Swine Facility Saves the Buffalo

I'm sharing this video produced by Arkansas Farm Bureau because this eighth generation family farmer states how we feel about the land. Last week his family opened a new swine facility in Newton County. The new  facility  is built to industry standards and has met all the requirements for permitting by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality to protect the environment. This new facility actually should protect the Buffalo River better because of the design features to protect the environment as opposed to older swine facilities that have been operating in the area for many years.

  This Arkansas farm family is on the receiving end of a lot of criticism from the public because the farm is in the Buffalo River watershed area. It's important that truthful information is shared because it's obvious that from all the media hogwash I've seen and read,  there is alot of misunderstanding about how we farmers  work to produce safe food and protect the environment.

 No one understands the importance of caring for the land any better than a farmer. We live and work everyday on the land and desire to leave it better than we found it. It's our heritage.

Got Your Goat

 

Spring on the dairy farm brings many joys in nature, in life on the dairy farm and for our family.

Birthdays are always special events and

last night we managed to pull off a surprise birthday party for Cody,thanks to Margaret(Cody's girlfriend) and alot of sneaky family and friends.

 

 

I was afraid we might set the cake on fire if we lit  twenty-five candles!

 

 

 

 The best gift was this baby goat from a family friend who knew Cody needed a new lawn mower!

                                                     A memorable birthday--don't you think?

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

For the first time in forty-one years of dairy farming, every bit of feed for our dairy cows was being purchased due to last year's drought. We are more than a little bit excited as we start to harvest this spring crop of rye and wheat!

 

Making adjustments to the chopper is part of the preparation for harvest.

 

The rye is tall and thick and takes at least a day of drying in the field after being cut before it can be chopped.

 

 

The chopper pulls the rye into the knives,chops it into small pieces,

 

 

 

 

and blows it into the silage truck.

 

I'm thankful for this crop and for the smiles I've seen on the farmers faces this week!

Dairy Farmers Celebrate Earth Day Everyday

Although we celebrate Earth Day everyday  on the dairy farm by caring for our  land and  animals, harvesting our spring crop of rye grass  is a great way to celebrate the actual day. This crop has grown due to the application of cow manure on the field. Cow manure not only  provides needed  nutrients for a crop , it also   increases the water holding capacity for the soil.


 Recycled cow manure is a perfect example of how we celebrate Earth Day everyday!

Federal ,state and local clean water laws regulate how manure is applied on crop lands, so nutrients are absorbed by crops,not groundwater.  To protect the environment, we follow a farm plan that has been designed by environmental engineering specialists that  guide how much manure can be applied to acceptable acres of farm and crop land.

From all of us down on the dairy farm,

 

Happy Earth Day!!

Everyday List for the Earth

It's not supposed to be necessary to wear long underwear for Earth Day outdoor activities in Northwest Arkansas in April, but it was good planning for our  activity  at Old High Middle School!  The chilly temperature did not lessen the excitement of the students as they moved to different activities on the front lawn of the school.

Our topic for the day was the Water Cycle and we had a lot of fun playing the Water Drop game to provide information about the importance of water and how we strive to recycle and protect our water supply.

If you're wondering how you may celebrate Earth Day everyday, here's the list we shared with the students:

• Unplug electronics. Even though they aren't in use, electronics still use up energy if they're plugged in.
• reuse bags you've been collecting whenever possible.
• Pledge to cut down on buying bottles of water. Get a reuseable bottle!
• Teach kids about reusing,reducing and recycling. Lessons today will turn to action tomorrow! Lead by example.
• Turn off the lights! So easy to do--make it a habit when you leave a room.
• Don't waste water. Be conscious of your water usage.
• Change the light bulbs in your house to Compact Florescent Lights (CFls). You'll save energy and also money on your electric bill.
• Plant a tree.
• When running errands have your route planned ahead of time so you are not back tracking.
• Compost. Reducing the amount of solid waste produced in a year means taking up less space in landfills. Plus, compost makes a great natural fertilizer.
• Maintain your car by keeping tire pressure right.
• Drive smarter by slowing down. Take it easy on the gas pedal and brakes.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

 

Spring in Northwest Arkansas is amazing! I didn't think there could be a prettier picture than the redbud trees blooming on East Central Street in Bentonville, until I passed through downtown on my way to a meeting. The tulips were singing Spring! I'm thankful for the beauty of this season and for the blessing of  blooming trees and flowers.

Farmer in the Dell

When our dairy nutritionist was on the farm today, Ryan was showing him part of the spring crop that we will start harvesting this week. It's a variety of rye grass that is cold tolerant and as you can see, has grown very well in Northwest Arkansas.

 

 Doesn't this look like the perfect picture for that old childhood song--'The Farmer in the Dell'?

 

 

Hi-O the Dairy-O, the Farmer in the Dell!

 

It's true...a picture is worth a thousand words.  As I looked at this picture of Ryan standing in the middle of the green field of rye grass I saw  not only the crop  that will be chopped and fed to our dairy cows,but also  the hope that this crop gives to the 3rd generation dairy  farmer that has experienced a devastating season of drought.