The farm layouts at the National Farm Toy Show in Dyersville, Iowa, are always an interesting display to see; contestants vary the theme every year and visitors can get a true overview of how farming may work in different necks of the woods from where they live.

In last year’s show, this was especially true on the small farm layouts. The first-place winner was Gordy Schultz from Oshkosh, Wis., for his Pea Harvest display, but Gordy’s was only one of the award-winning top three layouts.
The third-place display belonged to Dean Latzig of New Germany, Minn., in the adult small layout category. A former dairyman, Dean chose to offer a rotating dairy display. The website “Dairy Tech” shared a bit of information about why the rotary (or rotating) dairy platforms are so popular.

The rotating platforms are designed to reduce labor expenditure and time spent in the dairy: “A further benefit is the extra time available outside the dairy to do other work on the farm, as well as having more time for off-farm contacts and more time with the family. For these reasons rotary dairies are popular with farm owners and staff. The rotary is an economic option when wanting a more efficient dairy system to milk increasing herd numbers.”

In Dean’s dairy display, he had 1,250 cows. Living on a farm, he quit the dairy business in 1994 when he became ill. The rotating display, Dean built with the assistance of his mom, Darlene, and it served as a great educational model for those who know little about modern dairy farming.

The centerpiece of the display was Dean’s rotating dairy, where the cows literally stepped on and off to be milked. “They get in the gate and get off the rotary machine,” he explained. “Cows automatically know when they feel like they need to be milked.”

Darlene added that before they are milked, the cows’ udders are dipped in iodine solution to be sure there are no bacteria. After cleaning, they enter the gate and join the rotating milking process. “They get off and on one by one,” she said.

While Darlene may have added an education for listeners, it was Dean who kept the judges’ attention. He said on the farm the dairy barn would be 120 feet wide and 352 feet long. The real dairy parlor would be 80 feet wide and 120 feet long. The stanchions where the cows stay are made out of brass and the cow mats are made from tar paper.

“To make the tar paper stay, we used a little bit of water, then pressed it down,” Dean said.

Besides the miniature buildings, he also customized the feeding truck auger, which was used for silage, and also the trucks. Dean built a milk house and bulk tank: “This is where they load up and take off.

“It took about six to eight months to build and took three hours to set the cows up here,” he added.

The second-place winner was Daryl Stangler of Rice, Minn. Daryl has been creating award-winning displays for years; this year he won with his hay farm.
These days Daryl makes farm toy buildings and equipment for a company called Scratch-Cast, started by Brian Schmidt. Daryl credited Dean Latzig with his getting started with Scratch-Cast. “Dean asked for a barn. I spoke to Brian Schmidt and he said, ‘You put this together?’” Daryl recalled.

When Brian saw what Daryl could do, he soon asked him to work. “Now, I have been working for him for a couple of years,” Daryl said. “When we get together, we shoot off ideas, we inspire each other.”

Daryl’s second-place layout reflects a Minnesota hayfield: “One corner (of the display) contains wheat. The wheat is baling twine poked individually. The cover wheat took four hours.”

This section portrays wheat being baled, then the bales being picked up. “Then, the field on the other fence line has the bale wagon picking up the little squares,” he said. “The hayfield is green turf, and then we glued it down. We made it so there is no loose stuff, then we inserted rows of wheat being baled.”
It is the buildings on the layout for which Daryl is known. “For the hoop shed or coverall building,” he explained, “each rafter took an hour. There are 15 hours in that shed. All framing is hand-done. I went to see a real one to learn how to do it.”

One interesting scene that many farmers saw during dry harvest days was the arresting sight of a burned combine. “Beside the burned combine is the insurance adjuster,” Daryl added, and laughed.

Readers with questions or comments for Cindy Ladage may write to her in care of this publication.