A2B-Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, March 25. 1995
Lancaster
(Continued from Pago At )
In 1953, Rohrer purchased the
second farm, where his son-in-law
Clyde Kreider lives. Kreider main
tains the crops, and Glenn Rohrer
takes care of the cows. Donnie
Rohrer milks the cows every day
and Joe Kark, herdsman, works for
the Rohrers in the dairy operation.
In addition, they have two part
time employees.
Wilmer Rohrer lives on the third
farm, purchased in 1968. In 1985,
Glenn and Clyde purchased the
Lefever Farm tract, now known as
the Rohrer and Kreider Farm.
After the Chesapeake Bay Cost-
Share Program began in the coun
ty, Rohrer Farms were signed up
and work on terraces began.
Already, 7,000 feet of terraces had
been installed on the Lefever
Farm, and another 7,000 feet were
installed.
The four farms are operated as
one unit, according to Heistand.
The Rohrers have 21,920 feet of
pipe outlet terraces. More than
10,000 feet of pipe have been
installed. On the farm north of
Blue Rock Road, where Krcider
lives. 2,000 feet of diversion were
installed in 1992 to catch surface
water from the farmstead and filter
it before going into the stream. The
roof water is piped directly to the
stream.
The Rohrers employ a lot of
cover cropping. About 45 acres of
wheat/barley are double-cropped
into soybeans on the fields with a
high erosion potential. A majority
of the soybeans are planted no-till
and on fields least prone to ero
sion, manure is chiseled in.
Of the 600 tillable acres, 200 are
rented from four different tracts.
The Rohrers grow 400 acres of
Also at the banquet, the Youth Conservation School hon
ored four for their efforts for their service, From left, Sonia
Wasco, Phil Landis (for son Tim Landis), and Becky Fox.
UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre
Co.)—Cheaper is not necessarily
better when it comes to establish
ing forage stands, said an agro
nomist in Penn State's College of
Agricultural Sciences.
“Each year at this time I hear
about someone who got a ‘real
deal’ on clover or alfalfa seed,"
said Dr. Marvin Hall, assistant
professor of forage management
and director of Penn State's For
age Variety Testing Program.
“But research shows you get
what you pay for when buying
seed." Hall said. “Some older var
ieties cost a third of what newer
varieties cost, but ultimately you
lose money to lower yields and
more disease.”
Price differences between var
ieties can be'significant. Hall said.
“Certified top-yielding red clover
seed can cost 40 cents ictsl more
Conservation District Honors Farm Managers
com, 90 acres of soybeans, 70
acres of alfalfa, 45 acres of barley/
wheat, 27 acres of tomatoes, 20
acres of tobacco, and 35 acres of
pasture.
Diversity is evident in the farm
operation. The Rohrers manage
300-500 feeder pigs and a 236-cow
(180 heifers) dairy. They have
installed two 98,000-gallon man
ure storage structures. Animals are
housed on all four farms.
One farm has a farm pond,
installed in 1964 after the children
learned how to swim. The farm
properties are well maintained.
The Rohrers ate active at Millers
ville Mennonite Church and the
Kreiders are active at Marietta
Congregational Church.
Glenn Rohrer told those attend
ing the banquet that, regarding
conservation practices on the
farms, there is still “a lot to do yet
in the future.”
Also at the banquet, the Youth
Conservation School honored four
for their efforts for their service;
Becky Fox, Ephrata; Tim Landis,
Blue Ball; Chris Hall, New Hol
land; and Scott Reinhart, Denver.
Special conservation awards
were also presented. For the state
agency, Richard Vannoy, program
specialist of the Bureau of Land
and Water Conservation, Bradford
County, was honored. A private
sector award was presented to Har
lan Keener, West Lampeter Town
ship, for his pioneering work in
biogas digesting using swine man
ure. The local agency award went
to Bob Gregory for 10 years of
dedicated service to the county
conservation district. The educator
award was presented to Clair Wit
wer, Pequea Valley agriculture
instructor, for the FFA chapter’s
Cheap Seed May Not Be A Bargain
per pound than non-ccrtificd seed.
If you plant 12 pounds per acre
and the difference in price is $1
per pound, using a better variety
of red clover costs $l2 more per
acre. That may seem like a lot of
money, especially since the seeds
from each variety look the same.”
But yield data from the variety
testing program indicate that the
extra $l2 is a sound investment
“We tested many varieties at
Penn State farms in Landisville
and Rock Springs,” Hall said. “In
both locations, die newer, high
yielding red clover varieties con
sistent yielded more than com
mon red clover.”
Averaged over both locations in
1992 and 1993, common red clov
er produced .66 fewer tons per
acre per year.
“Even if red clover forage is
worth only $75 per ton, the extra
leadership and service. A special
cooperator award was presented to
Atlantic Breeders Cooperative,
represented by Harry Roth. Goo-
Special conservation awards were also presented. For the state agency, Richard
Vannoy, program specialist of the Bureau of Land and Water Conservation, Bradford
County, far right, was honored. A private sector award was presented to Harlan Keen*
er, West Lampeter Township, second from left, for his pioneering work In blogas
digesting using swine manure. The local agency award went to Bob Gregory, second
from right, for 10 years of dedicated service to the county conservation district. The
educator award was presented to Clair Witwer, Pequea Valley agriculture instructor,
third from left, for the FFA chapter’s leadership and service. A special cooperator
award was presented to Atlantic Breeders Cooperative, represented by Harry Roth,
far left.
The Rohrar family, Manor Township, were honored with the Outstanding - jra
tor Award Thursday evening at the 44th annual Lancaster County Conservation Dis
trict banquet at Yoder’s Restaurant. From left, Glenn Rohrer, Wllmer Rohrer, and
Clyde Krelder.
income associated with the addi
lonal $l2 investment for high
yielding certified red clover seed
would be $49.50 per year,” Hall
said. “If the field is kept in red
clover for only two yean, you $l2
investment would return $99.
Better seed means a better stand
when it comes to alfalfa, too.
Alfalfa varieties in Pennsylvania
need at least moderate resistance
to bacterial wilt, vericillium wilt,
fusarium wilt, anthracnose and
phytophthor root rot
“If you have a chance to buy a
no-name or older variety for a
cheap price, reconsider how much
money you're really likely to
save,” Hall said. “Using newer
varieties with higher yields and
better disease resistance will
increase the alfalfa stand's life
expectancy. The longer a stand
remains productive, the more
dyear awards were presented to
directors and representatives of the
district
A special award was presented
yean you have to spread out the
high cost of establishing it”
One newer, highly disease
resistant alfalfa variety costs $3O
mote per acre than an older varie
ty, assuming a 15-pound-pcr-acre
seeding rate and $3 versus $1 per
pound of seed.
“But with average production
for both old and new varieties and
a value of $BO per ton of alfalfa,
the additional cost for the newer
variety will be made up by the end
of the first production year,” said
Hall. “By die end of the fourth
production year, the newer variety
DON'T
SLOW —
Call Now To Mac* Yot|r
CLASSIPIID AD
Phi 717-H1 MIT «r 717-*M-tIM
to Ncvin Greiner for choosing the
new name of the county’s conser
vation newsletter, to be named the
“Conservation Crier.”
will have grossed nearly $6OO
more per acre than the older one,
which would have been plowed up
at the end of the third production
year.”
The Penn Slate Forage Trials
Report contains more detailed
information on the performance of
forage species including red clov
er, alfalfa, timothy, tall fescue,
bromegrass, perennial ryegrass
and reed caqatygrass in Pennsyl
vania. The free report is available
from the Penn State Cooperate
Extension office in your county.