Western Farm, Ranch and Dairy Magazine – Rocky Mountain/Heartland Edition - Fall/Winter 2022

President/CEO

Michael Ritz – mikeritz@ritzfamilypublishing.com

General Manager

Brenda Stoner – brenda@ritzfamilypublishing.com

Sales

Keven Davis – kevin@farmranchdairy.com

Pat Drury – pat@ritzfamilypublishing.com

Corporate Office

Ritz Family Publishing, Inc.

714 N Main Street Meridian, ID 83642

www.ritzfamilypublishing.com

Sales

For all sales inquiries, call toll free 1-800-330-3482 or 1-208-955-0124

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Design & Layout By iRockimages.com, Boise, ID Printed By Owyhee Publishing, Homedale, ID Copyright© 2022. All rights reserved. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of this publication, however, the publisher does not assume responsibility for omissions or typographical errors. The publisher does not assume responsibility or is liable for the contents of any advertising herein. Publisher’s liability for errors in an advertisement is limited to a correct insertion in the next publication. In the event of a misprint, the publisher must be informed of such error prior to printing of the next publication.

AGRICULTURE

Image by Gábor Adonyi

De Dell Seeds Doubles Down On Research

De Dell Seeds is pleased to announce the addition of a New Holland CR9040 corn research combine. De Dell Seeds has acquired this new research combine to increase their hybrid testing capacity to provide elite genetics for their non-GMO and organic corn growers. The acquisition of the new machine allows De Dell to continue their research expansion. Over the last two years De Dell has increased its corn testing by 30% and this combine will allow De Dell to continue to increase their corn breeding and testing efforts. In 2020, De Dell is testing approximately 1500 unique corn hybrids, replicated at nine different locations in a wide range of maturities.

This De Dell research combine greatly increases the testing capacity to allow for the introduction of better corn hybrids for farmers. This unit is a split combine that harvests two two-row corn plots simultaneously. The combine harvests the small plot and measures the moisture, testweight, and weight of each plot. The data is recorded electronically which can be analyzed later by the corn researchers. Compared to the old combine this combine is a significant improvement. The former De Dell research combine was a single plot combine that took approximately 45 seconds to harvest a single plot. That may not seem like much, but after harvesting hundreds of plots the difference in productivity is very noticeable. The new combine on the other hand harvests two plots simultaneously in approximately 15 seconds – more than quadruple the testing capability!

De Dell is a leader in providing organic and non-GMO corn hybrids to the Canadian farmer. Many of the seed businesses owned by large chemical companies either do not service the farmers in this market or largely neglect it as too small of a market for them. De Dell’s corn breeding program will ensure that non-GMO and organic farmers can continue to access elite corn genetics for their own farms.

The Fertilizer-Cost-andAvailability Crisis Requires Farmers to Practice Precision Farming to Stay in Business

Efficient Fertilization Practice is now a necessity!

Noel Garcia, CCA – Chief Operating Officer & Senior Consultant, TPS Lab

Since the onset of 2020, fertilizer prices have been exploding. But now, simply the availability in addition to evermore outrageous cost of fertilizer due to a variety of well-publicized reasons has become very seriously problematic. Presently, there seems to be no ceiling to cost escalation or foreseeable end to limitations on supplies. This means that every pound or gallon of fertilizer applied must be utilized by the crop to the greatest extent possible.

About “Precision Farming”: This term has implied mechanical means of precise seed and fertilizer placement, variable-rate fertilizer applications based on grid soil sampling and nearinfrared ærial surveys, metered applications of fertilizers through irrigation systems and GPS guidance of tractors and sprayers. But realistically, these approaches address only a modest part of achieving maximum crop performance with the most efficient use of money and resources. Whether or not precision mechanical means are used, here some of the most important considerations when attempting to get the most out of the least:

• “Traditional” practices have got to go! Here are the biggest mistakes I’ve seen farmers make over and over again during my 30-plus years with TPS Lab:

• The major application of fertilizer being made at the start of the growing season, expecting it to suffice for the entire season.

• The wrong fertilizer for the soil type or crop.

• Not keeping up with the latest advances and discoveries in crop nutrition.

• Not using bio-stimulants to improve crop performance and its resistance to disease and insects.

• Ignoring existing soil nutrients which are plantunavailable, especially in calcareous, high-pH soils.

• Ignoring irrigation and spray water quality.

• Ignoring soil health/life.

• Not planning beyond this year’s crop using the “Regenerative Agriculture” approach.

• The key issues in efficient crop production are:

• Timing and placement of fertilizer applications.

• The correct fertilizer for your soil type, the crop and its stage of development.

• Acceptable irrigation and spray water quality.

• The use of biological inoculants and bio-stimulants, such as amino acids, growth hormones and other beneficial products that may not be essential for plant growth.

Timing and Placement of Fertilizer Applications Is Crucial

– Many farmers apply the bulk of their fertilizers at the onset of the season. This is colossally wasteful, as plants develop their appetites and tastes with growth, much of the fertilizer has been dissipated by the time the plants start needing it the most. This is particularly true with N. Remember that crop nutritional needs change throughout the growing season, so applying the wrong fertilizer at the wrong time for your particular crop wastes much of your money. As to placement, with row crops, side-dressing can require much less fertilizer and starter “pop-up” fertilizer is astonishingly effective in getting crops off to fast vigorous starts. After emergence, the use of foliar sprays is the most efficient method of getting nutrients into plants.

About Foliar Sprays – In some areas of the country, particularly the Corn Belt, foliar sprays of plant-beneficial and nutritional agents are typically seldom used, as this area of the country has been historically known as having the highest-producing capacity of corn and soybeans per acre. Unfortunately, the Midwest’s rich soil nutrient pool is declining due to reduction of soil organic matter (soil carbon) much like the rest of the country. This leads to nutrient deficiencies,

especially micronutrients, that limit plant genetic potential resulting in reduced yields and quality. As a result, increased disease and insect pressure increases input costs of additional fungicides and pesticides which reduces return on investment. Here, foliar sprays of bio-stimulants, micronutrients and trace elements can have big, faster and longer-term impacts on crop health, performance and economics.

Type of Fertilizer – Here is where a Soil Test is really important! If you have calcareous soils and buy micronutrients in the oxide form, you have literally thrown money on the ground with no benefit at all. When it comes to nitrogen, there can be a huge difference between anhydrous ammonia, urea, ammonium nitrate and ammonium sulfate as to its longevity, its utilization by the plant and its impact on native soil chemistry and soil life. Is it nitrate nitrogen, ammonia nitrogen or organic nitrogen? The forms of other nutrients are equally important – for example, MAP or DAP? Choosing the best fertilizer for your specific soil conditions or foliar fertilizer for specific stage of growth can save huge amount of money and increase ROI. This is the reason why some have not seen much success from the use of foliar sprays. The wrong product, mixing incompatible or antagonistic products together, wrong application rates, missing critical stages of growth and inadequate water quality are quite common mistakes.

Plant Sap Tests at critical stages of crop development during the season are crucial to determining the nutritional needs of the crop so that no more than necessary of what is applied, thus saving money and limited supplies. Plants eat and drink every day and their tastes and appetites change with time. Those changing needs (but no more than needs) must be accommodated to have some assurance of a profitable outcome.

Advances and Discoveries in crop nutrition and health are being made all the time – particularly in the chelated forms of micronutrients, resulting in a much higher efficiency of plant uptake and utilization. This means using less to produce more. A fairly recent discovery is foliarly-applied water-soluble silicon. Si stiffens and hardens cell walls, thereby discouraging piercing and gnawing insects and resist disease – and lodging. Si forms a very thin hard layer that resists nematodes and soil pathogens on roots. A very recent tool is nanoparticles that encapsulates the inputs you already use into tiny nanoparticles that glide through foliar and root barriers, thereby improving efficiency and speed of uptake and reducing the energy required by the plant to get nutrients into its cells.

Bio-Stimulants – There is more to crop health and nutrition than just chemistry. These game-changers include organic acids, growth hormones and biological inoculants that can dramatically improve crop performance, nutrient uptake efficiency and resistance to disease and insects - thus reducing or eliminating entirely the need for costly pesticides and fungicides. Encourage the plants, microbes and other soil life to do much of the heavy lifting!

Already Existing Soil Nutrients – Particularly in calcareous

soils, many of the metal nutrients exist as carbonate and bicarbonate chemical compounds often in abundance – all very insoluble and therefore unavailable to plants. The standard soil treatment is sulfur but the latest method also includes the use of bio-stimulants. These break the chemical bond by chelating the nutrients into bioavailable forms. Humic/Fulvic Acids, Amino Acids, Enzymes and beneficial soil bacteria from additions of soil inoculants all play a vital role to access this nutrient pool. Additions of these bio-stimulants to your existing fertility program can increase your fertilizer efficiency by more than 20% in most cases, allowing you to cut back on fertilizer in times of high cost and limited availability, and have long-term cumulative benefits.

Water Quality Test – Irrigating with hard or salty water can have dramatic impacts on soil chemistry and structure, because What’s In Your Water Becomes Part Of Your Soil ®. As aquifer levels fall, natural dissolved minerals become more concentrated. There are several methods to remediate soil. Using hard water for the spray mix can change the chemistries of spray agents to the extent of making them ineffective and possibly damaging plants. Appropriate water treatment is needed to offset or remediate these problems.

Regenerative Agriculture – Planning beyond this year to reduce costs and increase crop performance by regenerating soil structure and health/life, thereby increasing long-term nutrient availability and carbon sequestration, reducing future costs and resources. Reduction of soil disturbance and continuous vegetation cover on soil as much as possible increases the amount of diversity of organic residues to maximize nutrient and water use efficiency by plants. Restoring overall microbial life is essential to soil/plant health and biodiversity. This sustainable approach is a long road to travel but it must be initiated if farmers want to be successful over prolonged challenging times.

Bottom Line – Maintaining balanced nutrition and vigorous soil life at every stage of your plants’ life cycle will ensure that no matter what challenge Mother Nature sends, your crops will have the best chance of making you money. Soil, Water and Sap Testing is one of the best investments a grower can make, especially during these times of uncertainty with exorbitant fertilizer prices so you can apply only what your crop needs, where it needs it and when it needs it!

Don’t guess and hope for the best!

Restock The Hay Pile Or Raise $13 Soybeans? Why Not Both?

The dry summer and fall of last year and the bitter cold this winter have combined to make hay a valuable commodity. This has made many consider putting cropland to a temporary hay crop, such as sorghum-sudangrass or teff. At the same time, the explosion in China soybean purchases has made raising soybeans a very attractive proposition as well. It is nice for a change to be faced with actual profitable choices! But when faced with two attractive choices, why not choose both?

One thing the cover crop movement has taught us is that growing crops in rapid sequence does not exhaust soil, rather

it feeds the soil microbes that increase soil productivity. It is entirely possible to plant a crop of oats, peas or spring triticale (or a mix of all three) in March and have a hay crop made by May, in plenty of time to plant soybeans. Not only can the hay crop make as much revenue as we typically expect from a bean crop alone but growing the hay can create a nice stubble to control soil erosion and improve water infiltration and rooting depth and may offer weed control benefits as well. Spring triticale is an unfamiliar crop to a lot of people, but it is a real rising star in the forage and cover crop world. A cross between rye and spring wheat, it has hybrid vigor compared to either parent.

Compared to spring oats, it can yield much higher, and is more competitive against weeds. The quality drops after heading relative to oats, but most people prefer to bale in boot stage to leave as much growing season for the following crop as they can. Peas add both additional yield and additional protein to the mix. Or maybe you would prefer to focus on hay and forgo the beans altogether. In that case, why not grow two hay crops rather than one? You can raise the oat/pea/spring triticale, then follow with a summer forage crop as well. For maximum tonnage you could try a crop of dry stalk sorghum-sudangrass, which offers the high yield of sorghumsudan in a faster drying package.

Alternately, teff grass offers a very rapid drying hay option, while cowpeas or mung beans offer high protein options.

Can’t make up your mind? Plan all of them in combination to hedge your bets. If your pastures are beat up after last summer’s drought, you could pasture this crop in late summer and give your perennial pastures a much-needed chance to restore vigor and grow deeper roots to weather the next drought. And, if spending all summer baling hay and spending all winter feeding hay sounds less than appealing to you, how about planting a crop that can be stockpiled and grazed without all that work, such as a crop of brown midrib sterile sorghum, with some companion crops for added protein and energy? Many people are using this very economical means of wintering livestock now with great success. In the fall, you can add yet another forage crop, drilled right into the living stubble of the summer mix as soon as it is hayed or grazed off in late summer. At first glance, this seems to doom the new seedlings to certain failure, as they are competing with the regrowth of the established summer crop for moisture and light. But it doesn’t work that way. The transpiration of moisture from the regrowth of the summer crop cools the soil, dropping the temperature as much as 30 degrees relative to the air temperature. The coolseason seedlings need only 10% of the moisture at 80 degrees as they do at 100 degrees, so

drilling a cool-season pasture mix of oats, triticale, rye, ryegrass, turnips, radishes and peas right into unkilled stubble of a summer annual mix can actually increase the survival of the seedlings. After a hard freeze has killed and thoroughly dried the summer plants, they can be grazed off right along with the green growth of the cool-season mix, saving on winter hay needs and providing much higher quality nutrition than hay. Besides, you also save the cost of termination! Best of all, the growing of crops in rapid succession provides those vital soil microbes a continual flow of nutritious root exudates for improving soil structure and water-holding capacity for better crops in the future.

Every operation is different. That is why we specialize in custom cover crop blends and forage mixes for every need. With over 120 different species and shipping nationwide, our team of soil health experts is ready to design a cover crop mix that meets your goals.

(402) 469-6784

greencoverseed.com

Permanent Foundations

Progressive builders are meeting the growing demands of consumers by offering a range of foundation solutions.

Since 2004, Midwest Perma-Column® has been leading the way with a permanent foundation system combining the durability of precast concrete with the value of post-frame construction. The Perma-Column® solution is a patented design that elevates wood out of the ground via a steel bracket atop a precast foundation pier.

Recognizing that wood columns in the ground have limitations, savvy consumers are driving market demand for permanent solutions. Consumers want their investment and their structure to be long-lasting.

Perma-Column® offers many advantages for consumers. Guaranteed to last for generations, Perma-Column® protects a homeowner’s investment for years to come. It provides the strength of concrete without the expense of a continuous-pour concrete foundation. It eliminates the cost of repairing or replacing damaged wood in the future. Chemically treated wood can contaminate soil; Perma-Column® precast columns are environmentally friendly, containing no toxic chemicals.

The precast columns are three times

stronger than concrete and install easily using existing construction methods. In addition, comparativestrength testing at the University of Wisconsin and Purdue University found they outperformed industrystandard wood columns.

The Perma-Column family of postframe products includes Sturdi-Wall

anchor brackets for new construction, repairs and renovations. And for deck construction, Perma-Column precast deck posts use the same groundbreaking design as the postframe foundation system.

For more information call 800-798-5562 or visit our website at www.midwestpermacolumn.com

One Call of Wyoming

One Call of Wyoming is a nonprofit organization that administers the 811 notification center within the state of Wyoming. Any entity within the state that owns/operates any underground facilities shall, by statute, register their location and contact information with the notification center, there are few exceptions to this requirement. If a person is involved in any activity in which earth, rock or other materials on or below the ground is moved or otherwise displaced by means of hand or power tools, power equipment, explosives or other means, and includes grading, trenching, digging, ditching, auguring, tunneling, boring, plowing in, pulling in, ripping, scraping and pipe installing, EXCEPT TILLING OF SOIL AND GARDENING OR AGRICULTURAL PURPOSES. They must call the notification center by dialing 811 in Wyoming or from out of state dial 1-800-849-2476 at least 2 full business days, and not more than 14 full business days, prior to beginning their excavation.

Once the notification center (811) has been contacted, the center will send out notifications to our member, operators/ owners, to let them know of your intended excavation activity near their underground facilities within the next 2 to 14 business days. The members must respond to the excavator within the 2 full business days and either clear the described dig area or mark their facilities within the described dig area in some fashion within 2 feet of the actual facility location.

PLEASE, for your safety and for the safety of the general public, and the protection of our vital underground infrastructure. Submit your request online at www.onecallofwyoming.com or dial 811 from within Wyoming, or if calling from out of state please dial 1-800-849-2476 at least 2 full business days prior to beginning, ANY excavation activity.

Submitted by One-Call of Wyoming’s Administration Office

Locate Number 1-800-849-2476

Moen’s Mouse-Mix... Keeping it “All in the Family”

Mouse-Mix pest deterrent was created by Tim Moen’s mother in West Fargo, ND about twenty years ago. Tim grew up with his parents dragging him and his older sister to art and craft shows and festivals since Tim was three. “My mother was always into crafts. She did candle making and macrame in the 70’s, silk flower arrangements in the 80’s”. Tim’s mom was tending a large garden and making her own potpourri when she also created and began selling Mouse-Mix with the potpourri. “I initially teased Mom about her Mouse-Mix creation telling her it was snake oil and didn’t work and that she should stick to her potpourri. Then one night,

my wife came upstairs from our basement laundry room saying she had just seen a mouse run under the dryer”. This started a two-week war waged against the mice for Tim. “ I was trapping sometimes three mice a night and my wife wouldn’t even go downstairs to do laundry until I checked our trap line.” Tim tried finding and plugging any tiny hole in the foundation with steel wool and calking to no avail…the mice just kept getting into the basement and were also pooping and peeing all over Tim’s workbench and shelves in the garage.

“My parents were coming to our home in the Twin Cities area from North Dakota to do one

of Mom’s craft shows. I told her to “bring me some of that mouse junk you’re peddling.”

I put it out generously in the basement and garage and to my pleasant surprise, we were mouse-free in about two days. The stuff works!

Sadly Tim’s mom, Carol was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and had to quit the art and craft festivals she had loved doing for nearly fifty years. Tim was a high school Art teacher for nearly twenty years. He knew Mouse-Mix could be huge and didn’t want to see it go away like Mom’s potpourri. Tim drew the logo and designed packaging and now it is more than a fulltime job to bring Mouse-Mix to homeowners, gardeners, farmers, camper, cabin and boat owners. “There are many types of customers we help and we have three different products with different strength levels working on mice, rats, bats, squirrels, deer, rabbits, moles & voles plus more. We also donate a large amount of our income to the Alzheimer’s Association in Mom’s name and are very proud of her legacy and Mouse-Mix. I love doing the trade shows, art & craft festivals, and talking to the customers one-on-one because in this world, you either have mice or you know someone battling mice”!

EQUIPMENT

Image by Franz Bachinger

Stainless Steel Air Seeder Parts

The solution to your corrosion problems!

Romafa Metal Works realized the enormity of the problem that exists of the many corroding air seeder parts and farmers’ and ranchers’ desperate needs for a solution. Romafa, through careful planning, designing, and testing, developed stainless steel replacement air seeder parts for multiple brands of air seeders.

Romafa Metal Works found by using stainless steel for the replacement part those parts are stronger and more durable. The parts can handle a lot more stress before showing signs of wear and tear. Plus in addition to being more rust resistant, the replacement parts are also more resistant to staining, and – well, let’s face it – they look better too.

You no longer need throw money at a relatively temporary solution only to see it rust away almost before your eyes. Instead, replacing your corroded air seeder parts with Romafa’s parts made of stainless steel will be a lasting improvement and solution.

cattle ranching community.

Ronald, with his experience with designing and prototypes in the metalwork industry, also offered these skills to fill the needs of his customers and help bring their ideas to fruition.

Romafa (from the first two letters each of ROnald, MArcela, and FAmily) Metal Works very quickly became known as a productive and venturesome business.

HOW IT STARTED - Back in 2012 Ronald Kornelsen left his job as a designer and started a small family business with his wife, Marcela, and their family, doing welding, machining, and repair work for the local agricultural and

Soon local as well as distant customers came to them to have their machinery repaired and/ or improved. New ideas were offered, designed, built, and tested.

For Romafa, this created many opportunities for growth as a business, and with the help and expertise of their innovative employees, they have grown to be a business with many different products and projects.

For more information on our stainless steel air seeder parts, our light weight yet durable boom for ditch sprayer trucks, our alfalfa seed sieves for combines (reduces the curls among your alfalfa seed by at least 50 per cent), or if you have a project of your own you need help with, visit our website at www.Romafa.com , or call Jim Kinnaman at 204-364-2244

Rawhide Portable Corral Serving American Ranchers for 20 Years

Abilene, KS: Twenty years ago John McDonald and his family relocated to Abilene, Kansas to fulfill his dream of designing a portable corral that would be easier than the other system on the market. After working with multiple prototypes and cattle producers in the local area; John finally introduced his original Rawhide Portable Corral design to the public at a farm show in Kansas. It could be set up by one person without any lifting and it could be done quickly; yet it could also be pulled down the road at highway speeds, ensuring that no time would be wasted while catching cattle. It was everything he wanted it to be.

Over the years he made changes to the system;

some at the request of customers and others just so that it would work better for the producers. The best change he will tell you is the electric over hydraulic lift for every jack on the system. John’s design was the first portable corral on the market to offer the hydraulic lift option which is still in use today.

The Rawhide Processor, which is a portable corral with a permanent alley that offers a manual adjustment and options, is the number one seller and customers are happy to sing their praises. It is with that idea in mind John decided to turn 2022 into a celebration.

All existing customers are were contacted by Rawhide by mail and informed of their chance

•

•

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to win a brand new Processor. To enter into this drawing Rawhide asked customers to share video and pictures of their corral to the Rawhide social media accounts, which are on Facebook and Instagram. “Not only will this help us show potential customers how the corral works but it will showcase our corral’s durability and ease of use.” said John.

The winner was be announced at the 20th Anniversary Open House in Abilene, KS on June 4th where the McDonald Family and employees celebrated their milestone with customers, family, vendors and local supporters. The Nolte Family out of Minnesota were the lucky winners; their video was showcased on the Rawhide Portable Corral website and on social media channels.

Anyone interested in a Rawhide Portable Corral can visit them at a farm show throughout the country, their schedule is posted on their website. Rawhide Portable Corral, Inc is proud to have corrals in fortythree (43) states and three countries which is a true showing of how these units work in a multitude of terrains. Over the last few years they have worked with a couple of dealers to help get their corrals to other parts of the United States. At this time there are dealers in south Texas and Virginia.

For more information about Rawhide Portable Corral’s and to view product videos visit the Rawhide website: www.rawhideportablecorral.com or find them on Facebook. Phone # 785-263-3436 .

325-4055

jbd@mts.net

Manchester Manufacturing Company

Manchester Manufacturing Company has been engineering grain harvesting innovations since 1919. Force Feed Feeder Chains, Hillside Raddles, Plastic Inserts, and Weed Wipers are available. We can help your grain feeding problem. Available for ALL combines. If your combine won’t feed at the auger, especially in short, weedy or tangled crops, it’s because it isn’t feeding at the cylinder. We solved the problem by designing a slat with a flap on it. Each slat on our Force Feed Feeder Chain works like a beater to feed material into the cylinder. Our Hillside Raddle holds grain while harvesting on a hillside. The Hillside Raddle has patented lugs attached to the steel slats. These lugs prevent grain from sliding to the downhill side of the raddle pan before it reaches the chaffer, thus preventing overloading of the lower side of the chaffer sieve and cleaning shoe. We can replace your wooden slat raddles with steel slat raddles on all Gleaners built before 1971. The Plastic Inserts convert the Force Feed Feeder Chain to an all-purpose chain to harvest all crops. They are ideal for grain stripping headers, handling only the grain and not the stalk and straw. They prevent wear on the feeder house floor, splitting, cracking, crushing of grain. The Manchester Weed Wiper is the perfect solution for eliminating nuisance weeds from your crops. It works excellent on rye, weeds, Johnson grass, or any growth above your crop to be harvested. Available in a front mount boom system.

Celebrating 103 Years

Manufacturing the following products:

• Force Feed Feeder Chains*

• Grain Raddles*

*Available For All Combines

• Weed Wiper Front Mount Boom Systems

• Custom Built Trailers

For more info please call: 580-694-2292

Manchester Manufacturing Co.

1647 Main St.

• PO Box 36

• Manchester, OK 73758-0036

www.manchestermfg.com

Even When Planting Conditions Aren’t Perfect... Your Planting Depth Still Can Be.

Every good farmer knows that uniform emergence is crucial to getting high yields. One critical part of uniform emergence is getting consistent planting depth. There are a lot of planter designs, popular methods and attachments, all aimed at getting seeds uniformly placed at the bottom of the seed furrow–but the truth is that planting depth all starts at the depth gauge wheel. The wheels need to contact the ground and they need to be ROUND! That sounds pretty simple, but in actual practice there are conditions in almost every field which make that difficult –at least some of the time. In a perfect world, soil at planting time would be sufficiently dry and friable to the extent that it didn’t cling to planter parts. Often, this is the case on 90% of a field, but the other 10% of the field is a little sticky. Sometimes the surface is dry, but the soil below clings to openers or coulters, which bring out lumps of the damp soil or mud which then cling to the depth gauge wheels. Result: lumpy, out-of-round depth gauge wheels cause uneven planting depth and bouncing of the row unit itself. And soil carried on the gauge wheels affects the acres far beyond where the problem starts, such that uneven planting depth occurs even in areas of the field where soil conditions are ideal.

most gauge wheel scrapers just trade one problem for another. Because the blade does not touch the tire, in ideal conditions the Furrow Brow does nothing. It is just there. It doesn’t rub the tire or wear on the tire. Because the blade is in a static position relative to the wheel, each time the planter is raised, the movement of the tire down and to the rear dislodges any mud or debris which has accumulated behind the blade... and you start with a clean blade on the next planter pass. And because the blade is perpendicular to the wheel, there is little chance of material “hairpinning” over the blade and stopping the wheel.

How “Furrow Brow” came about America’s farmers are the world’s most prolific innovators. From the steel plow to precision farming, the continuous drive to produce more with less has driven an unrelenting stream of agricultural innovation.

Introducing Furrow Brow–a simple, inexpensive, and durable solution to build-up on planter depth gauge wheels

Furrow Brow is not a scraper, as it never actually touches the gauge wheel. Nor does it need adjustment. Properly installed, it is placed directly between the pivot arm bolt and the wheel and centered within the range of motion of the wheel, such that its distance from the wheel is consistent no matter where the wheel is within that range of motion. It will not remove every speck of dirt from the wheel on every rotation, but it will “knock off” any lumps large enough to seriously affect planting depth. In ideal soil conditions –it does nothing. Isn’t that what you want it to do?

How the product works–the secret of Furrow Brow success:

What makes Furrow Brow different from all other gauge wheel scrapers, blades, and cleaners that you might find on the market is that Furrow Brow is the only one in which the blade doesn’t touch the gauge wheel tire, and the only one in which the blade is in a static position and does not travel with the wheel. These features are why Furrow Brow actually solves a problem when

The Furrow Brow gauge wheel blade (so named for its similarity to an eye brow) is just one more piece in a long line of planter innovations. Born out of need in the wet spring of 2007, the first Furrow Brows were a straight, flat blade welded in a T formation to a connection tab and fastened to the pivot bolt on each depth gauge wheel arm of a single John Deere planter. Simple but effective, they allowed for consistent planting depth through and around the wet spots that dominated fields on our Iowa farm that spring.

So effective, they were, that they went almost unnoticed, riding around on the planter for seven more years. They were working, of course, but the problem that they had solved on so many acres in 2007 went relatively unnoticed in the springs that followed because they just worked so well.

In 2015, a newer and larger planter was placed in service on our farm. A single season of planting without Furrow Brows was all it took to convince me that a new set needed to be produced for my planter. This led to the 2016 development of the current tire-contoured blade and the subsequent patent application and commercialization of this unique product.

Furrow Brow, LLC was created to produce and market this new innovation while I (the inventor) enjoy being primarily engaged in production agriculture. After all... where would agriculture be, where would America be, and what would we all be eating if John Deere had made only one steel plow?

LIVESTOCK

Image by David Mark

Feed The Cow & Protect The Calf

Each new season brings new challenges, including dealing with scours of all kinds. In the US each year billions of dollars are lost due to illness and death from scours. The impact this has on small and large operations is priceless when time and energy are also factored into the financial loss. Imogene Ingredients and our product, Farmatan, can help prevent scours in all livestock at a measurable rate.

A 1,760 head Cow/Calf operation in South Dakota lost 174 calves to scours in 2019. They added Farmatan to their cow’s mineral program and lost 2 calves in 2020. They had similar scours in 2021.

In a 225 head Angus herd in South Dakota they have been using Farmatan in their mineral for 4 years consistently. In 2017 they treated 110 calves for Cryptosporidium scours with 25 lost; 2018 treated 6 with none lost; 2019 treated 6 with none lost; 2020 and 2021 also brought no loss to scours.

Farmatan is comprised of a complex group of natural compounds with antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. Farmatan works to develop lower gut wall integrity by improving tight junctions between cell walls. Farmatan contains naturally occurring organic acids that help to support immune function in the GI tract; preventing leaky gut and providing immune support to help prevent and reduce the severity of calf scours.

Farmatan works for various target species: cow/calf, dairy, poultry, swine, and goats.

There are many options for prevention using Farmatan products – young animal paste, mineral, calf creep, milk replacer, lick tubs, and products formulated for poultry feed.

Are you asking yourself why you haven’t started incorporating Farmatan? We don’t know why either. Reach out, let’s talk about what we can do to help eliminate scours for your operation. We can be reached at www.farmatanusa.com.

Spring Rock Farm gets its name from its location, between the towns of Springfield and Rockingham, Vermont. “The farm is about 2 miles down the road from where I went to high school in Springfield,” says Sheila Patinkin. “It’s on top of a hill, located in a national historic district. Many of the houses were built in the late 1700’s. This area was settled very early; this farm is more than 200 years old. When I found it, this place was run down and hadn’t been farmed for about 60 years.”

She bought it partly as a place to retire, after working as a pediatrician in Chicago. “My family still lives in this area and I thought it would be nice to retire here. I fell in love with this farm the moment I saw it,” says Sheila.

The farm had hayfields and she needed to decide whether to renovate them for growing hay, or put animals on them.

“I was traveling out west in Montana that summer, in 2007, with my daughter, and visited a cousin who raises Angus and Wagyu. He said that if I was thinking of getting cattle, he suggested that Wagyu might be a nice option. He introduced me to some Wagyu hamburger, and I was hooked,” she says.

“My daughter and I came home and tried to figure out how to find some Wagyu. We found embryos for sale, but no live animals at that time. We ended up buying 20 embryos and put them into surrogate cows—some Angus and whatever we could find. This resulted in 10 calves born in 2008,” she says.

The embryos came from Crescent Harbor in Washington state, and Sutton Creek in Oregon. The present herd at Spring Rock Farm basically grew from those 10 original calves. “We now have over 150 head of full-blood Wagyu on the farm and 30 surrogate cows. Our goal is to phase out of the embryo production once we get our herd size up to where we want it; doing the embryo work is very time-consuming,” Sheila says.

Spring Rock Farm sells meat to customers in New England and New York City. “Our main buyer, from the beginning, has been Gramercy Tavern in New York City and we love working with them. The chef, Mike Anthony, is well known; he is one of the winners of the James Beard Best in Manhattan Chef’s Award 2 years ago,” she says.

When she had her first steer to harvest, she called Mike Anthony and met with him. At that point in time she had never seen her meat yet, never sold any meat, but had a steer to bring to market in a month and wanted to ask Chef Anthony if he was interested. “My stomach was all butterflies because I didn’t know where I was going to sell my meat. I walked into Gramercy and he granted me 10 minutes of his time— and 45 minutes later he told me he would take half of the animal,” Sheila recalls.

“He took the meat, and ever since then Gramercy Tavern has taken some of nearly every animal ready to market. We are now up to 60 cow-calf pairs, with a goal of increasing the herd to around 75 to 100 pairs. We want to stay small, but even this number is a big herd these days, for fullblood Wagyu,” she explains.

“We don’t have any purebreds and we don’t have any F1s. I think the name of the game with Wagyu is genetics and trying to

“This has been happening; local farmers and neighbors have seen what we are doing and fallen in love with our project. The next thing we knew, they were calling us up and telling us they’d like to have some Wagyu on their farm.”

Spring-Rock Farm

produce the best meat in the world. To understand the meat, you have to understand the genetics,” she says.

Their breeding program has come a long way in a short time, but she wishes they could have done it even faster. “This is our goal on the farm, to keep on a schedule and stay the course and make it happen. Our biggest problem now is that we’ve outgrown our boundaries and are constantly trying to find new lease land around town. This has been happening; local farmers and neighbors have seen what we are doing and fallen in love with our project. The next thing we knew, they were calling us up and telling us they’d like to have some Wagyu on their farm. Being able to lease more land in our area enabled us to grow,” Sheila says.

“We have a great team that loves to learn. They are

constantly pushing themselves in terms of the latest agricultural practices here in Vermont. We work closely with the University of Vermont’s Sustainable Ag Department and push ourselves that way, as well. We think of ourselves as progressive beef farmers, not just Wagyu breeders—with a goal of consistently maintaining some of the best meat in the world.”

Sheila grew up in Springfield, Vermont. She went to college and spent a year in Sweden, studying. “The family that I stayed with, the father was a veterinarian. I think he inspired me to love farm animals and medicine. I ended up being a pediatrician but always loved animals,” she says.

When she left Chicago after her medical career and bought this farm, she was still working part-time in Chicago and travelled back and forth—with a goal of eventually retiring here. “As the farm grew, and my interest was mainly here, it pushed my retirement date closer because I wanted to be at the farm. I just love waking up here every morning and walking outside among the herd, seeing who is new that morning and who is doing well—and taking care of any that are not doing well,” says Sheila.

This has become a passion. There is something innate in most of us, feeling at home with animals and being happy and content working with them. Living on the farm has been a delight for Sheila.

She has four children, three grandchildren and another

one on the way. “Two of my children (and one grandchild) live in New York City. Another lives in Chicago and the other in Portland, Oregon. They are spread out, and when we got the farm I think one of the reasons they liked the idea so much was that they knew I’d be happy here—feeling comfortable in this part of the world and being near my own siblings. I am one of five, and my siblings are nearby. My kids like to come here; they like the farm house because it’s big enough for all of them to spread out in if they are here all at once,” she says.

The family felt very torn apart with the loss of her husband 10 years ago. So when she purchased the farm 8 years ago, her family thought it was a nice change from Chicago. “The goal was to gradually ease back into Vermont and away from Chicago, with the thought that this would be a great retiring place, and it just sped up a bit as the farm grew,” she explains. “I retired my pediatric license last year and became a fulltime

“We live in essentially a northern rain forest here, with green forage 5 months of the year. The protein level in our grasses and hay is pretty high. This helps with the diet and the cows end up with a very good nutritional content that is not grain fed.”

“I retired my pediatric license last year and became a fulltime farmer. I still practice medicine with my animals! I think my background as a doctor helps with understanding both the genetics and the medicine behind a lot of the health care. My background in pediatrics in my research was genetics. I spent a lot of time working with the genetics of autistic children. My background in genetics helps in the cattle breeding, to understand the chromosomal issues,” explains Sheila.

The nutrition program for the finishing cattle is primarily forage—mainly grass fed with a grain supplement. “Their diets are about 30 to 40% grain supplemented, on a dry matter basis, with a little protein. The rest is all grass or hay. We consistently produce meat that is well beyond prime in terms of marbling. We are able to raise a highly marbled animal with this nutritional level,” she says.

“We live in essentially a northern rain forest here, with

green forage 5 months of the year. The protein level in our grasses and hay is pretty high. This helps with the diet and the cows end up with a very good nutritional content that is not grain fed. This helps give us a well-marbled animal without being in the toxic range of a feedlot grain-based diet. We have the best of both worlds, and never have to worry about drought,” says Sheila.

There is a lot of water on the farm, with a brook that runs through the basement of the house. “We had a very rainy summer and at the moment I am trying to figure out how to get my basement less moldy!”

The cow herd calves almost year-round, in order to have animals maturing for harvest at different times of year. “We can calve safely outside from about May 1 until November 1. The other 6 months are generally too cold, but we are in the process of putting up a warmer barn that will allow us to calve year-round. Right now we use a 1790’s barn that we’ve refurbished, but it’s not heated. We are able to calve in it during March and in November, but not during the colder months. We can’t calve during December, January

and February because it gets down to minus 35 degrees. I don’t think the Wagyu are hardy enough. There are a lot of Highlanders here in Vermont and they do well here, but the Wagyu calves are not quite as hardy for the first 48 hours of life,” says Sheila.

None of the cows are ever grain fed. They are on grass, and hay in winter. “Our biggest problem with our cows is obesity. It’s difficult to get an obese cow pregnant if you are trying to do AI or embryo transfer work. Our cows do very well on grass, and even if we run out of grass and put them on hay, they stay fat; the nutritional value of the hay is high enough to keep them fat. We try to put our fattest cows in our worst pastures, but they still stay fat,” she says.

“We would like to be able to calve year round, with maybe just a 3 month break. This would help with our marketing, if we could have meat for sale throughout the year. That’s our goal but right now we are a little shy of that because we don’t have enough stalls in the old barn to make it work, even using

calf coats for the baby calves. This is why we want to build a new barn with indoor heating and enough stalls to have 6 cows at a time calving. We just need enough space to have the pregnant cows—the ones that are about to give birth— inside during those cold times, and for about 2 to 3 weeks after they’ve calved,” Sheila says.

There is always something new on the farm, always evolving into the next step, in terms of what the needs are, and how to get the farm to run more productively and efficiently, using the natural resources. “We practice rotational grazing; this is very important here in Vermont where we have so much grass, because if we can manage it well, we get even more grass, on less land.”

Land costs are relatively high and there’s not a lot of agricultural land available where they are. “There’s not enough of it conveniently located for us, to make a farm work well. It’s all hills, and rocks. There are lots of walls in Vermont! It’s just a matter of finding enough of it, near us.”

There is increasing interest in Wagyu cattle, and Wagyu meat, so this is a great time to be raising these

SPRING-ROCK FARM

A Vermont Specialty

wonderful cattle. “Every calf born here has a name. Every year we pick a theme for the year, and have a little name game going on here at the farm. The name of the calf has to have something to do with the mother—either the surrogate mother or the real mother, to keep the calf connected with the mother,” says Sheila.

“There are two criteria when naming the calves. One is that the name has to match the mother in some way, and the other is that it has to do with the theme for the year. For instance, this year it was Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. So we have a Gandolf, and Harry, a Frodo, Merry, Sauros, Hagrid, Ring, Precious, etc.

Many of the calves’ photos (and names) are featured on the website, which is www.vermontwagyu.com along with photos of dogs, cats and bunnies. “We have a bunny named Jack who is not our rabbit. He is a domestic rabbit who made his way here from a farm half a mile down the road. He wouldn’t let me catch him, but he wanted to live with my chickens. When he couldn’t get in with the chickens, he found the cows. Ever since then he has not left the cows. He lies on top of the calves and sleeps there when they are lying down, and he rubs noses with the cows,” she says.

“We finally figured out where he came from, and took him back there 3 times—and he kept coming back here. The third time I finally decided that if a rabbit is going to make its way half a mile down the road through the woods to come here, I guess he deserves to stay here. He is caught right now and lives in a pen, but is right next door to the cattle and can give them kisses every day.”

Living on the farm raising Wagyu is a delight, and a way of life that brings great contentment. Sheila also thoroughly enjoys being able to market a product that gives customers such wonderful eating pleasure.

Beefmaster Heterosis Can Impact Any Herd

Beefmaster is a beef breed developed in America that improves beef quality and production efficiency when crossed with any other cattle breed for commercial beef production. The breed originated in Southern Texas in the late 1800’s into the early 1900’s. The Lasater family originally developed a large herd of Hereford cattle carefully selected to withstand the heat and insects of the Texas Gulf Coast region, but they were still not perfectly suited to that difficult environment. So Lasater began to experiment with incorporating Bos indicus or Zebu genetics, in the form of Gyr and Guzerat bulls from India and Nelore from Brazil. While the practice of crossbreeding was virtually unheard of at the time, they immediately saw a tremendous jump in productive traits, such as weight gain and reproductive rates. This is genetic advantage known as heterosis or hybrid vigor.

By the early 1930’s, the ranch also incorporated Milking Shorthorn genetics, to augment milk production and carcass quality. They could immediately see that the three-way hybrid was far superior to the two-way crosses. The final composite ended up at roughly 50% Bos indicus and 50% Bos taurus (25% Hereford and 25% Shorthorn).

As Lasater developed the breed, he also formed a unique selection philosophy known today as The Lasater Philosophy. The concept is to only select cattle for economically relevant traits, which he distilled to these Six Essential traits. It is the only breed in history to be selected only using pressure for productive traits, as opposed to aesthetics.

In 1937, the herd was closed to outside genetics with continued internal development to cull low-performers and upgrade all traits together equally. By 1954 the foundation herd was recognized by USDA under the name of Beefmaster.

The breed has rapidly grown around the world and has become known as the prime maternal cow for serious commercial cattlemen that appreciate their production

excellence, particularly in harsh desert or tropical environments. The breed has excelled across most regions of the United States and is the leading breed of choice for commercial cattlemen in Mexico, South Africa, Thailand, Panama, Columbia and several other Latin American regions. With global demand for higher-quality beef growing geometrically, Beefmasters provide the perfect breed to cross on commercial cattle to improve production efficiency and carcass quality, while not sacrificing adaptability.

Commercial cattlemen have noted substantial economic gains from using Beefmasters to provide an average increase of 60 lbs., or more at weaning when compared with other breeds. They excel post-weaning as well, with faster weight gains, excellent feed conversion and carcass yields around 64%.

In a time when sustainability is becoming increasingly critical, Beefmasters have repeatedly demonstrated that they are highly efficient converters of both forage and feeds into lean, tender, high-quality beef. A recent study at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Meat Animal Research Center (MARC) demonstrated Beefmasters dominance when compared to 18 of the most widely used beef breeds in the United States.

Beefmaster Breeders United (BBU) is headquartered in Boerne, Texas. Beefmaster ranks fifth in the U.S. in terms of membership and is the largest of the American breeds. The association has over 3,000 members registering around 19,000 calves annually.

Beefmasters also enjoy a rapidly growing international footprint, with established associations in eight countries worldwide. These innovative cattlemen have seen the tremendous strengths Beefmasters bring to their own genetic improvement programs. For more information about what Beefmasters can do for your operation, please visit us www.beefmasters.org

BEEFMASTERS.ORG

Solving Year-Round Livestock Watering Issues…

With A Maintenance-Free, Low-Cost System

How to solve this issue? One solution is the Frostfree Nosepump. Now on the market for over 20 years, they are proving to be reliable and simple, and providing good health and performance results with cattle. There are some basic questions that producers have.

Will this work for a large herd? Multiple units can be put on a single casing. One unit per 100 head. This ratio works well.

Will my cattle learn this? They will. The producer provides the opportunity. The cattle teach themselves to pump their own water.

(water level at rest in a well) is within 20 feet, calves learn to pump beside the cow... the best place for them to learn. Alternately, during the summer months, a creep waterer can be attached to the Nosepump unit to supplement calves. The cows pump the water into the creep waterer for the calves.

Will this work in very cold weather? It will. The manufacturer provides information on proper installation, and if followed, the pump operates even when it’s 50° below zero, without heat or power.

What about calves? If the lift from static water level

What about maintenance? There is next to no maintenance required. When it is very cold (- 15° F or colder) it may be necessary to remove ice built up on the unit from splashing, but there is no need of daily monitoring any other time of the year.

You’re a grazier, and you need water for your livestock. Power year-round and heat in winter are often issues in the pasture. You don’t want to be checking your watering system constantly to make sure it is operational. You don’t want to be hauling water – what a time drain!

The Frostfree Nosepump addresses all of these issues. No power is required – the cattle do the work of pumping. No heat is required – the heat comes from the ground. It is very reliable so doesn’t require constant supervision. This down-hole, piston pump installed on a large diameter culvert, deep in the ground with insulation inside and around the culvert, is saving many cattle producers money (with very little maintenance required and no ongoing costs), and time. Both are precious commodities in the livestock world.

The best time to install the system is the summer; the second best time is before freeze-up. The best time to familiarize the cattle with the system is also before it is cold. The window to install such a system is quickly closing for this year.

More information can be found at www.frostfreenosepumps.com or by calling toll-free 866-843-6744.

Deaton Nutrition Inc.

How Multi-Sile II Inoculant Can Save Your Money

After generations, farming is still a margins game. Profit or loss can base on a big gamble or just a little bit of bad weather. Waste is always a concern. Farmers and ranchers have done the best they can, but everyone needs help from time to time.

25 years ago, Deaton Nutrition, Inc. started out as a one-person company doing rations to improve feeding. They have expanded to include crop specific inoculants sold in 28 states and 2 countries. Every employee has either worked on or grown up on a farm. They work with everyone from hobby farms to custom operators to thousand+ cow dairies. They also have a line of custom made applicators. “We are a customer service based company. If our customers aren’t happy, then we aren’t happy.”

“As a nutritionist, I saw a growing need for high quality forage. ” We have perfected a formula that is both effective on crops and easy to apply. Treating feed and crops with a high quality inoculant is one of the best investments you can make. With an average return rate of at 6:1, this is a gamble most would say is worth taking. Returns include:

1) Better Protein Value and Palatability. With tests done with Multi-Sile II Dry Hay Inoculant vs. propionic acid, all animals preferred the feed treated with the inoculant.

2) More Silage to Feed. When using silage inoculants, as much as 15% of loss could be saved due to a more efficient ensiling process. This could mean that for every 100 acres ensiled we have an additional 1 to 2 acres of more feed.

3). Better Milk and Beef Production. Trials showed that when inoculant treated silage was fed to beef steers, it improved ADG to the equivalent of feeding an additional 2.2lbs of concentrates/cow/day.

Multi-Sile II- The one that’s Guaranteed to Improve Animal Performance.

All products are made in the USA. For more information you can call 715-273-3739 or go to www.multisile.com

Image by Donna Kirby

McClun’s Lazy JM Ranch

In a world where “Business as usual is changing almost daily—the business, and the usual,” we feel there is great value in things that never change. We would like to take pride in the fact that we continue to do business the way it used to be. We know our customers by name and do business with a handshake. Many of our customers have been with us for decades. This is not something that happens by accident. Standing behind our product and insisting on honesty and integrity is how we have made it this far. We have been selling bulls for 48 years now, and we are into the 5th generation in the family.

We demand that our bulls be useful to their buyers. They must be able to walk, not be over conditioned, be able to be handled without threat to human life, and most importantly, go breed cows. Further, we offer a warranty that is second to none. All bulls come with a first season breeding guarantee; we cover nearly everything with the exception of abuse and neglect. We believe in these bulls and in your need for a quality product. In working with customers all over the country, we offer a sight unseen purchase guarantee. If we pick out a bull for you over the phone and you are not pleased with your purchase, we will take him back home.

Please call with any inquiries. If you are not local to us, don’t let trucking be the issue. We can meet

halfway or share the cost with the buyer. We are more than happy to accommodate in any matter possible. In fact, it’s our job. Visit our website at www.McClunRanch.com for more information or call Kody at 307-575-3519 .

Combines N5, N7, L, L2, R50. 9600, 9510, 9500, 8820, 7700, 7720, 6600, 6200, 4400, 3300, 105, JD. 2188, 1680, 1480, 1460, 1420, 915, 815 IHC. 860, 760, 750, 510, 410, 300 Massey, 643 JD Cornhead parts. 653A JD row crop heads parts. We buy salvage combines. Jack Boyle Vermillion, KS 785-564-0511 • 785-294-2236