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John Oncken: Annual tour proves no two farms work alike

John Oncken  —  3/13/2008 7:08 am

Older farmers will remember the days when they got together at rural school events, threshing rings, silo filling and corn shredding time.

There's a lot of nostalgia from those days: The big meals, catching up on neighborhood news and lots of talking and sharing of experiences. Those days are long gone and the number of farmers has declined every year for decades.

Don't get the idea that farmers don't get together any more to eat, talk and share ideas. But today we call those get-togethers farm tours and special meetings.

A good example is the recent Dairy Tour sponsored by the M&I Janesville Bank. This is the 15th year Jim Raymond and his staff of farm lenders have put together a bus and auto tour to visit three different dairy farms that offered subjects dairy folks wanted to learn more about.

Sunny but crisp winter weather greeted the 200-plus dairy farmers and suppliers as they toured three dairy farms located in Rock County and Green County last week. And if anyone has the idea that all dairy farms are alike, think again.

Williams Bedrock Bovines, owned by Jeff and Brad Williams of Brodhead, was one of the tour stops. The tour stopped there a few years ago after the brothers added a new milking parlor inside the traditional dairy barn and also added a new freestall barn.

At the time, the Williams brothers were just emerging from the era of red barn, small dairy herd and lots of hard hand labor. Their new milking parlor inside the old dairy barn was sort of a new idea and a move to cut labor costs and add more cows.

Their freestall barn -- unknowingly built atop a layer of rock that required serious effort to get a level floor (thus the Bedrock Bovines name) -- allowed for expansion from 80 to 300 cows.

In recent years the Williams brothers have added to their barn and dairy herd, removed their cow mattresses and added sand as cow bedding. Then they added a Parkson sand separator that allowed the sand to be used over and over. The cows couldn't be happier!

Recent additions include a 200- by 300-foot, eight-row cross ventilation barn and a new and bigger sand separator, resulting in a facility that can handle 800 milk cows.

As with all new dairy barns, the cows and heifers are never tied and have the run of the building. That's why it's called a free stall barn.

It might be a bit difficult to understand for the non-farmer but sand is increasingly gaining popularity as the bedding of choice for cows. The soft and clean bedding is comfortable for the big animals and allows them to sort of dig in.

There are problems with sand. It will ruin a pump used to get it from barn to lagoon, it's heavy, and it's getting more expensive.

The Williams brothers installed the Parkson sand separator about three years ago and have now put in a bigger version to handle the extra cows.

In simple terms, the manure is scraped into a holding tank in the middle of the barn complex where it is agitated and run into the separator. The separator is a round metal tank where the water runs off and the sand settles to the bottom where it is augured to a pile.

The result, according to Brad and Jeff, is that 80 percent to 85 percent of the sand is reclaimed and reused. That's a major cost savings.

Most important, Jeff and Brad Williams have the experience and records to show their very low cell count and low incidence of mastitis resulting in very healthy cows and high quality milk.

Larson Acres dairy near Evansville was also a part of the M&I dairy tour a few years ago but was well worth a return visit.

This multifamily farm -- a dozen or so family members are directly involved -- is one of the most visited dairies anywhere because of their innovation and willingness to share ideas.

This year visitors saw another version of manure handling using a McLanahan sand separator to recycle the sand bedding. In addition the Larsons have added an ISS Environmental Nutrient Management System that produces "Tea Water" with no suspended solids and is just one step away from pure water.

Mike Larson told how the manure moved from cow to solids used for fertilizer and liquid that was irrigated on cropland. He also introduced Ryan Benning, who recently joined Larson Acres to work exclusively with the nutrient management program. This family farm may be one of the first in Wisconsin to have created such a job.

Sandy Larson Trustem, (daughter of farm manager Ed Larson) showed the group the farm's calf management program. Calf care is high on every dairy farmer's list of priorities and the Larsons are among the best at raising young stock.

Mill-Hill Dairy, located between Brodhead and Juda, is owned by Neal and Lisa Boeke. They've taken a somewhat different (but growing) approach to dairying -- a compost barn.

The 168- by 126-foot barn houses 150 cows that eat on concrete manger platforms but are bedded on sawdust in open areas without any individual stalls.

Actually, this system dates to the mid-1960s when it was called loose housing. lt achieved brief popularity but passed from the dairy scene rather quickly, probably because the straw used for bedding was difficult to remove.

At Mill-Hill the sawdust is mixed twice a day with a machine somewhat similar to a cultivator. The mixing keeps the bedding dry and comfortable and the cows seem to like it.

The Boekes built a new milking parlor featuring a Double-12 swing parlor, meaning 12 cows are milked at a time at a rate of 72 cows per hour.

Although each and every one of Wisconsin's 14,000 dairy farms milks cows, no two of them do it in the same way with the same equipment. And the technology ranges from hand milking and milk cans on Amish farms to pipelines with three or four milking units to milking parlors that can handle 50 or more cows at a time.

Specialized technology is becoming ever more exotic: Who could have imagined producing pure water from manure? All that's required is a willingness to spend a lot of money.

However, all dairy producers follow some basics.

Animal care and comfort is number one. Healthy animals make for healthy milk checks. That's why calves are fed a diet that's constantly watched and maintained with the precise nutrients to make healthy animals.

Optimum use of money and labor is a must. Farming isn't a hobby, it's a business. Farmers must continually "go to school" to learn and relearn.

That's why events like the M&I Dairy tour are so popular. Not only can the visitors see, ask and learn from visiting other dairies, they can talk to other farmers while on the bus or at lunch. While technology is ever expanding, only the farmers themselves can make it work.

Not everyone can be a successful farmer. Only those who continually learn and innovate can make it. Fortunately, there are lots of farmers like that in Wisconsin.

John Oncken is owner of Oncken Communications, a Madison-based agricultural information and consulting company. He can be reached at 222-0624 or e-mail jfodairy@chorus.net

John Oncken  —  3/13/2008 7:08 am