Farm Indiana | May 2017

May 2017

the greenhouse Fresh from

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Julie Hoene raises hydroponic lettuce for local markets

above: Some of the lettuce plants that grow year-round in a greenhouse at Julie’s Farm Fresh. below: Julie Hoene with freshly picked lettuce.

Farm Indiana is a monthly publication of AIM Media Indiana.

Story and photos by Marcia Walker

“Are your shoes clean?” Julie Hoene wants to know as she greets a visitor to Julie’s Farm Fresh, the family farm near Elizabethtown.

It’s a drab, gray day with periods of drizzle interspersed with more insistent rain. But inside Hoene’s greenhouse, it is comfortably warm and humid, enough to fog up a camera lens.

Welcome to her world. Hoene describes herself as a stay-at-home mom, but she spends much of her time in the greenhouse, where she grows lettuce and sometimes herbs. She uses hydroponics, a system that involves growing plants without dirt, delivering nutrients via a computer-controlled watering system.

And Hoene is serious when she asks about the cleanliness of a visitor’s shoes. Julie’s Farm Fresh is registered with the state Board of Health and Bartholomew County Board of Health; she is also a member of the Indiana Growers Association.

She adheres strictly to a food safety plan. Dirty shoes do more than track in mud and make a mess; they also could carry germs that trigger disease, a threat to the plants and consumers. So strict are the rules that Hoene follows that if a lettuce leaf falls on the washed and sanitized floor during harvesting, it will be deemed unmarketable and tossed out.

“It outlines what we do,”

Publisher Chuck Wells Editor Doug Showalter

Hoene said, explaining the safety plan. “If someone is sick, they are not allowed to be in here. … We have livestock (and wear) special clothes and shoes when we come in here.”

Hoene has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education and taught in Seymour schools for several years.

But after her second daughter was born, she decided to abandon the classroom for the greenhouse.

She comes by her green thumb naturally. Growing up, her family had a big garden; canning and freezing were part of everyday life.

Her husband, Ben, works full time at Premier Cos. but Julie’s Farm Fresh has always farmed on the side.

Julie Hoene Both Julie and Ben are Bartholomew County natives.

7899 E. Road 650S, Julie Hoene said they have Elizabethtown long had an interest in hy812-603-2744 droponics, helped along by a visit years ago to a greenhouse where tomatoes were grown hydroponically. What really tripped the trigger was when they attended a workshop several years ago.

“We started planting in December 2015,” Hoene said.

“Our first harvest was about a year ago.”

The greenhouse, essentially two layers of plastic separated by a layer of air and stretched over a hoop-like frame, is self-sustained and environmentally friendly.

About every aspect of its operation is computer-controlled.

A vent system opens automatically to let in CO2. A fan blowing air over water tumbling down an artificial wall (called a wet wall) serves as an air conditioner.

Heavy netting and a unit called an insect exclusion, essentially a fan blowing down a “curtain” of air, are intended to keep bugs out.

“Insects don’t come through that blanket of air coming down,” she explained.

Hoene grows a type of lettuce called Lollo, which has a frilly green leaf and is often used on sandwiches. She also grows a spring mix and a small amount of bibb.

Lettuce plants begin life as seeds that are (Continues on page 2)

Comments, story ideas, events and suggestions should be sent to Doug Showalter, The Republic, 2980A N. National Road, Columbus, IN 47201, call 812-379-5625 or email dshowalter@therepublic.com.

To advertise, contact Kathy Burnett at 812-379-5655 or kburnett@aimmediaindiana.com

Farm Indiana | may 2017

BRIEFS

Greenhouse

(Continued from page 1)

germinated on a heat mat.

“We are always experimenting with different varieties and types to see what grows best,” she said, adding that they have already discovered that consumers like some color in the mix.

Horne said it takes about six to seven weeks in the summer to produce a head of lettuce; in winter it takes 12 weeks, because there is less sunlight.

There are approximately eight rotations a year.

“We use all natural light, but sometimes in winter we use supplemental light, about four hours a day,” she explained.

Although a computer controls most of what is going on, it is a seven-day-aweek job and can be time-consuming. Hoene checks the greenhouse three times a day to be sure the system is working as it should. The water tank is cleaned every seven to 10 days, and water is added as needed. The system uses about 90 percent less water than traditional methods where plants are grown outside.

After harvest, trays are cleaned and sanitized.

It takes even more time to harvest the greens. The lettuce is picked early in the morning, before the heat of day sets in. It is packaged according to its destination, in bulk for restaurants and food service operations, individually if destined for a farmers market. Once harvested, lettuce is immediately stored in a walk-in cooler.

“It’s delivered within 24 hours of harvest,” she said.

Hoene has regular customers, and if she has enough produce after filling those orders, she sells at farmers markets in Columbus and Seymour. Her product can also be found at Hackman’s Farm Market.

Columbus resident Lynette Farless discovered Julie’s Farm Fresh at one of the farmers markets in Columbus and has become a big fan, impressed by both the cleanliness and freshness.

“I was drawn to the product because of the display and variety of greens,” she said. “She had lettuce in the middle of winter.

There was actually flavor to the greens, and they stayed crisp and nice for an entire week.”

Enjoying the harvest

Learn more about the hows and whys of home food preservation through a series of classes taught by Harriet Armstrong, health and human sciences educator, Purdue Extension – Bartholomew County. Freezing, canning and drying provide excellent opportunities to have food in the off-season that is preserved in a way that meets your needs. It is extremely important that it is done safely.

Classes will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. at Columbus East High School and will cover the following topics: June 1 – food safety and freezing food; June 8 – boiling water processing; June 15 – pressure canning; June 22 – pickling and drying foods; June 29 – jams and jellies.

You may choose to attend all or only selected classes.

The registration fee is $10 for each class, or $45 for the complete series, or $35 for each person if a couple is sharing materials. (Partial scholarships may be available upon request.)

Each session consists of a lecture with hands-on laboratory food preservation activities. Participants will take home some product from each lab session.

To register: 812-379-1665, or use the form online at extension.purdue.edu/Bartholomew. Registration is required one week prior to the scheduled workshop. Class size is limited. Early registration is recommended.

Purdue launches website with CFO information

WEST LAFAYETTE — Purdue University’s Department of Animal Sciences has launched a new website to serve as a portal for information about CFO standards and regulations in Indiana.

The CFO website, https://ag.purdue.edu/cfo, will provide updated information for people who are involved in CFO regulation, including county plan commission members, boards of zoning appeals and planning professionals. It also will be of interest to environmentalists, Purdue Extension educators and the public who want more information about CFOs, according to Paul Ebner, associate professor in the Department of Animal Sciences in Purdue’s College of Agriculture.

The comprehensive website includes descriptions of county and state regulations pertaining to CFOs in Indiana, tools for planners involved in CFO siting or ordinance development, and information on current issues related to CFOs. The site also contains new research conducted at Purdue that analyzes and compares CFO ordinances across all 92 Indiana counties.

4-H Family Handbook

The 2017 Bartholomew County 4-H Family Handbook is now available. This handbook includes important information for all 4-H projects and includes all rules, regulations and policies of the Bartholomew County 4-H program. A downloadable version can be found at https:// extension.purdue.edu/Bartholomew/Pages/default.aspx.

If you would like a hard copy please contact the Extension Office at 812-379-1665.

Purdue ranked eighth-best ag school

WEST LAFAYETTE — Purdue University ranked eighth out of 300 universities worldwide in agriculture and forestry in 2017, according to a study by the British educational research organization QS Intelligence Unit.

Each year, the organization ranks the best universities in the areas of arts and humanities, engineering and technology, life sciences and medicine, natural sciences, and social sciences and management. Purdue has placed in the top 10 among agricultural programs in the life sciences division every year since the project began in 2010. Wageningen University of the Netherlands took first place this year.

The annual ranking is based on academic reputation, employer reputation and research impact. Academic reputation is measured by asking professors and research faculty to identify domestic and international institutions that they consider exemplary in their areas of expertise.

For agriculture and forestry, QS Intelligence Unit surveyed more than 74,000 researchers and faculty from around the world.

— Staff Reports

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Farless also was impressed with Hoene, her friendliness and willingness to share her knowledge.

“It was interesting listening to her; she’s excited and proud about what they are doing,” Farless said. “You could tell it was a real passion.”

Although hydroponic greens are the major focus of Julie’s Farm Fresh, the Hoenes also raise beef and lamb.

“It’s all pasture raised; we do feed them grain,” Hoene said.

They have two daughters,

Above: The computerized control system maintains the proper conditions in the greenhouse. below: Hoene talks about the different varieties of lettuce she grows.

Emily, 14, and Betsy, 11. Hoene said the girls help occasionally, but it’s too early to tell if they’ll want to become more involved with the operation. It’s also too early to tell if the Hoenes will expand the operation.

“We are waiting to see where the market takes us,” Hoene said.

“We may expand depending on the market.”

The Hoenes recognize a growing interest in local food. Last year, their fledgling operation supplied lettuce for 70 lunches served to those attending the Seymour Local Food Summit. The focus of the summit was to bring together consumers, farmers, chefs and others involved in the food industry to promote locally grown foods and develop sustainable, year-round farmers markets.

“I think there is a real push for locally grown food,” she said.

“It’s very sustainable.”

And one of those doing some of the pushing is Farless, a retired teacher and a faithful supporter of farmers markets.

“It’s exciting to have farm-totable produce the entire winter,” she said.

Farm Indiana | may 2017

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Crop farmer Mike Petefish stands for a portrait alongside a planter in his barn.

(Anthony Souffle/Minneapolis Star Tribune/TNS)

2017 may be ‘tipping year’ in tightening farm economy

By Tom Meersman | Star Tribune (Minneapolis) (TNS)

MINNEAPOLIS — Mike Petefish has the planter hooked up to his tractor in his farm yard, staged next to field cultivators and semis that can haul massive fertilizer tanks and large bins with conveyor belts called seed tenders.

Crates of corn and soybean seeds are stacked floor to ceiling in the machine shed nearby.

Petefish, who farms 5,000 acres in southcentral Minnesota, is ready to plant. But mixed with excitement as a new growing season approaches is anxiety about whether he will end up in the red at the end of the year. Soybean prices have dropped by onethird since 2013, and corn prices are down by nearly half, well below the cost of production.

“People can withstand a year or two of losses, but this could be the third year in a row for some farmers,” Petefish said. “I see this as the

tipping year.”

No one is saying that farmers are headed for a repeat of the 1980s, when high interest rates, inflation and huge debt forced thousands of producers out of business.

But the tougher agriculture market and weakened farm economy of the past few years are steadily taking their toll, and cracks are beginning to show.

University of Minnesota Extension researchers reported recently that more than 30 percent of Minnesota crop and livestock producers lost money in 2016. Federal estimates show that average net farm incomes have fallen by nearly half since their peak in 2013, the largest four-year drop in 40 years.

February was the busiest month in 10 years for filings at the Farmer-Lender Mediation Program at the University of Minnesota Extension, which helps

producers work through financial roadblocks with their bankers.

“It’s clear that everybody that’s in farming is worried about this year and what’s going to happen,” said U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson of western Minnesota, the ranking Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee.

“If they have an average year and the prices keep trending down, that’s going to be a significant problem.”

Peterson said he expected serious financial difficulties would surface last winter for many farmers, but record yields in 2016 helped to offset the low crop prices and cushion the losses.

Petefish, vice president of the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association, said current corn and soybean prices are below the cost of production for probably 90 percent of producers. Those not affected, he said, are primarily growers who

own most of the land they farm and use older equipment that’s been paid off.

Tighter credit also has brought subtle changes in the real estate market, he said, with fewer farmers able or willing to purchase farmland from retiring producers. “A few years ago, every piece of land capable of producing a crop was long gone before you even heard it was available,” Petefish said. “Now there’s rental ground available and some land for sale.”

Not many farmers have been forced out of business yet, but increasing numbers of producers have needed to rebalance their debts and stretch out loan payments, said Mark Greenwood of AgStar Financial Services, which lends to growers across Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Greenwood said those in greatest jeopardy are beginning farmers who own very little land and

have not had time to build equity, and may be paying too much to rent. Also at risk are producers who spent cash for new machinery and farmland when times were good five years ago, but now have lots of short-term debt that hurts cash flow.

In times of low prices, Greenwood advises producers to trim their costs of production, take advantage of any market opportunities if they arise and use sound risk management strategies.

That may include selling corn or soybeans on the futures market when prices are barely above the cost of production, he said. “It’s a more defensive strategy, but unfortunately that might be as good as prices get, and producers need to execute so they can live to fight another day.”

The majority of farmers have been able to figure out financing for this cropping season, said

Tom Slunecka, CEO of the Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council, but it hasn’t been easy.

“Things are really getting tough out there,” he said. “If the prices for commodities stay stagnant, we’ll see a lot of farms go under next year. This year there are a few, and it’s extremely disheartening.”

To be sure, grain prices depend on several factors, including weather, yields, strength of the dollar, export markets, crop abundance in such competing countries as Brazil and Argentina, and how much surplus grain in the U.S. remains in storage from last year that still needs to be sold.

Of the factors that are within their control, many producers have restructured debt, renegotiated deals for renting land, and trimmed costs for seed, fertilizer and other expenses.

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Farm Indiana | may 2017

Lisa weisner

Spreading

wings

Federal wildlife initiatives aim to aid declining monarch butterfly population

By Jon Shoulders / Photography by Greg Jones

Perhaps you recall taking notice of big, beautiful, orange-and-black monarch butterflies in the spring and summer of your youth while camping, at baseball practice or just playing outside with neighborhood friends.

Perhaps you’ve also noticed that you don’t seem to spot these particular creatures quite as often as when you were younger.

Well, it’s not that you have a lesser eye for nature than you used to. According to officials with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, the monarch butterfly population, an important pollinator for crops and flowers, has decreased significantly during the last 10 to 20 years.

Predation, pesticides and adverse weather have all played a role, but the primary threat is the increasing scarcity of native milkweed plants, which are the only food source for monarch caterpillars and which provide chemical compounds that make the species toxic to predators.

To help re-establish the monarchs’ natural habitats, the NRCS has launched an initiative that offers financial and technical assistance for private landowners and conservation partners interested in planting milkweed as well as nectar-rich plants consumed by adult monarchs.

The initiative was launched under the umbrella of Working Lands for Wildlife, a partnership between the NRCS and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service developed in 2012 to foster conservation of wildlife on private and agricultural lands.

Last January the monarch was designated as a WLFW priority species. Others targeted by the program include the gopher tortoise, goldenwinged warbler and New England cottontail rabbit.

According to statistics provided by the conservation organization World Wide Fund for Nature, 2013 marked the lowest monarch population in 20 years.

An adult monarch typically lives for four to five weeks. Brianne Lowe, NRCS state biologist, says the multigenerational migration of the monarchs each year, starting from Mexico northward to the Midwest and Great Plains regions of the U.S. as well as Canada, necessitates a steady supply of food along the way, without which the migration process cannot be completed.

“You have multiple generations leapfrogging up to the U.S. They get to Texas and lay eggs, and then those eggs get further north a little more and then they’ll lay some eggs,” Lowe says. “Then come fall, for whatever reason, that last generation of monarchs just knows that it’s time to head to Mexico.

“So it needs stopover places on the way where it can fuel up and then hibernate down in a narrow location

in Mexico in the mountains over the winter. No adult lives very long except for that generation that heads south for the winter. It’s a really wild and natural phenomenon.”

The NRCS has made approximately $6 million available throughout the past two years through the WLFW monarch initiative in the 10 states that comprise the bulk of the butterfly’s migration path: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas and Wisconsin.

More than 30 additional USDA conservation programs have been launched to benefit insects and pollinator species, such as honeybees and monarchs, including the CP-42 Pollinator Habitat Initiative, through which landowners can receive technical assistance and annual rent payments for establishing pollinatorfriendly habitats.

Columbus resident Lisa Weisner started raising monarchs more than 25 years ago and now grows and releases hundreds each season.

“There isn’t a whole lot we can do individually to save all the species and wildlife that need help, but this is something small that I can do, and I love helping other people with it,” she says. “It’s so easy to get involved, and even if you have just a 5-by-5 plot with nectar and milkweed that will help.”

A self-taught monarch enthusiast, Weisner has slowly accumulated knowledge and expertise with each passing season — knowledge she now uses to get others interested in monarchs, including teachers and students at local schools, including Southside Elementary in Columbus.

“One of the most important things, if not the most important thing, is to not use a pesticide,” says Weisner, who recommends visiting the official USDA website for resources and tips on establishing a habitat for monarchs and other pollinator species. “Be careful where you buy the plants. Many of the big-box stores use a systemic pesticide, and it will kill your caterpillars.”

Lowe says land and farm owners of all types can help by growing milkweed on farm fields, gardens, landscaping and hedgerows. Technical assistance from NRCS representatives can include assessment of land for potential habitat areas, seed recommendations or development of a plan to establish or improve pollinator-friendly spots. Those interested in technical or financial assistance should reach out to the local NRCS office in their county.

“Local staff is going to be most familiar with the setting and landscape and be able to come out and take a look at your property and see if it’s suitable, because this doesn’t necessarily fit everyone’s situation,” Lowe says. “But it can fit a lot of situations that sometimes people overlook.”

Learn more For additional USDA program information on the monarch butterfly and other pollinator species: nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/ plantsanimals/pollinate.

For details on the USDA CP-42 Pollinator Habitat Initiative: fsa.usda. gov/programs-and-services/economic-and-policy-analysis/naturalresources-analysis/pollinators/index.

For a list of Indiana NRCS Service Centers by county: nrcs.usda.gov/wps/ portal/nrcs/main/in/contact/local.

Access monarch-related resources, including educational materials and an informational blog, at monarchwatch.org.

Farm Indiana | may 2017

calendar May 1, 8, 15 and 22 — Backyard Garden Series presented by Richard Beckort. 6 p.m. at the Jackson County Learning Center, 323 Dupont Drive, Seymour.

Free. Attend one or attend all. Sign up with the Extension Office (812-358-6101) one week before each session. Topics are: May 1 – Growing Small Fruit in the Backyard; May 8 – Plant Propagation for the Homeowner; May 15 – Growing Better Tomatoes; May 22 – Vines for the Home Landscape.

Writing leads to networking

M

May 4 — Jennings County SWCD Plant Sale Pickup Day. 3 to 7 p.m., Muscatatuck Park, 325 N. State Road 3, North Vernon.

Pick up pre-ordered plants.

Information: 812-346-3411, ext. 3.

By Nate Brownlee

Midseason during our first year on our Meeting other farmers opens numerown farm, the last thing I wanted to do ous doors. The next time you need a parwas to go inside, sit down and write an articular piece of equipment, you have more ticle. Starting a farm is a lot of work, and eyes to look for it. If you have a problem or taking the time to sit and write felt like a a question, maybe you now know another low priority. farmer who has been in the same situation Three years later, Liz and I have a record and knows an answer. of that first season that we would be missAnd emotional support is something I ing had I not taken that time each month. think all farmers need, and it is best when I actually sat down because I had to it comes from another farmer, from somewrite. I had sought and received a freeone who understands what you are doing lance assignment to write monthly about with your time. our first year farming for the National There are also tangible benefits to joinYoung Farmers Coalition. NYFC ing the NYFC and the Hoogave me prompts that reflected sier Young Farmers. Joining the the challenges and decisions of NYFC gives you access to disfirst-year farming: equipment and counts on seeds, tools, equiptools, breeds and varieties, etc. ment, work clothing, boots and But they also gave me a netmore. work. As I was starting to make HYFC will be offering a few connections with farmers around scholarships to great farming home, I could read about the conferences, such as Ohio Ecologthree other farmers who were ical Food and Farm Association, also writing for NYFC. They were Midwest Organic and Sustainable going through the same joys and Education Service and Southern Liz and Nate pitfalls of Year 1 that we were exSustainable Agriculture Working Brownlee operate Nightfall Farm in periencing on our farm.

Group. You can visit youngfarmCrothersville.

And now, four years in, we get ers.org or facebook.com/hooto give back. We’ve been wanting sieryfc to learn more. our social network to be stronger, This is starting to sound like a to have closer contacts to share ideas with, sales pitch – and it sort of is – but mainly to learn from and to support each other. because we’re so excited about HYFC. We Liz and I have helped to start the Hoosier had a booth at the Indiana Small Farm Young Farmers Coalition, our state chapConference and were thrilled by the conter of the NYFC. And yes, it is a selfish versations we had and by the people we giving back since we benefit, too. met. Great things are happening in the The HYFC has an exciting year state, and it is fun getting to know the planned. We will be hosting a rotating people behind all of the hard work. film festival, partnering with farmers And so now I still sit down to write; my and groups across the state to offer mulwriting for the NYFC attracted the attentiple sites, locations and opportunities to tion of Farm Indiana and has remained meet other farmers or supporters, and to on the to-do list. While I continue to have see great films about the future of farmtrouble finding the time to write, it seems ing. We have the rights to 40 films ranging to be a higher priority. The more confrom shorts to feature length films, so you nected we are as farmers, the better off we might have to attend a few events. all are.

All 4 GM Brands

May 6 — Garden Celebration, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Scott Hall, Fairgrounds Street, Franklin. Admission is $2. Free seeds and trees while supplies last. Free garden seminars for all ages. Shop with 40+ garden vendors.

Grab lunch at the cafe and learn about attracting pollinators. Information: Sarah Hanson, sspeedy@ purdue.edu, 317-736-3724.

May 13 — Brown County 4-H Craft Fair. 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Brown County 4-H Fairgrounds, Nashville. Supporting Brown County 4-H program. Over 50 vendors. Booths are $30 to $40; most are indoors and all are under-roof. Call 812-988-5495 or email browncountyind4h@gmail.com.

May 31 — Mini 4-H Day Camp. 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Jennings County Fairgrounds. 4-H members in Grades K-2 are encouraged to attend Mini 4-H Day Camp to learn more about 4-H and the fairgrounds, create their projects for the fair and have fun. Students in Grades K-12 may enroll in the 4-H program until May 15. Registration for Mini 4-H Day Camp is preferred by May 22, but is not required. The fee is $5 per member. Information: Jennings County Purdue Extension Office, 812-352-3033, www.extension.purdue/jennings.

Editorial deadline for our next issue is May 8. Calendar items may be submitted to dshowalter@therepublic.com.

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Farm Indiana | may 2017

Alan and Kristy Lowe of Lowe’s Pellets & Grain. BElow, Feed Mill Operator Andrew Herman moves Micronutrients to the miller.

A team for three generations Relationships feed success of Lowe’s Pellets & Grain

L

owe’s Pellets & Grain Inc. is an aptly named business. Those two product categories are exactly what the Greensburg company sells, and it has managed to weather the changes to which each has been subjected over the past 54 years and thrive.

The staff of 33 full-time employees and occasional interns and part-time workers is guided by teamwork and flexibility. In terms of company structure, there is a grain division and a feed division, but the situation at hand drives the activity on any given day.

“Our grain guys help our feed guys and vice versa,” says Alan Lowe, a third-generation family member who owns the business with his wife, Kristy. “Maintenance guys can help bag feed if it’s called for.”

Alan’s grandfather, Floyd Lowe, had been a tenant farmer all his working life when, in 1963, he and 11 Decatur County farmers, who became the first Lowe’s shareholders, took note of the need for a local pelleted feed mill. Production commenced that fall.

It was a family affair from the outset.

“Floyd was kind of the visionary, and his wife, Elizabeth, who had an academic business background, was the pragmatist,” says Kristy.

The company actually had a more

By Barney Quick / Photography by April Knox diversified line of products in the early days. It sold propane gas, fertilizer, seeds and chemicals, lines that were later shed. It was also a satellite company for Illinois-based Honneger’s Feeds.

In 1972, the Honneger relationship was dissolved. Don, Dale and David, the sons of Floyd and Elizabeth, came home from college and military service and joined the business as stockholders.

In 1994, Alan, Don’s son, graduated from Purdue and joined the company full time.

The period from 2010 to 2013 saw a great deal of transition. Floyd, Elizabeth and Don all passed away during that time.

“It was a big switch from where we were in the ownership structure to where we are today,” says Alan.

Retail business has become a more prominent aspect of operations. The company makes and markets its own brands of feed, Sunglo and Purple Vision, for show animals. Lowe’s also makes custom formulas for customers, including one for whom Lowe’s provides a special fish food.

“Feeding programs are often based on the contract that a customer is under,” explains Alan. “For instance, we have a customer who raises turkeys and sells them to Whole Foods, which has a particular set of requirements.

A farm’s methods of operation can

also dictate what we provide.” by global market conditions. If the He notes that “in 1994, most of U.S. dollar is weak, grain flows. If the our feed business was providing feed dollar is strong, it tends to close the to big swine operations. We still do export market.” that, but now we serve probably three One overall change in area agtimes the number of walk-in customriculture that Alan has noted is ers that we did then.” “growth in the number of people How does the Lowe’s staff stay who farm on the side while holdabreast of the science involved? ing a day job. I think a lot of people “We pull in a lot of industry exfind it gratifying to feed their famiperts,” says Alan. “We consult nutrilies. A lot of people have enough of tionists for beef, swine, horses and a rural orientation that they derive other animals.” joy from having a few animals and a The range of feeds the small field.” company makes and Industry involvement sells includes medicated is important to the Lowe Lowe’s Pellets and non-medicated, pelfamily. Alan is the out& Grain Inc. leted, meal and sweet going chairman of the (textured) varieties.

2372 State Road 46, Indiana Grain and Feed According to Alan, the Greensburg Association, which opergrain side of the business ates under the umbrella 812-663-7863 has changed dramatiof the Agribusiness lowespellets.com cally as well.

Council of Indiana.

“Farms tend to be Contributing to the larger now, with more community is also a core storage. It’s changed the value for Lowe’s. It supscale of what we do.” ports 4-H programs in Decatur and Kristy adds, “Tim Marlow, the head surrounding counties, as well as FFA, of our sales division, has been eyewitthe YMCA and the Decatur County ness to the changes. Years ago, he’d Community Foundation. make cold call after cold call in one Alan says that the civic spirit is reday, along one road. Now the number ciprocated: “This community, includof farms has decreased, but their size ing elected officials, is very supportive has increased.” of agriculture. You don’t always find She also notes the increased imthat in rural America.” pact of the worldwide economy: “Our As Kristy puts it, “This is a relationgrain business is very much dictated ship business.”

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Farm Indiana | may 2017

Farm to desk

Ivy Tech agriculture program offers hands-on educational experience

By Jon Shoulders | The Republic File Photos

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att John feels the agriculture program offered at Ivy Tech Community College’s Columbus campus is one of the school’s – and the city’s – best-kept secrets.

Ten years ago Ivy Tech, the state’s community college system with more than 30 campuses, launched an agricultural program at its Lafayette location, offering a two-year associate degree in one of two tracks. The first, an associate of science degree, equips students with foundation courses, including math, science and English, and allows those students to transfer to a four-year college with junior standing.

The associate of applied science track includes ag-related courses, such as animal sciences, crop production and agricultural data management, for students interested in transitioning directly to the workforce upon completion of their two-year degree.

Shortly after Lafayette’s program began, several other campuses followed suit, including Columbus, Terre Haute and Kokomo. John says although the program has grown steadily in Columbus, spreading the word has been his greatest challenge since becoming chairman of the department in 2008.

“The biggest problem we have is that so many people don’t know we’re here,” says John, a Columbus native and owner of Hidden Creek Farm in Newbern. “Because we’ve been known as a nursing school, business school and technical school for a long time, the message is difficult to get out that we have an agricultural program with the options to either transfer to four-year institutions or complete an associate degree and go to work. I run into people almost every month that say they don’t know we have an ag program.”

John, who worked as a University of Kentucky Extension educator before returning to Columbus in 2008 to join the Ivy Tech staff, says his applied science students have gone on to pursue bachelor’s degrees at Purdue, Western Kentucky, Indiana University-Southeast and Trine University, the latter having a branch location Matt John, agriculture program chairman at Ivy Tech, waits to observe class in the Ivy Tech Agriculture Building in Columbus.

Area families honored for agricultural heritage

within the Ivy Tech-Columbus campus.

Graduates have secured positions at largescale businesses, such as Premier Cos. and Helena Chemical, as well as small family farms and production facilities.

“You hear about Ivy Tech’s hands-on learning, and with this program you’re able to connect with the professors and it allows your people skills to grow,” says Sam Lentz, a 2016 graduate of the applied science program. Lentz now works at his familyowned farm, a corn and soybean operation in St. Louis Crossing.

“Life’s all about connections, and it’s really easy to get to know classmates inside and outside the classroom, and make Above, Sam Lentz, connections with the left, Nick Stahl and professors and even the Britni McKee work guest speakers,” Lentz on a planter. Right, adds. “I learn a lot better Ivy Tech student when I’m hands-on, and Brad Cooper I’d say the connectivity puts a jack on a to the community and setter during an the people around you, agricultural class. along with the hands-on activities and coursework, are a huge benefit.”

In 2015 David Harrell, then an adjunct instructor for the program who previously worked as an arborist for the city of Franklin and as a mechanical contractor, became the department’s second full-time professor with John.

“We’ve been able to focus a lot more on some of the crop equipment technologies since bringing on David and his mechanical know-how,” John says. “Some of our students have, for example, rebuilt a planter and added technology for precision planting on that piece of equipment,” says John, adding that students have opportunities for field trips to some

Three area farm families were among 39 presented with the Hoosier Homestead Award by Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and Indiana State Department of Agriculture Director Ted McKinney at an April 7 ceremony at the Statehouse.

To be named a Hoosier Homestead, farms must be owned by the same family for more than 100 consecutive years and consist of more than 20 acres or produce more than $1,000 of agricultural products per year.

Based on the number of years, farms

of the college’s industry partners, such as livestock production operations.

“We’re trying to get students the hands-on skills that would be helpful either on their own farms or working for an employer that works in machinery and equipment.”

Students also have access to a 25-acre corn and bean farm on Ivy Tech’s Franklin campus, where they can learn firsthand about planting, fertilizing, harvesting and dealing with issues like insects and disease.

“Last year we had a relationship with the airport where we planted some popcorn on an unused portion of their farm ground on a couple of acres,” John says. “It wasn’t a great yield, but the students got to see the challenges of poor soil and what that looked like.”

John and Harrell are currently the only full-time professors in the department, along with several specialty adjunct professors. “Just about everybody that teaches for us has a master’s degree or higher,” John says. “We have a well-known landscape architect with a master’s degree from Cornell teach our horticultural-related classes. In the past we’ve had veterinarians teach our animal science courses.”

John feels the most unique aspect of the program is the personal touch he and his colleagues strive to put on it. “All the students have my cellphone number and David’s,” he says. “Class sizes are smaller, and students can feel like they have a home here while they’re here. We think of our students as our friends and colleagues, especially since when they graduate and enter the workforce we might call on them to come back into class and speak, and continue those relationships.”

For more information on Ivy Tech’s agriculture program, visit ivytech.edu/ agriculture.

are eligible to receive the Centennial Award for 100 years of ownership, the Sesquicentennial Award for 150 years of ownership and the Bicentennial Award for 200 years of ownership.

Bartholomew County’s Glenn and Nellie Glick received a Sesquicentennial Award for their farm founded in 1846. Also recognized from Bartholomew County with a Centennial Award was the Original Speaker Lane Farm, founded in 1908.

Jackson County’s Wischmeier/ Wehmiller farm, founded in 1866,

received a Sesquicentennial Award.

“Agriculture contributes $31 billion to our state’s economy, largely due to the hard work, dedication and innovation of Indiana’s farming families,” said Crouch. “I congratulate each family on earning the Hoosier Homestead Award and thank them for their commitment to continuing Indiana’s legacy as an agricultural leader.”

Since the program’s inception in 1976, more than 5,000 families have received the Hoosier Homestead Award. — Staff Reports

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Farm Indiana | may 2017

The season of drift calls

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By Kris Medic

Sometimes it’s a vegetable garden, and sometimes it’s the edge of a woodland. Other times it’s a carefully tended landscape. Somehow, it’s never a neglected garden or landscape, but you might imagine why.

The calls come typically in April and May, maybe up to five a year.

The symptoms are usually identical over several species of plants, which is rare. Pests and diseases are normally host-specific, meaning it’s unusual for one factor to cause symptoms over many types of plants. If pesticide drift is suspected, there are some things to consider.

The legal definition of pesticide drift is “the physical movement through the air at the time of application of a pesticide from the site of application to any non-target site in sufficient quantities to cause injury to the non-target site, as a result of the application being made.” There is more, but I won’t go on. Injury from pesticide drift can come just as easily from crop spraying as from a lawn care application, so we all proceed with care.

The role of Purdue Extension When our office is contacted and pesticide drift is suspected, one factor that warrants an immediate referral to the Office of the State Chemist is a fish kill. If fish are dead, the matter could be serious, and the OISC will want to begin an

investigation as soon as possible.

Thankfully, this is rare.

More typically, the person contacting our office sees plant symptoms that are causing concern. The client may or may not suspect pesticide drift as a cause, and may or may not be aware of pesticide applications made nearby, or even on their property.

It’s a crucial point that Purdue Extension’s job is to rule out other causes and to advise property owners of their options going forward, rather than investigation. If investigation is warranted, the client may choose to contact the OISC. In the process, we try to encourage open communication and good relations between neighbors whenever possible.

The role of the Indiana State Chemist The OISC’s job is to send an investigator within 10 days. Ten days is a long time, so the property owner will likely want to take photos and other evidence. The investigator will ask certified applicators who may have applied pesticide on or near the property to provide their records, or look for evidence of illegal applications. Depending on the outcome, fines, penalties and even criminal charges can result.

It’s important to note that once a complaint is made to OISC, the investigation takes on a life of its own.

What you can do Those with sensitive crops, honeybees or other concerns may want to register with Driftwatch. Responsible applicators can check Driftwatch online before an application, and Driftwatch signs are available for your property. Protection can’t be guaranteed, but registering may help. Go to https://in.driftwatch.org.

Training applicators OISC provides investigation and enforcement, while Purdue Pesticide Programs provides training. From commercial applicators in many categories, to private

applicators applying pesticides, fertilizer or manure on farmland, training and recertification are offered throughout the year.

Farmers growing grain may want to mark calendars for SEPAC Field Day in Butlerville on Aug. 17, and our fall training for Bartholomew County will take place in Hope this year on Nov. 28. Find recertification online at https://www.oisc.purdue. edu/oiscweb/#!/publicrecords/ pesticide/conferences. Contact our office with questions and consider best practices for protection and application.

Kris Medic is Purdue Extension Bartholomew County’s educator for agriculture, natural resources and community development. She can be reached at 812-379-1665 or kmedic@purdue.edu.

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