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Meet Our Specialist
By Matt Fenske, Vice President, Business Development Millborn Seeds is excited to welcome Justin Fruechte to our team of specialists. In this role, Justin will work with farmers and ranchers to help them develop and improve their forage management plans to maximize production and profits. "Every stage of a cow or sheep's life requires different nutritional needs. If producers can meet those needs with their forage acres, at the correct time of year, they will increase production - positively impacting their bottom line," says Justin, who currently raises commercial and show sheep with his wife, Crissa, on their acreage 25 miles northwest of Brookings. Like everyone on our Millborn Seeds team, Justin not only has the knowledge and skills necessary to provide livestock producers with the information and advice they need to accomplish successful forage projects, but it's obvious by his background and interest in livestock production, that this is more than a job for Justin - it's his passion. "It's my passion to have a positive influence on the livestock industry," he says. Justin and his wife, Crissa, have a one-year-old son, Mason.
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Double Forage Yields this Summer Everyone should plant a warm season annual forage like brown mid-rib sorghum sudan grass or hybrid pearl millet once they harvest their spring forage. When it comes to selecting the right seed mix for your spring and summer plantings, I encourage producers to consider yields and nutritional value, not price alone. A good forage may cost more, but increased yields quickly pay for the increase in seed cost. Forget about cost per pound - everything is seeded at different rates anyway - think about cost per acre. A $20 seed that yields 2 to 3 tons more per acre than a $10 seed and has a 20% higher total digestible nutrient value , quickly pays for itself in both yield and herd health. For example, by planting a hybrid sorghum sudangrass that has reduced lignin content to increase digestibility, and delayed maturity to continue high yielding growth, the producer greatly improves profitability. Pay close attention to the species you select for your warm season annual forage - as certain species can be high in prussic acid at first frost. If you know what you're planting and when you will be grazing it, you can plan for this. To learn more about how you can double your forage yields this summer, contact Justin Fruechte at 888-498-7333 or e-mail, Justinf@millbornseeds.com. |
New Profit Option for Marginal Farmland "I try to farm the land for my grandpa. It's a very low and wet piece of land - in the last two years I've only been able to farm a portion of it. There's been years that we were not able to farm any of it," says Konrad, 40, of the farmland which he and his grandpa will return to grass and wetlands and allow public hunting access to in exchange for yearly CREP rental payments.
CREP was developed to stem the tide of habitat loss in South Dakota. The South Dakota Game Fish & Parks recently joined forces with Farm Service Agency to increase Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) payments by 40 percent to landowners in the James River Valley. Since 2006, more than 400,000 acres of grassland and wildlife habitat has been taken out of CRP and returned to cropland in South Dakota. "CREP is a great deal for farmers. It's all about lowering their input costs and increasing profitability for the entire farm," says Rocco Murano, private lands habitat biologist for the South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks. "With CREP, producers no longer invest in inputs on lower-producing acres; they don't have to worry about crop insurance on marginal acres. Many producers are running into issues insuring the same ground that many times is not producing, year after year." "CREP is a perfect option for producers like Konrad who battle moisture and other issues trying to earn a profit on marginal farm ground," says Mike Blaalid, farm bill biologist with Pheasants Forever. Blaalid helped Konrad sign his acres up for the program. Blaalid adds that most, if not all, inputs required to return the ground to grasslands or wetlands are covered by a cost-share program. Because we believe strongly in habitat development, Millborn Seeds is doing our part to encourage landowners to increase their commitment to providing wildlife habitat by offering a Stand Establishment Guarantee (SEG) on all conservation projects. If a landowner works with our team of specialists, utilizes our quality products, and follows our detailed plan for success, we guarantee they will have successful stand establishment. To learn more about CREP contact your local Game, Fish & Parks, or Natural Resource Conservation Service Office. To learn how you can take advantage of the Millborn Seeds' Stand Establishment Guarantee, give me a call, 888-498-7333 or e-mail me, jasont@millbornseeds.com.
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Cattlemen looking to double their forage production this growing season should consider following their spring forage harvest with a warm season annual forage.