Josh Allen is a household name best known for his touchdowns on Sunday nights—but he’s also a farmer.
That’s the premise behind the new Like a Farmer video series, presented by AgAmerica, available on all major streaming platforms and YouTube.
“We’re missing targeted programming for the backbone of the American economy—farmers! There isn’t anything out there focused on showcasing all the different people who not only have a passion for agriculture and land ownership but take an active role in it. –Pat Spinosa, Like a Farmer host
During its pilot season, Like A Farmer will host big names, who you might know for their contributions to country music, pop culture, or sports. But what most viewers might not know about is each guest’s passion for agriculture.
Since his roots growing up on a cattle and citrus farm, series host, Pat Spinosa, has had a particular passion for shining a light on the American farmer. He hopes that by showcasing household names who share his passion for rural America, he can help celebrate the American farmer and educate the American people about the importance of the heartland of our nation.
In the premiere episode, Josh Allen equates training for the Bills opening season with his hard-earned grit growing up on his family farm.
“The stuff I’m doing is hard—working out, keeping your body in shape…but it’s not harder than moving an irrigation pipe in 115 degrees.”
Tune into Like a Farmer with Josh Allen to hear about:
Allen’s love for the Bills Mafia community
Where to get Allen’s favorite wings in Buffalo
Allen’s surprising hidden talent
The new crop Allen is growing on the farm that he calls a “superfood”
The show is sponsored by AgAmerica, a financial institution for rural America focused on supporting farmers, ranchers, and landowners throughout all stages of their business. In addition to Like a Farmer, Spinosa has championed initiatives within the company such as AgAmerica Giving, focused on educating the next generation of farmers, and the AgAmbassador Program, which partners with influencers from different industries to build a network of support for farmers.
USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service is reminding producers that time is running out to respond to the 2022 Census of Agriculture. The ag census allows producers to help shape decisions that will impact their operations, communities, and the future of the industry for the next several years. The ag census data are used by agribusinesses, educators, researchers, federal and local government, and many others when making decisions about farm programs, loans, insurance, rural development, disaster assistance, and more.
If a census recipient produced and sold $1,000 or more of agricultural product in 2022, or normally would have produced and sold that much, they meet USDA’s definition of a farm. However, landowners who lease land to producers, those solely involved in conservation programs, and even those who may not have farmed in 2022 are still required to respond.
Producers can respond online at agcounts.usda.gov or return the form by mail.
Aerial application can help growers cover more acres faster.
Modern precision equipment guides aerial applications.
Aerial application reduces opportunities for soil compaction.
What goes up, must come down.
Just how aerial fungicide applications come down is essential for efficacy and safety. To help make aerial application viable for growers struggling to make timely fungicide applications, the National Agricultural Aviators Association holds fly-in clinics across the country.
Technology advances continuously improve the quality and reliability of aerial application. Through fly-in clinics, pilots learn how to use that technology.
Garrett Lindell, pilot and executive director of the Illinois Agricultural Aviation Association, also touts the value of calibration events, which he says are held in Illinois twice each year.
Demand for services like Lindell’s has grown with the use of in-season fungicides to prevent and control diseases and improve plant health in corn, soybeans, small grains and other crops. He estimates that in-season fungicide treatment makes up about 85% of his business.
Timely Treatment
The agronomic window for fungicide applications depends on crop maturity, disease pressure and weather conditions. Rain not only can delay application timing, it also can speed up both crop and disease development.
“There’s a tight window to apply these products, and we can apply them substantially quicker,” Lindell says. “When it rains, airplanes can get back to work as soon as the weather passes.”
Aerial application often is the better option following rain because running equipment through wet soils causes compaction, and that can lead to long-lasting adverse crop impacts, especially in heavy clay soils, says Blake Miller, agronomic service representative for Syngenta in central Illinois. Plus, growers sometimes struggle to navigate equipment through wet soil and end up rolling over crop rows, reducing yield.
Applied Technology
Some farmers are uncomfortable with aerial application, which happens at high speeds over their fields.
From those farmers, Miller says, “common questions include ‘Will applications be accurate?’ and ‘Will the right field be sprayed?’”
Syngenta sponsors calibration events like Operation S.A.F.E. to address accuracy. Miller believes the calibration process ensures growers get the best application possible, especially when coupled with the technology currently available in fungicides.
SDHI fungicides provide residual action that prevent disease and allow most fields to be treated just once, which Miller says is ideal for both farmers and aerial applicators.
Aerial Calibration
Calibration means the right spray volume leaves the aircraft for every acre covered, according to Bretthauer.
Pilots use speed, airflow, nozzle type and more to push fungicides into the crop canopy, while mitigating drift. For each calibration series, a pilot makes three passes over an established flight line, spraying water containing fluorescent dye. Each series of passes targets a specific spray volume and droplet size goal, Bretthauer says.
An Operation S.A.F.E. fly-in clinic addresses three main dynamics:
Spray pattern uniformity Like ground application, aerial application must deposit the same amount of product everywhere. Booms and nozzles are mounted to account for how propellers, wings and helicopter rotors push air around the aircraft and direct liquid flow from each nozzle.
Swath width Aircraft wings create a wake of air that pushes spray down and away, allowing a boom to effectively cover an area wider than its length. Airplanes spray trapezoidal patterns, so each pass partially overlaps to ensure even coverage across the target field. Calibration determines the exact swath width and overlap needed for consistency.
Droplet size Aircraft speed is the dominant factor in determining spray droplet size because the high-speed air around the plane shears the liquid as it leaves nozzles. Droplet size affects plant coverage, so minimizing fine droplets limits drift.
Confidence in Coverage
Matt Gill, University of Illinois Extension specialist in application technology, often works calibration events. He helped develop the current software used to analyze data collected from each spray pass.
“This iteration of the software uses new technology to analyze spray patterns,” Gill says. “A digital spectrometer measures the dye captured on the cotton string the planes fly over. It provides a significantly more detailed picture of spray patterns than the previous technology.”
Cotton string and cast-coated paper cards, which are color-sensitive, measure spray deposition during calibration. Using a high-resolution scanner, Gill scans the cast-coated paper cards. The software isolates and measures each droplet stain from the spray, then back-calculates the droplet size that created it. After each stain is measured, the overall droplet spectrum is determined.
During the clinics, pilots receive a report with a pictograph showing their spray pattern and swath width, as well as their droplet size. Using this data, each pilot consults with the Operation S.A.F.E. analyst, addressing areas of concern and other factors to improve application. If warranted, additional calibration passes are made that same day until pilots achieve the desired spray pattern and droplet size.
As a pilot, Lindell uses this information to improve accuracy and show proof of the results.
“I can put my calibration paperwork in front of potential customers to reassure them that we’re doing the best job possible,” he says. “They can see the value of aerial application.”
John Deere introduces the new 4075R Compact Utility Tractor for MY24.
Building on machine durability and versatility, select 4R models and 4M heavy-duty models have been enhanced with heavy-duty front axles and technology-ready capabilities.
New for MY24, John Deere adds LED light packages to the 3R, heavy-duty 4M and 4R models.
Offering premium power and versatility to its customers, John Deere debuts its 2024 model-year upgrades on its lineup of 3R- and 4-Series compact utility tractors. In addition, John Deere unveils its latest 4-Series model, the 4075R Compact Utility Tractor, equipped to tackle jobs for customers in the commercial snow removal and large-property owner markets. Highlighting increased reliability and technology readiness, the updated 4R-, 4M- and 3R-Series machines feature a variety of improvements to help elevate tractor performance and operator experience, especially in heavy-duty work applications.
A growing number of property owners of every type are looking for ways to manage their equipment and the work it does. Because of this, John Deere has created John Deere Property Center, a mobile-friendly web-based tool that allows you to plan and track maintenance for your equipment, buy parts, and learn how to do key jobs around your yard or acreage.
Property Center connects you with your equipment information anytime, from anywhere. This one-stop equipment management tool provides easy access to operator manuals, warranties, product support and a library of how-to videos to help you manage your weekend projects – all customized to your specific equipment. Property Center can also help you track and plan routine maintenance to ensure your equipment operates at peak performance.
John Deere Property Center is a mobile-friendly web-based tool. Photo courtesy John Deere
“As a homeowner or simply an outdoor enthusiast responsible for maintaining a property, understanding how equipment operates and how it best does a job is critical to a good experience. Property Center provides a simplified way to connect to your equipment, your dealer and your job,” said Kaylene Ballesteros, product marketing manager for John Deere. “You can use Property Center to look up and order specific parts with confidence, manage your John Deere Financial accounts, and even watch how-to videos and review tips for common equipment jobs like maintaining your gravel driveway or building a fence.”
If your John Deere equipment is equipped with JDLink connectivity, additional features like tank levels and engine hours can be viewed on the Property Center website.
Property Center is free to use. You can sign up today at PropertyCenter.Deere.com. To learn more visit Deere.com or contact your local John Deere dealer.
Stokes Seeds has announced the hiring of Anna Young as Territory Manager for North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Kentucky.
In this position, Anna will be responsible for seed and service to growers in the region, providing commercial vegetable seed recommendations. In representing Stokes Seeds’ comprehensive product line, she will collaborate with growers to match seed options to their production and profit goals.
“Anna’s background, work experience, and passion for serving commercial vegetable producers will make her an asset to growers in the region”, stated Scott Rush, Southeast Sales Manager for Stokes Seeds.
A native of North Carolina, Anna earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriscience from North Carolina State University. She was a public relations representative for the North Carolina Watermelon Growers Association and former North Carolina Watermelon Queen.
Anna brings a strong agricultural background to the Stokes Seeds team with experience in crop production and retail sales. She resides in the Alexander, NC area.
Stokes Seeds is a leading distributor of commercial vegetable seed in the United States and Canada, with operations in Buffalo, NY, Vineland, NJ, Holland, MI, Moultrie, GA, LaBelle, FL and Thorold, Ontario. With twenty-five experienced territory managers, exciting new varieties from world-class vendors and exceptional customer service, Stokes Seeds continues to be the seed supplier of choice for growers across North America.
For more information, contact Stokes Seeds at 800.263.7233 or www.StokeSeeds.com.
Vegetable growers in Michigan have long sought a more rapid and efficient method to screen for the damaging plant disease, aster yellows. Primarily affecting carrots and celery in Michigan, aster yellows causes plants to have stunted or deformed growth, distorted or discolored foliage and a bitter taste, rendering infected plants unmarketable.
Nearly a decade ago, in stepped Michigan State University associate professor and vegetable entomologist Zsofia Szendrei to address disease response. Szendrei’s research, teaching and outreach center around the ecology and management of arthropods that occur in vegetable production. One such arthropod, the aster leafhopper, carries the pathogen causing aster yellows.
Szendrei has employed a laboratory procedure using a molecular biology technology called polymerase chain reaction – which amplifies samples of genetic code, allowing researchers to analyze it more clearly. It tests leafhopper specimens to estimate the percentage of aster yellows infected insects in any given field. Funding for Szendrei’s research came from MSU Project GREEEN, MSU AgBioResearch, the Michigan Vegetable Council and the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD).
“The original protocols for aster yellows screening sometimes took days to get results. Growers can’t afford to spend that much time waiting to know if they need to spray, so we had to come up with a better solution for them,” Szendrei said.
Szendrei’s lab partnered with the Michigan Celery Promotion Cooperative, Michigan Carrot Committee, and MSU Extension to build a diagnostic network for the screening of aster leafhopper infestations. Growers, field managers, scouts, or MSU Extension specialists conduct periodic sweeps of vegetable crops around the state to collect leafhopper specimens that are then brought to the lab. In as little as 24 hours, Szendrei can send a group-text to the growers with the results.
“The growers have really embraced this program,” Szendrei said. “Having this technology at their service and being able to receive accurate data in real-time has made a big difference in their fields.”
Michigan’s carrot and celery growers are integral to the state’s agricultural economy, which prides itself on its variety of commodities as the second most agriculturally diverse state in the U.S. Michigan’s carrot growers produce approximately 150 million pounds of carrots, worth $15 million per year. The celery industry generates approximately $19 million annually from 110 million pounds grown. The state ranks fourth nationally for carrot production and second nationally for celery.
Deere & Company has released the names of eight companies chosen for its 2023 Startup Collaborator program. The Startup Collaborator was launched in 2019 and helps John Deere enhance precision technology in its agriculture and construction equipment.
“This year’s group shows the importance of connecting with the startup community across a broad range of applications and technologies,” said Julian Sanchez, director of emerging technology at John Deere. These connections help John Deere better understand opportunities to advance precision technology in agriculture and construction.”
The eight companies participating in the 2023 Startup Collaborator include:
Albedo, a startup company developing low-flying satellites that will collect visible and thermal imagery at ultra-high resolution.
ANELLO Photonics, a company that is disrupting the navigation industry with their Silicon Photonics Optical Gyroscope, a low-noise and low-drift optical gyroscope smart sensor for autonomous applications.
GrAI Matter Labs is in the business of Life-Ready AI – artificial intelligence that feels alive, delivering brain-inspired chips that behave like humans do and makes devices assisting humans act, and react, in real time.
Impossible Sensing, an aerospace company developing and applying space technology to the agriculture industry to help the world become carbon neutral.
IntelliCulture, a company providing farm equipment management software that helps drive sustainable farming practices through actionable insights, efficiency improvements and risk mitigation.
Precision AI, a startup that’s creating the world’s first artificial intelligence-powered agricultural drones for plant-level herbicide applications at broad-acre scale.
RodRadar, a company transforming excavation. Its Live Dig Radar™ technology provides real-time, on-site, automatic alerts to prevent damage to underground utility infrastructure during excavation.
Vega is the window that certifies agribusiness sustainability to the world. Supporting sustainable production, Vega impacts the entire agri-food chain through traceability, risk analysis and monitoring of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) practices.
“The Startup Collaborator is an exciting way for big ideas to grow into something larger,” said Michele Kaiser, business development manager for the John Deere Intelligent Solutions Group. “As John Deere continues searching for new and interesting ideas, we can add value to our customers – even if we’re not sure exactly how that might look. We are trying to help farmers solve big challenges in efficient ways. To do this, we need access to a lot of great ideas, so it’s exciting to welcome these companies into the 2023 Startup Collaborator cohort and to see what we can learn from each other by working together.”
The Startup Collaborator, now in its fifth year and includes notable alumni such as Bear Flag Robotics, and Hello Tractor. In 2021, Bear Flag Robotics was acquired by John Deere to support the company’s autonomous tractor solutions. In 2022, John Deere also invested in Hello Tractor, a company that connects tractor owners with smallholder farmers through a farm-equipment sharing app.### Deere & Company (www.JohnDeere.com) is a global leader in the delivery of agricultural, turf, construction, and forestry equipment. We help our customers push the boundaries of what’s possible in ways that are more productive and sustainable to help life leap forward. Our technology-enabled products including John Deere Autonomous 8R Tractor, See & Spray™, and E-Power Backhoe are just some of the ways we help meet the world’s increasing need for food, shelter, and infrastructure. Deere & Company also provides financial services through John Deere Financial.
Redox Bio-Nutrients has incorporated a fleet of ChrysaLabs probes in its soil testing. ChrysaLabs has developed a portable AI-based soil health probe that measures 37 soil nutrients and characteristics in real time. The company describes the probes as each containing their own laboratory. Combining a patented spectroscopy interface and the latest AI possibilities, the optical technology measures the soil properties at 360 degrees, with a large contact surface, at any depth, and without preparation. Soil is analyzed in less than a minute, according to the company, saving producers and agronomists time waiting for traditional lab analysis.
The crew at Klaustermeyer Farms tops a row of slicer carrots.
When it comes to growing carrots for the frozen process market, Jim Klaustermeyer Jr. says it’s a lot like baseball.
“The crop is all grown for contract; there’s no open market,” Klaustermeyer says. “I use the analogy of hitting singles and doubles. There are no homeruns. But you are in the game all the time.”
Klaustermeyer has been in the game since 1989, when he returned from college to farm with his dad in Basin City, Washington. Jim Klaustermeyer Sr., who remains involved in the day-to-day operation of the farm, had been a crop science professor at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, before moving to the Columbia Basin in the late 1970s to farm with other growers and, ultimately, start Klaustermeyer Farms in 1986.
“I like to say that he came up to Washington to practice what he preached,” Jim Klaustermeyer Jr. says of his dad.
When the younger Klaustermeyer joined his dad in the operation, they were farming 300 to 500 acres. Today, they grow 2,000 acres of carrots for processing, along with a couple hundred acres of pearl onions and 500 to 700 acres of rotation crops including wheat, beans and hay. Klaustermeyer attributes much of the farm’s steady growth in the 1990s to its implementation of a method of crowning carrots in the planting bed.
Topped and crowned carrots are ready for harvest. Klaustermeyer Farms’ processing contract calls for 90 percent of the carrots to be crowned.
Crowning the Carrots
After harvesting the first several carrot crops with a top lifter, Klaustermeyer Farms transitioned to planting carrots in wider beds and share-lifting the crop. When the processor requested that the farm begin crowning the carrots in the early to mid ‘90s, the Klaustermeyers modified their harvest process. After topping the carrots, the growers began using a homebuilt implement to crown the carrots before share-lifting the crop. The technology had been adopted in Europe and commercial crowners were being built, Klaustermeyer says. Since then, the practice has become common in processing carrots.
“When we developed the crowning technique, it was a big labor savings for the processors. They were taking the crowns off the carrots manually, and in order to save them some labor and add value to our product, we developed this crowning technique,” Klaustermeyer recounts. “I remember pretty vividly the first year that we did that, the comment back from the processor was ‘We were able to remove up to 30 people from the line.’ It was a cost savings for them and a value-added step for us.”
Klaustermeyer’s contract calls for 90 percent of the carrots to be crowned. Therefore, depending on how they’re growing in the bed, some will be topped more aggressively than others. Careful management is needed to remove the minimal amount of the carrot and still meet the contract requirements. Even under ideal conditions, crowning reduces yield by about 12 percent.
On the flipside, crowning the carrots in the beds means that top attachment is not nearly as critical, Klaustermeyer says. This allows the grower to fight diseases with chemicals that could weaken top attachment later in the season and allows him to select varieties for attributes other than top attachment, prioritizing durability to withstand the more aggressive harvest process, followed by color and taste. He also seeks out cultivars that stay flush with the soil surface rather than protruding out of the bed, in an attempt to minimize the amount of carrot lost during crowning.
A harvester digs carrots at Klaustermeyer Farms.
Managing the Crop
Through the years, Klaustermeyer has seen the number of carrot growers in the region decrease and each grower’s acreage increase as consolidation reshaped the industry.
“We were at the right place at the right time to grow with it, and now we’re able to keep up with a pretty robust harvest demand,” the grower says.
Klaustermeyer Farms grows 1,100 acres of slicer-type carrots, 400 acres of dicers, 200 acres of cut-and-peel carrots, 250 acres of yellow carrots and 50 acres of “natural baby carrots.” The farm takes advantage of the Columbia Basin’s extended growing season. Planting starts mid-March and continues through the first week of June, while harvest extends from the third week of July through Thanksgiving. The long planting window keeps carrots – especially slicers – at the proper maturity, but also adds complexity to managing the crop.
“We’re planting so long that we’re managing a different size crop throughout the season. By that, I mean in August, I still have carrots that are very small and I have carrots that are ready to harvest,” the grower explains. “You can’t just say ‘It’s August 15, so I do this.’ Until early fall, the carrots are at so many different levels of maturity that you have to be on your toes to keep up with the different stages of growth the carrots are in.”
With more than 30 years of experience, Klaustermeyer has learned to manage the various challenges in growing carrots, from pests to pathogens. Carrots are grown on a four-year rotation, and the grower considers the crop produced in the field the previous season, preferring to follow wheat, onions, timothy hay or beans.
With a diverse range of soil types in the Columbia Basin, Klaustermeyer also chooses to plant carrots in sandy or sandy loam soil. This makes for better harvest conditions and fewer dirt clods in the load compared to farming in heavier soil. At the same time, however, sandy fields are more vulnerable to wind erosion. After a year in which a 40-hour windstorm took out 500 acres of carrots, Klaustermeyer adopted a cover crop system, now sowing wheat between rows of carrots. The wheat, emerging more quickly than early-season carrots, provides erosion protection before being killed with a selective herbicide when carrots reach the two- to three-leaf stage.
Jim Klaustermeyer Jr. peels a carrot for an in-field taste test.
Seeing the Progress
Looking ahead, Klaustermeyer sees the importance of efficiency on the farm. Although the industry is already fairly automated, higher production costs and new labor laws in Washington state will likely lead to more mechanization. The grower also expects new carrot cultivars to be developed and hopes the new releases might include varieties that grow more evenly across the bed in order to increase crowning uniformity.
For now, Klaustermeyer appreciates the opportunity to farm with his dad and values the contributions of his crew, including employees who have been on the farm for 20 to 25 years.
“I really enjoy working in the dirt and being able to measure my progress daily. I have a great crew that helps me accomplish this every day,” he says.
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