Missouri Farms Vol. 1, Issue 5

BiologicalsTo Find a Dealer in your Area, Contact:

John Ortiz - General Manager, MOF2816-255-6243 Mobile816-773-6018 [email protected]

You may also find us on the web at:

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It is well known amongst growers that some portion offertilizer nutrients become tied up, or bound to, othersubstances, making those nutrients unavailable to yoursoil and to the plants. The only way to make those nutri-ents usable again is to break those bonds or to inhibit themfrom forming in the first place. BP FATM does just that.

By applying BP FATM to your fertilizer prior to application, you introduce 10 strains ofbeneficial bacteria that do multiple things. They release the bound up nutrients fromyears past, making them available again. They also prevent those bonds from formingaltogether in the current fertilizer application.

The result is a much more effective dry program that mines nutrients from years past,while also protecting nutrients in the current year so that they are all fully available toyour crop.

Story and photos by Lucas JohnsonSTAFF WRITER

It’s no secret in today’s society there is a movement towards or-ganic everything. At the supermarket the demand for organic ornon-GMO food has been ever increasing over the last decade.

An excerpt from Time Magazine reads:“Sales of the additive-free offerings surged 11.5 percent in

2013, to $35.1 billion, according to the Organic Trade Association.”More and more emphasis is being directed towards “going

green,” leaving behind the usage of GMO seed and fertilizer thatgained popularity in the 20th century.

One such farmer who has moved to organic methods is KeithDierker. Dierker began using a plant enhancement product calledBlue Gold, an all natural compound made of plant and sea ex-tracts, herbs, minerals and other naturally occurring nutrients, ac-cording to Eden Solutions’ website. Dierker has been extremelypleased with his results thus far and has applied the product to notonly his personal garden, but also to multiple bean fields he and his brother farm. Dierkerstated he had 15 tomato plants which have a combined yield of approximately 2,300 toma-toes this season. As far as his row crops go, Dierker explained he had one field that isplanted with GMO seed and two without, all with the same application of Blue Gold. He isanxious to see if the combination of non-GMO seed and the Blue Gold treatment will farebetter than those fields with GMO seed.

Dierker mentioned an additional benefit of the treatment he uses is its affect on the soil.During application, the excess mixture of the substance which is not directly absorbed by theplant itself, is thereby absorbed into the soil and that the nutrients are sustained within thesoil being resistant to run off.

Dierker also explained how in his experience the organic supplement helps with weedcontrol as well.

“Why is the weed there? It’s to put back into the soil what it’s missing,” Dierker said.So what does “organic” farming mean? The USDA describes organic farming as: “Organic

agriculture produces products using methods that preserve the environment and avoid mostsynthetic materials, such as pesticides and antibiotics.”

Many farms nationwide have made the switch to organic methods. According to a 2011survey conducted by the USDA, the top five states with certified organic farms are Californiawith 1,898, Wisconsin with 870, New York with 597, Washington with 493 and Iowa with 467.

Missouri, as of 2007, has 273 organic farms and approximately 21,000 acres under or-ganic production as presented in a study by www.missourieconomy.org.

With the rise in popularity of organic food and production, farmers are increasingly facedwith the question of what avenue to take. Methods of using GMO seed in combination withherbicides and pesticides may be taking a turn -in light of recent studies- toward a more nat-ural method. Dierker will be at least one Missouri farmer who finds out first hand what resultscome from applying his organic plant treatment, and if successful, he is confident his methodwill catch on quickly in the future.

Contact Lucas Johnson at [email protected]

AAbove: Keith Dierker checks his soybean crop treated with the or-ganic Blue Gold plant enhancement solution. Below: Dierker measures his crop’s height. Approximatly four feetwas the average for this particular field.

How going greenis GROWING

missouri farms 3

44 missouri farms

CONCORDIANTHE

Missouri Farms

A monthly publication of theMarshall Democrat-News and

The Concordian

Publisher – Dave PhillipsEditors -

Sarah Reed ConcordianRachel Knight Democrat-News

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News/Editorial [email protected]

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Mail Subscription Rate$25 per year

The next few months willbe busy for area farmers,as corn and then beans areready. I’m going to let youin on a not-so-secret secret.I don’t like harvest, eventhough I appreciate its im-portance.

Of course, I’m the onlyone in my family that feelsthis way. For me, it justseems very long, very tiringand very stressful. And tomake it worse, every yearwhen it’s over, I discovermore gray hairs than I hadbefore we started.

But despite the nega-tives, I have to admit I havelearned hundreds of les-sons and accumulated 30years worth of cherishedmemories. The first time Ireally helped in harvest, wehadn’t been married morethan a few years. As I knewnothing about driving atruck (or a stick shift), myjob was to keep checkingthe corn going into the drybin to make sure it wasn’ttoo wet. I stayed all daywith hubby and his helperand marveled at how hecould do this for so long. Iwas a little bored and veryexhausted. But a few yearslater, I learned to drive a

truck and a grain cart, mak-ing harvest a lot more inter-esting. When our youngestson was just 6 weeks old,we strapped his car seat inthe tractor cab and took offrunning the grain cart forwheat harvest. In fact, weoften say our sons wereraised in the seats of ourfarm equipment.

Some of my best memo-ries came from our sonsriding with us through har-vest. Our youngest becamemy frequent grain cartbuddy. I’ve learned aboutour boys from the seat of atractor or truck, and theylearned many things too. Afew of those lessons I’d liketo take back. Others stillmake us laugh.

I’ve listened to off-keysinging and done a lot my-self. I’ve listened to the FFAcreed more times than I cancount and heard more thana few school stories. Ilearned other truck driversare happy to throw arounda football with a bored 11year old when record yieldsmean long waits at the ele-vator.

Often, when we wereharvesting away from thehouse, we learnedGrandma Gorrell was asavior when she picked upour sons after school, mak-ing sure they finished theirhomework, actually ate afew vegetables and gavethem precious memorieswith her.

I learned filthy laundryand dirty dishes actuallymultiply when you pretendthey aren’t there. I’velearned it is possible to get

tired of fast food, sand-wiches and sodas.

I leaned demotions arebetter than promotions.After I taught my replace-ments (sons) to drive agrain cart, I ended up withmy name on a truck and anew job. Two years ago,when our oldest got out ofcollege, I got demoted backto a grain cart driver.

But with all those hoursin a line or in a field, I’velearned about life throughcountry songs and radiotalk shows. I’ve spentcountless days listening tothe Chiefs, the Royals andthe Mizzou Tigers. I’ve re-hashed the games and lis-tened to the complaints onsports talk radio. I’ve lis-tened to books through myKindle, and managed to ac-tually read a few while wait-ing at the elevator or field.

I’ve watched the sunriseand the sunset. I’ve cussedthe mornings and cele-brated the ending to a suc-cessful (and even not sosuccessful) harvest. I’vewatched as rain kept us outof fields, or lack of rain keptus from sleep, gathering asfast as we could. I’velearned a rainstorm andhigh winds can change har-vest from good to bad in ahurry.

I’ve sat in line at the ele-vator listening to the latestgossip. I’ve embarrassedmyself by my lack of semi-truck backing skills andscratched my truck drivingthrough a tight spot. ThenI’ve become a subject ofgossip for the day (or week)depending on when the

next gossip-worthy event oraccident takes place.

I’ve spilled corn on theground overloading thetruck with the grain cart andhelped scooped it back intotruck more times than I’dlike to remember. I’velearned it’s a lot easier topay attention the first time.

I’ve learned when youmake a “quick” stop by Wal-Mart with a hair full of cornfines and a face full of dirtmakeup, you will see every-one you know. I’ve alsolearned corn fines aretough to get out of my hair,even with shampoo.

I’ve learned corn makesa great play toy for littleboys. I’ve discovered pack-ing the right amount ofsnacks helps keep kidshappy (especially if theyaren’t healthy.) I’ve learnedhubby and the boys actuallygain energy during harvest,while I seem to lose mine.

But most of all, I’velearned no matter when itstarts, or how hard it seemswhile we’re in the midst ofharvest, it always ends.And it always becomes an-other memory and anotherlesson learned.

As I grow older (and let’shope wiser) I can’t help butrealize my mother-in-lawwas right when she saidyour attitude can decidewhether an experience ispositive or not. It’s alwaysour choice.

So here is to a happy,safe, bountiful harvest full ofgood memories and a fewlessons learned.Contact Marcia Gorrell at [email protected]

It’s harvest timeFa

rmin

g for

Nov

ices

Marcia GorrellGuest Columnist

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Featured FarmerStory and photo by Rachel KnightCO-EDITOR, MISSOURI FARMS

John Pat Samson has been farming in the Saline County area all his lifeas he took over for his father. He hasn’t had to do it alone, since his son,Justin, decided that was the path he wanted to take in life.

“We are blessed with what we do and the people we get to work with andfarm for,” Justin said.

The Samsons farm around 4,000 acres of corn and soybeans, which in-cludes custom planting and harvesting around 900 acres. They are shareholders with property owners on a portion of the acres farmed.

John Pat’s main duties in their operation are spraying crops, operating thegrain cart, trucking and planting corn, running the bulldozer and of course,the bookwork.

John Pat’s wife of 38 years, Jeannie, takes care of the checkbook andthey really appreciate her help.

Justin’s tasks include anhydrous application, planting soybeans, com-bining, tiling and operating the track hoe, back hoe and skid steer.

John Pat said his favorite part about being a farmer is planting and har-vesting.

“You get to see you plant your crop and when you harvest, you get to seeyour final results of your hard work,” John Pat said.

John Pat and Justin Samson, of Marshall,pose for a portrait.

missouri farms 55

CONTINUED ON PAGE 16 >>>

Through the grapevine

Baltimore Bend’s pathleads from vine

to glass

Story and photos by Charles DunlapStaff writer

On a dewy, unseasonably cool Saturday morning in early September, agroup of approximately 15 family, volunteers, FFA students and em-ployees are standing in a field harvesting an atypical plant for the

west-central missouri farming region — grapes. The harvest for the Balti-more Bend Vineyard and Winery, in Waverly, begins early — around 7:30a.m. — and the group will harvest until approximately noon. That Saturday,Sept. 6, the workers were collecting the last of the white grape varieties.Harvest of the red varieties will occur in early October.


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Baltimore Bend was the first vineyard in Lafayettecounty. Since then, five more vineyards and wineries havedeveloped. It started through an idea of Richard Livingstonand his daughter, Sarah (Livingston) Schmidt. Livingstonwas an already established corn and soybean farmer be-fore deciding to grow grapes. Other partners in the busi-ness include Livingston's wife, Kathleen, and son, Scott.The first vines were planted in 1997 on wind-blown glacialloess soil that is approximately 60-90 feet deep before hit-ting bedrock. It would take three years before they hadmarket viable fruit to sell to wineries and another three be-fore Baltimore Bend began its own winery operation.

The vineyard is nestled behind a line of trees and sur-rounded by crop land off of U.S. Route 24 and BaltimoreBend Road. If you're driving on Route 24 and looking for it,you can see a glimpse of the vines past the trees. Thevineyard grows a number of varieties, including ones nativeto Missouri - Norton, Chambourcin, Chardonel, CarbernetFranc, Valviri Muscat, Seyval Blanc and Vignoles. To startthe vineyard, various tests had to be conducted to see iftheir land would be able to grow the grapes.

“They like a little more acidity in them. We did soil sam-ples and then applied fertilizers and lime to adjust things.Then we came in the fall before and deep plowed it, andthe following spring we planted,” said Livingston.

It takes three years from the initial planting of the vinebefore any fruit can be harvested for wine making. This al-lows for the root structure to take hold into the ground.After the plants become established and after the harvest,they are cut back in the winter, which leaves spurs alongthe vine with a couple buds that will grow into the bunches.

It takes anywhere between $7,000-$9,000 to plant anacre of vines. This cost includes soil treatments, equip-ment, posts and wire on which the vines grow. If a personwere to start a never before grown vineyard, they wouldoperate at a loss for at least the first three to four years.

“The first two years, you pull all the grapes off becausewhat you're trying to do is establish the root system on theplant. If you don't do that the plant tries to use all its energyto produce the fruit rather than expand the root system,”said Livingston.

Baltimore Bend harvests its grapes by hand. While it's

labor intensive, it does allow for better control of what iscollected. There are vine harvesting machines, but theyharvest every grape, including unripe or rotten fruits, whichcan affect the quality of a wine, especially in small, arti-sanal operations such as Baltimore Bend.

“We're getting about - off the other two varieties - we gotabout two ton off of those. The whites are a little less. Thereds, typically, we get four to five tons off of an acre. This isabout an acre of white so we're getting about two ton off anacre of white,” said Livingston.

After pressing, one ton of grapes will release approxi-mately 150 gallons of juice, which will then be treated withyeast to begin the fermenting and aging process. BaltimoreBend ages wine in two ways - either in stainless steeltanks, or in oak casks.

“Most of our wines are aged in stainless steel tanks,and they'll age about nine months. The white wine thatgoes into a barrel is also about nine months,” explainedLivingston. “White wines tend to pick up the oak flavors alot faster than the reds, and what we're trying to do is en-

missouri farms 7

>>> CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6


10 missouri farms


hance the flavors of the wine and not overpower itwith the oak taste. The reds, on the other hand, takea lot longer. They'll take anywhere from 18 to 24months to age in an oak barrel.”

“It's really a nice industry. Of course, we're all incompetition,” said Livingston about the other vine-yards and wineries. “But, on the other hand, I cancall my competitors and say 'I have this issue.What's going on here?' and they'll say 'well we'veseen this and you'll need to try this and try that.' It'sa very competitive, but very friendly industry amongwine makers and vineyard managers.”

After harvesting, Livingston and company trans-port the grapes to the Baltimore Bend tasting roomfor processing the next day. The clusters are placedinto a machine that separates fruit from stem. Themachine also starts the juicing process by crushingthe grapes. The crushed grapes then move to thepress.

“The whites go directly to the press so we get itoff the solids as quickly as possible. If we were toleave the juice on the skin it would impart a pinkishcolor, and you wouldn't get a true white wine,” saidSchmidt.

She serves as Baltimore Bend's vintner. Accord-ing to Livingston, she recently finished a two-yearcertificate program in Enology - the study of wineand winemaking - from Washington State University,in Richland, Wash.

While pressing, the juice from the grapes fallsinto the press pan, before moving to the storagetank for fermentation and aging. The press drum ro-tates, pushes against the grapes and then rotatesagain to let the juice fall naturally with gravitythrough holes in the press.

“The cycle we have it on does different strengthsof pressure - starts lighter and gets heavier. We trynot to push it too much because that affects thequality of it,” said Schmidt. “The best juice is the freerun - that's when it's not even pushing on it, no pres-sure at all - that's the best juice they say.”

When they process the red varieties - whichgives a larger quantity of juice - the free run will gointo the oak barrels for the premium wines, while thepressed will go into blends and sweeter wines.Schmidt says she's aware of trends in wine, and ad-justs the types of wine Baltimore Bend produces ac-cording to those trends.

“The moscato is the number one selling varietaland has been for the last five to seven years, so wewere trying to capture that trend. And so we decidedthree years ago to put in this Valvin Muscat,” she

noted. “It's not the same as a moscato but it's in thatfamily. It gives a lot of the same aromas and fla-vors.”

Along with the varieties grown by BaltimoreBend, Schmidt says they also purchase other vari-etals from vineyards in creation of continuing or newwine blends.

“We're always trying to do a new and differentthing,” she said. “We came out with a port style. It'sa fortified wine that we do, so that's another branchout from the regular stuff we've done. We just kindof try different things to see what's going to fly and ifit doesn't work, we don't continue it.”

Many Missouri wineries, according to Schmidt,are incorporating micro-breweries or distilleries intotheir operation as well. However, for the time being,Baltimore Bend is focusing on wine.

“We're in our infancy still. We're still focusing onjust the basic wine right now,” explained Schmidt.“What we have done is looked at partnerships. Wehave a guy (Jim D. Pierce) - Of The Earth Distilleryis up near Rayville - and so we're partnering withhim. He just got started a year ago and he's usingour pomace to make his grappa. We're partneringwith him to feel out the distilled spirits segment.”

Baltimore Bend sells its wine throughout Missouriwith bottles being sold in Kirksville, Columbia, St.Louis, Maryville and Springfield. A large portion ofconsumers, though, are in the Kansas City area.

“We try to get out and make people aware of ourwines as much as we can,” said Schmidt.

She added the winery regularly competes in aselect number of wine competitions, including theMissouri Wine Competition of the Governor's Cup,the Jefferson Cup Invitational, Finger Lakes winecompetition, and International Eastern. In the pastyear they won the Jefferson Cup for their C2 and Ar-rowhead Red wines.

“We have a lot of local support, which is wonder-ful. We also have people come from the (KansasCity) Metro area and Columbia because we're - youknow - an hour's drive from either one of those,”said Schmidt.

Baltimore Bend is in the northwest vine growingregion of Missouri and is part of the Kansas Citywine trail. The tasting room is open from 11 a.m. to6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and Sundays from1-6 p.m. during April 1 to Dec. 31. From Jan. 2 toMarch 31 they are open Wednesday through Satur-day 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays from 1-6 p.m.

Conctact Charles Dunlap [email protected]

Richard Livingston, business partner for Balti-more Bend Vineyard and Winery, pours grapes intoplastic drums that hold approximately 80-100pounds of grapes. The grapes harvested from thevineyard are transported to the tasting room wherethey will begin the process of being made intowine.

Sarah Schmidt, vintner and business partner ofBaltimore Bend Vineyard and Winery explains howgrapes enter the crushing machine. It first takes thefruit off the stem before the fruit drops into thecrusher which lightly breaks open the fruit beforeheading to the press.

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missouri farms 11

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112 missouri farms

by John OrtizBigYield.us

Fertilizer: Do you want (and need) tolower your fertilizer costs?

And are you getting what you’re payingfor? Today I want to discuss a newer prac-tice that I’m seeing that involves biologicalsand dry fertilizer. Biologicals offer growersa way to free up nutrients in their soil andtake their fertility to the next level. Below Iwill show you how to do more with less onyour next fertilizer application.

Q. First, what nutrients are essentialto the growth of plants?

A.There is a specific set of nutrientsthat are essential to plant life and must beavailable in the soil in order to get optimumresults. These nutrients are broken up intothree categories: Primary Macronutrients,Secondary Macronutrients and Micronutri-ents. These nutrient categories break downas follows:

Primary Macronutrients- Nitrogen - Phosphorus- PotassiumSecondary Macronutrients- Calcium- Magnesium- SulfurMicronutrients- Boron- Chlorine- Copper- Iron- Manganese- Molybdenum- Nickel- Zinc

Each of these nutrients plays an impor-tant role in the overall health of the ecosys-tem of your soil. As you might guess,macronutrients are needed in large amounts.Micronutrients are needed in much smaller

amounts. Too much of one nutrient and toolittle of another, or nutrients in the wrongform, can have a negative effect upon yourplants and lead to nutrient deficiency.

Most soils today have a nutrient defi-ciency of one form or another. Especiallyground that has been worked year in andyear out. Creating the healthiest environ-ment in your soil is one of the keys to rais-ing a successful stand of any crop. And thestrategy of just applying extra N-P-K isn’tnecessarily the most effective one. In fact,it’s not effective at all.

Q.What's the problem here?

A.These nutrients within the soil reg-ularly move back and forth between severalchemical forms. They become dissolved insoil solutions as molecules (ions) that con-tain charges that are either positive (cations)or negative (anions). As these moleculesmove between their various forms, they de-velop an equilibrium based upon certain soilconditions, including pH, texture, aerationof the soil and the presence of other ions.This process often leads to nutrients that be-come bound into insoluble forms, making aportion of these nutrients unavailable to yourplants. To be clear, the nutrients are still inthe soil, but no longer in a form that can beused by your plants. At that point, it's nutri-tion that’s “all dressed up with no place togo,” and that’s bad for you.

Q.What is the solution for freeing upbound nutrients in my soil?

A.The only solution to this problem isto incorporate ingredients that work at theionic level to strip electrical charges fromthe binding elements in the soil. Those oncebound-up nutrients, not available to the plantbefore, become freed up and available again.

Consider this... as a grower, you havebeen applying fertilizer to your ground foryears and years. And every year you'veadded nutrition to the soil that became un-

available due to the binding process of thesenutrients. What this means to you now isthat you have fields full of unused nutrition.If you could "mine" that nutrition and re-lease it back to your plants, you would bemoney ahead, and give your crops a boostthat they've not likely ever experienced be-fore.

Q.So, how can I unbind the nutrientsin my soil?

A. One word... Biologicals.You knew I was headed there, right? Bi-

ologicals have proven themselves to signif-icantly impact the soil ecosystems and planthealth. And what happens to healthierplants? They produce more seed!

There are a number of different biologi-cal (microbial) products on the market todaythat address the issue of nutrient unavail-ability. These microbial formulations, in-cluding the billions of colony forming units(bacteria) inside of them, have proven them-selves to be effective at causing nutrients tobe converted into a usable form again so thatyour plants can actually use them. So, ifyou're wanting to get value from fertilizerapplications that you did last year or twoyears ago, biologicals are the way to do it.

Q. What do I need to do to get bio-logicals onto my field?

A.As I have written about in the past,biologicals are generally applied in threeways: As an in-furrow application at thetime of planting, as a foliar application di-rectly to the leaves or impregnated onto dryfertilizer that is then broadcast to the ground.

For this situation, broadcasting the bio-logicals to the ground along with your fer-tilizer is the most cost-effective way to go.The liquid biological solution first needs tobe applied to the dry fertilizer granules.After that is ready to be broadcast upon yourfields and start working. After, here’s whatyou can expect:

1) The biological formulation dries onthe granule and forms a coating that seals itand keeps it from breaking down in thetruck. This means less fertilizer dust to staybehind in the truck and nothing to blowaway in the wind.

2) The bacteria in the biological solutionis available to immediately impact the fer-tilizer nutrients so that the current applica-tion never has a chance to become boundand unusable to your plants. Say goodbye tobound nutrients...

3) Once the fertilizer is on the ground,rain will begin to break those granulesdown. As it does, the biologicals will infil-trate your soil and go to work like an armyof soldiers, breaking bonds and releasingnutrients.

Q. Can biologicals make for a moreeffective fertilizer program?

A.Most definitely! Advancements inagricultural sciences, like biologicals, arehelping growers to create healthier plants.And, as I said earlier, healthier plants pro-duce more seed. The data from both publicand private yield trials continues to showpositive results on crops because of the in-corporation of biologicals. I’ve seen the re-sults first hand and so have many of mycustomers.

There are a lot of benefits to growerswhen discussing biologicals. Next month Iwill cover a few more details about biolog-icals on fertilizer from an application standpoint. Not only for growers, but for fertilizerdealers, as well. There is also the issue of theeffectiveness of different biological formu-lations. Some are clearly better than others.Tune in later as I discuss some of the thingsyou will want to look for as you implementthis fertilizer strategy and "mine" the exist-ing nutrition in your ground.

Contact John at johno@agteampro. com, or atMOF2, LLC - P.O. Box 401, Garden City, MO64747. John can also be reached by phone at 816-773-6018.

John’s Jargon Q.A.Fertilizer:Do you want to loweryour fertilizer costs?

JEFFERSON CITY— Agriculture studentsin Missouri highschools and junior col-leges are learningfrom a new curriculumthis school year.Funded by FCS Finan-

cial through a grant tothe Missouri Depart-ment of Elementaryand Secondary Educa-tion (DESE), the AgManagement, Eco-nomics & Sales cur-riculum is the first

curriculum developedas a partnership be-tween the public andprivate sectors.

“A needs surveyconducted three yearsago identified a newcurriculum was at thetop of the list for Mis-souri’s ag teachers,”says Scott Gardner,FCS Financial vicepresident of sales andmarketing. “The cur-riculum they wereusing was developedin 1988.”

In response, FCSFinancial and DESEjoined forces with Vi-vayic, a learning solu-

tions company, to de-velop the Ag Manage-ment, Economics &Sales curriculumwhich was unveiled inJuly during the Mis-souri Vocational Agri-culture TeachersAssociation (MVATA)conference.

“This curriculum isjust what Missouri AgTeachers needed aswe continue to pre-pare students for fu-ture endeavors in theagriculture industry,”says Ross Hastert, in-structor at RockportHigh School. “Thanksto FCS Financial andVivayic, we have anup to date and de-tailed curriculum thatis easy to follow andimplement into theclassroom. I am ex-cited to introduce thiscurriculum to the Jun-iors and Seniors atRock Port High Schoolthis fall.”

The comprehensivegoal was to bring to-gether concepts fromagricultural econom-

ics, management,sales and marketingand personal finance.The nature of today’sagricultural industry isreflected to preparestudents for careersuccess.

“The activities withineach lesson allowedfor hands on experi-ence and complete un-derstanding,” saysChase Holcumbrink,instructor at SavannahHigh School, whotaught the course dur-ing its pilot phase lastyear. “This curriculumallows students tomake real world con-nections and learnvaluable, lifelong les-sons.

MVATA developedthe curriculum througha committee of 17people representingschool districts, post-secondary institutions,agriculture companiesand agriculture eco-nomics experts. Thiscommittee providedsubject matter knowl-edge during the three

year developmentphase. FCS FinancialCredit Analyst DavidWebb participated onthe committee to buildthe finance and creditsections.

“The lessons pro-vided in the new cur-riculum not only areup-to-date in terms ofthe agricultural envi-ronment, but alsomany of the activitiesfor students are practi-cal for today's stu-dents, such as the useof technology to applythe concepts from thelesson,” says KelinCruse, instructor atCassville High School.

The curriculum isweb-based and avail-able for free on theMissouri FFA Associa-tion website to providethe extra benefits ofbuilding in real-worldlinks and projects aswell as easy, aroundthe clock access.

Contact Amy Wieberg at800-369-3276, ext. 1177 [email protected]

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FCS Financial Newsmissouri farms 13

Missouri ag students receive new curriculum

Advocating for agriculture – who is it best left to? Fornonprofit organizations and consortiums, such as Pro-tect the Harvest, advocating is strongest when farmers

and agriculturalists are directly involved.The 5-year-old organization founded by Forrest Lucas is

a group that is meant to do just that — advocate by connect-ing agriculturalists, animal owners and outdoorsmen.

The group has had a presence in recent months as Mis-souri voters decided whether or not to pass Amendment 1.The “Right to Farm” bill amends the state constitution to “en-sure that the right of Missouri citizens to engage in agricul-

tural production and ranching practices shall not be in-fringed,” according to ballot language. Protect the Harvest,along with Missouri Farmers Care and an assortment of agri-cultural organizations, flooded the public with information ontheir fight against radical animal rights activists.

“The Missouri Farming Rights Amendment will createlasting legal safeguards for American farmers and ranchers.If adopted, it will ensure the personal rights and freedoms forevery farmer, both big and small,” the website said.

On the opposite side of the amendment was the HumaneSociety of the United States, which urged Missourians to

vote “no” on the measure.A press release issued by HSUS this past June read:

“The amendment seeks to prohibit laws in Missouri that re-strict industrialized agriculture and factory farms, includingthe ‘farming’ of dogs in puppy mills. … By forbidding anystate rules to regulate agriculture, Measure 1 allows bigagribusiness to write its own rules with no oversight.”

The measure did pass. Twice. First by voters, and thenafter a recount produced similar results. In the Aug. 5 pri-mary election, the measure passed by 2,375 votes. The re-

Advocating for agriculture114 missouri farms

Story by Sarah ReedMISSOURI FARMS

Forrest Lucas and his wife, Charlotte, operate Lucas Cattle Company in the Ozarks. Before founding Lucas Oil Company, the Lucas’ were owners of a longhaultrucking fleet. (Photo furnished)


by Denny BanisterAn editorial columnfrom the Missouri Farm Bu-reau Federation

Accidental injuriesand deaths make farm-ing one of the most haz-ardous jobs, usuallyranking in the top five ofthe most dangerous oc-cupations in the UnitedStates. To remedy thesituation requires the co-operation of not onlyfarmers and ranchers,but the non-farm publicas well.

How can the non-

farm public have any-thing to do with farmsafety? The answer issimple – slow down oncounty roads wherefarmers are often mov-ing tractors and heavyequipment from one fieldto another. Many countyroads are narrow withhills and curves, givingdrivers of fast-movingcars very little time toreact when topping a hilland suddenly finding aslow-moving tractor intheir path.

The argument couldbe made the farmers aredriving too slowly, butassessing blame is notthe point – the goal is toprevent the accidents inthe first place. Farmersneed to take all safetyprecautions, such as en-

suring slow-moving vehi-cle warning reflectorsare mounted to the rearof their tractors, wagonsand implements, andmaking sure emergencylights are flashing. Driv-ers need to slow downand not assume theroad will be clear aroundthe next bend. Gettingoff the highway andusing county roads is at-tractive to many driversduring spring months,however, farmers willuse these roads, too –spring planting is under-way. National FarmSafety and Health Weekis observed during har-vest time, and yet themost dangerous time ofthe year for farmers isspring planting season.

To raise awareness

of this fact, with the goalof reducing the acciden-tal injuries and deaths soprevalent at this time ofthe year, Farm Bureausponsors AgriculturalSafety Awareness Weekthe first full week ofMarch. Accidents be-tween fast-moving vehi-cles and slow-movingfarm equipment cancause serious injuries toboth drivers. It is notabout fault; it is aboutprevention of accidentalinjury and death. Whenusing county roads andhighways, farm safety isa two-way street.

Denny Banister, ofJefferson City, is a re-tired broadcaster fromMissouri Farm Bureau,the state’s largest farmorganization.

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missouri farms 115

Farm safety

Farm safety is a two-way street

Farm Truck Driver Safety from MoDotSAFE OPERATION

Farmers are respon-sible for the actions ofall drivers of the trucks

under their control.Commercial vehiclesmust be operatedsafely and according to

state and federal rules,which include: Driversare not allowed to op-

CONTINUED ON PAGE 17

count produced a difference of 2,490.

Behind Protect the HarvestStanding tall for farmers' rights is a

man who built successful business en-deavors that began when working on acattle ranch as a teenager.

Protect the Harvest founder andchairman Forrest Lucas said protectingagriculture rights is a national [effort],particularly after HSUS and other ani-mal rights groups backed legislation inseveral states — now hindering peoplefrom continuing their way of life.

“They're trying to pick off whateverstate they can. We've given them a

swift kick (nationally), so they're tryingto go around to state and county lev-els,” Lucas said.

A video provided by Missouri Farm-ers Care states several legislativemeasures passed with the support ofHSUS. They include the passage of an

amendment to the Florida Constitutionin 2002 that destroyed hog farming; thepassage of Proposition 204 in 2006that attacked hog farming and veal pro-duction in Arizona; the banning of dovehunting in Michigan in 2006; weaken-ing the California egg industry in 2008;and HSUS's support of Proposition B inMissouri in 2010.

While Proposition B and Constitu-tional Amendment 1 have been two re-cent battles in Missouri, it doesn’tnecessarily mean farms and farmers inthe Show-Me state are at a higher riskcompared to those in other regions.Lucas said he felt over-zealous animalrights groups will go where they can.

“After Proposition B … you hadabout 40 different little ag groups thatwere totally disenfranchised. They allcame together to make one, to havesome power,” Lucas recalled. “Theyfought alongside us real hard onAmendment 1. No other state hascome together like that.”

Lucas operates a Missouri cattleranch in addition to other successfulbusiness endeavors. The Indiana resi-dent began working on a cattle farm inhis teens and developed as an entre-preneur from there. According to his bi-ography on protecttheharvest.com,Lucas began mixing oils and additivesfor his vehicles, leading to the incorpo-ration of Lucas Oil Products in 1989.He also now oversees a productioncompany, who's newest investmentwas a feature film highlighting the sig-nificance of agriculture. The filmwrapped production approximately twoweeks ago and stars several well-known actors, including Lea Thomp-son.

“When I read the script, I couldhardly put it down,” he said.

Agriculture touches everyone,whether one experiences it firsthand ina field of row crops or is three genera-tions removed from farming. Perhapsits ability to link humanity is what’smost appealing to those who want toprotect it.

Protect the Harvest will be working

toward expanding education, particu-larly for future farmers.

“It's a big thing, because there issuch a small number of people farmingnow,” Lucas said, noting only one-thirdof students participating in FFA live ona farm. “Animal-rights guys are sendingmaterials to the schools themselves, sowe've got to counteract that.”

On the horizonEducation is key for Protect the Har-

vest. Educating youths interested inagriculture careers, providing informa-tion to farmers and ranchers regardinglegislation, regulations and even thedisconnect between producers andconsumers are all portions of the orga-nization’s efforts.

“We're pretty much going on the of-fense,” Lucas said of the Protect theHarvest organization. “Especially whenit comes to teaching kids. That's goingto take a lot.”

The biggest concern Protect theHarvest is currently facing is the 2008passage of California’s Proposition 2,which created a state statute regardingthe confinement of farm animals, par-ticularly chickens. Producers have untilthe end of the year to transition egg-laying chickens from battery cages tohousing in which they can turn aroundfreely, lie down, stand up and fully ex-tend their limbs.

Lucas explained the repercussionscould stretch to producers in otherstates and ultimately halt egg importinto California.

“Eggs are the biggest source of pro-tein. They’re easy to prepare. Kids canfix their breakfast,” he said. “You takethat out and what’s going to happen topeople?”

Mid-Missouri farmers can do more,by starting with signing up on the orga-nization’s mailing list. Volunteer oppor-tunities could become available as theorganization forges ahead in educa-tional outreach.

Online:www.protecttheharvest.com

Forrest Lucas has been involvedin the racing industry throughsponsorships, promotions andthe use of Lucas Oil products.(Photo furnished)


116 missouri farms

Featured Farmer>>> CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

Justin’s son, Jazztyn, 16, loves to help outon the farm when he’s available. Justin hopeshis son will carry on the farming tradition, butonly “if he wants to.”

“You don’t want to force your children,”Justin said. “If they find something they wantto do in life, that they are more passionateabout, then ...”

He does want him to learn what it takes tofarm because it teaches him responsibility andhard work as well as a little appreciation in life.

Technology advancements have changedthe way of learning from Justin’s time as ateenager to Jazztyn’s. Now they have expen-sive tractors with expensive implements andall the GPS technology.

“It’s harder than what is was back in theday when you just put it in gear and drop theimplement and go,” Justin said. “Dad got inhere and told me, ‘This is forward and reverseand left brake and right brake,’ and he gotout.”

Justin said technology has made farmingbetter.

“It makes it more precise,” Justin said. “Youcan plant your seed where you want to andyou don’t have to worry about over-planting. Itsaves you money in the long run.”

When winter rolls around, they don’t slowdown. The Samsons spend their time workingin the shop.

“We buy a lot of equipment and we put ittogether ourselves,” John Pat said.

To expand on their operation in the future,Justin said they plan to try and get into covercrops this year.

“Farming is my hobby,” John Pat said. “Italways has been. My wife knows this ... farm-ing comes first.”

In a nutshell, agriculture is very importantto the Samsons.

“It’s everywhere. It’s everyday life,” Justinsaid. “Everything you do, even if you’re noteven tied into farming, farming is there,whether you realize it or not. It’s part of every-body’s everyday life.”

Contact Rachel Knight at [email protected]

erate a truck if they aretoo ill, fatigued or areunder the influence ofprescription drugs,

where these conditionswould impair their abil-ity to operate the trucksafely; Alcohol or ille-

gal drugs are not to bein the drivers posses-sion. No alcohol canbe consumed withinfour hours of driving;All trucks must followrailroad crossing safetyrequirements by stop-ping if required, notshifting gears on thetracks and by lookingboth ways beforecrossing; All equipmentor goods carried on thetruck and/or trailermust be properlyloaded and secured;

Seat belts must beworn at all times whenthe truck is operating;Radar detectors areprohibited in CMVs;and warning devicessuch as triangles, roadflares and hazardflashers must be usedwhen a CMV parks onthe side of a roadway.

MINIMUM AGE FOR

FARM TRUCK DRIVERS

Drivers of a com-mercial vehicle withinMissouri must be atleast 18 years old;Drivers must be atleast 21 years old if:The load contains anyamount of hazardousmaterials, includingsome

fertilizers, or thetruck operates beyondMissouri state lines.

DRIVER

QUALIFICATIONS

All persons who op-erate a commercial ve-hicle are considereddrivers even if they areunpaid or own the ve-hicle. All drivers mustmeet age require-ments, speak English,have a valid operatinglicense, be physicallycapable of operating atruck and follow all ap-plicable state laws.

COMMERCIAL DRIVERS

LICENSE REQUIREMENTS

FOR FARM TRUCKS

A CDL is required if:The truck exceeds a26,000 pound grossvehicle weight rating(GVWR), or

a truck Is used incombination with atrailer for a gross com-bination weight rating(GCWR) greater than26,000 pounds, or theload must be plac-arded in order to com-ply with the HazardousMaterials Transporta-tion Act regardless ofthe truck size or weightrating.

NO CDL IS REQUIRED

IF ALL OF THE FOLLOWING

CONDITIONS ARE MET:1. A farmer trans-

ports his/her own agri-cultural products, farmmachinery, farm sup-plies to or from theirfarm. (If the goods arenot for farm use or be-long to someone otherthan the farmer, a CDLis required), and

2. The move iswithin 150 miles of thefarmer s farm, and

3. The driver is afarmer, family memberof the farmer or an em-ployee of the farm, op-erating a CMV for farmuse, and

4. The load does nothave to be placarded

for hazardous materi-als.

MISSOURI CLASS EDRIVERS LICENSE

If a CDL is not re-quired, then all farmemployees who drive afarm truck must haveat least a MissouriClass E (For-Hire) driv-ers license.

CDL-REQUIRED DRUG

AND ALCOHOL TESTING

RULES

Drivers who are re-quired to have a CDLmust also comply withthe controlled sub-stance and alcoholtesting requirements ofthe FMCSR, which in-clude: A pre-employ-ment drug test. A DOTpre-employment drugtest must be passedbefore a driver may op-erate the CMV. Thenegative results mustbe kept in the driver’squalification file; Ran-dom drug and alcohol-testing program. AllCDL-required driversmust enroll in a DOTrandom drug and alco-hol-testing program;Post-accident testingdrivers involved in arecordable accidentmust be tested for drugand alcohol use if a fa-tality occurs or a cita-tion is issued.

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Farm safetymissouri farms 17

FARM TRUCK DRIVER SAFETY FROM MODOT >>> CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15

Story by Linda GeistMU Extension

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Sudden death syndrome(SDS) is showing up in soybean fields across thestate. Farmers should scout fields thoroughly forsymptoms of SDS.

SDS, caused by the soil fungus Fusarium vir-guliforme, produces striking foliage symptoms,which first appear on upper leaves as scatteredyellow blotches that increase in size, says Uni-versity of Missouri Extension plant pathologistLaura Sweets. Yellow areas may turn brown, butveins remain green. As the disease advances,leaves turn brown and may curl up or fall off theplant.

Root systems deteriorate and lateral roots andtaproots may be discolored. When split open, in-ternal tissues of the taproot and lower stem maybe light gray to light brown. Infected plants mayhave smaller root systems and clumps of dustyblue mold growth may be visible on the taproot.

Several diseases may look alike, so you haveto get into the field, Sweets says.

SDS appears in fields with high soil moisture.This year, a wet, cool spring followed by the sec-ond-coolest July on record created conditions fa-vorable for SDS in much of Missouri.

High numbers of early season soybean rootrot due to weather conditions may have been aprecursor to SDS, said MU Plant DiagnosticClinic director Patricia Wallace. “SDS is a bigproblem this year,” she said.

The disease sometimes appears as a circularor oval area of yellow or dying plants in fields. Itmay appear in irregular or wavy streaks that fol-low drainage patterns in the field.

Little can be done once plants are infected.Weather over the rest of this growing season in-fluences the severity of loss.

Sweets encourages producers to note whereSDS was found this year. Preventative manage-ment, including selecting resistant varieties, stag-gering planting dates, rotating crops andminimizing soil compaction, may help prevent thedisease next growing season.

Producers with dying plants are encouraged tosubmit plants through their county extension cen-ter or to the MU Plant Diagnostic Clinic. Call 573-882-3019 for more information.

MU

Exten

sion

Corn

er18 missouri farms

Foliage symptoms of sudden death syndrome in sobyean. (Contributed photofrom MU Plant Diagnostic Clinic)

SDS appears in Missouri soybean fields

by Jason VanceMU Extension

COLUMBIA, Mo.–Crop prices havefallen sharply whilelivestock prices havereached record lev-els in 2014.

Next year couldsee some modera-tion in livestockprices and continued

low crop prices.The August base-

line update from theFood and Agricul-tural Policy Re-search Institute atthe University ofMissouri projectsrecord corn and soy-bean harvests thisfall.

FAPRI directorPat Westhoff saysthose records willcontinue to pressurecrop prices.

Corn prices areunder $4 per bushel.Westhoff says withlarge ending stocksat the end of thisyear, prices for cornand soybeans willremain under pres-sure into next year.

“If we continue toplant a lot of cornand soybeans in2015 as appearsvery likely, we couldhave another year ofdepressed prices,”Westhoff says. “Weare currently project-ing that soybeanprices may dropbelow $10 a bushelfor the first timesince 2009.”

On the flip side,livestock producers

are seeing higherprices resulting fromstrong demand inbeef, limited sup-plies of pork andstrong internationaldemand for dairyproducts.

With lower feedcosts, Westhoff ex-pects producers toexpand production,which will eventuallylower prices.

Westhoff saysthat consumers haveseen an uptick infood price inflationthis year, causedmostly by highermeat and dairyprices.

However, with adownturn in live ani-mal prices, con-sumers should seesome moderation ongrocery storeshelves.

Westhoff says it’spossible food priceinflation could dropto less than 2 per-cent in 2015.

Another impact ofthe lower crop pricesis increased produc-tion of biofuels.

Westhoff says ex-isting ethanol plantsare operating at or

near full capacity,and in addition tomeeting domesticneeds there hasbeen an increase inexports this year.

Westhoff cautionsthat this is just anupdate and the ac-tual size of thisyear’s crop isn’tknown yet.

“There’s a lot ofuncertainty in theseprojections,” West-hoff says. “If you askme a few weeksfrom now what Iproject, it may bevery different fromwhat I tell youtoday.”

The FAPRI Au-gust update to thebaseline outlook isavailableat www.fapri.mis-souri.edu.

A companion re-port with more de-tails on livestock andconsumer prices canbe found atamap.missouri.edu.

Contact Jason Vance at573-882-9731 [email protected] 240 South, Slater, MO

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missouri farms 119

MU Extansion Corner

FAPRI updates price outlook baseline

SubscribeToday!

660-886-2233

by Associated Press

Sitting under a tent at an annual agri-cultural equipment sales event,Shawn Berry noted that orders for

the machinery he sells have dramaticallyslowed down this year — so much sothat the Ohio-based company he repre-sents could end up to 30 percent shortin sales compared to last year in somestates, South Dakota and Minnesota in-cluded.

Berry is not alone.Many of the exhibitors at Dakotafest

saw one effect of this belt-tighteningyear in the Corn Belt: Farmers aren'tbuying or trading in the pricey equipmentbecause of lower commodity prices anda 95 percent reduction in a federal taxbreak that has traditionally benefited thesector.

"If they can't buy more equipment, weare going to have to start laying off peo-ple," said Berry, who represents Unver-ferth Manufacturing Co., that makes andmarkets, among other things, tillage, hayand grain handling equipment.

The U.S. appears headed for record-breaking corn and soybean harvests thisyear, but the abundant yields are drivingprices lower, significantly affecting farm-ers' profitability since the crop will endup costing more to produce than theycan immediately sell it for. Even beforeplanting season began, the U.S. Depart-ment of Agriculture in February pre-dicted this year's farm income wouldsink to levels not seen in four years be-cause of falling commodity prices.

Upgrades happen for numerous rea-sons — increase or decrease inacreage, new tools to get the job done

by Jodie WehrspannFarm Industry News

One month prior to the official launch date, New Holland gave media a preview of its new farm equip-ment lineup for model year 2015. Mark Hooper, New Holland’s marketing director for North America, says2015 is a significant launch year for hay and forage equipment, in particular, which is where the companyhas its roots. Over half of the new products, and there are 25 of them in all, are designed for this seg-ment.

New Holland’s new hay and forage lineup includes balers, wheel rakes, self-propelled forage har-vesters, self-propelled windrowers, mower conditioners and new mid-size tractors.

Products reps gave us a walk-around tour of each product in July, during the company’s previewevent held at company headquarters in New Holland, Penn. Here’s what we learned.

SPEED ROWER SELF-PROPELLED WINDROWERNew for 2015, New Holland has introduced a new se-

ries of Speedrower self-propelled windrowers, a flagshipproduct for dairy and livestock producers. The new seriescomes with an anniversary decal to mark the company's50th year of producing the product. The one here doesn'tshow the decals--those were added later for their firstdebut at the Farm Progress Show. The models in the se-ries are equipped with new ECOBlue Tier 4B engines thatuse a Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) system to re-duce emissions. New Holland says the engines are tunedfor performance, not just emissions, offering improve-ments in both power and fuel economy. A programmablethrottle allows the operator to set the exact engine speed needed. Compared to the Tier 3 Speedrowerunits, the new 4-cylinder Speedrower 160 achieves a 20 percent increase in horsepower, while the 6-cylinder Speedrower 220 and 260 units increase engine horsepower by 10 percent, as stated in thecompany news release states. Fuel usage is also significantly reduced, showing a16 percent drop in the6-cyl. unit and 37 percent drop in the 4-cyl. unit. Cooling capacity on Speedrowers has been expanded.The rotary air screen is larger and made of steel to create a tight seal, resulting in better engine per-formance. A deluxe cab is now standard equipment. Independent rear axle suspension and ComfortRide cab suspension provide for smooth, responsive handling that lets the driver increase speed on un-even terrain. A new, optional Delphi satellite-capable radio with Bluetooth technology provides for hands-free communication.

ROLL-BELT ROUND BALERSLast year New Holland introduced the Roll-Belt 560,

a variable-chamber round baler that produces 5 ft. x 6 ft.bales. Now the company is adding three other modelsto complete the family and provide more size offeringsfor livestock operators and custom balers. The new mod-els are the Roll-Belt 450, 460, and 550, which offer balewidths of 4 ft. x 5 ft., 4 ft. x 6 ft., and 5 ft. x 5 ft., respec-tively. The balers replace the BR7000 series. New Hol-land says the new Roll-Belt Series represents an entirelynew generation of round balers. Their value is describedas “20-20-20,” which stands for 20 percent more capac-ity, 20 percent more power available to the belts and 20percent more puncture-resistant belts than the series it

replaces. The capacity is achieved without sacrificing bale density, New Holland says, adding that it ac-tually increases density by 5 percent. 2015 marks the 40th anniversary of the Roll-Belt round baler, sothe new models are marked with an insignia on the side.

Contact Jodie Wehrspann at 952-851-4681 or [email protected]

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iews

20 missouri farms

New Holland’s 2015 hayand forage lineup

Agriculturalequipmentsales declinein 2014


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missouri farms 221

faster and better — and can be dependent onthe amount of cash a farmer has on hand, ac-cording to Dale Moore, director of public policyat the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Machinery costs vary widely. A tractor ca-pable of serving a farm that is several hundredacres can run between $40,000 and$200,000, while a combine for grain harvest-ing can cost $400,000.

John Horter trades in his high-horsepowertractors and combines every two or threeyears for his his corn, soybean and cattle farmin Andover, South Dakota.

He says that helps him keep up with newfarming technology and have a higher resalevalue — just like with a car.

This year, however, Horter had to adjust."We still upgraded a few pieces this year,

but it's nothing like we have been doing in thepast three to four years," Horter said. "Basi-cally, our gross income has been cut in halfwith the prices behind, but our inputs and ma-chinery costs have not decreased, so youhave to find a way to make ends need some-how."

Farmers also have lagged in equipmentbuying because of changes to a tax break thathad typically allowed them to write-off thoseitems.

The Section 179 deduction changes annu-ally; it dropped from $500,000 in 2013 to$25,000 for 2014.

"If they can't deduct it, they won't spend themoney," said Berry, whose sales territory in-cludes North Dakota and parts of Canada.

Congress recently voted to set the deduc-tion permanently at $500,000.

But the proposal faces opposition in theSenate and the two houses are unlikely to set-tle their differences until after November'selection.

Equipment leasing — although not nearlyas widespread as the generations-long prac-tice of renting land — is becoming more com-mon primarily because the payments can bededucted beyond the new limit dictated by thetax code.

In recent years, 90 percent of operationsfor AgDirect, an equipment financing programfor Farm Credit Services of America, have

been loans and the rest leases, according tovice president Duane Maciejewski.

But in 2014, leases have made up 15 per-cent of its lending business, while loans are85 percent.

Experts believe the ag economy is enteringa two- to three-year period of relatively lowprofitability and slow equipment sales willlikely continue, says economist MatthewRoberts, an associate professor at Ohio StateUniversity.

It's been severe enough that Deere Co., thelargest agricultural equipment maker, recentlyannounced layoffs for more than 1,000 U.S.factory employees.

Operating profit from its agriculture and turfsales fell 30 percent in third quarter of 2014compared with a year ago, the company hassaid, and sales in the U.S. and Canada areexpected to be down 10 percent for the year.

"Almost every farmer I know has upgradedtheir equipment in the last five to six years,"Roberts said. "So, now, it is a matter of mak-ing do with what you have for another year ortwo."


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COLUMBIA, Mo. –Donnie Summers ofLathrop, Missouri,distinctly remembersthe day his father’soveralls got caught ina power take-off(PTO) of a silage cut-ter. The revolving de-vice ripped hiscoveralls off andeven pulled one sockout of his work boots.

Naked and shakenup, he walked downthe country lane tohis farmhouse. Hewas one of the luckyones, says Universityof Missouri Extensionsafety specialistKaren Funkenbusch.She says FarmSafety and HealthWeek, Sept. 21-27, isa good time to reviewPTO rules.Since the 1930s,PTOs helped farmersharness the power oftractor engines todrive a variety of im-plements. The tractorpowers a shaft thatspins at hundreds ofrevolutions perminute.

Funkenbusch re-cently showed howquickly a PTO cangrab clothing or hairand wrap it around itsrevolving shaft. Sheand other faculty fromMU’s College of Agri-culture, Food andNatural Resourcesdemonstrated a timerthat mimics a PTO.People test their re-action time by hittinga switch to turn thePTO off; a digitalreadout shows howlong it took to shutdown the device.In the time it takes aperson with averagereaction time to hitthe off button, a 540rpm PTO can wrapthe operator aroundthe shaft, Funken-busch said.“It is a common mis-conception that ahuman being canreact fast enough toavoid serious injury,”she said. “Once en-tangled, there is littlea person can do.”Reaction time slowswith age, decliningphysical condition,use of medicationand lack of sleep.Funkenbusch givesthe following advicefor the upcoming har-vest season:

• Always pull up longhair and braids whenworking aroundequipment. Put hairunder a hat for bestresults. Remove jew-elry and earringswhen working aroundPTOs.• Don’t wear clotheswith loose sleeves,frayed edges ordrawstrings. Avoidlong shoelaces.• Keep safety shieldsand guards in place,even after repairshave been made.• Stay clear of movingparts.• Always shut offaugers and machin-ery equipped withbelt and chain drivesand rotating pulleys.• Stop the PTO whendismounting from thetractor.• Don’t let childrenride on or near a trac-tor. They can be en-tangled in the PTO ifthey slip.• Walk around trac-tors. Never step overa rotating shaft.To see a demonstra-tion of how quicklyyou can become en-tangled, goto http://youtu.be/ZmOUQLsc2P0.Contact Linda Geist at 573-882-9185 or [email protected]

Power take-off devices can rip safety out of a farm

Linda GeistMU Extension

>>> Dustin Neal2014-2015 Reporter, Concordia FFA Chapter

‘What agriculturemeans to me’

“Agriculturemeans ...LIFE. Withoutagriculturethere would benot LIFE.”

To place your Classified Ad

660-886-2233

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Looking for Farrow House Manager for 3000 sowfarm. Please send resume to [email protected]

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To place your ad Marshallnews.comThen Missouri FarmsThen Online classifieds

Home of theJump Start Program!Congratulations to thehundreds of customers whohave taken advantage of the

Jump Start!Program!If you have ever had some badluck with your credit for whateverreason, but need to buy a car,

call Kristina Jasper at660-826-8320.We can help!

JD 4830, '08, SS tank, 100'boom, boom track, auto airlevel, 2670 hrs, very clean,$117,500. 217-430-0837

JD 4930 '11, new rubber,NH 3030 G4 dry boxw/multi., 1260h VC $149K.217-430-0837

JD 6620 SH Titon II, excmachine, light wiring dam-age, $12500. 800-284-3001

JD MT 50' with mtd 2-btmplow, eng free; also JD A50', runs great. Both 1-owner orig tractors. Choice$2,175. 319-361-0471

Two Parker wagons: 4800,flotation tires, 525 trucktires, tarp, lights, shedded.$10,000 for pair or $4,500 &$5,500. 641-430-0212

1949 WD Allis restoredw/plow & blade, asking$3,000; Allis 2 & 3 bottomplows & disc, asking $250ea. 417-296-0682

2012 Sunflower 6630 verti-cal tillage disk, 32', $45,000.641-751-1334

'96 230 Spray Coup, 74'booms, run exc., shedded.712-542-7923

Case 2020, '10, flex head,30 ft., $12,500. 217-430-0837

Case IH 881 silage chopper,good condition, $3,500.515-290-6145

Harvester 8420, '98 w/chainelevator. $55,000. 309-275-0524

IH 550 Manure Spreader,gd cond., shedded, 540PTO, rear discharge. 314-809-7175

IH 735 vw plow toggle trip 5btm $3,750; IH #80 snow-blower $600. 515-209-9013

JD 8820 combine, newtires, feeder house & elvchains, vittitoe spreader,exc shape, $15,000. 515-899-2274

JD 612 CH '11, nice rows,row sense, CM, nice!$52,500. 660-580-0170, noSun. calls

JD 643 Corn Head, low tin,oil bath, CN shafts included,shdedded $4,000. 660-254-4537

JH 9400 2000 sep, sprdr,bin ext. chpr, yld mon. ready1 owner $39,500. 515-238-2418

JD 9660 STS combine '07,duals, RWD, long auger,2000 eng, 1800 sep, exccond! $125,000 OBO. 319-330-3404

Kinze 3600, '02, 16/31 inter-plant, clutches, no till cltrs,VC $49,500. 217-430-0837

NH 660 round baler w/balemonitor $5,000/OBO; Hes-ston 956 round baler, goodcond. $7,500. 660-232-3616, 660-259-3289

'90 Gleaner R40 w/6R30"crn hd & grain table, 2308sep, 3309 eng hrs. 641-799-4068

'98 Agco 9755, Smart Steer,2980 hrs, Ex. Cond. CPC 5shk disc ripper Exc Cond.41M Farmall, 515-368-4492

Case 580S ldr backhoe,4x4, C/H, 4921 hrs, E-hoe,Case cntrls, 4 in 1 frt bkt,24" rear bkt, little hose use,tight, Clean!! $39,900 641-220-4794

JD 444 CH, hyd plates, cn-vrtd to JD plastic 36", 300ac. on recent work. 641-777-0064

120 large round bales 2nd &3rd crop Alfalfa Mix Hay, netwrap, $130/ton. 563-580-4905

2014 Alfalfa 3x3 individuallywrapped bales; Big roundbales and 3x3x8. 641-919-9447

Hay for sale: 4'x62", netwrapped, fescue/clover/prairie. $30. Can haul. 417-499-3940

3-DMC 10hp 3ph bin fans,exc. cond! $600 ea or $1500for all three. 515-298-4172

FALL HARVESTINGWANTED: soybeans, corn& milo. New Case combineswith tractors, grain carts,semis. Calvin Harvie, 719-342-0722

Position opening for a moti-vated individual to join ourteam w/exp. in all areas ofcrop prod. including, operat-ing & maintaining late modelequip for corn/soy operationin Central MO 573-721-3262

T&L hyd. driven, centerpivot irrigation system 2256'long new tires, high/lowpressure. Pump 1000-1200/min., power unit & driptape irrigation also. See itwork! Lost lease on land.Must sell & move. 314-550-3150 taking bids until Oct.1st.

Blk Hereford bulls, 18 mosold, Nebraska City, NE 402-209-0958, 402-209-1321

Duroc, York & Hamp BoarsGood selection. Paul Martin,Shelbina MO, 573-822-4216

Dorset Rams fall and springborn Vermazen Dorsets319-463-5848

2000 FREIGHTLINERCENTURY, new rubbercompletely around. InSlater. Price negotiable.660-631-3434

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Missouri Farms Vol. 1, Issue 5

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