The Season of Harvest

I saw a sign at a local  implement dealer that said, "Farmers have 3 seasons, Before-Harvest, Harvest and After-Harvest."  It's true, it is what we live for.  This is our "paycheck", it's what we use to buy seed and fertilizer, pay labor, make equipment payments and live on until the next harvest.  Sometimes farmers have to use their line of credit if they have not had a good year, but this year with all the rain, I think it will be a great harvest! =)

On the Anderson Farm, we started our wheat harvest on Monday, August 2 down at the Tammany Farm.   This year's cold rainy spring has delayed the crops and we, along with everyone else, are about 10-14 days later than usual.  Once we finish the wheat at Tammany  then  we will move up to the Genesee farm which will be probably 8 or 9 days from now.

Last  Saturday I helped Joe take our 2nd  semi truck over to  the field that would be harvested first, and as I was following him into the field, I was again amazed at the amount of equipment that is needed to get the wheat harvest done at the Tammany farm.   So here is what I saw but couldn't get it all in the picture,   3 combines, 2 tractors with the bank-out wagons and 4 semi-trucks plus one tractor with a disk behind it.

All the equipment seen here is from our farm, with the exception of the  green John Deere combine and one semi truck as they are owned  by the Hermann farm whom we have hired to help us harvest the wheat.

Joe and I  bought a used (but new to us) 2009 combine and  this model is very complex as it has a TV like monitor in place of gauges.  So after getting the semi parked,  Joe wanted to practice cutting a couple of bulk tanks of wheat before Monday in order to get more familar with this new machine.   When the combine starts up, it  feels a little like an airplane reviving up, just before take off, then the motor calms down and all is quiet except for when the monitors that beep and sound like a video game.   Actually a cockpit of an airplane does remind me of the inside of a combine.

Our day started out with Joe checking out the combine to make sure all was in order.

 Once Joe  checked out the combine, he wanted to get a feel for the machine due to the fact that we bought this late last year after our harvest was over and he had never driven it.  This is the newest combine we have ever  owned and like I said,  it is very high tech.  Joe has been reading the owners manual for weeks now, but you need "seat time" to really understand all the bells and whistles.   

 Joe's combine has a flashing beacon just outside the cab and it will automatically start flashing when the combine sensors note that the bulk tank needs to be unloaded.  The bulk tank is located  on top of the combine.

This is what we call the bank-out wagon, it is a grain cart pulled by a tractor and the driver will move up to the combine and drive along side it while the combine unloads the grain into the grain cart.  Then the bank-out wagon will then go to the semi truck and unload the grain from the cart into the semi trailer.

 

To give you an idea of just how big the equipment is, this is me standing next to the tire of the bank-out wagon.  I am 5'4" and the tire is still a tad taller than I am.   In the picture below is the auger folded up at the front of the green gain cart.

This is what a full bulk tank looks like just before it gets unloaded into the bank-out wagon.

Joe checking the wheat heads.

Here is a video of the combine unloading into the bank-out wagon, as well  as a picture below unloading into the other bank-out wagon.

Here is a picture of one of our semi trucks.

The purpose of this tractor and drill (below)  is for fire prevention, so once the combine cuts the first opening round in the field, one of the crew will take the tractor with the disk and plow up the ground for a fire break.

Well that's it for today's Harvest 101 lesson. Stay tuned for more to come! 

P.S.  Joe is really having lots of fun and his first day of harvest 2010 went well. No break downs for him and we cut 300 acres of wheat.   

Hope you come back for more updates on our harvest.  =)

Our Afternoon with the Food Alliance Inspector

Last Wednesday we had our inspection of our farm by Nancy, an independent 3rd party inspector for Food Alliance http://foodalliance.org/.  Joe and brother in-law, Jay along with myself were on hand to greet and answer questions.  Nancy arrived around 1pm ish and the inspection took a little over 4 hours.  Pictured here from left to right is Joe, Jay and Nancy.

It started out with lots of paperwork and going over crop reports, field monitoring reports, furnishing our employee handbook, records of what products we used on our crops, pest management, etc.  So the first 2 hours of the inspection were spent around our dining room table providing all the documentation Nancy requested and answering her questions. 

The picture above  is where we had to demonstrate that all chemicals housed on the farms were in a secure area and properly identified as a chemical storage area.

Then we all jumped in the pick-up for tours of the farms, all the while answering more questions and visiting about our farming practices. This picture is when we stopped by the Tammany shop for inspection.

    

We explained that we used the latest technology by incorporating a global positioning systems (GPS) in our tractors thereby enabling us to utilize the concept of precision agriculture.  In a nutshell, it helps the farmer to not waste fertilizer or crop treatment by reducing any overlap of areas already sprayed.  Plus the satellite imagery transmits down to the GPS unit to adjust the rates as needed.  It is helpful to read the excellent article about Precision Agriculture/GPS as well as watch our video (just click on the screen) taken during spring work and using the GPS system.

We think the inspection went well, but will know more when Food Alliance releases it's findings and if we have anything to correct based upon Nancy's report.  So I'll keep you posted.

Farm Projects

After the crops are planted, we usually have several projects to complete before harvest.  So in between spraying for thistles, other weeds, or bugs we also do the usual maintenance/checking of the equipment in order to try to avoid breakdowns during harvest.  Above is one of the combines in the farm shop with its "header" off.  In the picture is Jay and at the very back of the photo in the white shirt is our newly hired employee, Cody Kinyon.

So before harvest gets here, we have two big projects for this year.   1) complying with the new regulatory laws  that require a containment structure for bulk fuel storage and 2) readying ourselves for an inspection of our farm to be certified by the Food Alliance organization.

For the fuel containment project, we dismantled our old grain storage bin that looks like this (note: by the time I thought about getting pictures of the grain bin being dismantled it was already gone, so these are our neighbors  bins so you understand what I am talking about).

Pictured above is what the dismantled site looks like now. As we no longer do home grain storage we thought the site of the old bins would be good for the fuel containment structure. 

In the event you were interested where the majority of farmers store their crops, this is what the commerical storage containers look like.  Pictured here are the storage containers for Pacific Northwest Farmers Co-op in Genesee.  

Anyway, the point of having a fuel containment structure is to help protect the environment in the event of a major spillage and a concrete barrier is constructed around the fuel tank.   Ultimately this is what it should look like.

We are anticipating an inspection of our farm sometime next week as part of the application process to become certified by Food Alliance.    Food Alliance is a nonprofit organization that certifies farms, ranches and food handlers for sustainable agricultural and facility management practices.  So stay tuned, hopefully I'll be able to be on site when the inspector arrives so I can take pictures to capture the event.  There are a quite a few farms on the Palouse that are already certified and we want to join their ranks. So wish us luck!  =)

Thank you letter from the Japan Trade Team

We Treat Our Crops Like Our Kids

Crops are like children, they need consent tending and nurturing to turn out right.  Diseases can affect a crop just like a child, so preventive measures help keep both crops and kids healthy.   The progressive farmers of the world look at preventive and corrective measures as a way to ensure healthy crops for optimum results.  It's simply safeguarding your resources.  For me, as a mother, it would be like not inoculating your child against rubella, polio and other diseases that can strike and cripple a human, so why would you put your children at risk? It's the same with crops, we have the resources available to help the plants, so why risk not using them? So that my friends, in a nutshell,  is why farmers use the treatments available (which are strictly regulated by the Food & Drug Administration) to keep our crops healthy.  What does this mean to you? It means quantity as well as quality on your dinner table.   

Due to the recent (and welcome) moisture that we have had over the past 2 months, the wheat around the region is showing signs of a fungi called Stem Rust.  If untreated, this fungi will rob the crop of its potential yield, so farmers will incur an extra cost to get this herbicide flown on by air to treat it.  Joe and Jay had anticipated the Rust showing up and this particular fungus is best treated if you can catch it before it shows up on the wheat blades.  We are not complaining in the least, it is sort of a welcome expense as it means the wonderful moisture should mean a better wheat yield come harvest time.  That really makes a farmer smile! =)

Shown below is brother-in-law, Jay checking one of the wheat fields on the Tammany farm.  Besides looking for rust, we also look for bugs that can also rob the crop of its yield.  So sometimes bi-weekly, but usually weekly checking of the crops is necessary for optimum crop health.

The products commonly used on the farm come in plastic jugs. Pictured above  is Ryan, a high school lad who has been hired to help on the farm this summer.   Ryan is stacking the jugs to be shredded for recycling.   

This is the owner of the shredding machine and that comes to farms all over the region.  

If you want to see more of the small town farm life, take a look at the page called At Home on the Farm.

Japan Trade Team Arrives on the Anderson Farm

June 9, 2010 

Awaiting the arrival of the Japan Trade Team who are as follows:

                                                 

Mr. Yasuhiko Izumida, Assistant Manager of Chiba Mill, Nippon Flour Mills

Mr. Mitsuji Kuroda, Assistant Manager, Food Development Center, Showa Sangyo

Mr. Ryogo Kasai, Operations Dept, Chiba Four Milling

Mr. Kohru Tokumoto, General Manager, Assistant to President, Kinki Flour Milling

Mr. Wataru "Charlie" Utsunomiya, Director, US Wheat Associates, Tokoyo

 

Our guests arrive after a very busy day touring the Lewis/Clark Terminal, WSU Wheat Lab, UI Greenhouse, Parker Farms & Seed Processing Plant and Pacific NW (PNW) Farmers Co-op in Genesee and then to have dinner with us.  Also present in this picture is the other farmer "Joe Anderson" (Potlatch Joe) and his wife, Pam.

Once the howdys were said, we gathered in the house to enjoy some beverages and locally produced hummus called "Bronzestone".  The great thing about this hummus is that two former employees of  PNW Co-op just started this company in May and we were excited to serve it to our guests.  Plus the garbs came from the local crops (our included) and most likely were the ones to make this tasty dip. Currently this brand of hummus can be purchased at the Moscow Food Co-op and Rosauers.

Below are our other farm hosts, Bill and Cheryl Flory from Winchester, ID

                                                                           Pictured here is Joe and myself.

This is Tereasa from the Idaho Wheat Commission along with Wheat Commissioner, Joe Anderson. The picture on the right shows the other Wheat Commissioner, Kieth Kinzer standing next to Joe.

This is Charlie from the US Wheat Assoc who was the interpreter.         

                                                        This is our daughter Kaitlyn and Yasuhiko.

The group spoke some English and some of these polite young gentlemen could converse better than others, so Charlie was helpful in making sure the millers understood all that was going on.

Japan currently buys approximately five million tons of imported wheat, mainly from the U.S., Canada and Australia.  Last year, the U.S. supplied about 65% of this volume.  Generally the Japanese customers are satisfied with the current quality of the wheat, but there have been some complaints about frequent contamination of other grains in the cargoes.  Japanese customers' keen concerns include food safety that include farm chemicals, allergens and GM (genetically modified) crops.  The flour millers want to increase their knowledge about the U.S. system to supply safe and clean wheat, so this is the objective for their visit.   Hopefully after this whirlwind visit, the trade team will have a better understanding of the U.S. wheat breeding practices, production, and marketing/handling systems that are used in our country.  It will also  gave the millers a first hand look about bulk grain transportation from the farmers' hands to the seaboard elevators. These team members are the ones directly involved in the production of the flour used in their country and some of them are engaged in research and development for the flour mix.  So this visit is to increase their confidence that the U.S. farmer is working diligently to produce the quality of product they and their customers desire and hopefully they will be more partial to our product and purchase more. 

The dinner was a great success and our guests loved the menu: Steaks, potato salad, garb/zucchini salad, bread from Panhandle Bakery, fresh fruit salad and for dessert a black forest pound cake and lemon tart.  We served a local wine from Clearwater Canyon.  Here are more pic's of the evening.

Memorial Day

I remember sitting in a farm conference earlier this year wherein, Secretary of Ag, Tom Vilsack was speaking and part of his message was that America's values were built on the integrity and work ethic from the farm folks.  He also mentioned that a large portion of the today's military was comprised of rural Americans.  Sitting there I also recalled a family friend who told the story of his uncle, a high ranking general who was also raised on a farm in Idaho. The general said his ability to rise through the ranks in the military was largely because anytime he had an important mission or project, he would seek out farm boys as he knew their work ethic and resourcefulness would get the job done and done right. 

Today Joe and I are off to Craigmont, a small farming community about an hour South of us to attend a Veterans Memorial dedication, this memorial is made out of concrete and honors the five branches of the military.  What is extraordinary about this is that it was the brainchild of a farmer friend's step-son, Kameron, who is doing this as his high school senior project.  So through the young lad's hard work and vision, he has created a lasting memorial to our Veterans.

 So today my friends, stop what you are doing and reflect upon those who have and are serving our country and say thank you.

Later after attending the dedication, here are some photos of this amazing memorial.  Pictured below is  Kameron with his mom, Sheila and step-dad Eric.

Here is a side view of the 5 separate concrete structures depicting the 5 branches of the military.

Here standing in front of monuments shows a star pattern as each structure has a granite inlay.

U.S. Representative Walt Minnick came to speak at the dedication ceremony and like he said, if today's youth are anything like Kameron, our country is in good hands.  Shown below from left to right is Eric, Kameron, Walt Minnick,  Craigmont Mayor Riggers, his wife and Sheila.

The memorial was well attended and very moving.  It showed that the vision of one person along with the help of countless people and donations from businesses could come together to create a wonderful tribute to those who have served our country.