SUMMER 2021
In this issue
M A G A Z I N E
Western Agricultural Research Center Celebrating 115 Years
Let's build something together.
Specializing in custom post frame and stud frame agricultural buildings. Visit our website to see more of what we offer. www.alpinebuilders.com (406)777-7101
in this issue Preserving ag in the valley..................... 6 Family’s history as apple growers........... 8 Finding help..................................... 12 Hearty fruits...................................... 14 High value, small acreage crops.......... 18 Integrated livestock............................ 20 Research Center events....................... 22
MAGAZINE
How did you like this issue of Agriculture Magazine? Do you have any ideas you’d like to share with us for our next issue? Let us know. Send comments to: Ravalli Republic, 232 West Main, Hamilton, MT 59840 or editor@ravallirepublic.com. Cover photo courtesy Western Ag Research Center
Agriculture Magazine is published by the Ravalli Republic & Missoulian Newspapers, divisions of Lee Enterprises Jim Strauss, Publisher Perry Backus, Associate Editor Kathy Kelleher, Todd Kenley & Joe Weston, Sales Agriculture Magazine is copyright 2021, Ravalli Republic.
232 W Main, Hamilton, MT 59840 ravallirepublic.com
Page 4 - Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021
PHOTO courtesy of The Library of Congress
Construction of the original Como Dam 1908-1910
think Orange...
Kubota Orange! RTV-XG850
Over 25 yearS Serving weStern mOntana
Big SKy KuBOta LLC 7550 Thornton Dr., Missoula, MT 542-2200 • 1-800-244-4759 • BigSkyKubota.com
Page 6 - Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021
Photo courtesy of the Montana Historical Society
Partners vital in preserving ag in Bitterroot for future generations KATRINA MENDREY WARC Orchard Program Manager
When the Western Agricultural Research Center was established in 1906 the Bitterroot Valley was an agricultural hub in Montana, feeding miners in Butte and Anaconda. Much of this agriculture was fruit production, primarily apple but other specialty crops like berries, vegetables and dairy played an important role in the newly irrigated valley. Over 100 years later agriculture remains a central part of life for many Bitterroot residents and the bucolic scene it sets is an attraction to new comers. But with any growing community conserving our most productive and fertile lands takes careful thought and a network of collaborators. Organizations like the Bitter Root Water Forum, Bitterroot Land Trust, Right to Farm and Ranch Board and the Open Lands Program are vital partners for agricultural producers seeking to preserve their operations for the next generation. “Land conservation in the Bitterroot Valley is more impor-
tant than ever,” says Sharon Schroeder Open Lands Board Chair and owner of the Sunset Bench conservation easement near Stevensville. “The Open Lands Program, represents the community’s desire to see land preserved for many uses including agriculture, wildlife and clean water.” The Open Lands Bond was approved by voters in 2006, allowing the county to sell bonds raising $10 million for conservation easements in the valley. To date it has conserved 7,830 acres of land, through 32 completed conservation projects, creating a network of farming and open land from Florence to Sula, creating wildlife corridors amongst sustainable agricultural operations. Four more projects to be finalized in the coming months, including Sutherlin Farms, Yoder Farms and the Triple D Ranch, will bring the total acres conserved to 9,589. “When we evaluate a project we score based on many factors including how it is managed and its current and potential value as working land for agriculture, wildlife and the preser-
Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021 - Page 7
vation of clean water,” says Schroeder, “We are lucky to live in a valley where residents have prioritized preserving land by voting to approve this program.” The Open Lands Program would not be possible, however, without the foresight of the Right to Farm and Ranch Board which saw the need to preserve agricultural and open lands amongst growing pressure from development in the early 2000’s. Today the same board works with agricultural producers and neighbors to ensure good communication about what it means to live and play in a farming community. “Agriculture isn’t always pretty,” says Haydon Davis WARC Farm Manager and Right to Farm and Ranch Board Member. “But it is necessary. The groups working to preserve agricultural lands in our valley are an important resource for both the community and WARC as we research new opportunities for farmers to grow innovative specialty crops.” In addition to land, clean water and access to irrigation are central to the Bitterroot’s farming community. The Bitter Root Water Forum is a local nonprofit that supports the traditions of agriculture, community, and recreation by protecting, enhancing, and restoring the Bitterroot watershed. The
Water Forum can serve as a resource for landowners seeking to improve irrigation management and watershed health both for the benefit of their farms and our natural resources, including fisheries. “The best projects are when we can work in partnership with ag producers to help their production and streams at the same time”, says Heather Mullee Barber, Water Forum Executive Director. A great example of partnership happened in 2020, when they worked with Jay Meyer, a local rancher, on the Burnt Fork to install an off-site watering system that improved pasture utilization and grazing efficiency while reducing erosional impacts to the creek. “We are lucky to live in a community where agriculture and natural resource conservation can work hand in hand,” says Barber. While the Bitterroot Valley continues to evolve, organizations and groups like these play an important role in ensuring agriculture will continue to be a cornerstone of life in the Bitterroot Valley for the next 100 years, and residents, regardless of their way of life, will have local meat, fruits and vegetables to share with family, friends and neighbors for the next century. AG
Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress
Page 8 - Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021
Photos courtesy Western Ag Research Center
Mountain View Orchard’s owner Charlie Swanson offered some insights on he and his family’s life on Montana’s oldest operating commercial orchard.
Family’s long history as Bitterroot Valley apple growers Interviewed by Katrina Medrey Western Ag Research Center
The Mountain View Orchard in Corvallis is Montana’s longest operating commercial orchard spanning three generations. The 20-acre orchard grows over six cultivars of apples including the prized MacIntosh, Empire, Golden Delicious, Zestar! and Snowsweet. Providing direct sales to local residents, grocery stores, schools and Montana State prisons, Swanson’s season begins around the 1st of September. In the meantime, orchard owner Charlie Swanson, took a break from thinning fruit to sit down with WARC Orchard Program Manager, Katrina Mendrey, to discuss his family’s history and experience growing apples in the Bitterroot Valley.
How did your family end up in the Bitterroot and why did they decide to grow apples? Well, my grandfather was a Swedish immigrant. He and four brothers came to the United States in 1905. After a doctor told him he’d die young if he kept working in a piano factory in Rockford, Illinois he remembered he liked the apples in Sweden and thought he’d look into that. So he did some research and found the Bitterroot after traveling to other similar places like CO. He arrived in 1907, his wife and daughter came shortly after, and by 1910 he had his first apple crop. That orchard was just a part of the rest of the farm, including chickens, hogs, milk and beef cows. He also worked for the Big Ditch working the flumes because he was handy. My dad was born in 1920. When he came back from WWII he decided to keep the apples going but he was more
Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021 - Page 9
interested in the cows. I was kind of the same way, I went to the military and came back but I was interested in the fruit. What interested you about the fruit? They were more profitable, and the cattle turned out to be a 12-month job, where the apples gave a little break in the winter. Did you or they ever explore planting other specialty crops? Well not in any volume, we had pears, plums and prunes, but that’s because we owned another piece of ground that had a lot of different stuff in it that we bought in the 1940s. If we grew it though, we’d sell it. What has kept the orchard in the family this long? As you grow up you become in tune to what’s happening on the farm and you decide whether you come back or not and we always felt that the farm was good to us, it’s a lifestyle we enjoy. It comes down to what you really need and want from life. Julie, my wife, likes to do direct sales, I like the bigger accounts but it’s all part of the job and we can complement each other to get it done. Why do you think your orchard has been successful for so long? When I came back from the military I knew I needed to
e n A Z Ia N e AmZ AI G M G a Z M A G I N E september 2017
7
june 201
do something that I enjoyed. I had some help from some horticulture people from MSU and other places and they helped me keep focused where my interests were. Networking at fruit grower conventions in Washington and such where there were a lot of people to talk to helped me realize we had a special niche here with the MacIntosh, so that’s where we concentrated our efforts. Fire blight in 2018 was the last straw for trying things that were susceptible to it, we lost a whole block of susceptible varieties. Mac is pretty resistant though. A lot of people say it’s the lazy man’s apple because it takes the pests and injury and
March 2017
Local pr
In this iss
oduce pr
ue
ogram Bluewe ed g with ha y and mo re!
Mulchin
JUNE 2019
ue
In this iss
nity opportu ass Cheat gr re! mo d an leaders
onomic
Local ec
4-H e Manged intensive grazing Z I N Sugar beet A Ghogshistory and more! Raising A m In this issue
r
embe sept 2018
In this
issue
e! d mor ulture Polyc ce, 4-H an li Goat
M A G A Z I N E
A special publication by the Ravalli Republic. Look for the next issue June 2021!
can come out fine though that doesn’t mean you can’t not spray or take care of it. It’s just tougher. What were the biggest challenges for the orchard early on? I think both my father and grandfather would say just getting enough money on hand to survive, they had just enough to get them by, so making payments and getting food on the table and keeping the family together and growing. It was a day-to-day existence and it was a bigger challenge than today, they didn’t have wind machines to help with the spring frost, so when frost events happened they would wipe out the whole crop. The money they would get was hard to get but they would use it wisely. It was a big deal to get something like a new car or tractor, but the money they made on the farm they always reinvested in it. Labor is an issue in specialty crop production in the Valley, how have you and your family managed this in the orchard over the years? There used to be a lot of people who needed extra money. My father would hire a family and they would all come out and work together. In the afternoon they’d take a break and my mother would come out with some cookies and everyone would sit
around and take out some instruments, sing a tune. Livin’ things up for the afternoon. My grandfather had German POW’s come and pick, they did that for a number of years. The camp was down on Bailey’s property. At one time there were several hundred POW’s who also worked in the beets, I think they were just fine with getting out and doing something rather than just sitting around. Especially during the war, the man help was hard to find. My dad could have not served, but when he went to join my dad was mortified because he thought it was my dad’s job to stay and help. It all worked out. As you know, WARC assists many specialty crop growers exploring new crops like haskaps, grapes and saskatoons, what advice do you have for these new fruit pioneers? Be cautiously optimistic. Don’t go out on a big limb too fast. That’s hurt more people than you can imagine, they think they can make a killing if they plant this or that. Do your research. The growing part of the crop is relatively easy, the sales part and having something of quality is the challenge. We’ve had customers from year to year because they know we have a consistent quality product.
Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021 - Page 11
What do you hope for the future of agriculture in the Bitterroot Valley? That will be left up to the people of the Bitterroot Valley. When people come and glom onto the land and sell it for prices that aren’t realistic for agriculture that’s a problem. I think it’s important to make something out of nothing. When you are growing apples you are making something from nothing, it’s a brand new dollar. The problem in America is we’ve turned that over to other people who don’t have your best interest at heart. But you really have to enjoy it, it’s not just there for the economics, it’s a lifestyle, whether it’s picking apples on a ladder in the fall or riding in the parade on a truck, it’s especially important to know you’ve done the best you can. Not everyone is mentally and physically equipped to be a farmer. I think my family, unfortunately, won’t keep our business going and I’ll have to hang up the reins, but we will hope to pass it on as an orchard. Money isn’t everything and people have to realize there’s more to life than putting money away in a sack and you have to make some time to enjoy other things. Find something you like to do and encourage that to happen. AG
BURNT FORK VET SUMMER UPDATES CONSTRUCTION STARTED
Construction has begun to add more exam rooms and other improvements! We will continue curbside service ONLY for the forseeable future to accomodate this.Use our check-in window or give us a call upon your arrival! 406.777.3844
LARGE ANIMAL SERVICES Large Animal routine and emergency services now available! Call 406.777.3844 and choose the large animal option!
NEW TO THE AREA We are still accepting NEW patients and NEW clients! Be prepared for emergencies and call NOW to establish care! 406.777.3844
3682 Eastside Hwy, Stevensville • 406-777-3844 • burntforkvet.com
Photo courtesy Western Ag Research Center
Western Agricultural Research Center’s vineyard program manager, Amy Darling, harvests some grapes from the center’s vineyard.
Finding help: Resources for your horticultural endeavors PATRICK MANGAN MSU Missoula County Extension Agent
Planning and implementing a horticultural enterprise can be an engaging, exciting, and stressful time. There are a lot of important pieces to consider in the design and selection of components of any farm, and those needs can be even more important when building out a perennial cropping system with a high cost of infrastructure and investments at the outset of the budding business. Don’t run off and make quick decisions. Instead spend the time necessary to dig deeply into your new enterprise. Doing the intellectual heavy lifting during the planning stages can save you time, money, and ultimately lead you to good success. And don’t go it all alone. There are a host of resources and support services and organizations ready to help you, provide services and advise, and supply a community of fellow farm-
ers and horticulturalists that are moving collaboratively in the same direction to build the whole industry. Below are some good starting points to contact for additional information. Helping hands and solid information: Contact your local Montana State University Extension office. MSU County Extension Agents can provide services and advice on a host of land management strategies. From soil testing, to plant cultivar selections, Extension professionals have access to up-to-date research based information on cultivar trials, plants communities, soils, and many other topics in agricultural enterprise development. You can find your local MSU Extension Office and Extension Agents here: https:// www.msuextension.org/ Local economic development agencies and business development centers can help new and beginning agricultural business owners develop business plans, marketing plans, find resources, and apply for grant and funding sources. The Mission West Community Development Partners is a great
starting point: www.missionwestcdp.org Agricultural advocacy and support non-profit organizations also provide valuable support and information to beginning farmers and ranchers as they plan and develop their businesses. The Community Food Agriculture Coalition supports new and beginning farmers through classes, farmer field days, technical business planning help, and grant funding support. Find additional information about CFAC at: https://www.missoulacfac.org/
Connecting with fellow farmers and growers:
Tap into the communities of like-minded farmers and horticulturalists who are on the same path you are. The grower associations around the state often hold workshops, field trips, seminars, conventions and other educational opportunities to learn from both peers as well as experts in the field. The members of the associations also work collaboratively to advance marketing and product distribution for their crops, engage in grant development, and hold regular discussions to support all farmers and growers in the industry. Find and join the growers association for your potential crop and reap the benefits of a community working together to support advance the industry together.
Those associations include:
*The Montana Berry Growers Association: https://montanaberries.org/ *Budwood Apple Growers Cooperative: https://budwood. org/ *Montana Grape and Winery Association: https://www. montanagrapeandwine.com/
*Montana Organic Association: https://montanaorganicassociation.org/
Visit the action and learn from previous experiences:
A picture is worth and thousand words, and a field day is worth 10,000 words. Attend field days, visit research centers, and learn from those who have been doing it. Field days and research highlights can help review data about cultivar performance, pest management, best practices for management and development, and many other topics. The Montana State University Western Agriculture Research Center in Corvallis, MT holds an annual summer field day and research review. The event is held on the last Thursday of July annually, and provides a great opportunity to listen to staff and researchers review the latest up-to-date information they have learned for different crops. The research centers additionally have results, growers guides, and many other resources on their websites to support growers. https:// agresearch.montana.edu/warc/ Other states and Canadian provinces also have opportunities for field days and on-site teaching events. Consider a trip to learn more from other locations. Whatever crop or horticultural opportunity you are considering as part of your agricultural enterprise, don’t go it alone. Connect with others in the agricultural community, research and education staff and faculty, and those who are working together to help all farmers be successful. Spend the time to research and plan, even if it sets the implementation back a year or two; learning about the best practices and the best available information before you begin is far better than mitigating mistakes after you’ve begun. AG
Photo courtesy Western Ag Research Center
Apples have been growing in the Bitterroot and other areas in Montana for over a century. Selecting the right cultivars, can be just as important as selecting the right fruit. Michael Billingsley has experimented with over 50 cider apple varieties, in his 10-acre Stevensville orchard, to determine what will make the best hard cider in Montana.
Finding fruits that are rugged enough for Montana ZACH MILLER WARC Associate Professor/Superintendent KATRINA MENDREY WARC Orchard Program Manager
With Montana’s rugged growing conditions, not all types of fruits will thrive, but there are many that fruit trees, vines, and bushes will. Adding to this challenge is that climates and soils vary widely from location to location. It’s a matter of matching your local climate and soil with types of plants that are well adapted to handle those conditions. “Montana’s climate can be pretty unforgiving, but if growers follow some simple rules for establishment and select the right fruit, for the right site there are some great options that are unique, healthy and delicious,” says Dr. Zach Miller, Superintendent at the MSU Western Agricultural Research Center in Corvallis where much of Montana’s fruit research is conducted. “It’s more than just planting winter-hardy plants,” Miller said. “The plant hardiness zone listed for a variety only lets
you know the cold it can withstand in the middle of the winter when the plant is fully dormant. But much of the cold injury that we see in Montana occurs in the fall and the spring. Like last fall when temperatures stayed mild for much of September and October then plummeted to below zero at the end of October. In the winter, we’ll get a few warm weeks that trick plants into thinking it’s spring. They start to bud out and temperatures will drop, damaging the plants. The ability to withstand this type of cold is not on the tags at the nursery.” Cold-hardy berries tend to avoid the fall and spring cold injury as they can withstand cold temperatures early in the growing season and ripen their fruit early, giving them plenty to time to get ready for the winter. “It’s a ‘what grows here’ approach to farming,” says Mark Rehder, owner of Geyser Farms outside Livingston, MT. “I grow currants because they’re short, stocky and can withstand the wind.” Rehder grows one acre of mostly black and some red cur-
Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021 - Page 15
rants to make kombucha, a value-added drink sold locally. His success, however, goes beyond just choosing the right plant but also doing his research upfront to make good decisions before establishing a crop. “I always approach skilled growers when I get to a new area to discuss their success and failures,” says Rehder. Currants aren’t the only Montana-grown berries that can hold up to Montana’s growing conditions. Haskaps, also know as Honeyberries, and Saskatoons, know locally as Serviceberries, are cold hardy berries that have long been coveted for their high levels of antioxidants and flavor in countries like Canada, Korea, Russia and Japan, but grow well in Montana too. Both are native to Montana and other Northern regions across the globe and have been cultivated for flavor and size to become an alternative for blueberries on soils with higher pH, like many Montana soils. “These berries are incredibly hardy” says Bridgid Jarrett, WARC’s berry program manager, “This last year we saw cold injury from the sudden fall drop in temperatures in many apples, raspberries, and grapes, but these cold hardy berries were hardly touched by it.” Since 2011, Corey and Noelle Meier have been experimenting with various varieties of both Haskaps and Saskatoons. “We jumped into planting before we were really ready,
which resulted in failure,” cautions Noelle Meier. Deer ate many of the unprotected plants and what were left of their first planting succumbed to weeds, ground squirrels, and poor water management. “We can’t claim to be experts in how to grow Haskaps and Saskatoons, but feel pretty confident that we know many ways to fail,” she says. Like many fruit growers however, the Meiers have persevered to learn from their mistakes. With a proper deer fence, a well-designed irrigation system and more knowledge about managing weeds and rodents, the Meiers are looking to expand their orchard to share their passion for these cold hardy berries with other Montanans. “It’s a rare thing to find something that’s good for us, that also tastes good,” says Meier who describes Haskaps as a “cross between a blueberry and a blackberry with the tang of a huckleberry.” The Meiers are hopeful that Montanans will find Haskaps and Saskatoons as delicious as they do and plan to expand their two-acre orchard near Twin Bridges to 11 acres by 2025. “By growing two acres per year, it’s affordable financially, but also lets us plant the newest and best cultivars,” says Meier of the decision. Their current favorites are Smokey and Northline Saskatoons and Aurora Haskaps with Tundra as a pollinator. AG
Page 16 - Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021
Apples have been growing in the Bitterroot and other areas in Montana for over a century. Selecting the right cultivars, can be just as important as selecting the right fruit. Michael Billingsley has experimented with over 50 cider apple varieties, in his 10-acre Stevensville orchard, to determine what will make the best hard cider in Montana. “There wasn’t a lot of information when I planted the orchard in 2012,” says Billingsley. “I’ve had to whittle it down through trial and error, and a lot of error.” While he’s has a few favorites like Hewe’s Virginia Crab, Wickson and Frequin Rouge, he also has determined a few he just won’t grow again like Harry Masters Jersey and Sommerset Redstreak due to fire blight, a major pathogen of apples and in particular cider varieties.” Photo courtesy Western Ag Research Center The location and microclimate are Dr. Leisso in fruit lab, testing haskap berries also critical for many fruit types. “Cold injury in the fall and spring evaluating select cultivars of these fruits is to determine which is often a matter of a few degrees,” says Katrina Mendrey, ones will yield the highest quality fruits in Montana both for orchard program manager at WARC. “Colder air is denser and fresh markets and also value-added products like wine, cider, sinks to the valley floor, so being up on the benches can make juices and preserves. In addition to helping growers select the difference between a bumper crop and no crop at all.” which cultivars to grow, the station is also conducting research Grapes can also be grown in Montana. Breeding efforts in on how to manage and harvest crops for maximum yields and the last few decades have produced varieties that can survive profits. 25 to 30 below temperature, but unlike other fruits, grapes As plants continue to mature the WARC is expanding its require a long warm growing season to fully ripen the fruits. research program from cultivar evaluation to other aspects of Amy Darling, vineyard program manager at WARC, growing fruit. Dr. Leisso, who recently left WARC, has been explains, “Grapes are mainly grown in the warmer areas an important resource for helping the program grow bringing of the state. In Western Montana, the summers are cooler expertise in disease control and fruit quality. than Eastern Montana, and the vineyards along the This past year with the help of Specialty Crop Block grants Yellowstone River often harvest weeks before the vineyards from the Montana Department of Agriculture, the WARC in the western valleys. In the West, we harvest right before added projects focused on developing recommendations the first frost and in some years the grapes aren’t as sweet as for irrigation in cold-hardy grapes, grazing management in we’d like.” orchards and expand resources to track climate and weather MSU Western Agricultural Research Center works with patterns to help select optimal growing sites, understand tree fruit growers, to not only learn from their experience to help fruit phenology and predict diseases like fire blight. future growers but also develop projects that will assist them in In addition, the WARC has been experimenting with the future. mechanical harvesting in berries and cider apples. “We listen to growers’ needs and lessons learned to develop “We know there are fruits cold-hardy enough to withstand research and resources that will help them be productive and Montana’s winters,” says Miller. “But we have other barriers profitable going forward,” says Dr. Miller. here to larger-scale production like labor. We are addressing Since 2014, Dr. Miller with support from a growing staff these challenges through our research by helping growers select and horticultural professor, Dr. Rachel Leisso, has been actively management systems that are feasible and profitable.” researching the best fruit species and cultivars for fruit producFor more information on WARC’s research programs, tion in Montana. Cultivar research trials include nearly 70 results from recent studies, and resources for growing your varieties of aronia, red and black currants, haskaps, dwarf sour own fruit in Montana visit their website at http://agresearch. cherries, cider apples and cold-hardy grapes. The purpose of montana.edu/warc/. AG
Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021 - Page 17
Considerations for Growing Fruit in Montana Climates are varied in Montana and successful fruit growing requires matching the type of fruit with your local climate. Know your zone. A plant’s ability to withstand cold winter temperatures is rated using USDA Cold Hardiness Zones. The lower the zone number, the colder the average minimum winter temperature and the more cold-hardy plants are required. Montana includes Zones 3-6 with a majority of the state in Zone 4. If you don’t know your zone go to https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov to find out and only select plants cold hardy to that zone. Haskaps, can be rated as low as Zone 2. Most other fruits require Zone 3-5.
Sunlight: Most fruits need 6-8 hours of sunlight to develop and ripen fruit. Growing season: Some fruits, like grapes, require long warm summers that only regularly occur in a few areas of Montana. Also, fruits can be vulnerable to frosts especially during bloom. If lows in the 20s occur while apples are blooming the crop will be lost, but fruits like haskap/ honeyberries can withstand lows in the teens. Water: Mature berries need approxi-
mately 8 to 10 gallons of water per week. Tree fruit and grapes need about 10-60 gallons of water per week depending on their size and soil conditions. Soil: Soil pH is an important factor in nutrient availability and is ideally in the range of 6.0-7.0 for most fruits. Wind: High winds can be hard on all plants in particular trees. If you live in a windy area consider stockier shrubs instead of tree fruits. If you do select a tree fruit, choose a standard rootstock which is better anchored or at a minimum stake trees on dwarfing rootstocks to provide additional support. Which Cultivars: Once you know which options are available in your location, consider what you would like to eat and what you want to do with the fruit. Then talk to local growers, your county Extension Agent or visit WARC’s website to learn about cultivars best suited for Montana growers. AG
Farming for the future: High value, small acreage crops ZACH MILLER WARC Associate Professor/Superintendent
While the Bitterroot Valley had unique agricultural opportunities, the MSU-Western Ag. Research Center work with fruit and vegetable crops is finding a ready audience across the state. The Center’s work focuses on higher-value crops that can be grown profitably on smaller acreages. Much of this research focuses on fruits and vegetables. These specialty crops can provide higher value per acre than typical farm crops like grain and hay which are typically less than $1000 an acre. Revenues of $3,000 to $5,000 per acre are typical for these specialty crops. Farms that can add value to their crops through processing into juices, jams, wines, or cider can realize even higher sales per acre. In the case of Willow Mountain Winery and
Vineyard in the Bitterroot gross revenues are projected to be $7,000 per acre for the grapes, but $50,000 per acre for the wine, or over $1 million annually on this 20-acre vineyard. However, starting a farm, especially an orchard or vineyard, requires a large investment, ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 per acre and does not include the cost of the land. In addition, perennial crops will not produce much of a crop for the first few years, so there’s a slow return on that investment. To ensure success and a return on this investment, growers need to know that what they’re planting will be productive and profitable. The Ag. Center helps these growers identify which types of specialty crops can thrive in Montana’s varied climates and how to manage these crops and their pests successfully. The Western Ag. Research Center partners with MSUExtension faculty and professors from across MSU and the country meet these find solutions and share them with growers across the region.
Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021 - Page 17
Fruit and vegetable farms are more than farms. They are small businesses. To capture the value of specialty crop, most farms sell produce and their value-added products directly to consumers. This requires marketing and business planning and often additional licensing. Local economic development centers, State Food and Ag development centers, and Nonprofits like the Community Food and Agriculture Coalition in Missoula provide support to farms and farm businesses and work with the Ag. Center to meet the needs of these growers. While the risks can be daunting, there are many opportunities. Interest in locally-produced, healthy foods has exploded in the last decade. According to a recent market analysis published in Fortune magazine, fruits have risen to the second most popular food item in the U.S. with annual sales topping $3 billion dollars in 2013. Sales of U.S. organic products topped $62 billion in 2020. Annually, over 10 million tourists visit the state, spending nearly $4 billion dollars. Montana fruit and vegetable growers have a unique market opportunity through agro-tourism and synergies between Montana’s two leading industries, agriculture and tourism. Specialty crops can help to preserve some of the state’s most productive agricultural land. The valleys of Montana from the Yellowstone, the Gallatin, Flathead, to the Bitterroot combine favorable climates and ample irrigation water. These areas also have substantial population growth and development. Based on current growth rates, a recent study suggests that the population of the Gallatin valley will equal Salt Lake City in 20 years and Minneapolis, nearly a half-million, by 2065. Fruit and vegetable farms can benefit from this growth since it’s more potential customers and preserve working agricul-
tural lands since these types of farms can be profitable on smaller acreages. Orchards, vineyards, and vegetable farms are labor-intensive which is both a challenge and an opportunity. Farmers need to know how many hours it will take to manage and harvest these crops. The Western Ag. Center research includes an emphasis on labor and labor efficiency. Labor is a good thing too, as it means more jobs per acre than a ranch or grain farm. Enterprising farmers are showing that these crops have potential in Montana. Our state has become the leading producer of organic grains with more certified organic acres that any state but California. Local vegetable growers see increasing demand. Many farms are smelling profits in locally grown flowers. The Montana Grape and Winery Association has over 100 members representing the over 50 vineyards and nearly 20 wineries in the state. Montana-made hard cider is posed for similar growth. Nationally, the cider industry has grown 900% since 2011. During the past 10 years, five commercial cideries have opened for business and more are on the way. Neighboring states have seen investments in specialty crop production transform into thriving industries and Montana is beginning to see growth in this direction, with rapidly increasing vegetable farms, farmers markets, orchards and vineyards. The MSU-Western Agricultural Research Center and its partners are working to support current and future farmers build more profitable farm enterprises and healthy rural communities. AG
WARC taps into local knowledge to study integrated livestock AMY HUTTON WARC Livestock Research and Local Food Coordinator
Expanding crop production enterprises by incorporating livestock is a tried and true method for diversifying farm income and conserving resources. In the Bitterroot, livestock have been integrated into crop production systems for most of our agriculture history, contributing soil fertility, residue breakdown, and essential weed control to our farm systems. However, integrated systems like these come with unique risks and burdens including crop damage, pathogen exposure, high labor demands, and usually some unexpected chaos!
I experienced a bit too much of that chaos myself when I started dreaming up a new research project three seasons ago. After incorporating my own sheep, poultry, and hogs into various fruit and vegetable production systems over the years, I had a taste of the complexities at play and the questions needing answers. I wanted to imitate the efficiency of a healthy ecosystem on my farm: plant waste feeding animals, animal waste feeding plants, and livestock doing the work of weeding and fertilizing instead of me. But far too often the worst weeds were left untouched, while hogs uprooted the tree guards or the goats clamored over them, and that one hen always found her way out of the fallow plot and into the just-seeded one. Just how
Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021 - Page 21
many ways can one waterer manage to leak, and is there a sin- have been able to track pathogen numbers in our three types of orchard systems. gle predator on this green earth who isn’t eating my broilers? Trends across our study plots show bacteria numbers risLuckily there are lots of techniques, tricks, and tools creing in the first two weeks after manure is deposited and then ated to overcome these sorts of obstacles, and resourceful dropping off quickly in the following two to four weeks. farmers all around the Bitterroot are refining and improvWhile our sample sizes and number of replications are not ing upon them every season. Unfortunately, not many of us nearly large enough have the time to write up to extrapolate to other our findings and get the Bitterroot orchards and word out, but that’s where farms with any level of resources like WARC and certainty, these promising County Extension can help trends do indicate that it is connect the dots to save possible to safely integrate farmers time and money. livestock during the growFor the last two seasons ing season. at WARC, we have been Managing for optimal exploring how farmers are animal health with balanswering these challenges anced nutrition, frequent while using study trials to pasture rotations, and investigate the effects of liveample space, shelter, and stock on food safety, weed shade all reduces the control, and soil health chances of introducing within fruit and vegetable problematic species of production. bacteria in the first place. The primary focus of our Additional factors that research is managing the appear to affect pathogen pathogen risk posed by intepersistence include: soil grated fresh manure in close organic matter, ground proximity to fresh produce, cover (bare soil or vegand our results have been etated), and irrigation type encouraging. Removing all (drip, spray, or flood). animals from crop producIf you have, or are hoption areas three, six, or even ing to create, an integrated nine months before harvest livestock system on your can provide a simple solufarm or ranch, we would tion to food safety concerns, love to hear from you! and it is the solution recomWe love working with mended by most regulatory Bitterroot producers on agencies like the National testing for pathogens, Organic Program. However, maintaining Photos courtesy Western Ag Research Center planning new enterprises, such a long-time-interval In the Bitterroot, livestock have been integrated into crop production and trouble-shooting farm disrupts most livestock systems for most of our agriculture history, contributing soil fertility, problems. It is also very residue breakdown, and essential weed control to our farm systems. helpful to hear about your management strategies and also negates many weed and However, integrated systems like these come with unique risks and successes and innovations, pest control benefits. I want burdens including crop damage, pathogen exposure, high labor so please get in contact if demands, and usually some unexpected chaos! you have any suggestions! my sheep grazing when the Learn more on our website weeds are growing, I want or contact our project manager Amy at amy.hutton1@monmy poultry foraging when the bugs are hopping, and I want tana.edu. to bring them all in from the back orchard before there is sigWebsite link: https://agresearch.montana.edu/warc/ nificant snow and ice to contend with! research_current/integrated-livestock/index.html AG By collecting bacteria samples in weekly time intervals, we
Page 22 - Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2021
An attentive crowd listens to information provided at the annual MSU-WARC Field Day.
Photo courtesy Western Ag Research Center
Western Agricultural Research Center events Ravalli Republic
The mission of the MSU Western Agricultural Research Center is to help fruit and vegetable farms in the state. While this involves a lot of detailed research, the mission is not complete without sharing that information with growers and the public. After a year of virtual meetings, the Center is excited to host several in-person events this year. In addition to the events listed below, you can learn about the Center’s research and other events on their website: https://agresearch. montana.edu/warc/index.html The Center will host its Field Day July 29th 4:30 pm until 8. The open house includes dinner, speakers from across the MSU College of Agriculture, and a tour of the research projects at the station. RSVP with Kierstin Schmitt (kierstin. schmitt@montana.edu) if you’re planning to attend. Fork to Farm: September 12th. The center has collaborated with Bike Walk Bitterroot to host a scenic bike tour of farms and ranches in the valley. Bike Walk Bitterroot is a community organization dedicated to creating safe and acces-
sible routes in the valley for cyclists and pedestrians. The easy, half day ride will visit several area farms for short tours and tastes of local food and drink. Ride begins at 10 a.m., dinner and music follow at the Ag Center. Registration is $100 with proceeds going towards supporting local food and Bike Walk Bitterroot. Register early as space is limited and often fills up, more info at http://bikewalkbitterroot.org/ Orchard and Vineyard management tour: In collaboration with the Community Food and Agriculture Coalition, September 15th 4 p.m. The tour will cover the basics of managing orchards and vineyards and several on-going trials at the Center. Details and registration available on the Community Food and Agriculture Coalition’s website: https://www.missoulacfac.org/programs/farmer-support/farmer-field-days/ Organic farm tour and workshop: in collaboration with the Montana Organic Association, the Ag. Center will be hosting a tour of organic farms in the Bitterroot, September 17th. Details and registration available on the Montana Organic Associations website: https://montanaorganicassociation.org/ AG
QUALITY IRRIGATION EQUIPMENT Largest Selection of Irrigation Parts in Western MT Guaranteed
1316 EASTSIDE HWY CORVALLIS, MT 406-363-3599 mainline@valleyirrigation.net
www.valleyirrigation.net
Purchase a commemorative Paver stone in honor, memory or celebration of someone special for $100. All proceeds go to Fairgrounds preservation, facility & grounds improvements and expansion.
Rockin RC Rodeo Branding Boards Purchase a 12x 12 branding board for $50 that will be displayed at the entrance to the rodeo arena. All proceeds go to support the rodeo grounds arena.
Come visit the new 4-H Dog Arena! 5 disciplines for kids to explore with their dogs • Canine Freestyle (Dancing with Dogs) • Agility • Rally Obedience • Obedience • Showmanship
SEPTEMBER 1-4, 2021 The place to be in Western Montana for Labor Day weekend! Enjoy fantastic fair food, over 10,000 amazing exhibits, loads of livestock, and carnival rides for all!
June 1st- August 31st Pre-Sale Carnival tickets for sale at $10 discount. You can purchase these at Ravalli County Fairgrounds, Murdoch’s, Super One, Hamilton Marketplace and People’s Market.
