55 Years And Counting From The Tractor Seat

By bill whitman 

In years like this year when there’s little or no money for grain farmers on the horizon, many of us must find new sources of income to cover expense losses and pay our bills.

All of us know farms that add seed sales to their operations – obviously buying seed at a lesser cost is an annual benefit for them but gives us someone we know and trust to buy seed from. As we all know, there can only be so many seed salespeople. Some farms will do custom work. Tillage, planting and harvesting rank high but when money is tight in the industry, custom work is harder to come by. Forage is another source of revenue, and is often a job that we take on and one that gives us the option to sell a product to those city folks who need hay for their horses. Those of us that have cattle can afford to buy hay, so I think when we do make hay, try and make it a priority to make “good hay.” There is no room anymore for making a marginal product when the hay is now mostly fed according to nutritional value as opposed to filler.

In prior articles I’ve mentioned BJ Biltz, who started his own shop to accompany his growing farm. It’s been going well as he continues to do good work and treat his customers with professionalism. His reputation has grown to the point where despite being in south central Indiana, he now has farm equipment coming in for repairs from northern Michigan.

Then there’s another farmer over in Paris, Ill., who I’ve bought used equipment from several times – Erik Tate. For many years, he has brought in older equipment, fixed it up and sold it for a reasonable price. Farmers I’ve talked to around a three-state area speak very highly of his integrity. You know, what he sells is exactly what you expect with no surprises. Frankly, the only thing I can find wrong with him is the color of his personal equipment, lol.

These are just a couple of examples of farmers who augment their income with ag-related businesses. As I think about it, add Dayne Jessup, Dean Ford and John Thacker, who are all successful farmers (first) in their own right, and you see the common denominator. Each maintains their integrity and adds a little extra something they do to ensure they farm another year.

In my mind, it’s always been this willingness to do whatever it takes that sets the American farmer and rancher aside. It’s also what has caused our numbers to decrease. I have started another article where I look at all the fingers in the pie between the farm/ranch and consumer and how their profit margins are fixed where ours is dependent on the market only. But that’s for another day.

In a year where we face a myriad of weather challenges and disasters, in addition to grain prices that will not pay the bills, surround yourself with positive thinking people, don’t be afraid to sit the pew on Sunday (after all, He’s seen us through worse) and educate yourself. There’s an adage I’ve heard for many years, “if you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.” I firmly believe there is always an answer if we have the patience to find it.

Horse Sense: We succeed because we’re not waiting for help.

IndianaAg@bluemarble.net