Breathe a sigh of relief...the corn silage is done!
We hire Eric Miles and his team to do our chopping now. Eric very kindly sent me a video from the seat of the chopper, because I do miss riding with Kris (plus the boys) and watching it all happen! I don't miss owning a chopper and wagons. Eric and his team do an awesome job.
Our team also was great as always, and our supplementary team of our neighbors (not pictured) and friends (most but not all pictured) who helped us cover the piles!
This is such a big deal every year. All the eagerness to plant, all the hoping for rain, all the concern about it all summer long...then the payoff of a (hopefully) good harvest to feed our cattle!
It didn't rain much here, so our corn crop was not quite as good as some years, so we're buying some beet pulp we also will store on the cement pad.
"You look at that field that you tilled. You planted that seed, you watched that crop grow - there's no feeling of satisfaction like seeing that. Or raising a calf to be a cow that produces milk. You think about those things when you make your career choices." - 34:15, Cherie Anderson, Ask a Farmer: Family Farms, Family History
Way back in 2016, my mom and I were invited to be on a panel at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History about multigenerational farms. I remember a lot about that day, but today I watched the video to hear exactly what my mom said about the satisfaction of farming.
Why? Because we had our corn planted - we hired our custom harvester Pat Feldpausch. He is currently having some health issues so his son PJ did it.
Then we patiently (Kris) and impatiently (me) waited for it to pop up.
We plant corn that in 107 days comes out of the ground and towers over our heads. I worry the entire 107 days about rain. Is it enough? Is it too much?
This is the reason I didn't want to farm. I didn't want to be like my parents, willing it to rain when the corn got dry, since your livelihood depends on feeding your cattle.
However, with 15 years of farming under my belt - the benefits outweigh the emotional cost. I absolutely love watching this all happen. We're ready for another year of growing corn!
On Friday we were supposed to go to our friends' house for fireworks with a bunch of other friends. I was talking to them in the morning and said we were going to go, but I didn't know what time we'd be there because we had to cover the pile of alfalfa we were chopping that day.
I'm not exactly sure how it happened, but six families came to help us cover the pile!
Of course, it's impossible to time when it's going to happen, so we thought it was going to be 5:00 p.m., but then the chopper had some trouble, so then it was 6:00 p.m. ... so my parents went and picked up the pizza and we ate at our house BEFORE covering the pile - and the kids swam - and then finally it was time!
With all of our wonderful friends helping, it took 27 minutes to cover it, and then we all went for fireworks. What a great night!
(I think they are still our friends.)
Also ...
Kris high on the 4th of July!
Also knee high by the 4th of July!
Field one - planted April 28.
Field two - planted June 4 after we cut alfalfa off of it.
My entire youth I said I would never have a job that depended on the weather, because my family spent so much time hoping it would rain or stop raining. I particularly remember sitting on the porch swing with my mom, willing the clouds to open up. So now... raindrops on the window woke me up Saturday night, and since we really, really needed rain, it was great. I definitely didn't follow through on that weather-related goal, but the risk is worth the reward!
Yesterday we were at dinner with friends and one said, "I have no idea what it's like on a modern farm."
Kris and I started to explain a little bit, and one part I wanted to emphasize that I normally don't is this:
There is continual activity here. Milk truck, feed truck, electricians, builders, vets, salesmen, plus all our regular team members. There is always someone coming and going. It's a beehive of activity and people and vehicles.
Free stalls
We added 140 free stalls overall to our barn. We had to do this to make room for the additional heifers we're keeping. To explain this, our cows have a calf every year, and about half of them are heifers. If we keep every heifer, then our herd grows, because obviously we don't cull half our cows every year. (We still have to sell heifers, but this helps.) This was a giant project that required tons of work, which was done by our building company, and it lasted from December until now.
Feeder
This was another project that lasted from December until now, due to parts and timing and everything else that happens with multiple companies working on projects! We would have put in a system like our new barn, where you just put feed on the cement in front of them, instead of this feeder system that is mechanized and can break, but we have manure pits under the barn. As a result, the floor wouldn't be able to support our tractors and wagons. So! We put in a feeder that we hope lasts the rest of our CAREER. It also speeds up the feeding process, which everyone is happy about!
Manure
We use a company to haul our manure, and now we have so many cows that we have to do it multiple times a year. They got even bigger equipment, and in two days they hauled 2.5 million gallons of manure out of our lagoon and spread it on our field. I think back to when we had one tiny manure hauler and it took weeks. Of course, we had fewer cattle then, but this is still a nice time savings, especially when the weather doesn't always cooperate.
Corn planting
The corn is halfway in as of yesterday, and the rest is going in today! It is warm but very dry, and already everyone is worried, because that's all you can do about weather. It is a universal trait about farming. Check the weather, worry about the weather, talk about the weather ... despite my vow that I would never have a job that depended on the weather ... I do! Of course, I also work from home as a writer, so that has never depended on the weather, so it partly came true.
We're snapping corn, which means we put a corn head on the chopper. Instead of chopping up everything, like with the other head, this one snaps off the stalk and grinds up the cob into tiny little pieces. It still gets some of the stalk, but this method concentrates on getting the corn on the cob, which has the most nutritional and caloric benefits for cows.
We then are putting the ground up corn into bags. Why? Because it's such a good corn harvest that we can't build our piles any higher! So we have to devise other ways to store the harvest.
Here's a little of what it looks like:
Rows and rows to do - here's the view from the cab.
He pulls a wagon behind him. The chopper shoots the feed into it.
One of our team members takes it to the barn, and Kris gets out of the chopper and hitches up the empty wagon.
We take it to the barn and use the rented bagger to get in into the plastic bag. This requires dumping it, using a wheel loader to load it, then using the bagger.
Repeat until finished. We've been snapping for two days now and hope to be done by Friday. The weather and equipment have been cooperating, and it'll be a huge relief when it's done! It'll be an especially huge relief to Kris because I've been really using the corn puns all month long. I know it's corny, but shucks, I can't help it.
Here's a video of the action!
Until next year!
If you want to know more, you can like my farm page on Facebook, follow@carlashelley on twitter, or get the posts sent to your email by filling out the form on the right. If you have any questions, please email carla.wardin@gmail.com!
I got a handout from the Corn Marketing Program of Michigan all about GMOs. It made me want to give one to everyone as Kris is out chopping our GMO corn right now. Let me summarize from it so you, too, can discuss in the grocery store aisles!
What are GMOs?
Genetically modified organisms. Translated - genes are changed. Scientists intentionally make a copy of a gene for a desired trait in one plant and use it in another plant.
Selective breeding has been used since the beginning of time to produce crops with better taste, yield, and disease resistance. GMOs speed up the process - instead of going through generations and generations of plants, you can use the genes right away.
Which crops are genetically modified?
(There are only eight! How many of the eight can you name before scrolling down?)
The USDA has approved others, but they're still in the process of being approved for sale.
Why would anyone want to grow GMOs?
One, they're better for the environment,
With better crops, farmers can reduce pesticide use, plow less often, and use fewer natural resources.
Two, they keep costs down for everyone.
When there's a drought, GMO plants still have a good chance of growing due to their hardy traits. That means food is still available to everyone, even though there was a dry year. A year of no crops would be devastating to a farmer and bad for the consumer. When crops are assured, we can still provide and we can all still consume.
Three, they present no health risks.
Farmers have been growing GM crops since 1994, and "there has not been a single documented instance of harm to human health resulting from genetic modifications, including allergic reactions, cancers, infertility, ADHD, or any other diseases." (CMPM, Real Talk About GMOs)
Who grows GMOs?
Answer in the brochure: 18 million farmers in 28 countries. You may have heard that some countries ban GMO plants. That's true. But millions of people embrace the technology:
Canada, US, Mexico, Cuba, Honduras, Costa Rica, Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Chile, S Africa, Burkina Faso, Sudan, Spain, Portugal, Slovakia, Romania, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, China, Phillipines, Australia, Argentina, and Czech Republic
What else?
Today's GMOs are "the most researched and tested agricultural products in history." In fact, "GMO crops are compositionally and nutritionally the same as their conventional counterparts." (CMPM, Real Talk About GMOs)
GMOs are bred to resist chemicals and/or insects. They do not internally contain pesticides and herbicides.
I wasn't able to find the brochure online, but this is the information in it. I like it because it's succinct and straightforward.
Of course, none of this matters if consumers decide they don't want GMOs. What consumers want, consumers get. So if we're all educated on the matter, then we're all able to make better decisions.
As a farmer, why am I pro-GMO? All the reasons that I just cited. When a new iPhone comes out, people are waiting in line overnight. Technology is embraced. When scientists are able to streamline the genetic modification process to allow farmers to grow drought-resistant, chemical-resistant, and bug-resistant crops, people are worried. Technology is not embraced.
Since I'm involved in agriculture and know a lot of farmers, my social media feed is full of articles about GMOs. Take the time to do your own research ... and try to be more informed. Take note of the woman who answers, "What's a GMO?" with: "I don't know. I know it's like some corn, bad stuff, right? I know it's bad, but to be completely honest with you, I have no idea." When you have all of the information, you can make an informed decision for yourself. Then when Jimmy Kimmel comes along, you'll be ready!
Meanwhile, back on the farm ... we're still chopping corn! It's such a fantastic yield this year. All the farmers are in the fields chopping. Our milk co-op had an advisory board meeting today and I'm wondering who could have possibly made it! When the corn's ready, it's ready. We're still having newborn calves, today's the last day of summer, and the milk prices aren't budging. Let's hope for a wonderful, dairy-loving fall!
If you want to know more, you can like my farm page on Facebook, follow@carlashelley on twitter, or get the posts sent to your email by filling out the form on the right. If you have any questions, please email carla.wardin@gmail.com!
We rented a roller to help compress the pile of corn silage. It's really heavy and it has the nubs on the roller and it vibrates. It's a Caterpillar - regards to our old employer!
We've done 110 acres so far (5 entire days of chopping) and have about 130 acres left to do. Almost halfway! We store it in a huge pile so we'll have feed for our cattle the rest of the year.
Here's what the chopper looks like folded up to drive on the road.
The soybeans are all turning yellow - we don't grow any soybeans, but we do buy them as a supplement to our feed. Lots of our neighbors grow them, and I think they're beautiful. The leaves change on the trees and the leaves change on the ground.
It's a rough time of year, really. It's hard work with the continued calving and harvest, and the milk price just keeps going lower. We're really thankful for our great team of people and everyone who bought milk today!
A friend posted this story on Facebook - her son didn't eat any of his lunch today. When she asked him why, he told her it was because he drank four chocolate milks - that he had taken, not paid for, and no one had noticed. I think it calls for a new marketing line - dairy! Good enough to steal!
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Today I spoke at the US Department of Agriculture's Mideast Marketing Area meeting in Frankenmuth. It was super enjoyable, and they had a lot of questions. Thanks so much to Linda Garrett for inviting me.
I also participated in my first email conversation with the fourth grade class at Gateway North Elementary School. Gateway is an AG-STEM school, and Kris and I are the class farmers for the fourth grade this year. They had lots of good questions also, but my favorite was the first one because I've NEVER gotten it before. It was ... Do you have turtles?
If you want to know more, you can like my farm page on Facebook, follow@carlashelley on twitter, or get the posts sent to your email by filling out the form on the right. If you have any questions, please email carla.wardin@gmail.com!
Seriously, what’s going on with GMOs? What are GMOs, anyway?
GMO stands for genetically modified organisms. If you’ve ever grown a garden, you know that it’s not easy. Now, imagine that your garden crop is your field and your job. Imagine that you’re responsible for providing food for your country. (If this were my garden, we would all starve.) Guess what? People keep trying to do a better job.
For about 10,000 years, farmers have been picking desirable characteristics of plants and crossbreeding them to get better plants – ones that grow better or taste better. Now, lab technicians insert genes from one plant into another to speed the process along. They can also be more precise this way. For an in depth view from Popular Science, read: How to genetically modify a seed, step by step.
GMOs allow farmers to use less water, land, and pesticides to produce more food. For instance, we grow corn to feed our cattle. The corn seed we buy has been genetically modified to be more resistant to drought.
From the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance page: “Since 1995, food from GM seeds has been commercially available and has been proven safe for human and animal consumption. No other crops have been more studied or subject to greater scientific review. GM seeds undergo testing for safety, health and nutritional value – and regulation is overseen by The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).”
But! None of that matters if people think that GMOs are evil and killing us all. I’m a firm believer in choice – I think we all are – but I also want people to have a deep understanding of what GMOs are, why farmers use them, and why they were developed in the first place. Farmers are consumers just like you – we only want the best for our families, too. My family has been farming here for 135 years. We care about our land, our water, our animals, our product, and ultimately – you!
What’s the difference between organic milk and regular milk? What’s up with antibiotics and hormones?
Good news for anyone wondering!
Conventional and organic milk have no antibiotics in it.
Conventional and organic milk have hormones in it. (All milk has natural hormones.)
All milk is tested repeatedly on the farm and at the lab to ensure that it is antibiotic free. We don't feed any antibiotics to cows. We only give them medicine when they're sick, and then we don't milk them into the tank when they have the medicine still in their systems. Then when they're better and the medicine is out of their system - only then do we begin milking them again. No one wants antibiotics in the milk - the farmer or the consumer.
As for hormones - in Michigan, farmers don't give their cows hormones to help them produce more milk. (We never have on this farm, either.) When farmers did it in the past, there was no way to tell the synthetic hormone from the natural hormone, because cows already produced it. (So there was no test for it.) But when consumers didn't want it, farmers stopped using it. In Michigan, that happened in 2008.
I’m hugely in favor of capitalism and choice, and it's easier to make a decision when you know all milk is healthy and nutritious.
So what is the difference, then?
The difference is in the farm practice, not the product. Organic milk comes from cows that are on certified organic farms. They are fed organic feed, they are not treated with medicine when sick (they are sold or put into a traditional herd), and they have mandated outdoor access.
On our farm, they’re fed feed we grow, given medicine when sick and not milked into the tank until it’s out of their system, and are out on pasture. We take fantastic care of our animals – just like all farmers try to do.
There have been many studies – like by the USDA and the American Dietetic Association – that show organic and conventional milk is equally nutritious and safe.
So, once again – it’s America! You can choose whatever you want in the land of the free and the home of the brave! We have giant grocery stores at our disposal! Just know that all farmers – organic and conventional – are trying our best to provide for you.
Isn’t the manure part of farming kind of gross?
Yes. But only when it’s wet. Dry manure just seems like dirt.
Here’s a little fun fact for you … many dairy farmers I know have a separate entry to their houses! Many of them also have separate showers! Many of them are also in the basement, for good reason.
Farms each have their own smell. One day Kris came home and I said, “Where have you been? You smell different.”
(Note – this is the exact opposite of a scene when a wife smells another woman’s perfume on her husband. I smelled someone else’s farm manure.)
But the truth is - we need manure! We save it up and spread it on our fields so we can grow well-fertilized crops to feed our cattle. Our cattle all - with no training! - spread manure on their pasture themselves!
Do our boots have manure on them? Yes. Do our barn clothes smell like manure? Yes. Do we have a really good washing machine? Yes.
Manure is just part of working on a farm and living on a farm. But that’s where we keep it – on the farm. We don’t ever go out in our work boots and clothes.
Not even the boys … no matter how much they want to wear their barn boots to the library.
Any questions for me? Let me know! You can like the page on Facebook, follow me on Twitter@carlashelley, or sign up to get the blog by good old, old-fashioned email - the form is on the right side of the page.
First of all, a cow died. We asked the vet to do a necropsy that night to find out why. It had hemorrhagic bowel syndrome, also known as bloody gut. Sounds terrible, doesn't it? Yesterday morning Kris raced to a town to buy medicine to hopefully prevent any other cows from getting it.
We're also doing the fifth cutting of alfalfa this week. It's really hard to plan for cutting alfalfa when it's cold, windy, rain is predicted ... I mean, it's fall! But the alfalfa is ready to cut and you can never have too much feed.
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My friend today said that she heard 1) that farmers were feeding their cattle candy and 2) that farmers could get emails telling them when a cow was fertile.
I'm part of the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance and a few days ago they were encouraging people to explain to Americans the effect the drought has had on farmers. When I read it I thought - that's funny ... everyone knows about the drought. But not so!
"Feeding candy to cows has become a more popular practice in tandem with the rising price of corn, which has doubled since 2009, fueled by government-subsidized demand for ethanol and this year's drought. Thrifty and resourceful farmers are tapping into the obscure market for cast-off food ingredients. Cut-rate byproducts of dubious value for human consumption seem to make fine fodder for cows. While corn goes for about $315 a ton, ice-cream sprinkles can be had for as little as $160 a ton.
"As the price of corn has climbed, farmers either sold off their pigs and cattle, or they found alternative feeds," said Mike Yoder, a dairy farmer in Middlebury, Ind. He feeds his 400 cows bits of candy, hot chocolate mix, crumbled cookies, breakfast cereal, trail mix, dried cranberries, orange peelings and ice cream sprinkles, which are blended into more traditional forms of feed, like hay.
The farmer said that he goes over the feed menu every couple of weeks with a livestock nutritionist who advised him to cap the candy at 3% of a cow's diet."
But really, the point of it is, people feed their cattle according to nutritionists. The unusable human food is ground up and added to a grain mix. It's not like their feeders are full of candy canes.
And, to give you some perspective, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, this was the most severe and extensive drought in 25 years. So, farmers are really feeding their cattle what they can, when they can, in order to not go out of business.
I can see why people would think this was amusing, since they so infrequently get texts saying, "508 is in heat!" But I live in a world where I'm aware that our neighbors' robot milker automatically calls their phone when something goes wrong. But the technology for determining when cows are in heat has been there a long time.
I well remember growing up when we had a TV in my house that showed the cattle in the barn. My mom would look at it and take note of which ones were in heat. We've been on farms where the cows wear temperature monitors that transmit their fertility information every time they go in to be milked. On our farm, we use natural service bulls, so they have their own ways of telling which cows are in heat. They don't need a text message. They seem to have their own way of telling each other, probably something like "OMG! 508 is in heat!"
This morning it turned dark - like it really wanted to storm. I did with my kids what I always did with my mom ... sat on the front porch and hoped for rain.
While we were doing this, my mom called from a nearby town to ask, "Is it raining? It's POURING here!" No, I told her. No rain here. It looked like it was going to pass us by - but wait! A few drops!
It did rain. A tenth of an inch.
No doubt sitting on the front porch does no good. But when those few drops start, and you can see the rain moving toward you, and you can smell it wetting the dirt - it's a wonderful feeling of both relief and joy.
I'm reading the boys Laura Ingalls Wilder's Farmer Boy. We just read the chapter where it froze on July 3 and they had to go out in the middle of the night and pour water on all the corn plants before the sun rose, since the sun on the frozen corn plants would kill them. They poured water on three acres of corn, and lost a quarter of an acre.
I liked this book when I was little, but I find it far more interesting now. We buy crop insurance every year, so if we have a bad corn crop, we're not going to be completely devastated.
The days before crop insurance must have been especially terrifying. I'm sure you'd do anything to keep them alive - maybe we'd be out there manually giving each plant a drink. Definitely, I'd be far too anxious to sit still on a porch swing.
