Seniors! CELEBRATING OUR
Pages 8 - 9 of the Second Section!
DAIRY ST R
May 22, 2021
“All dairy, all the time”™
Volume 23, No. 7
Going green Stapels immerse in world of cover crops, no till, interseeding By Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com
CEDAR GROVE, Wis. – Brody and Jory Stapel made a bold move this spring when they sold their tillage equipment. After no tilling 1,000 acres last year, the brothers were ready to leave tillage be-
hind and commit to a new way of farming the land. For the past ve years, the Stapels have dabbled in cropping techniques. Through the use of cover crops, interseeding and no till, they braved new
STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
Brody Stapel, and his brother, Jory (not pictured), own and operate a 260-cow farm, Double Dutch Dairy, near Cedar Grove, Wisconsin. The Stapels sold their Ɵllage equipment this spring and invested in no-Ɵll planters for their 1,000 acres.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Early-season liquid nitrogen is applied March 15 on frozen ground to feed the rye crop to boost forage yield and quality.
terrain and came out on the other side with greener land, better cow health, higher components and greater prots. “The goal is to have the ground covered year-round,” Brody Stapel said. “We always want to have something alive in the soil.” The Stapels abandoned
tilling in favor of greener elds and healthier soil. They removed the temptation to till and invested in no-till planters, including a new corn planter as well as an interseeder. “The ground is softer, and there’s more soil structure when planting into green,” Stapel said. “Green elds also
put carbon back into the soil. I cringe when I see dust clouds in spring and fall from people working up the elds. We’re disrupting the biology and microorganisms in the soil when we dig it up. Topsoil leaves the eld when you plow. Instead, Turn to STAPEL | Page 6
A place of her own
First-generation farmer nds permanent home for cows By Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com
STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
First-generaƟon dairy farmer Olivia Hennes milks 45 cows near Seymour, Wisconsin. The 25-year-old has been building her herd since she was 10 years old, and purchased the farm April 22.
SEYMOUR, Wis. – For over a month, Olivia Hennes has called a farm near Seymour her new home. The 25-year-old moved her cows April 16 and closed on the farm April 22. The following week, Hennes moved to the property as well. “Everything went as seamless as it possibly could,” said Hennes, who is settling into her new facilities. Hennes milks 45 cows in the farm’s 62-stall tiestall barn which she hopes to ll in the next year. The barn includes four maternity pens and a stationary mixer upstairs. Hennes started feeding Turn to HENNES | Page 5