SVM-SS3_07082014

Finding a niche

Young Lee farmer makes her way in dairy industry – Page 4

The new ‘black gold’ Veteran Bureau farmer turns waste into humus – Page 10

Agri-tourism

Seventh Whiteside Barn Tour is this weekend – Page 11

typed in Cosmos extra bold

Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

Cover story: Master Farmer Craig Buhrow uses his experience to promote agriculture – Page 6 Tuesday, July 8, 2014

A supplement to Sauk Valley Media

Today’s Farm

PAGE 2

3AUK 6ALLEY -EDIA s July 8, 2014

AGRONOMY DAY 2014

Field tour topics announced Providing insurance coverage for local homes and farms since 1869

BY STEPHANIE HENRY U of I Extension

URBANA – Have questions about western corn rootworm, or looking for the latest secrets to soybean success?

Plan to hear more on these and other topics related to crop sciences at the 58th annual Agronomy Day at the University of Illinois on Aug. 14.

Field tour topics and speakers for Agronomy Day 2014 were recently announced.

Topics are: Tour A Resistant varieties help combat losses from soybean cyst nematodes Soybean aphid resistance genes Breeding for resistance to sudden death syndrome of soybean

Do soybeans need nitrogen fertilizer?

Tour B Evaluating options for managing western corn rootworm larvae in Illinois Western corn rootworm resistance in Illinois New genes for increasing soybean yield from what!?

Uncovering maize genetic response to applied nitrogen Tour C Rediscovering our tallgrass prairies: Fuel, forage, and conservation Cover crops for Illinois: What we hear and what we know Where is the price of cropland headed?

Farm programs in the new farm bill

Tour D How shalt thou rotate?

The quest for high corn and soybean yields Improving corn yield potential with banded phosphorus fertilizer Fertigation: A new solution for high corn and soybean yields For a full list of this year’s speakers and topics, visit http://agronomyday. cropsci.illinois.edu online.

Agronomy Day attracts more than 1,000 people each year who seek the latest information on technology and techniques to improve food and fuel production.

For more information on speakers and displays, “like” University of Illinois Agronomy Day on Facebook or visit the Agronomy Day website.

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State launches recycling program SPRINGFIELD (AP) – The Illinois Department of Agriculture is starting a new program for farmers to recycle fertilizer and pesticide containers.

Department officials say beginning in late July there will be sites throughout the state that collect containers and recycle them into small

plastic chips that will be used to make shipping pallets, fence posts, drainage tubing and plastic lumber among other products.

Agriculture director Bob Flider says the program offers farmers “a convenient opportunity to dispose of empty pesticide containers and demon-

strate their environmental stewardship.”

Metal and household pesticide containers are not eligible for the recycling program.

Participants are responsible for rinsing containers and removing all caps, labels, booklets and seals.

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Today’s Farm

*ULY s Sauk Valley Media

PAGE 3

AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY

Survey to document fairs’ economic impact Whiteside fair among those to be sampled U of I Extension

Agricultural county fairs have a long tradition in Illinois, but the impact goes far beyond delightful squeals from children on the Tilt-A-Whirl and sticky fingers from cotton candy.

In a cooperative effort between the University of Illinois Extension and the Illinois Association of Agricultural Fairs, fairgoers in 15 counties will be surveyed to assess the economic impact of Illinois’ agricultural fairs.

The report will address the money spent by fair attendees, as well as noneconomic impacts of annual fairs.

The Whiteside County Fair, to be held Aug. 12-16

in Morrison, will be one of the fairs to be surveyed.

Other fairs are in the counties of Adams, Champaign, Clark, DeKalb, Fayette, Greene, Hamilton, Lake, Mason, Massac, Marshall, Mercer, Monroe, and Richland.

Trained 4-H youth surveyors will ask a percentage of fairgoers to complete a survey, which will collect information about the fair attendees’ spending habits at the fair, their

reason for attending, and other information to help assess the value of local agricultural fairs.

Youths will also assist in presenting the results to the Illinois Association of Agricultural Fairs during its 2015 annual conference.

In addition to the blind surveys, key members of the county fair expe-

rience, including fair board members, livestock superintendents, carnival operators, exhibitors and vendors, will be interviewed. “Illinois 4-H is proud to assist in this economic development project with the Illinois Association of Agricultural Fairs,� said Bill Million, U of I 4-H Youth Development

Extension specialist. “4-H has a long-standing tradition of teamwork with our local county fairs, and we support the value of the fair experience. “In addition, 4-H youth will gain valuable experience in research methods, data analysis and public presentation skills,� Million said.

Today’s Farm celebrates agriculture in the Sauk Valley and beyond. It is published by Sauk Valley Media six times a year – in January, March, May, July, September and November.

We welcome story ideas about interesting local people who are involved with agriculture.

Call Jim Dunn at 800-798-4085, ext. 5511, or send an email to jdunn@saukvalley.com.

typed in Cosmos extra bold

BARN TOUR

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Sunday, July 13, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

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The route is a compact 28 miles containing a little bit of everything a barn tour should include - a variety of architectural barn styles, beef and dairy cows, horses, vegetable gardens and fresh produce, chickens and antique farm equipment. Many of this year’s barns date back to the 1800s. Tour-goers pay admission and get their tour book and map at the first barn site - 1963 Mound Hill Road, Dixon, Illinois.

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Today’s Farm

PAGE 4

3AUK 6ALLEY -EDIA s July 8, 2014

LEE COUNTY

Young farmer finds niche in dairy industry Koster, 27, always wanted to milk cows

BY DANIEL GRANT FarmWeekNow.com

DIXON – Renee Sheaffer Koster comes from a long line of dairy farmers. Her great-grandfather purchased the current Lee County farm in the 1930s.

So when Koster’s father, Leonard Sheaffer, sold the dairy herd in the 1990s, she knew she likely would have to find a niche to continue the family’s dairy tradition in the Dixon area.

“When I was younger and interested in dairy, my dad couldn’t encourage me to get started in the dairy business,” Koster, a Lee County Farm Bureau member, told FarmWeek.

“We didn’t have the money to invest to replace existing buildings and old equipment, and we didn’t want to milk 100 cows.

“My dad said I’d have to get big, get a niche, or get out,” she said. “So, I got a niche.”

Koster joined 4-H, enrolled in the dairy cattle project, and started milking cows and selling extra raw milk. She also

earned a degree in animal science/dairy from the University of Wisconsin, Platteville.

Fourteen years after Koster bought her first 4-H calf, the project morphed into a full-flung farming operation.

The farm, named Windsweep Farm by Koster’s grandfather, Harold Sheaffer, currently features a herd of 130 dairy and beef cattle along with hogs, layer and broiler chickens, sheep and goats.

Most of Koster’s farm products are directmarketed to consumers.

In fact, the niche of raw milk sales and locally grown meat was critical for Koster to carve out a career in production ag.

“It all started with the dairy,” she said. “I had too much milk to sell privately, so I started raising bottle calves with the extra milk and selling beef. Then, I had too much milk for the number of calves I could handle, so I started raising milk-fed pork.”

Customers at Windsweep Farm currently purchase raw milk and also buy eggs, cuts of beef, pork or lamb. Koster and her father are partners in the beef operation. Leonard also grows 240 acres of row crops,

Lee County 4-H Fair & Jr. Show July 24-27

Lee Co. Fairgrounds WWW.LEECOUNTY4HCENTER.COM

Ken Kashian/FarmWeekNow.com

Renee Sheaffer Koster and her father, Leonard Sheaffer, pose on their Lee County farm with a Brown Swiss dairy cow. and the father-daughter partners make all the hay for the livestock.

Raw milk sales are

somewhat controversial, though, in Illinois and other states. Alleged raw milk safety concerns

spurred proposed regulations and raw milk bans that threaten to shut down raw milk dairies.

Potential regulations concern Koster. Leonard served on the State Health Department’s dairy work group committee.

“The [proposed] regulations are above and beyond what Grade A dairy farms have to meet,” Koster said. “A number of the rules listed in the regulations would be impossible even for current Grade A dairies to pass.

“We [on the dairy committee] have done a lot of research looking into illnesses that the state is worried about, and we can’t find evidence [of raw milk safety issues],” Leonard said.

In fact, Koster’s customers believe raw milk has health benefits and improves the digestibility of cow’s milk.

“My customers are my inspectors,” she said.

NICHE CONTINUED ON 5

Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Farm

*ULY s Sauk Valley Media

Renee Sheaffer Koster collects eggs and checks on her poultry flock on the familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s operation, Windsweep Farm near Dixon. In addition to selling raw milk, the farm sells eggs and cuts of beef, pork and lamb to customers.

Ken Kashian/FarmWeekNow.com

Young farmer optimistic about future NICHE

CONTINUED FROM 4

â&#x20AC;&#x153;They come to the farm to pick up milk and can look at everything. If they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t like it or have

Harryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Farm Tire, Inc.

a problem with the milk, they wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t come back.â&#x20AC;?

The young dairy farmer, though, remains optimistic about the future. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am happy to farm and people are happy to get what I raise, meet the

farmer who grows their food, and see where their food is raised,â&#x20AC;? Koster said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As long as those things are important to people and as long as people keep eating, I think agriculture has a bright future.â&#x20AC;?

PAGE 5

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Today’s Farm

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3AUK 6ALLEY -EDIA s July 8, 2014

COVER STORY

A voice for the guys at the bottom Lee County’s latest Master Farmer chosen for excellence

BY KAYLA HEIMERMAN Special to Today’s Farm

WEST BROOKLYN – Craig Buhrow believes that change at the top cannot happen without someone first speaking up for the little guy at the bottom.

“Somebody’s got to represent what’s going on here,” he said. “When you start going to Springfield and Washington, you start seeing how important it is to Craig have your Buhrow people talking to those people. You don’t see results right away, but you know it builds up.”

Buhrow, 63, recently was named a Master Farmer by Prairie Farmer magazine, a premier farming magazine in Illinois and the oldest continuously published farm periodical in the United States.

Buhrow, one of four farmers to receive the honor, was chosen for his excellence in farming, his commitment to family, and his service to the community, according to a news release.

The magazine first offered the award in 1925 as a way to recognize Illinois farmers for something more than just farming skills. The magazine continues to present the awards every year because of the contributions farmers make to Illinois agriculture and their communities.

“The farmers we’ve honored over the years represent a gallery of the greatest in Illinois agriculture,” Josh Flint, editor of Prairie Farmer, said in a news release.

The Buhrows – Craig and Marjorie, a recently retired home economics teacher, and their son, Allyn, and his wife, Amy – operate Buhrow Farms between West Brooklyn and Ashton in Lee County.

Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

MASTER CONTINUED ON 7

Craig Buhrow points to the corn dryer at his farm in rural West Brooklyn.

Buhrow, who was named a Master Farmer

by Prairie Farmer magazine, operates Buhrow Farms with his wife, Marjorie, and son and daughter-inlaw, Allyn and Amy. Buhrow was one of four Illinois farmers to receive the honor this year.

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*ULY s Sauk Valley Media

PAGE 7

‘You have to have that drive’ to be a farmer MASTER

CONTINUED FROM 6

They grow corn and soybeans on about 1,800 acres. Allyn Buhrow also runs a Pioneer dealership.

Buhrow, who grew up on a farm north of Sterling, took over the family farm out of high school in the late 1960s. He and Margie, who met on a blind date while in college at the University of Illinois, married in 1972 and moved to Lee County to farm with her father in 1979.

Buhrow talks about as fast as he moves, even now into his early 60s. He believes people are either suited to farming or not suited to it. And he is one of those who has the temperament and the wherewithal.

“Farming is so seasonal and so hard,” he said.

“The guys who walk into it through the family … they can keep working till the job is done and still

not be successful. … You got to have the temperament to put up with it. … You have to have that drive. You can’t get discouraged real easily.

“There are a lot easier jobs in the world than [this]. You’ve gotta enjoy it.”

Buhrow also believes in donating his time to valuable agriculture industry groups, as well as to the community.

He has served on the Lee County Farm Bureau (with a stint as vice president and president), as well as the Lee County 4-H Fair Board and the Lee County Zoning Board, on which he helped site the first Illinois wind farm.

He joined the Illinois Corn Growers Association in 2005 and just recently ended his tenure as the director of District 4, which includes Lee, Whiteside and Bureau counties.

FARMER CONTINUED ON 8

Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

Craig Buhrow of rural West Brooklyn was named one of the Master Farmers for 2014 by the agricultural trade publication Prairie Farmer. Along with farming, Buhrow has donated his time to the community as well as to various agricultural industry groups. Buhrow grew up on a farm north of Sterling.

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Today’s Farm

PAGE 8

3AUK 6ALLEY -EDIA s July 8, 2014

‘Passionate about agriculture’ FARMER

CONTINUED FROM 7

The state corn advocacy group nominated him for the honor.

Buhrow is ready to relinquish the reins, though.

“There have been people available to run different projects or groups, and I’ve stepped back and let them do it because I’ve done it,” he said.

“I’ll still fill in when there’s a vacancy. But [other people] have to go through the learning experience, too.”

Danelle Burrs, manager of the Lee County Farm Bureau, said Buhrow has a willingness to get involved.

“He’s been active, and he still is active,” she said. “And he is passionate about agriculture and is willing to get involved through Farm Bureau, through the Corn Growers.

“He’s willing to get

Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

An auger loads corn into a semitrailer at Buhrow Farms in rural West Brooklyn.

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Holly Spangler/Special to Today’s Farm

Craig and Marjorie Buhrow raise about 1,800 acres of corn and soybeans. Craig Buhrow is one of four Illinois farmers to be named a Master Farmer by Prairie Farmer magazine. involved for the betterment of agriculture.”

Buhrow is the second Lee County farmer in as many years to be named a Master Farmer.

Jim Sheaffer of Dixon received the honor last year.

Burrs said Lee County

farmers are in a class of their own.

“We have a lot of really great farmers, but they’re also really great members of the community,” she said.

“That’s what makes them above and beyond the rest.”

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Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Farm

PAGE 9

LAKE COUNTY

Milked dry: Cows sold, dairy farm closes End of a long era for family

BY MICK ZAWISLAK (Arlington Heights) Daily Herald

FREMONT TOWNSHIP (AP) â&#x20AC;&#x201C; The milking barn was cleaned that morning but the air remained pungently reminiscent of the Holsteins that for generations had been the focus at the Diebold farm.

About a week earlier, the last of the milking cows were sold, ending a long tradition of family dairying in Lake County.

The old stanchions â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 13 on each side â&#x20AC;&#x201C; where the cows would be secured for milking and two stalls at the end of the ancient barn had literally become history. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Everybody my age basically quit,â&#x20AC;? said George Diebold, who at 66 has the creaky knees and back that come with a lifetime of milking, twice a day, every day, and growing and harvesting hay and corn for feed. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a few who farm, but nobody wants to milk cows.â&#x20AC;?

At one time, there were many processing plants and hundreds of dairy farms in Lake County, said Greg Koeppen, manager of the Lake County Farm Bureau.

Some were large farms

AP Photo/Daily Herald, Gilbert R. Boucher II

Dairy farmer George Diebold, of Fremont Township, Lake County, Illinois, poses in the family farmâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s empty milking barn on May 5. About a week earlier, the last of the milking cows were sold, ending a long tradition of dairying by the Diebold family. and others had only a few cows to produce milk for the family or as barter for other goods, he said.

The Diebold farm, which was settled in 1872, was the last true family dairy operation. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the end of a long era in Lake County,â&#x20AC;? Koeppen said.

That also means the ageold Diebold family practice of moving the herd to pasture in spring and summer along Fremont Center Road â&#x20AC;&#x201C; much to the delight of onlookers

and the occasional police escort â&#x20AC;&#x201C; has become another footnote.

Virginia, the family matriarch who died about 5 years ago, relished that duty well into her 80s.

Sometimes, people would bring their kids to watch and take pictures. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s kind of strange,â&#x20AC;?

George Diebold said of the quiet, empty barn. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Now, you walk in, and you know theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not here.â&#x20AC;?

Golden Oaks Farm in Wauconda is now the last dairy operation in Lake County, Koeppen said, but it is a corporate concern run by hired man FARM PROPERTY VEHICLE LIFE CROP COMMERCIAL HAIL

agers and employees.

The modern, computerized operation with three milkings a day attracts visitors from around the world, Koeppen said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not what we would classify as a family farm,â&#x20AC;? he said.

To get a sense of how long the Diebolds have endured, consider that the dairy barn was remodeled in 1933 with concrete replacing the dirt floor and metal stalls replacing wooden ones.

The date is etched in the foundation for posterity.

At its peak, the Diebold farm had about 40 milking cows. George Diebold, who was born and raised there, said he has been cutting back the past few years because of a com-

bination of age and economics.

He used to sell to a dairy plant that supplied Dean Foods, but its operators wanted a premium to pick up his milk. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The trucks didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to come this far because there was no one else,â&#x20AC;?

Diebold said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We just phased out slowly.â&#x20AC;?

Diebold cows could produce as much as 400 gallons of milk every 2 days.

It is something the family will miss, said Georgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sister, Mary Lou. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s what we were raised on,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s going to be an adjustment.â&#x20AC;?

Note to readers: This is an Illinois Exchange story shared by the (Arlington Heights) Daily Herald.

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3AUK 6ALLEY -EDIA s July 8, 2014

AG INNOVATION

Farmer converts waste into ‘black gold’

BY DAN GRANT FarmWeekNow.com

WALNUT – Some people don’t care to live on or near livestock facilities.

But Alan Dale, a farmer from Walnut and former Illinois Farm Bureau president, views it as a golden opportunity.

Dale converts everything from landscape waste to animal manure into humus. The nutrient-rich product then gets used by farmers and local gardeners as a productive and affordable fertilizer.

“I’ve been composting since 2001,” Dale said.

“I have a beef cow herd, and there is about 10 million gallons of liquid hog manure within a 5-mile radius of my operation.

So, I have an unlimited supply of nitrogen.”

Dale was among the first farmers in the state to apply for and receive a permit to operate an organic landscape waste compost facility.

He can compost any type of landscape waste, such as grass trimmings and tree branches, along with animal manure and crop residue. The mixture eventually evolves into high-quality humus.

“Everything we do is about creating an environment where microbes can flourish,” Dale said.

“It’s microbes that actually create the humus.”

The homegrown fertilizer reduces input costs and can improve crop yields, according to Dale, who was IFB vice president from 1991 to 1993 and president in 1993.

“I can better control the costs of my fertility program,” he said.

A 4-year study on Dale’s farm found the humus fertilizer improved yields by 10 percent for corn, 6 percent for beans, 14 percent for alfalfa tonnage, and 20 percent for oats.

The oats make up a key part of the operation, as Dale uses the straw as

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part of his compost recipe.

Overall, Dale uses about 70 percent of the humus on his crop acres and markets the rest to cli-

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Photo by FarmWeekNow.com

Alan Dale’s son, Matt (right), inserts a temperature probe into a row of composting material, while employee Wes Taylor takes a reading. Alan Dale’s operation has been turning landscape waste and manure into nutrient-rich humus since 2001. A former president of the Illinois Farm Bureau, Dale uses about 70 percent of the humus on his land and sells the rest to nearby farmers and gardeners.

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Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Farm

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WHITESIDE COUNTY

Barn tour gets â&#x20AC;&#x2122;em down on the farm 7th jaunt will be north of Sterling STAFF REPORT news@saukvalley.com 800-798-4085, ext. 5501

How ya gonna get â&#x20AC;&#x2122;em down on the farm?

By offering tours of vintage barns, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s how.

The Whiteside County Farm Bureau has been doing just that for half a dozen years in various areas of the county.

Last year, western White side County was featured, with barn tour participants driving around rural Erie, Albany and Morrison to visit a variety of barns, some more than a century old.

The seventh annual Whiteside County Barn Tour, scheduled for the second weekend in July, returns to the region where the first barn tour took place â&#x20AC;&#x201C; north of Sterling.

This time, 11 barns (10 of them new to the tour) have been selected for visitors to stop by and see.

Organizers say the route is a compact 28 miles and contains a little bit of everything a barn tour should have â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a variety of architectural barn styles, beef and dairy cows, horses, vegetable gardens, fresh produce,

chickens, and antique farm equipment.

Plus, the Whiteside County Cattlemanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Association will have lunch available on the tour route both days.

Many of this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s barns date back to the 1800s, tour organizers said.

Tour hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 12, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, July 13.

The way it works is that people drive to the first barn site, at 1963 Mound Hill Road, rural Dixon.

There, they pay a $20 admission fee per vehicle.

In exchange, they receive a tour book and map.

After they tour the barn on Mound Hill Road, they follow the map to the remaining 10 farms where barns are featured.

(By the way, Mound Hill Road is between Sterling and Dixon. From Sterling, head east on Route 2 past Emerald Hill Golf Course. You will turn left, or north, onto Mound Hill Road. If you pass Sauk Valley Community College, you have gone too far.)

Organizers noted that payment may be made by credit card for the first time this year. A $1 transaction fee will be charged.

Additional books may be bought with a credit card.

Whiteside County Barn Tour

Jim Dunn/jdunn@saukvalley.com

A barn built in 1877 dwarfs several participants who attended last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Whiteside County Barn Tour. This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tour takes place July 12 and 13.

Also important to note: restrooms will be available on the route.

Over the past century, mechanization and technological advances caused many Americans to leave the farm.

The World War I-era song, alluded to earlier, humorously raised the worry about how American farmers could ever

keep their soldier sons â&#x20AC;&#x153;down on the farm,â&#x20AC;? after theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d seen â&#x20AC;&#x153;Par-eeâ&#x20AC;?

(Paris, France).

Fortunately, their descendants, through the Whiteside County Barn Tour, have the chance to glimpse something of the lifestyle that grandpa, great-grandpa, or even great-great-grandpa once lived, â&#x20AC;&#x153;down on the farm.â&#x20AC;?

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Mission: Provide awareness, knowledge and resources to facilitate a grassroots effort to preserve the barns and agricultural history of Whiteside County.

Dates: July 12, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; July 13, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Starting point: 1963 Mound Hill Road, rural Dixon Amenities: Whiteside County Cattlemanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Association will have lunch available on the tour route both days; restrooms will also be available on the route.

Information: Whiteside County Farm Bureau office, Morrison, 815-772-2165 Website: whitesidecountybarntour.com

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