*"!** «*-*»■ » ril 7 ' 1984 S. &A. Kreider & Sons Inc.
Conservation practices control soil erosion, water
BY LAURA ENGLAND
QUARRYVILLE - Shortly after
planting season and during the hot
summer months, farmers look
forward to cool showers to quench
the thirst of growing crops. Water
is indispensable on a farm, and for
the most part, the more rain the
better. However, too much of a
good thing all of a sudden can be a
hindrance as well as a help.
This was part of a problem a
southern Lancaster County farm
family was experiencing. Too
much rain at one time, along with
melting snows in the spring,
created flooding problems and soil
losses. The hilly farmland just
wasn’t equipped to direct the
excess water away from buildings
or from carrying away precious
soil.
To correct the problem, Sam and
Allen Kreider, R 1 Quarryville,
sought the help of the Lancaster
County Conservation District. The
brothers signed a request for
conservation assistance for their
249 acres of farmland.
“We were interested in getting
the water stopped,” Sam said. “We
wanted to stop the erosion down
across the fields.”
That request was signed in
March 1950. Since then, Sam and
Allen have seen many changes in
their dairy farm operation and
have realized the benefits of
carefully planned conservation
practices.
One significant change in the
Kreider operation was the creation
of a corporation. Sam’s son Herb
and Allen’s son Scott joined the
farm business, which is now S. & A.
Kreider & Sons Inc. The operation
includes 435 acres, with an ad
ditional 115 rented acres, and a 200-
cow Holstein herd.
With most of the farmland
resting on hilly terrain, the
Kreiders have implemented
several conservation measures
designed to cut down flooding and
soil erosion. One of the first
projects completed by the con
servation district was a terrace
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The terrace on the right is one of three in this field that
leads to a roadside waterway.
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Scott Kreider, left, and his children Amy, 2, Laurie, 4, and Nathan, 5, demonstrate the
sloping effect of this terrace and waterway complete with a pipe outlet.
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Problems with flooding waters and soil erosion are under
control on the S. & A. Kreider & Sons Farm, R 1 Quarryville. In
1950, the family signed a request with the Lancaster County
built around Sam’s house and farm
buildings to control water.
The problem with flooding water
from the fields was so bad at times,
Herb said, that “heavy rains would
create a creek which ran down
through the yard.”
Terraces and waterways have
been the major conservation
measures on the Kreider farm. As
Scott explained, the waterways are
established before the terrace is
actually built. Kentucky 31 Tall
Fescue Redtop is used for the sod
waterway, he said, and the terrace
is built the following season.
The earlier terraces built on the
farm were simple structures
complete with waterways. The
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standards today have changed,
Scott said, and pipe outlet
waterways are constructed.
Pipe outlet sizes on the Kreider
farm range from four to 12 inches
in diameter, with the largest
terrace equipped with the 12-inch
pipe. Water from the fields is
directed through the pipes to
Jackson Run Creek, a branch of
the Conowingo Creek, Scott ex
plained.
“The pipe outlets work real
well,” Scott said. “We don’t lose
ground in the waterway because
the pipes act like a reservoir. The
water runs off slow.”
Following the terraces and
waterways, the Kreiders placed all
their farmland in contour strips.
The land is on a hay to corn crop
rotation with small grains also
planted. Conventional and
minimal tillage is used.
The conservation practices on
the Kreider farm, according to
conservation district records,
include 4,300 feet of sod waterway,
12,375 feet of terracing, 2,021 feet of
tile drain in conjuntion with the
pipe outlet terraces and 162 acres
of contour strips. An earthen ag
waste pit with a concrete floor has
also been installed.
The manure pit operates as a
liquid manure system, Scott said
It is cleaned every four and a half
months, and the manure is hauled
to the fields. The manure is worked
into the ground and provides good
fertilization, Scott added.
Overall, S. & A. Kreider & Sons
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Conservation District to construct waterways and terraces
and implement other conservation practices.
are pleased with their con
servation measures. “I think the
practices have worked out real
well,” Allen said. “We don’t have a
lot of erosion.”
The practices have worked out
well, and the Kreiders plan to
continue their association with the
Lancaster County Conservation
District. Plans for 1984 include
3,000 more feet of sod waterway
and 1,600 feet of tile with basin.
Because of their cooperation
with the conservation district, the
Kreiders were honored Thursday
night as the 1983 Outstanding
Conservation Cooperator winner.
Their selection was unanimous,
according to Bob Gregory of the
conservation district, and was
based on their extensive con
servation activities and the
correctness of these measures
Gregory said that the con
servation methods on the Kreider
farm are “neat and clean, and
everything is done correctly ” No
signs of erosion are evident, he
added
Two of the outstanding con
servation features on the farm,
firpaorv «aiH are the original
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Scott .eider points out one of the pipe outlets used to
direct excess water off the fields.
terrace built in 1950 and still
functioning and a roadside
waterway. The waterway prevents
roadbank erosion, he said.
Although the conservation
practices have been important to
the Kreiders, the heart of their
operation is their 200-cow dairy
operation. The Kreiders milk their
cows in a 13-stall rotary parlor
which they used for the first time
on Valentine’s Day 1975.
The cows are divided into three
milking groups and are fed a
complete ration at a bunk feeder.
Feeding is done four times daily.
Long stem hay is also fed.
In addition to the time spent on
daily farm chores, the Kreiders
find time for church and others
organizations. All are members of
the Mechanics Grove Church of the
Brethren, the Pa Holstein
Association and the Pa. Farmers
Association.
Not to put aside their con
servation interests, Sam has also
served for 20 years as an
Agricultural Stabilization and
Conservation Service (ASCS)
Community Committeeman
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