B2—Lancaster Faming, Saturday, march 19,1983
Ayrshire herd proves dreams do eome true
By Sally Bair
Staff Correspondent
Am Voting believes in dreaming
' dreams and then working hard to
make them come true. In fact, she
says candidly, “Dream what you
want. There are not enough
dreams today.”
Her dream began as a youngster
and is realized today in the herd of
outstanding Ayrshire cattle she
has built by sheer hard work.
“From the time I was ten years old
I wanted to be a farmer,” she
recalls. “My father had Ayrshires
and I kept aU his records. I was the
only one in the family that liked
cows.”
From a meager beginning
following graduation from high
school “scared to death,” Ann now
owns, with her husband J. Nelson,
Timberlawn Farm in Chester
County, well known for its Ayr
shire breeding stock.
She points out, “I started raising
heifers when I was about 12, and I
paid for every one. I never took
any money from my family.” She
got the money for that important
first heifer by raising chickens and
saving the egg money.
She laughs as she recalls that she
was not allowed to have a calf as a
4-H project despite the fact that
she took clothing and cooking
projects. “My mother wanted me
to be anything but a fanner,” she
says.
Characteristically that did not
deter Ann. After graduation she
worked for her father for “thirds”
one year, then struck out on her
own, renting a bam and pasture
near Chadds Ford, and borrowing
money to purchase 10 heifers.
From there she has increased her
herd size to 94 milkers and about
120 heifers.
When she married Nelson “in
1946 or 47” it as a good partnership
because with his fondness for crops
and hers for cows, all the work on
the farm got done. Of course, there
is plenty of sharing, and Ann says
with pride that she bales all the
hay. Their five children, four girls
and a boy, all helped on the farm as
they grew up. Son Charles is now
farming with the Youngs and it is
his wife Debbie who helps Ann with
the milking chores. All the girls
took an interest, Ann says, and one
Vfctnesiead
tMoips
is now on an Ayrshire farm in
lowa.
She says wistfully, “A farm
needs everybody. It takes
everybody to make it work.”
Ann today is a very independent
person, and was liberated before
her time. After attending Catholic
School in-ninth grade, her family
moved and was near Unionville
schools which had ag classes. Of
course, Ann wanted very much to
be in those classes, but in 1940 that
was unheard of. “The ag teacher
went to the school board 14 times
before they let me in. I loved every
minute of it and had two wonderful
teachers. Bob Struble, and John
Gorman.”
How did the boys react to a girl
in their classes? “They respected
me and I respected them," Ann
replies. “I got along with the
boys.”
Her enthuaiasn for Ayrshires
stems from her father’s herd, and
she says he established it in
response to the small dairy to
which he shipped which wanted
“baby milk.” With its very small
fat globules, Ayrshire milk is very
easily digested.
One primary reason Ann likes
Ayrshires is simply their robust
health. She says, “Ayrshires are
very hardy, and they are very good
at using roughage. Calves are very
easy to raise. They don’t have big
calfs like Holsteins, and we don’t
lose them at birth."
The one disadvantage which
people associate with Ayrshires,
Ann says, is nervousness, but adds,
“I think nervousness is past. We
have no tronble with that.”
A member of the National
Ayrshire Breeders Association
since 1942, Ann has been active in
:cs activities. She is currently a
director and is up for re-election at
their April national meeting, and
she served a tern in 1971-72. She is
also a director for the Penn
sylvania Ayrshire Association and
is active with the Southeastern
Pennsylvania group.
She says, “I enjoy the Ayrshire
Fraternity. We always have lots of
guests dropping in and I enjoy that
part. We have a common bond.”
Ann explains that the first
Ayrshire cattle came to this
country when shipowners carried
Ann Young is proud of the registered Ayrshire cattle at Timberiawn Farm which
owns with husband J. Nelson. “AH I ever lived for a was a good herd of Ayrshires,”
states, recalling that she wanted to be a farmer from the time she was 10 years old.
purchased her first heifer at age 12.
them along to provide fresh milk
for the arduous Atlantic crossing.
The origin of die breed is County
Ayr in Scotland, where, she says,
“Every farm has them.”
The highest concentration of
Ayrshire cattie is in northern
England and she says 88 percent of
the cattle in Finland are Ayrshires.
They can also be found in countries
like Russia and Czechoslovakia.
The European Ayrshires
resemble the American strain
except that in Scotland, “They
have a shorter leg. Ours are taller,
but I think that’s partly en
vironment. Those cattle live on
pasture and hay and receive no
grain,” Ann states.
Optimistic about the breed’s
future, Ann says, “The numbers
are up. A lot of young folks are
interested in Ayrshires. They
choose Ayrshires over Holsteins
because the Holstein association is
so big. They like to get in where
they feel a part of it.”
And, of course if protein testing
becomes a reality, as Aim feels it
will, Ayrshires will have a definite
advantage. “They give us good
protein, and you can sell protein;
you can’t sell fat.”
In Pennsylvania, Ayrshire
breeders with cattle to sell are
overstocked, but in some parts of
the country it is difficult to find
large numbers of Ayrshires for
sale. Ann says she tries to consign
animals to every sale.
A firm believer in OHIA and
DHIR, Ann notes, “If you want to
know what you’re doing, you use
those records.”
Her breeding program is largely
AI, with her husband doing the
breeding. She says, “I buy semen
wherever I can, from Canada and
everywhere. What I like about AI
is that you plan things. It gives you
a choice. Before AI you looked and
hoped, but that’s all. You used one
bull it was a game of chance. That
has ruined more dairymen than
anything else.”
The Lippitt Roger bull which she
purchased in 1968 had a big in
fluence on the Timberlawn herd.
Ann says, “He came from Rhode
Island with purely Scottish
breeding. He was the first bull who
really helped with type, production
and disposition;" He gave us size
and was a big influence. I used his
sons.”
Ann has a lot of pride in families
she has bred and appreciates it
when an outsider recognizes the
strong influence on her herd.
One cow of whom they are
particularly proud is Timberlawn
Hi White Rose 11, from the Rose
Relaxation for Ann means looking through records or
reading material pertaining to Ayrshire cattle. Currently a
director for the National Ayrshire Breeders Association, Ann
is up for re-election at the Association's annual meeting in
April. “I enjoy the Ayrshire fraternity. We have a common
bond, "she says.
family. She has a record of 18,234
milk, 3.8 test and7o2fat.
About the future of her herd, Ann
says. “I hope I can always be
improving. I’m always looking for
better sires. If I can hold onto what
we have, I’ll be happy. Things
nicked just right, and I hope to hold
it. If you don’t breed just right, you
can lose it.”
Ann is candid about the rough
days she lived through establishing
her herd and farm, and suggests
that one problem, with young
people entering farming today is
the heavy debt load they are en
couraged to take on. “You didn’t
but anything if you couldn’t pay for
it when I was going into business,’’
she says. She feels credit in
stitutions and the extension ser
vices must share the blame for
encouraging heavy debt
The first farm she purchased
was her grandfather’s farm near
West Chester, but they were forced
to move there when “houses
moved in” and all the land they
rented became unavailable. From
there they moved to London Grove,,
about five miles from their present
farm which is Just off Route 1 in
Chester County. “It took us about a
year to move here," Ann says witfi
a laugh.
The Young’s farm is an historic
one, having been purchased in 1868
as the Eastern Experimental
Farm, a fore runner of Penn State.
The farm had nurseries,
greenhouses, ice ponds and ice
houses, pig pens, chickens and a
variety of other farm-relative
enterprises. A grove of trees
remains which has “every kind of
tree you can name,” Ann says,
including many which were
grafted and have two kinds on one
trunk. There’s a ginkgo tree on the
farm that’s over 100 years old.
Ann is also in possession of the
original William Penn Deed for
thousands of acres of land in the
area, including their present farm.
It dates from 1604. The newest part
of the farm home was built in 1840.
So far, the farm remains
isolated, despite its nearness to
Route 1, but Ann notes, “The
houses are starting to close in oh
us. They are within sight of tbQ
barn.” When the bypass went
through it reduced their acreage
from 220 to 160, and they rent
additional land for a total of about
(Turn to Page B 4)
a
she
Ann
She