9
> BERLIN A Somerset County but since merchandising bruigs m
father and son, who for years have 2(1 percent of our income, it’s the
been operating one of the most pedigree that counts.”
efficient dairy operations in the The Master Farmers have that
state, were named Master Far- pedigree reputation. Their farm
mere for 1981. name, Lansdown, can be found in
Paul and David Countryman of the stud books. They emphasize
R 1 Berlin, will receive the award that there isn't an animal in the
January 12 at a special luncheon in' bam they wouldn’t sell. Of course,
Harrisburg. Sponsors of the award some are more valuable and would
are the Pennsylvania Farmer be priced accordingly,
magazine, Harrisburg, and Penn Somerset County, with its high
State's Cooperative Extension elevation, has short growing
Service. seasons, but they try to grow all of
The award winners, who milk 87 their own roughages. They farm
cows, also merchandise purebred 270 acres, 170 of these are leased,
cows which adds about 20 percent Crops include 45 acres of alfalfa, 40
to their farm income. The herd - of clover, 35 of mixed grass hay, 90
average of 17,167 pounds can be of ear corn, 35 of silage com, and 28
.. attributed to cow longevity which acres of oats
makes dairying even more
profitable.
w 'Our oldest cow is 15. She has a
lifetime production of 310,000
pounds of milk,” Paul the senior
partner in the operation, points
put. "We have another cow that
has produced over 200,000 pounds
of milk, but she’s just 11.”
Another 23 cows have a lifetime
production of more than 100,000
pounds of milk per cow.
‘‘We got into purebred breeding
because of David’s 4-H work,”
Paul adds. “Although we keep an
eye on cow sales, a high priority is
given to producing our own herd
replacements. We’re not sold on
.animals with attractive pedigrees
US DA bars produce firms
3) WASHINGTON, D.C. Two pay a reparation award of |2,630,
produce firms, one from New involving the?shipment of-carrots
Jersey and the other from New from Massachusetts betweenjune
York, have been barred from and September, 1980.
operating in the produce industry '
by the USDA after failure to pay The New York firm, Union Food
Perishable' Agricultural Com- Service, failed to pay a reparation
modifies Act reparation awards. award of $73,735 involving produce
The New Jersey firm, L&M shipped during July and August,
Schneider, Inc., Fairfield, failed to 1979.
PKUBOTR
The No "I" Mid Size Tractor
I. ..(j
iii Ip
'M
KELLER BROS. TRACTOR CO.
Now at Two Locations
730 South Broad St., Lititz, Pa. 17543 R. 7 Lebanon, Pa. 17042
on Route 5016 mile North of Lancaster Rt. 4191 mile West of Schaefferstown
Lancaster County Lebanon County
■ ; .f 717-626-2121 ' 717-949-6501
Somerset Co. father, son team
They keep fields in hay for about
three years, then produce com on
this land for three-years. This is
followed by small grain for a year.
“The grain is mainly for weed
control,” David explains. "If we
grow com for more than three
years, production starts to fall
off.”
Each * mommg Marie, Paul’s
wife, and Linda, David’s wife, take
care of milking chores while the
two Master Fanners feed high
moisture com and haylage con
centrate. At the end of the milking,
they give the cows com silage.
While all animals get about the
same roughage, the other
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Master Farmers stress lon t
win farming award
WE'RE LOOKING FOR WORK - ALL OVER THE WORLD
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ingredients drop according to
production. For example, a cow
producing 80 pounds of milk each
day receives 38 pounds of corn and
10 pounds of concentrate, while one
producing <5O pounds per <l<iy gets
2b pounds of corn ana six pounds of
concentrate.
Bull calves are culled, but
usually 4 to 6 are raised and sold as
young breeding bulls to neighbors
wiio raise them for farm use.
“The cows are put on pasture at
night during the summer. Our barn
is more comfortable during the
day because we control the tem
perature. Night pasture allows the
cows a chance to stretch them
selves and flies don’t bother
them,” Paul says.
The elder Master Farmer and
his wife tried a number of different
ways to make a living at farming
during the early years. They first
grew sweet corn to make the
payment on their 99 acres. They
had 12 milk cows at that time.
Over the intervening years, Paul
and lus wife fed hogs and cattle for
beef. They also ran a sugar bush on
the hillsides.
“We put up 150 gallons a year,
but I won't'go back to producing
sugar maple. Those folks earn
every penny of the $2O a gallon they
get for their product,” he em
phasizes.
In 1970, David joined the
operation as a partner. The part
nership rents the farm from the
family corporation. The farm has
been in the family for 150 years,
and with an estate plan now being
drawn up, they hope the family will
farm the land for many more
years.
“David came' into the part
nership at the'' right time,’’ Paul
relates. “I’ve bad a hip
replacement operation and 1
wouldn’t be in the dairy business
ALL DIESEL ENGINES
all 2 W/0 4 4W/0
ALL 3 PT. HITCH
ALL LIVE HYD.
ALL WINNERS
r is dairyii
today if we didn’t have the family
to take over.”
Like other Master Farmers, they
are involved in numerous
agricultural and community
organizations.
Paul has been a director of the
Pennsylvania Holstein
Association, Farmers Home
Administration, Somerset County
Extension Association, and Berlin
Brothersvalley Community Fair
Association. He has been active in
the Holy Trinity Evangelical
Lutheran Church and is a member
of the lOOF and Grange.
Somerset County's Paul, right, and David Countryman
attribute their dairy herd's 17,167 pound rolling average to
cow longevity which “makes dairying more profitable." The
father and son partnership earned the 1981 Master Farmer
awards.
SEE THEM AT THE FARM SHOW & KELLER BROS.
H3KUBOTR
We’re looking for work.
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 9,1982—E5
key
He also was an officer of the
County Republican Committee and
Somerset County Conservation
District. Paul was honored as
Father of the Year by the Somerset
County Pomona Grange, and he
won Premier Breeder Awards in
1974-75 at the Somerset County
Holstein Show.
David, like his father, is active in
breed, farm, and cooperative
organizations as well as in his
church. He was Outstanding
Young Fanner in 1979 and shared
Premier Breeder Awards with his
father.