Cattle

Our cattle operation is 100% cow/calf.  We try to save back some of the good heifers each year.  We do a synchronized artificial insemination program to make sure we have high quality genetics in our herd.  The cows are bred in mid-February, and then calve in November to early December.  We calve during this time period because it is a time when we can be focused more on the cows, as opposed to during the early fall when we’re very busy with harvesting.

We do a few different methods of forage production.  We have a few grass areas that are baled into hay each year.  In the past, we have had alfalfa, but have since went away from it.  Recently we have planted fields of triticale in the fall, then bale them in the late Spring and plant soybeans behind it.  This has been an effective way to get a high volume of hay production without sacrificing crop land.

Also, each fall we have a crop duster fly on turnip seed into a corn field right before its harvested.  Then, when you harvest the corn it creates a great seedbed for the turnips to germinate.  The turnips then create great forage that the cows can then graze on during the early winter months.