is learning to let go of the things you can’t control, focus on what you can control and remember that a little planning goes a long way.”