Country neighbor

Agriculture and

Rural Living

Berry Farming Plastic is key to raising strawberries at Miller’s Berry Farm. See story on page 10.

Landon Robbins Landon Robbins created these works of both art and utility to become a Journeyman Bladesmith.

See story on page 7.

Charles Buckner

Charles Buckner in 1957 became the ďŹ rst in his family to wear FFA blue.

For more on this Fair Grove family’s FFA tradition, turn to page 4.

Also inside this issue: s "UFFALO entrepreneurs offer ancient libation with a modern twist. See story on page 6. s 4EMPORARY ELECTRIC fencing helps make most of winter pasture. See story on page 12.

7ESLEY 4UCKER

7ESLEY 4UCKER 5NIVERSITY OF -ISSOURI !GRICULTURE "USINESS SPECIALIST BASED IN "OLIVAR CREDITS HIS FATHER THE LATE *OHN 4UCKER WITH INSTILLING HIS FAMILY VALUES AND LOVE OF %XTENSION See story on page 8.

#OUNTRY .EIGHBOR !GRICULTURE 2URAL ,IVING s &EBRUARY

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#OUNTRY .EIGHBOR !GRICULTURE 2URAL ,IVING s &EBRUARY

PAGE TWO

Welcome to 2014 "Y *OANN "ROWN I think this was the ďŹ rst year I can remember since I was old enough to write a check that I put the right year in the date line. It usually takes me a couple of weeks to get it right. I’m not sure what the difference is. Maybe, I’m just ready to see what this next year will throw our way.

Everywhere you look, people are talking about what their New Year’s resolutions are. My son complained that he has to ďŹ ght crowds at the gym for a few months before it will taper off again.

I was curious about when people ďŹ rst started making New Year’s resolutions so I visited Google. I found out that people have been making New Year’s resolutions as far back as the Babylonians. In the United States, it was very popular to make resolutions after the Depression. I can understand that.

Apparently, I’m not the only one who wondered about it because there have been a lot of studies done on the subject. Researchers have found evidence that people succeed more often when they have a goal set. I’ve never been much on making New Year’s resolutions, but maybe I’ll do better with a goal. I try to be a very optimistic person, but at the same time I am a realist and know that just because I make a resolution, it doesn’t mean I’m going to hold to it.

C OUNTRY NEIGHBOR is a six-times yearly supplement to the Cedar County Republican, Bolivar Herald-Free Press, The Marshfield Mail, The Republic Monitor and Buffalo Reflex, publications of Neighbor News/Community 0UBLISHERS )NC Copyright Š 2014 Neighbor News/Community Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. To advertise in Country Neighbor, contact the Cedar County Republican at (417) 276-4211, the "OLIVAR (ERALD &REE 0RESS at (417) 326-7636, 4HE -ARSHFIELD -AIL at (417) 468-2013, 4HE 2EPUBLIC -ONITOR at (417) 7322525 or 4HE "UFFALO 2EFLEX at (417) 345-2224.

PUBLISHER: DAVE BERRY daveb@mo.neighbornews.com (417) 777-9776 EDITOR: JIM HAMILTON jimh@mo.neighbornews.com (417) 345-2224 Contributing writers: Jim Hamilton, Andrew C. Jenkins, Amy Gardner, Scott Kerber, Matt Barba, Dwain Lair, Baxter Black, Joann Brown

Farm Life I know even though I want to lose weight, I’m not going to exercise until it warms up and I can get outside.

I also know that I’m a procrastinator, and although I say I am going to get my taxes done early, deep down I know I won’t actually get them done until the second to last week of February ... if I’m lucky. (Sorry, Faron).

I’ll blame this one on the fact that farmers have to turn their taxes in earlier. I’m not sure why that is. Could it be if farmers waited until April, they would never get them turned in? By then, farmers are too busy in the ďŹ elds to worry about paperwork.

Last, but certainly not least, is the goal to save money. I can say I’m going to cut corners somewhere, but then I turn right around and ďŹ nd something to buy for the farm or my classroom.

Maybe, I need to broaden my goals so they aren’t so hard to stick with. I decided to reect on last year and see what things I could improve on or what changes I could make.

Last year was very eventful at our house. I started my second year of teaching at a wonderful school, our kids turned 23, 21, and 10, we lost my father-in-law to cancer, my husband and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary, and our uncle, Lowell Richardson, turned the big 9-0 — Talk about some major milestones in life.

It was very hard to see someone close to you lose a battle to cancer. You know it can happen, but until it affects someone close to you, the reality of it doesn’t set in.

On the other side of things, we’ve been blessed to be able to watch our children grow up and become caring, hardworking, adults. That’s something all parents can relate to. To have happy, healthy children is worth more than all the money in the world.

Having good enough health to be around for them is, too. When you see people suffering around you, it makes you realize that you shouldn’t take anything for granted. Goal number one is to be healthier so I can enjoy my family longer.

Twenty-ďŹ ve years — I can’t describe how good it felt to be able to celebrate 25 years with such a wonderful person and share our life on the farm together. We’ve been really lucky to be able to work together for as many years as we have and still speak to each other. It isn’t easy when you work together on a farm. Let’s face it; women and men

HODGES TREE TRIMMING

don’t usually think alike. Women, unless you can read minds, you are going to have some unpleasant exchanges of words at times.

There is a saying that comes to mind when I think of farming: “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.â€? I think that’s why there are so many strong farm couples. There are a lot of ups and downs on a farm. You have to deal with weather complications and the uctuation of proďŹ ts and losses. You really have to learn to work together and pick your battles.

Goal number two is to put ďŹ rst things ďŹ rst — which are my husband and family—and try to be understanding when Kent stresses out over the things he can’t control.

In November, we celebrated Uncle Lowell’s birthday with him. Being able to do that really made me stop and think about how fortunate we have been to have such a special person in our lives. He is an inspiration to everyone around him. He and his wife, Nadine, have lived on a family farm for the majority of their lives. That’s where they raised their three children. Lowell was always a farmer on the side, but when he retired from being an educator, he took on farming full-time.

I wish I had half of his patience and knowledge.

He always has a pleasant smile for you and usually a humorous comment. Farming is deďŹ nitely in his blood, and I love it that he is still able to be out enjoying it. There aren’t too many careers that you can keep working at until you are 90.

I’ve heard farmers say life is over when you can’t farm. I don’t agree with that, but I guess I’m sentimental, and my family will always come before the farm.

Goal number three is to be more patient, compliment others more, and be a better Christian. I guess that means wanting to shoot a certain groundhog is out of the question.

I don’t know what this next year will bring, but I’m sure it will be eventful in its own way. Many of us are still waiting to see the results of the changes in healthcare in our country. Market prices will always be on our minds, and the weather will always keep us hopping.

No matter how badly we want to control these things, we can’t always do it. That’s not easy to accept, but we need to worry more about the things that we can control.

I’m always telling my students that they need to set goals, make plans to succeed at them and get to work. I guess it’s time to practice what I preach and get to work on goals of my own. I’ll let you know how it works out for me. See you in the spring.

Joann Brown and husband, Kent, have a beef and dairy farm near Long Lane. The mother of three, she has been a farm/housewife, bookkeeper, 4-H leader and much more for 24 years. Three years ago, when the milking industry became a “very expensive hobby,â€? she decided to ďŹ nish her schooling and become a teacher. She started her ďŹ rst teaching job in August 2012 at Halfway Elementary. “I’ve worn a lot of hats over the years, but I think I have ďŹ nally found the one that ďŹ ts the best,â€? she says.

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PAGE THREE

Winter as it ought to be A decade later Mother Nature topped her I don’t know what the weather is like today.

1960 record with 43.6 inches of snow for the As you read this on the cusp of March season. I well remember that season, too. I the Ozarks may be bathed in sunshine and was a student at Missouri State soothed by balmy southern University — Southwest Missouri breezes.

State College at the time — Indeed, we bask in brilliant living in an old house a few sunshine now— blinding sunblocks from campus. At least shine, in fact, intensified by a once I had to have my car pulled reflective blanket of stubborn out of the snow in a campus snow. It is early February as I parking lot. pen these lines. A light breeze My first winter at the Buffalo tosses our bird feeders ever so Reflex was a memorable one, lightly to and fro; it is an arctic too. We experienced the longest breath, though, rather than a period on record with an inch or gulfstream gust, and the temmore snow on the ground — 51 perature struggles to climb to 13 days from Dec. 30, 1978, to Feb. degrees above the zero Fahren18, 1979. heit noted at first light.

January that winter saw a It is truly winter. It has been record 23.1 inches of snow. If all week. Schools have been memory serves me, it was that closed since Tuesday, and we’ve *IM (AMILTON winter or the next Junior Burd no idea what tomorrow holds. came by the Reflex with his horse-drawn Main roads are open, but most others remain sleigh and gave Dee a ride. packed with snow. Schoolchildren may be in The next winter provided plenty of snow, class until June. too, with a record 19.2 inches in February.

It’s winter as winter should be, winter as The picture we took might well have been one we seem to have forgotten winter can be. from 1911-1912 when Springfield recorded Some folks are calling it one for the record 54.5 inches of snow. books, but to me it feels like winters I knew In more recent memory, the winter of 2002as a boy. We missed a lot of school back then, 2003 brought 38.6 inches of snow; however, too. We had day-after-day with snow, and we the winter of 2005-2006 saw less than 2 had nights that were bitterly cold. inches fall. It’s winters like that which make Data from the National Weather Service in this season’s weather seem so much out of the Springfield confirms what I remember. The norm. Perhaps it is, but it’s not all that odd, winter of 1959-1960 was one of the snowiest either. on record, with more than 33 inches of snow Weather records seem to indicate winters over the season. I remember that winter well. are no better or worse today than in our We were out of school for much of March and great-grandparents’ day. The January record had to make up days by going to class on of 23.1 inches set in 1979 is not far off the 23 Saturdays.

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inches of 1918.

Weather records provide an interesting retrospective, but not nearly as much so as our own memories.

What I recall of winters when I was a boy are sled runs in the yard we raced down dayafter-day, snow drifts waist deep at the edge of our hayfield, tree stumps left high above the ground when winter’s snow receded. snow forts in the front yard, rabbit tracks by the hundreds along brushy fence rows and beagle hounds with snow on their noses as they trailed the bounding cottontails.

Winter was hard, especially as it edged towards spring and the woodpile ran low, our pitchforks raked the hayloft floor and milk checks dwindled to nearly nothing as we turned cows dry to ready them for calving in April, May and June.

Winter was hard; but, I was young and hardened, too. Fingers so cold they burned and feet soaked to the bone I’ve nearly forgotten.

Rather, I am still warmed by the blazing brush piles where we worked up cordwood, the sweet fragrance of milk cows, molassesrich dairy feed and lespedeza hay mingling in the barn, the music of beagles on the trail, the serenity of a moonlight on a blanket of snow and the glitter of hoarfrost in the air on a cold winter morning.

I don’t know what the weather is like as you read these lines today.

But, I’m sure it’s just as winter ought to be — or at least, that’s how it will be remembered.

Jim Hamilton is a senior writer for Neighbor News and editor of Country Neighbor. E-mail him at jimh@mo.neighbornews.com.

#OUNTRY .EIGHBOR !GRICULTURE 2URAL ,IVING s &EBRUARY

PAGE FOUR

Contributed photos

4HE "UCKNER FAMILY AT &AIR 'ROVE HAS A TRADITION OF &&! MEMBERSHIP THAT STARTED WITH #HARLES ˆ THE PATRIARCH OF THIS GROUP ˆ IN AND continues today with his grandchildren in the blue jackets.

By Jim Hamilton JIMH@MO.NEIGHBORNEWS.COM

Charles Buckner, a lifelong dairyman from Fair Grove, was the ďŹ rst in his family to become a member of the Fair Grove FFA. In nearly six decades since Charles ďŹ rst cited the FFA creed — “I believe in the future of agriculture, with a faith born not of words but of deeds....â€? — a dozen of his children and grandchildren have uttered the same words.

Reared by his grandfather, William Franklin Buckner, on the 100-year-old family farm he and two of his children continue to operate, Charles was a member of what was then known as Future Farmers of America from 1957 through 1961 at Fair Grove High School. While in FFA he showed beef cattle and hogs, and as early as 1952 began selling milk.

As involved in school and FFA chapter activities as his farm chores would allow, Charles served as chapter chaplain and won a ďŹ rst place in Farm Mechanics at the state FFA contests. He still has his blue corduroy FFA jacket — sporting his chaplain pin and state medal.

Charles’ children and grandchildren have continued the tradition, ďŹ lling the family closet with blue and gold jackets with “Fair Groveâ€? embroidered below the distinctive FFA logo. First came the children of Charles and Kathryn (Garton): s 4AMMY &AIR 'ROVE CLASS OF 1980, who served as chapter reporter and a member of the Dairy and FFA knowledge teams; s *ANET &'(3 GRADUATE s 7ILLIAM GRADUATE WHO served as chapter sentinel, attained the rank of State Farmer and was on the state Dairy ProďŹ ciency team; s 3HERRIE A GRADUATE WHO served both as chapter reporter and treasurer, and was also a FFA State Farmer.

Still sporting their Fair Grove FFA jackets are these grandchildren of Charles and Kathryn: s -IKAYLA "UCKNER DAUGHTER OF William and Lisha, a sophomore in the Darr School of Agriculture at Missouri State University and a 2013 recipient of the American Farmer Degree; s $YLAN "UCKNER SON OF 7ILliam and Lisha, a senior at Fair Grove; s "ILLY ,OWERY SON OF 4AMMY (Buckner) and Ricky Lowery, a

An FFA family Grandchildren continue tradition started by Charles Buckner in 1957 senior at Fair Grove and second vice-president of the FFA chapter; s +ATELYNE #LOYD DAUGHTER OF Janet (Buckner) and Don Cloyd, a junior at Fair Grove and FFA chapter reporter; s $ALTON #LOYD ALSO THE SON OF

Janet and Don and a freshman at Fair Grove. s "RITNEY ,AWLESS DAUGHTER OF Sherrie (Buckner) and Bill Lawless and a sophomore at Fair Grove.

Two additional grandchildren are FFA alumni — Andrew Low-

ery, now a teacher at Conway, and Sherrie’s daughter, Amanda, now a teacher at Exeter.

Charles and Kathryn are joined on the family farm today by both Tammy and William and their families in a dairy partnership.

Taxed to verbalize what FFA membership has meant to them, William said, “The hard work you put in is a lot the same as on the farm,� and Tammy added, “I guess it’s the heritage, the tradition.�

They truly embody the opening words of the FFA Creed: “A faith born not of words but of deeds.�

Charles, patriarch of all the dozen kids in blue corduroy, simply said, “I’m just proud of ‘em all.�

'RANDCHILDREN OF #HARLES "UCKNER WEARING &&! BLUE INCLUDE FROM LEFT "ILLY ,OWERY +ATELYN #LOYD "RIT NEY ,AWLESS $YLAN #LOYD AND -IKAYLA "UCKNER !T RIGHT IS &AIR 'ROVE &&! ADVISOR -ATT #RUTCHER .OT PIC TURED IS &&! MEMBER $ALTON #LOYD

4HE "UCKNER FAMILY INCLUDES THESE FORMER &AIR 'ROVE &&! MEMBERS FROM LEFT 3HERRIE ,AWLESS 4AMMY ,OWERY #HARLES "UCKNER *ANET #LOYD AND 7ILLIAM "UCKNER

#OUNTRY .EIGHBOR !GRICULTURE 2URAL ,IVING s &EBRUARY

PAGE FIVE

Calves and hard work put kids through college

By Jim Hamilton

“We put all our kids through the University of Missouri raising Holstein heifers here,� Bob said.

JIMH@MO.NEIGHBORNEWS.COM “We sold about 100 springers a year, for 20 years Bob Voris, 2014 president of the Polk County of college tuition and expenses.â€? The calves came Cattlemen’s Association, tells an unusual tale for from various sources, but all ended up as springa cattleman. It’s about cattle, but not about raisers in the sale ring at Blansit’s Dairy Auction ing beef. It’s about dairy heifers and the hundreds south of Ozark (now closed). of them it took to put three kids through college. @-9 7)&% )3 ! 3!).4 And, of course, it’s about family working hand-inBob planned and built the barn, bought and hand on the farm — not an uncommon story, at sold the heifers, but he didn’t do it all alone. As all. the kids became old enough to take on chores, 4(% %!2,9 9%!23 each had his or her responsibilities, too — not One of seven children of Buster and Barbara only in the calf barn, but on the rest of the farm, Voris, Bob spent his childhood as well. A power plant suon the family dairy farm near pervisor for City Utilities, Bob Halfway until the mid-1960s, worked long and sometimes when his parents sold out and unpredictable hours. When he moved to Walnut Grove. wasn’t on the job, he was on Following graduation from call. Much of the responsibility Walnut Grove High School in for the farm fell to Linda and 1969, like other young men of the kids. that era, Bob faced the military “My wife is a saint,â€? Bob said. draft and good chances of go“She actually raised our kids. ing to Vietnam. Rather than let She ran the farm, took the kids Uncle Sam make the choice, he to church and stayed home joined the U.S. Air Force after with them while I worked.â€? As high school, but that didn’t demanding as his job was, howspare him service in Vietnam. ever, Bob refused to be tied to A month after marrying Walnut the evening shift. He still made Grove classmate Linda Sell in Contributed photo time for activities the kids were 1971, he was sent overseas for a "OB 6ORIS NEW PRESIDENT OF involved in. Over the years, year. Near the end of his enlisthe served as a school board the Polk County Cattlemen’s ment, Bob and Linda were livmember, 4-H project leader, !SSOCIATION RAISES LIVESTOCK ing at Norton AFB in California on his farm near Walnut Sunday school teacher and when their ďŹ rst son was born.

Southwest Special Road District 'ROVE Returning home to the Walcommissioner. nut Grove/Willard area, Bob worked briey for Reecting on those years, Bob said, “It was General Electric in SpringďŹ eld and then began a a struggle, but I would do it all over again‌. If 30-year career with SpringďŹ eld City Utilities. He I want to tell you anything, it’s this,â€? he added. also began taking night classes at Missouri State “My 30-year career at CU was successful because University (SMSU at the time), a 12-year undermy wife picked up the slack at home. Linda was taking to get his bachelor’s degree in Industrial the key, the force that made it happen.â€?

Technology. Both of his boys, Nathan and Nick, 4(% 6/2)3 &!2- 4/$!9 started school at Willard, but by the time daughThe heifer plan worked. Not only did the calves ter Natalie started kindergarten the family had pay for undergraduate degrees, they carried the moved to their present farm just north of the kids to advanced degrees. county line near Walnut Grove. s $R .ATHAN 6ORIS AN EQUINE VETERINARIAN WITH "!2. "5),$3 +)$3 &5452% a Master of Business Administration (MBA) In 1985, Bob, Linda and their three children degree, began his career with a practice in settled into an old house on East 565th Road and Columbia and is now an equine representative began shaping their future on the gently rolling for Zoetis Animal Health (formerly a division of farmland of southern Polk County.

PďŹ zer). He is married and has two children in One of the ďŹ rst projects Bob undertook was to Columbia. build a calf barn in which he could raise Holstein s .ICK 6ORIS 0 % A #ONSULTING %NGINEER CURheifers — the foundation of his college savings rently working on his MBA, is responsible plan for their three children. State-of-the-art for for plant pollution control with Kansas City its time, the barn provided pens for 18 calves Power and Light. He, too, is married with two in the center and concrete walkway all around. children.

Heated in winter and well-ventilated in summer, s .ATALIE 6ORIS IS AN ATTORNEY WITH THE $EPARTit featured a rock drainage system under each ment of Justice in Washington, D.C. Upon pen to keep the calves dry and comfortable on graduation from law school she worked at a their straw bedding. Thirty years later it’s still nonproďŹ t organization that assisted district providing a comfortable, healthful environment attorneys before obtaining her life-ong goal of for robust Holstein calves — steers, rather than working for the Department of Justice. heifers.

After the kids were gone, Linda put her busi-

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Photo by Jim Hamiltion

"OB 6ORIS NEW PRESIDENT OF THE 0OLK #OUNTY #ATTLEMEN S !SSOCIATION RAISES LIVESTOCK ON HIS FARM NEAR 7ALNUT 'ROVE ness degree from Draughons Business University back to work as assistant city clerk for the City of Walnut Grove, and currently works for the City of SpringďŹ eld Fire Department as an administrative assistant.

In addition to running a herd of Angus momma cows, Bob continues to raise Holstein steers in winter, and in warmer seasons combines fescue, raises soybeans and puts up alfalfa hay. He also stays involved in a sideline started years ago, selling Westway liquid supplements. “When raising springers I fed a lot of liquid supplement and I had an opportunity to buy into it,� he said. “I’ve fed and sold liquid supplement for 25 years.�

With the kids all grown and gone and Linda off at work, the Voris farm is a quieter place today, especially in winter. A few Holstein steers are gathered around hay feeders, and younger steers are content and bedded down in the calf barn.

A big New Holland tractor, pickup trucks, trailers and other equipment offer ample evidence of an active operation, though Bob admits he’s slowing down. It’s been a long road since he was a boy at his folk’s dairy farm. Were he a politician, he might be deemed a “senior statesman� at this stage of the game. A farmer, he’s taking on a similar role, lending the experience of his years to the Polk County Cattlemen’s Association.

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PAGE SIX

Photo by Andrew C. Jenkins

4ODD 2OCK STANDS BEHIND THE BAR AT ,EAKY 2OOF -EADERY 4HE BUSINESS TAKES ITS NAME FROM A RAILROAD THAT RAN FROM 3PRINGlELD TO +ANSAS #ITY ! STEAM LOCOMOTIVE BELL ADORNS THE BAR

Leaky Roof Meadery Spooklight, Gandy Dancer and Sour Cherry Cyser modern names for ancient libation "Y !NDREW # *ENKINS ANDREWJ@BUFFALOREFLEX.COM

Mead — It was the favored elixir of Beowulf, the mythic Scandinavian dragonslayer, the drink of seagoing Norse raiders and the nectar of Greek gods. But, one need not slay dragons, ply the north seas in Viking longboats or ascend Mount Olympus to partake of the golden beverage.

A drive to Buffalo will get you to a fount of the fabled honey beverage.

It is there The Leaky Roof Meadery opened to the public on Jan. 3, offering an intriguing selection of meads — KCC&S Cyser (hard cider and honey), High, Dry and Dusty (ginger and honey), Spooklight (spiced pumpkin and honey), Berry Picker (mixed berries and honey), Gandy Dancer (honey) and Sour Cherry Cyser, as well as recurring specialty meads.

Mead-maker Todd J. Rock, general manager Andrew “Skippy� Steiger and public relations manager Jhett Collins had planned to open the mead- ery in October or November, but the federal government shutdown delayed the licensing process.

The meadery team is still ďŹ nalizing distribution plans for its products. In time several establishments throughout southwest Missouri will offer Leaky Roof products.

Rock explains on the business’ website that mead is an alcoholic product created from the

fermentation of honey and water by yeast: “Mead at its most basic is simply honey, yeast and water. To this base you can add an unlimited variety of products to produce a variety of beverages. You can make a blend of mead and beer and this would be called braggot. A mix of mead and other fruits would be called a melomel. SpeciďŹ c melomels are cyser, made from the combination of mead and cider, and pyment, made from a blend of grapes and mead. Besides the addition of fruit, mead can have spices added for what is called a methyglin. If you take a pyment and add spices you have technically made a hippocras, which was a beverage created by the Greek physician Hippocrates.â€?

The three men — Rock, Steiger and Collins — spent years formulating their meadery plan. They were associated with Hellbender Meadery, which was being developed in Rogersville until the owners had to abandon the project.

Rock and Steiger also previously had worked in the packaging department at Mother’s Brewing Co. in SpringďŹ eld.

With ďŹ nancial backing from Rock’s parents — David and Sandra Rock — the trio chose Buffalo as the spot to resurrect their original meadery ideas. Rock said the property ďŹ t his technical speciďŹ cations, and some local businesses worked hard to bring The Leaky Roof to Buffalo. Several contractors Rock had done business with on the Rogersville project — including Bernard Kane of Bermel Corp. and Aaron Wilson of Wil-Co Drilling — were

from the Buffalo area, and when they heard Rock was looking for a place to open shop, they recommended Buffalo. Rock said the property already was zoned appropriately and the city of Buffalo was easy to work with. “The local support has been amazing,� Rock said.

Rock said Leaky Roof is the ďŹ rst operation in Missouri dedicated to producing mead, and the meadery is one of the few in the nation to create carbonated draft drinks.

The meadery taproom itself is one of a kind, as well, featuring wood planks and corrugated metal from a barn owned by Rock’s parents in California, Mo. Glass doors in the taproom provide visitors the opportunity to peek inside the working meadery.

The meadery’s railroad logo and name, Leaky Roof, were inspired by the nickname of a railroad that formerly ran from SpringďŹ eld to Kansas City. In keeping with the theme, in the taproom is a 100-year-old steam locomotive bell once used on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.

For now the meadery’s hours are 4 to 7 p.m.

Tuesday and Wednesday; 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday; 4 to 10 p.m. Friday; and 1 to 10 p.m. Saturday.

Rock said he foresees the meadery becoming a venue for musicians, especially on the weekends.

Samples are available for $2 for three commercial meads or $2 for two specialty meads.

Mead also can be purchased by the pint ($4 for commercial mead or $5 for specialty mead) or the half-gallon growler ($8 for the glass growler, which is reusable, and $8 to ďŹ ll it with a commercial mead).

To learn more about Buffalo’s unique new business, go to the website leakyroofmeadery. com or visit The Leaky Roof Meadery at 1306 S. Azalea St. in Buffalo. (Take Truman Road west of U.S. 65 on the south edge of Buffalo. The new 6,400-square-foot meadery is on the east side of the road, across from Countryview Estates.)

#OUNTRY .EIGHBOR !GRICULTURE 2URAL ,IVING s &EBRUARY

PAGE SEVEN

Marionville native Landon Robbins translates love of knives into artistry

By Amy Gardner AMYG@BUFFALOREFLEX.COM

Landon Robbins learned early to appreciate a keen edge.

His dad instilled in him the love of a good knife. Today the Marionville native translates that lifelong love into a unique and useful art form. “Dad always appreciated a good knife, and when I was little that was part of what I had growing up,�

Robbins said. “That’s what began my passion with knives. The ďŹ rst things man invented were tools.

Forging blades and doing blacksmithing work in general is a lost art. It’s been dying out for a long time. Nobody needs it anymore.

But, that’s what I like about it — it’s back to the basics.�

Robbins’ knives today are far from “basic,� but as with all artists, that’s where his story begins.

-%.4/2%$ "9 -!34%23 Until 10 years ago, Robbins had only put a handle on one of his knives, then he began grinding down high carbon steel into blades. At the age of 37 he became serious about learning the art of blacksmithing — particularly knife making. “I’ve always been interested in blacksmith work in general and already had read a lot about it.

I’d learned to heat-treat and temper metal in high school machine shop, but after watching Master Smith Brion Tomberlin do a demonstration at the Branson Hammer-In and Knife Show I was ready to begin learning the art of forging a knife.�

Robbins has had many different teachers, but he hesitates to name them because he’s afraid he’ll leave one out. He does point to Ozark Knife Makers in Ozark, Mo., and to Old Washington, Ark., where the Bladesmith Society holds several different classes each year.

Robbins is quick to point out he is just a beginner — still learning and always wanting to learn. “It’s a journey with no end. I don’t ever want to know everything there is to know when it comes to making a knife. I always want to keep im-

proving, keep learning new techniques from somebody. There are a lot of amazing artists out there willing to help you learn, too.�

4%34).' ()3 3+),,3 In May 2013, Robbins went to Atlanta, Ga., to test for his Journeyman Smith rating through the American Bladesmith Society. “To begin with, I had to handforge a blade to pass the American Bladesmith Society’s performance test. The blade was tested through a variety of performances, like cutting through rope and wood, and then testing the blade edge which still must be able to shave and have no nicks or cracks. This is among other tests. The blade has to withstand being placed in a vice and bent to 90 degrees without breaking. But, that’s what I like about the American Bladesmith Society — they actually test the blade. They want to keep the art of a forged blade alive. “After that ďŹ rst blade passed their tests, I had to complete ďŹ ve knives to take with me to Atlanta, all hand-forged. They were judged by seven Master Smiths on ďŹ t and ďŹ nish; they all have to meet a certain criteria. For about two hours the Master Smiths looked at the knives submitted by 15 people.â€?

Chuckling, he added, “If you want to see a grown man get nervous, that’s the place you need to be.

Then they call you into a room one by one and tell you whether you passed or failed. I had fussed over those blades until the night we left.�

Robbins passed. He is now a Journeyman bladesmith. #/.4).5).' 4/ (/.% ()3 %$'% Since returning from Atlanta, Robbins has continued to work at his craft. He has had pieces published in the Knives 2013 catalog, Knife World Newspaper and Blade Magazine. Chuck Ward, a photographer from Arkansas, plays a key role. “Chuck photographs my knives and then sends a copy to me for my portfolio, but he also sends the pictures to a variety of publications to get them published. I have received orders from several states

Contributed photo

/NE OF ,ANDON 2OBBINS HAND FORGED KNIVES BEFORE lNISHING

Contributed photo

Landon Robbins. thanks to Chuck. It’s a big help because I don’t have my website set up yet, although I do plan to get that done eventually.�

On New Year’s Day 2014 Robbins moved his equipment into his newly built shop. Now working toward his Master Smith rating, he plans to keep pushing the limits of his

abilities. “It will be quite a while before I feel I’m ready to test for Master Smith, but I hope to get there one of these days,� he said.

If history is any indication of what the future may hold, it’s clear Landon Robbins has the edge to cut it.

Photo by Chuck Ward Photography

4HE SAME KNIFE WHEN ,ANDON 2OBBINS IS lNISHED WITH IT

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#OUNTRY .EIGHBOR !GRICULTURE 2URAL ,IVING s &EBRUARY

PAGE EIGHT

Extension specialist Wesley Tucker following examples set by his father

By Jim Hamilton JIMH@MO.NEIGHBORNEWS.COM

Wesley Tucker, University of Missouri Extension agriculture business specialist in Bolivar, learned a lot while away in college, but he found inspiration for his career right at home.

Mentored by noted ag economist Dr. Scott Brown and other UM notables, he can cite market data, interpret USDA projections and explain the business of agriculture in a way even nonfarm folks can understand the numbers.

Whether in front of a group of cattlemen — as he was at the recent Missouri Cattlemen’s state meeting — or addressing sheep and goat producers at their regional meeting, he simply makes “a good talk.� With more than a dozen years as a specialist, he’s had a lot of practice.

Were it not for the example set by his father, though, he might not be sharing his expertise with anyone.

His father, the late John Wesley Tucker, was an Extension small farms educator in Dallas County for 24 years. “I was always proud my father worked for University of Missouri Extension, and that his job was to help others succeed. That’s one of the reasons I’m an Extension specialist. I saw what he did.�

The inuences of his father, of course, go much deeper than leading him into Extension. “I rely every day on the teachings of my father — how to be a husband and father, how to trust in the Lord, and how to be someone who helps others. My father inuences everything I do, and he made me into the man I am today.â€?

Those inuences started 40 years ago deep in the hills near Leadmine.

2%!2%$ /. !. /,$ /:!2+3 &!2Wesley Edward Tucker — known as “Eddie� when he was younger — was reared on a family farm settled in 1868 near Leadmine. In 1988 the farm was registered in the name of Wesley’s grandmother, Cora Tucker,

The

Photo by Jim Hamilton

5NIVERSITY OF -ISSOURI %XTENSION !GRICULTURE "USINESS 3PECIALIST 7ESLEY 4UCKER HIS WIFE (EATHER AND THEIR DAUGHTER *ORDAN RUN CATTLE ON RENTED PASTURE NEAR ,OUISBURG "ASED IN 0OLK #OUNTY 4UCKER CREDITS HIS LATE FATHER *OHN 4UCKER WITH INmUENCING HIM TO BECOME AN %XTENSION SPECIALIST widow of the late Marion Edward Tucker, as a Missouri Century Farm.

One of two children of John and Debbie Tucker (he has a sister, Cora), Wesley grew up on that old farm caring for livestock and showing registered Simmental cattle. He speaks reverently of his rural upbringing: “Doing chores teaches responsibility, the value of hard work, and it even teaches you about life, such as when you have to watch a baby calf die.�

Wesley said he started with a bottle calf he bought with $60 of his “birthday money.�

A week later that calf died, so his dad gave him a black baldy calf he named “Big Girl,� which he was

successful in raising. “She became my ďŹ rst momma cow and started my herd. I’ve raised cattle ever since.â€?

Active in FFA at Skyline High School, Wesley borrowed more money through a Missouri Department of Agriculture loan program and continued to grow his herd. “I didn’t spend a lot on other stuff, and that helped me pay for college,� he said.

By the time he graduated from high school in 1992 he had eight registered Simmental cows, and he maintained a herd throughout his years at the University of Missouri, where he earned his undergraduate degree in agriculture economics in 1996 and his master’s degree in 2001.

Though Wesley came home to work on the farm on weekends, he acknowledged, “Mom and Dad helped me tremendously‌. I feel so honored to have grown up on a farm with parents that loved me, and to grow up in a Christian home.â€?

Elaborating on the value of that farm upbringing, he said, “You know you’re a part of something ‌ you feel that commitment, that responsibility.â€?

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Following graduation in 1996, Wesley went to work for American Cyanamid (now BASF) as an agricultural chemicals sales representative in Iowa and Illinois. After less than two years he was back in Missouri working for

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PAGE NINE Hickory counties,â€? Wesley said. The system has proMFA at Lebanon and Conway — and working to vided more than fodder for their cows. “I’ve learned ďŹ nish his master’s degree thesis. At 4 p.m. on April more from my leasing arrangements that I can 30, 2001, he turned in his thesis and at 8 a.m. on May 1, was a University of Missouri Extension farm teach others,â€? he noted.

Where Hereford/Simmental competition once management specialist in Versailles. His next move was to Hickory County as an agriculture and rural existed, it has been ameliorated by crossbreeding both breeds with Black Angus. Downsizing last development specialist, and in May 2006 he moved into his present position as an agriculture business year from more than 90 moma cows, the Tuckers today run 60 cows, most specialist based in Polk raised from their original County. herds, and are currently -/2% ). #/--/. backgrounding 50 calves.

4(!. #!44,% Wesley borrows manageOn Nov. 1, 2003, the ment techniques both from former Heather Hedrick of his dad’s example and his Galena, daughter of UM university education, as well Extension Specialist John as personal experience. As Hedrick, and Wesley Eda youngster he saw his dad ward Tucker, son of Extenimplement one of the ďŹ rst sion small farms educator managed intensive grazJohn Tucker, became man ing systems in the county. and wife.

Today he doesn’t own any They had known one hay-making equipment. He another for years, meetemploys strip grazing and ing as youngsters showbuys what hay he needs. ing cattle. They were ďŹ erce The Tuckers calve spring competitors, Heather showand fall, and then sell their ing Herefords and Wesley showing Simmentals. But Contributed photo feeders through the Buffalo Livestock Market. “I’m the ultimate battle was for 7ESLEY 4UCKER WITH HIS PARENTS *OHN showmanship.

AND $EBBIE AT HIS GRADUATION FROM THE a big believer in weaning and backgrounding,� WesThey dated some but 5NIVERSITY OF -ISSOURI ley said. “I prefer to sell a didn’t see one another for heavier preconditioned calf — usually two to three several years. Wesley went to MU in Columbia, months after weaning . We wean, give them their Heather to the College of the Ozarks and on to shots and get them prepared for the next stage of Missouri State University. However, in 2001, while Wesley was beginning his work with MU Extension, their life.� %.6)2/.-%.4 %80%2)%.#% %$5#!4)/.

Heather was also at MU attending the School of The University of Missouri calls Wesley Tucker a Veterinary Medicine, and their paths crossed once specialist in farm management, and it’s true he has again. all the academic credentials. But, whatever experToday Wesley and Heather are at home on a farm near Buffalo, where their 5-year-old daughter, tise he brings to his role as an MU “educator,� as he calls his dad, goes right back to his father’s lifelong Jordan, is learning the lessons and values each example, to his own childhood on an Ozarks Cenof her parents learned in their respective rural tury Farm, and to his own continuing experience upbringings. as a cow-calf producer. “We mostly farm rented ground in Dallas and

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$!6)$ */.%3 This red-haired country boy is a familiar ďŹ gure to Dallas County drivers, whether they’re spraying accumulated mud off a farm truck or putting a shine on the family sedan for date night.

Attending to customers’ needs at the Hurricane Bay Car Wash in Buffalo for the past decade, the congenial Jones is a product of Elkland and MarshďŹ eld schools, graduating high school in 1968. The son of Elmer and Juanita Jones, he grew up on a dairy farm at Route EE and Mo. 32 in Elkland. Following high school he worked for Banta Fruit Company in SpringďŹ eld, then spent 30 years with Associated Wholesale Grocers.

Dave and his wife, Rhonda, have three grown sons and today live near March.

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PAGE TEN

Miller’s Berry Farm Plastic is the secret to bountiful, clean strawberry crop Photo by Scott Kerber

'ERALD -ILLER BY HIS STRAWBERRY PATCH NOW FABRIC COVERED FOR WINTER 3EEN BY -ILLER S FEET IS THE SUPPLY CONDUIT FOR THE DRIP LINES WHICH RUN THROUGH EACH HILL

supplying both water and fertilizer.

By Scott Kerber SCOTTK@MARSHFIELDMAIL.COM

Starting this May, strawberry lovers in the MarshďŹ eld area will have a new source to satisfy their cravings. At Miller’s Berry Farm, located on Route KK about two miles from Route A, Gerald and Connie Miller hope to make between 25,000 and 35,000 pounds of strawberries available to folks who want to come out and pick their own berries.

Making Miller’s patch different from most other strawberry-growing operations is the use of a material not generally among the favorites of foodies — plastic. Miller’s strawberries are being grown using a technique know as plasticulture, in which the plants grow through holes poked in sheets of plastic.

The use of plastic in the growing process serves multiple purposes, but two are the most important. “To keep weeds under control and control the heat,� said Gerald Miller. “It helps them ripen, because it absorbs the sunlight (keeping the fruit and foliage from burning) and

warms the soil. That brings ‘em on.�

Because of the beneďŹ t of the plastic, Miller hopes to produce in excess of one and a quarter pounds — perhaps even approaching two pounds — of berries from each plant. Conventional growing methods, in which the strawberries ďŹ ght weeds and a hot sun, typically yield

less than a pound per plant.

In addition to the use of plastic, this planting method also provides improved drainage by creating raised beds. Miller had eased into the strawberry-raising process last year in a conventional half-acre at patch. But the excessive rain last spring caused high levels of mold

Contributed photo

4HE PLANTING BUGGY HOLDS FOUR PEOPLE WHO PLACE STRAWBERRY SEEDLINGS ON THE APPARATUS AS IT WORKS DOWN THE ROW PLANTING TWO SIDE BY SIDE rows in each raised bed.

and rot, which cost Miller much of his crop. He expects the raised beds to eliminate that issue, while implanted drip lines in the rows will protect against the opposite extreme. “We had strawberries last year,â€? said Miller. “But this is the ďŹ rst year we’re doing it on a professional level.â€?

But the transition from sideline dabbler to professional grower is a lot of work. For starters, in addition to the bed itself, the operation required installation of an eight-foot fence around the patch to keep out hungry deer and other wildlife that love strawberries. Then comes the groundwork. “You’ve got to prepare the ground — plow it,� said Miller. “In the summer you plant Sudan, and then you plow that under and let it rot. That helps the soil. Then there’s a fellow in Miller — I don’t have the machinery to do it — who comes up and makes the rows. He forms the soil in rows, lays plastic over it and puts in a drop line down the center for irrigation. We fertilize right through the drip lines in the spring.�

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PAGE ELEVEN The fellow from Miller is David Brown, who has grown plasticulture strawberries on his place for several years.

In September, Brown brings back a machine — an implement on his tractor — with four seats on it, in which people sit to plant the strawberry seedlings. The machine pokes a hole in the plastic, drops water and liquid fertilizer in the hole and plants one of the seedlings in the hole. The seedlings are loaded one by one by the four people seated on the planter. According to Miller, 20,000 seedlings were planted on his one and a third-acre plot.

All the upfront labor does have a payoff, in addition to the improved yield. There is reduced work in weed control and much easier picking.

The seedlings themselves come from New Zealand. They are sprouts from the trailers of a parent plant, which is a perennial itself.

But in order to get the most production from the sprouts, they are treated as annuals, planted in the fall and killed off the next summer in preparation for a new planting. “They’d still grow, if you left them in, but their production would decrease,� said Miller.

Miller intends for his strawberry patch to be primarily a pick-yourown operation, which should be open sometime in May. Depending on the actual level of production by the plants, as well as demand level by pickers, he may take some excess berries to a farmers market. “I’ll start advertising it in March or April, and then we’ll see.�

Contributed photos

4HE BERRY PATCH HAS BEEN WORKED INTO RAISED BEDS AND THE PLASTIC STRETCHED OUT OVER THE ROWS AWAITING PLANTING

#OUNTRY .EIGHBOR !GRICULTURE 2URAL ,IVING s &EBRUARY

PAGE TWELVE

Strip grazing, forage testing capitalize on nutrition in pasture "Y -ATT "ARBA MATTHEWB@BOLIVARMONEWS.COM

Farmers have a lot to consider when it comes to raising beef cattle, not the least of which is the quality of the feed their animals are ingesting and how much of it those cows need to stay healthy through the winter months.

In January, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Polk County Soil and Water Conservation District held a strip grazing demonstration at B&L Hopkins Farms west of Bolivar. In addition to the strip grazing demonstration, Bob Howe, NRCS district conservationist, illustrated the importance of testing and understanding hay and forage when it comes to providing a cow’s nutritional requirements.

Farmers Les Hopkins and Keith Stevens of B&L Hopkins Farms began strip grazing in 2004 and quickly found the beneďŹ ts to that form of pasture management. “Before, we were feeding hay all winter long but that ďŹ rst year we stockpiled three or four ďŹ elds,â€?

Stevens said. “We learned real quick that was a lot easier than getting the tractor out every day to unroll bales of hay in the ďŹ elds.â€?

The Stevens/Hopkins herd size is about 90 animals, including 52 cows, two bulls and 41 calves.

This past year, they stockpiled about 76 acres of their land For some producers, Howe said it might be necessary to move a strip grazing fence every two days, while others who do not live as close to their farm might want to move ďŹ elds every three days or even longer. “When we strip a ďŹ eld, we usually plan for about two days but if we have a busy week ahead of us, we’ll go ahead and plan out for longer times,â€? Stevens said.

Stevens said “movingâ€? a ďŹ eld for strip grazing is as easy as using high-tensile wire that is unspooled across the pasture to establish a temporary grazing ďŹ eld. When the herd has ďŹ nished grazing that ďŹ eld, the wire is respooled and the cattle move to the adjacent space where more grass is waiting.

Photo by Matt Barba

+EITH 3TEVENS LEFT AND *ACK -C'INNIS DISCUSS THE ADVANTAGES OF US ING HIGH TENSILE WIRE TO SEPARATE lELDS IN ORDER TO MANAGE PASTURES AND ENSURE CATTLE RECEIVE PROPER NUTRITION DURING WINTER MONTHS By using strip grazing, Hopkins and Stevens have capitalized on the nutrition available in the grass in their pastures (stockpile) before using hay to feed cattle. By doing so, the two farmers have been able to provide more appropriate nutrition at different parts of the year, while reducing the amount of supplemental feed they need to purchase.

In order to stockpilie, and subsequently strip graze their pastures, Stevens and Hopkins have planned out how many days worth of feeding the grass in their ďŹ elds will support. Howe said USDA

#ATTLE AT " , (OPKINS &ARMS GRAZE A STOCKPILED PASTURE DIVIDED BY HIGH TENSILE WIRE WHICH IS SUPPORTED BY THE YELLOW AND WHITE STAKES in the photo.

is able to calculate these values based on ďŹ eld density, harvest efďŹ ciency by the cattle and a herd’s required intake.

The result, Howe said, is healthier cattle in the winter months when they need extra nutrition to combat freezing temperatures and smaller expenses per head of cattle.

Howe said three numbers are important to determining appropriate nutrition levels for cattle: crude protein; neutral detergent ďŹ ber (NDF), which is indigestible material that provides no nutritional value; and the total

digestible nutrients (TDN), which represents a food source’s overall quality.

Cattle producers want the TDN value on any given test higher, Howe said, while the NDF should be lower. Producers should also plan for about 2 pounds of protein for dry cows and 2.2 pounds for cows with a nursing calf.

USDA has a testing probe available that can be used to take samples from hay bales, as well as bags to send in the samples at its Bolivar ofďŹ ce.

One of the most important reasons for testing hay is to determine moisture levels, because it will require more feed with higher amounts of water in it to provide cattle with same amount of nutrition as a similar amount of feed with less water.

Stevens also said more hydrants were added to their farms’ pastures to improve his herd’s access to water and make their pasture management efforts more effective. Previously, the farms had two points of access for water but their goal with adding more hydrants was to put water within 600 feet or less of the herd at any point. “That made such a difference because now they don’t all go drink at once,� Stevens said. “They stay spread out better than they did in the past.�

Stevens said the initial concern with using high-tensile wire was that the animals would break it, but he explained that in the few years he and Hopkins have been doing strip grazing, the wire has been broken ďŹ ve times — the ďŹ rst by a deer and the subsequent times by them forgetting the wire was there. “The ďŹ rst time, we had a deer break through, but it’s been broken about four times since then and those have all been because either [Hopkins] or I were out in the ďŹ eld and forgot the wire was up,â€? Stevens said.

For more information about strip grazing or testing forage and hay quality, contact Howe at the Polk County USDA Service Center at (417) 326-4823, ext. 3.

"OB (OWE RIGHT DISTRICT CONSERVATIONIST WITH THE 5 3 $EPARTMENT OF !GRICULTURE ANSWERS QUESTIONS ABOUT FORAGE QUALITY TESTING DURING A STRIP GRAZING DEMONSTRATION IN *ANUARY +EITH 3TEVENS CO OWNER OF " , (OPKINS &ARMS WHERE THE DEMONSTRATION WAS HELD LOOKS OVER THE RESULTS OF HIS QUALITY TEST !T FAR LEFT IS 'REG (ICKS A CATTLEMAN FROM northwest of Buffalo.

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34%6% +25%'%2 Diehard barbecue fans around Buffalo quickly recognize Steve Krueger, even if they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know his name. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the mustachioed bear of a fellow piling on the beef brisket, ribs, chicken, pork and other hearty entrees for customers of his all-you-can-eat barbecue meals at the old pool hall south of the Buffalo city square. Nobody ever goes away hungry when heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dishing up dinner.

The man behind Brick House Smoked Meats, Krueger moved to Dallas County from the state of Nevada nine years ago, leaving behind a career as an American Quarter Horse breeder, trainer and show judge. Today he doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t own a single horse, no longer trains or judges othersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; horses, neither runs any cattle on his picturesque farm east of Buffalo.

A native of the Kansas City area, Krueger joined the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War and landed at Nellis AFB in Las Vegas, where he served out his enlistment as a veterinary technician, then put down roots in the Silver State.

Returning to Missouri in his 50s, Krueger revived the skills he had learned from his father in Kansas City, a backyard barbecue aďŹ cionado who had been mentored by KC barbecue legend Arthur Bryant.

Continuing that KC barbecue tradition, Krueger slow-cooks his meats using hickory wood in an all-brick, commercial-size smoker at the back of his small cafe and kitchen. His offerings include beef brisket, pulled pork, smoked ham, turkey, chicken, pork ribs, beef short ribs and more.

In addition to selling sandwiches, chili, barbecue dinners and burgers with assorted side dishes from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays at his barbecue pit at 260 Route K, Long Lane, Krueger offers take-home â&#x20AC;&#x153;meat by the poundâ&#x20AC;? and caters barbecue and all the ďŹ xings for everything from backyard family gatherings to larger organizational meetings.

Steve has become a familiar ďŹ gure at such catered events. â&#x20AC;&#x153;After nine years, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve ďŹ nally got to where it pays for itself,â&#x20AC;? he says.

Regular patrons of his â&#x20AC;&#x153;bottomless plateâ&#x20AC;? Thursday evening dinners, however, may wonder how he makes a dime, so generous are the pitmasterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s portions.

Barbecue fans can learn more about Brick House Smoked Meats by going to the website brickhousebbq@me.com.

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PAGE FOURTEEN

Would you invite a calf to ride shotgun?

A newborn calf rode shotgun in my pickup truck the last week in January. The little guy was so innocent with Dora the Explorer eyes.

Blink. Blink. Blink. They don’t know what hit them after leaving the warmth of their mama.

This adventure started because of me allowing a young cow to give birth during January.

The old rule is: Don’t breed livestock to give birth during January. Bad! Bad! Bad! The last two winters lulled me to into a false sense of security. Sure we had a little snow last May, but winter temperatures rarely fell into the teens, and what is snow?

Suddenly, we rocked back into reality.

Raising livestock can be a challenge in the best of times, and all but overwhelming $WAIN ,AIR during brutal weather conditions, like the last Tuesday in January.

Thermometers bottomed out at 11 degrees at sunrise and barely reached 25 degrees that afternoon.

Looking at weather app in my phone, the temperature was 17 degrees at 11 a.m. when mom called: “I think a cow just gave birth.

“The cow’s lying down beside the calf; now she’s standing up; wait, she’s lying down again. I don’t know if that’s normal.”

Thanks mom, I’m on the way.

Under normal conditions, the worry is for a heifer to deliver her first calf. But with temperatures well below 20 degrees, the calf faced a real threat of being frozen in minutes.

Fortunate for me, breeders seem to have almost bred the endurance of newborn bison into today’s beef breeds.

As a kid, all of the neighbors in our rural community regularly brought half-frozen calves into their homes each winter. Sometimes the calves died, but often the farmer came in to find newborns standing up by the stove or wandering around the house.

Rushing home, I cranked up the heat in my truck during the 20-minute drive and grabbed 50 pounds of range cubes.

I poured the feed behind my truck to distract the first-time mother, then I swooped up her baby and laid her in the floorboard of my pickup truck.

The calf slowly warmed up, as I continued trying to wipe it dry. By the time it was standing up in my truck, she was strong enough to rejoin the herd.

When I shared a picture on social media of the

calf lying in my truck, Kay Norton commented that at least the calf didn’t lock the doors. Huh? Kay is married to Boone County James Norton, and he narrated their adventure.

He also found a near-frozen newborn calf, placed it in the floorboard of his truck and brought it into the garage for the night.

The next morning, he placed the resurgent calf back in the floorboard of his truck. At some point, he got out of the truck and the calf ... locked the doors with the engine running.

Thank you, Kay, for your extra key to unlock James’ truck.

At least my calf rode shotgun, she didn’t think she could drive … yet.

Yes, it helps to have a sense of humor on the farm, and it’s even nicer when people share their stories.

Dwain Lair is editor of the Harrison Daily Times.

Contact him at dwainl@harrisondaily.com.

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PAGE FIFTEEN

Meet the hunter: Swift! Agile! Deadly!

"Y $WAIN ,AIR DWAINL@HARRISONDAILY.COM

This hunter is a member of the accipiter family of birds of prey. They are versatile â&#x20AC;&#x153;pursuit huntersâ&#x20AC;? that can capture prey in the air or on the ground ... usually after a rush of speed and a short chase. Males use that beak to eat the heads of their prey before feeding babies, and they almost always pluck the prey before eating.

These hunters specialize in birds, especially songbirds, and as Harrison birder Sally Jo Gibson so correctly said, the bird has pulled up a perch to the â&#x20AC;&#x153;bird buffet being served up in the front yard.

And hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the proďŹ le of the hunter, a â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sharp-Shinned Hawkâ&#x20AC;?: s INCHES LONG s INCH WINGSPAN s OUNCE WEIGHT s ,ONG LEGS s 3HORT WINGS s ,ONG TAIL s !GILE AND ACROBATIC s .AVIGATES DENSE WOODS AT HIGH SPEEDS by using its long tail as a rudder.

Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not beneath chasing a bird into a shrub and trashing around in the bush trying to get a meal.

The bird is hungry. Slapped hands and a slammed door only created a brief ďŹ&#x201A;urry of feathers, as the Sharp-Shinned Hawk ďŹ&#x201A;ew off the platform bird feeder and into the top of a tall oak tree.

The little woodpecker shifted its position but held the same stance and kept the pole between it and the little hawk.

Keep hiding, little buddy. Songbirds make up 90 percent of that hunterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diet.

The other hunter in this yard is BobKitty, lurking under a truck, hiding under bushes or sneaking up to bird feeders..

If he catches a bird, he doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t harm it.

Open the door, and he will bring the bird in the house, jump in the tub and turn it loose.

The bird is so stunned it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t ďŹ&#x201A;y.

You just have to pick it up, carry it outside and set it free.

4HE SQUIRREL SHOULD BE TOO BIG FOR THE HUNTER

BUT IT ALSO DIDN T mINCH FROM ITS PERCH ON A OLD HOLLOWED OUT BIRDHOUSE

!BOVE THIS $OWNY 7OODPECKER IS THE ONLY BIRD HID ING IN THE FRONT YARD 4HE WOODPECKER WAS ROCK SOLID

NOT mINCHING WITH THE THIN POLE AS THE ONLY SHIELD between the bird and the hunter. ,EFT THE #ORNELL ,AB OF /RNITHOLOGY SAYS THESE HUNT ers use their long toes and talons to impale and hold MOVING PREY 4HEY VE EVEN BEEN KNOWN TO REACH INTO WIRE MESH BIRD TRAPS TO GRAB PREY WITH THEIR TOES

#OUNTRY .EIGHBOR !GRICULTURE 2URAL ,IVING s &EBRUARY

PAGE SIXTEEN

The price of ivory On the north side of Denver abides the city of Commerce City.

There, last fall, U.S. officials dumped millions of dollars worth of ivory tusks, carvings and jewelry into a steel rock crusher and pulverized it into dust and tiny chips.

The officialsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; objective was to reduce the slaughter of tens of thousands of elephants each year.

Economics 1: What happens to a commodityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s demand and price when you reduce its availability?

Duh â&#x20AC;Ś The price goes up!

For instance, cattle prices are at an all time high because â&#x20AC;Ś the U.S. cow herd is down to its lowest since 1952. Average horse prices have plunged due to the elimination of horse slaughter, which flooded the country with unwanted horses.

Ivoryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s value is primarily intrinsic, meaning it serves no essential purpose, though it does work as a forklift and weapon when still on the elephant. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unlike other precious stones and metals like diamonds, silver, gold

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and uranium, which can be used in all sorts of engineering processes, high tech manufacturing and dentistry, in addition to jewelry. The value of these minerals is also increased because there is a finite amount on our planet.

So how can we help the ivory problem? Flood the market, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s how.

Elephants continue to reproduce, thus manufacturing ivory.

How â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;bout increasing the number of elephants? A great example of this solution is the salmon industry. Twenty years ago wild salmon from Alaskan fisheries was priced out of the range of the average family. Then the world started â&#x20AC;&#x153;farming salmonâ&#x20AC;? commercially.

Now it is readily available.

Would elephant farming be practical? If people want ivory, why not make it available? Maybe grow your own elephant in your backyard. Let capitalism work.

Look at the economics of the illegal drug business. As long as selling marijuana is illegal, the price will be high. Make it available to everyone, as it appears to be doing, and the price will get lower as the numbers of users get higher!

"AXTER "LACK Another solution would be to encourage the farming of alternative sources for ivory; narwhals, hippos, walruses, etc. Workable, you say? Stick up a wanted poster in Mt. Pleasant, Texas, for tusks from feral pigs and wild boars and turn the rednecks loose! In 20 years people will be farming hogs for ivory. Make pigs a threepurpose animal; meat, hunting and jewelry.

I can see it now, our own Cable Network show; weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll call it â&#x20AC;Ś The Pig Dynasty!

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