C is for Crops

This is the craziest spring for planting crops. I bet you have seen pictures and heard stories from friends, or in the media, about how difficult it is for farmers to get their crops planted this year. Too much rain equals muddy fields which means waiting until they are dry enough to plant. If planted too early the seeds don't sprout properly and planting in wet ground can cause the seeds to rot. We finished planting our final crops on June 1st, about 2 weeks later than usual. We now have to hope that Fall doesn't come early so the corn has enough time to mature.

Our farm consists of nearly 300 acres.  Each year, before Spring planting begins, we determine how much of each crop to plant. The decision is based on what we need for our herd, the weather conditions, and how much, if any feed we have left from the previous season. Because we have so few acres, we feed everything we grow to our animals. 

Fall corn harvest

The bulk of our acreage, about 200 acres, is planted into corn. Some is planted and later picked to feed as corn mixed with other grains. The stalks are then baled to use as bedding. The remaining corn is chopped in the fall for silage to feed to the cows.

Silage

Nearly 30 acres of our cropland is planted into grains, primarily oats. 

Oats

The oat kernel is fed, while the plant stalk is baled for bedding, called straw.

Straw bales ready for bedding 

 Finally, about 50 acres of our cropland is alfalfa hay. We feed a lot of hay, since every animal on our farm is treated to hay each day. Hay must be cut and dried before it can be made into bales. If we baled wet hay, it would mold, and we only serve our animals top quality feed. Just like your lawn, alfalfa can be cut several times each season. Typically we can cut and bale hay from each field four times each summer. Hay can also be blown into a feed wagon, to be fed immediately to the cows.

Alfalfa hay cut, ready to bale

Two thirds of our cropland is irrigated land, allowing us to be assured of a good crop even if we do not receive adequate rainfall. Since we have to pay for the electricity to power our irrigation, we pray that Mother Nature will provide the rain we need!

One of 3 irrigators on Bremer Farms

X Is For X

I'm taking you on a journey from A to Z throughout June Dairy Month.

So come on in...the barn doors are open!

  X Is For X

 

My family is a huge help with these June Dairy Month blog posts. Many of our evening meals are spent discussing (and laughing) about possible words to go with each letter. As you may guess, X is very tricky! Here is what we came up with...

 

Xenodchial: friendly to strangers (Yes we are! We always enjoy visitors to our farm). 

Amy and family from Grinning Cheek to Cheek

 

Xeric: being deficient in moisture (Yes, we've had to deal with draught conditions some years. Thank goodness for irrigation).

 

Xanadu: an idealized place of great or idyllic magnificence and beauty (That's the way we feel about Bremer Farms; a wonderful place to live and work)!

Xanthous:the color of an egg yolk, in between yellow and green. (If only we had chickens...)

 I told you X is tricky. Check back tomorrow and see how I do with Y. :)

 

 You may also want to read my previous years posts for June Dairy Month...

X Is For Excellent 

and

X, Y, and ZZZZZZ 

 

 

I Is For Irrigation

I'm taking you on a journey from A to Z throughout June Dairy Month.

So come on in...the barn doors are open!

  I Is For Irrigation

Ask any farmer how farming is going, and the conversation will eventually land on a discussion of the weather. That topic will arise sooner rather than later, I might add!

Since a successful crop is so dependent on the weather, and since we rely on a good crop to keep our animals happy, healthy, and productive, it is understandable why Farmer John cares about the weather.

As the summer of 1976 was setting up to be a very dry growing season, the decision was made to purchase our first irrigation system. It was 1,287 feet long, pumped 1,000 gallons of water per minute, and cost us $43,000. We were thrilled beyond belief when it was completed, especially when our area of Minnesota reached 103 degrees on June 9th of that summer.

It takes 52 hours for this irrigator to make a complete circle to water this area.We have since added three additional smaller irrigators to water most of our corn and alfalfa (hay) fields. About 2/3 of our crops are grown on irrigated land. Each year we must apply for a permit to use our irrigation so that it is assured that they are used properly to protect our water resources.

 Of course we would prefer for the rain to water our crops since the cost is better, but it is comforting to know that we have the irrigation system as a reliable back-up plan. Rain, or no rain...our crops still need to grow since we produce everything our animals eat.

PS- It would cost approximately $160,000 if we purchased a 1,287 foot irrigation system at today's prices.

Check back at my post G Is for Giveaway  to enter to win The Dairy Good Cookbook. It's a beautiful book!

 Also, you may want to read my previous years posts for June Dairy Month...

I Is for Ice Cream 2014 

and

I Is For Ice Cream 2013 

E Is For Environment

It's June Dairy Month! The barn doors are open, 

so join me on my daily A to Z journey 

to learn more about dairy. 

  E is for Environment

 

 We not only work on our farm, we live here too. 

We understand the importance of protecting our natural resources. 

We appreciate nature and take good care of our land. 

We follow good conservation practices to reduce soil and water erosion.

 

 

We use water responsibly. State and local government agencies regularly inspect and test water on dairy farms. 

 

Dairy farms produce a gallon of milk using 95 percent less land 

and 65 percent less water compared with 1944.

That makes this farmer proud!