(Continued from Pago 1)
unhealthy conditions for the ani
mals is key to successful grazing.
Mark said grazing has worked
well so far, though adding, “We
have lots to learn yet.”
The herd is on official DHIA test
and has a rolling herd average of
about 19,500 pounds of milk. Mark
said his goal is to increase the pro
duction per cow, not the number of
PENNSYLVANIA
Central PA
J. Hershey Myer
Phone: 717-523-3090
Direct Herd Rep.
Earl Kepner
Phone: 717-935-2485
Northeaetern PA
Don Hibbard
Phone: 717-836-3168
Rocky Hollow Farms Is Fifth
cows, at least until the children are
grown enough to start considering
making an expansion decision.
Milking in tie stalls, Mark said
he would like the herd production
to break the 20,000-pounds of milk
average.
The operation consists of an old
bank bam with a freestall exten
sion, and a new brick milkhouse.
<
North Central PA
Rod Prutsman
Phone: 607-525-6274
Wectern PA
Russ Jacques
Phone: 814-425-2562
Southcentral PA
Ed Gulnac
Phone: 814-847-2520
Dairy of Distinction Supplement to Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 29,1995—P«g>,
Though shocked and not injured,
the new milkhouse was needed
after a milk tanker backed into the
old milkhouse while Mark was
inside.
Of the two houses, an older
three-story frame farmhouse is
where Mark and his family live. A
newer stone house with a white,
three-rail PVC fence around the
Southeastern PA & N J
Eldon Ford
Phone: 717-933-5961
Direct Herd Rep.
Nelson James
Phone: 610-562-7117
WEST VIRGINIA
Steve Cronin
Phone: 304-884-8172
Generation Dairy
yard is where father and mother
Loretta live.
Mark said that the family was
pleased to receive the Dairy of Dis
tinction honors, though ironically
after attending a banquet to receive
the award, the farm didn’t look as
good as before they got the award.
Mark said that the weather fore
cast was good when the family left
*
MARYLAND/WV
Sales & Service Director
Scott Braden
Phone: 301-898-1098
MD Toll Free
Technician Service
1-800-227-6417
MD Direct Herd Reps:
Peter Bohacek
Phone: 301-371-6834
Dave Elston
Phone: 301-898-9125
the farm to attend the awards
banquet.
When they returned home, how
ever, they discovered that a storm
had ripped through the area and
tore off a lot of the roof from the
house.
He said that night at 2 a.m. he
had rain water running into bed.
The roof has since
been repaired and the
house re-sided. The new
roof is green. The house
siding white with green
trim and green shutters,
matching the color
scheme of a brand new
shop building on the
farm.
As with any family
farm that has been ongo
ing for generations,
operations change over
time and require differ
ing demands on
structures.
For the past 10 years,
the Sechlers have been
dealing with that situa
tion, tearing down old
obsolete buildings and
putting up newer ones,
or modifing existing
ones for incorporation
into the current
operation.
For example, two
older poultry buildings
were converted to house
the farm’s calf-raising
operations. Mark said
he has kept the con
trolled lighting and fans
that controlled the envi
ronment for poultry and
uses them to the benefit
of their replacement
calves.
With individual stalls
built inside the shell of
the poultry buildings,
the setup allows for
easier and more com
fortable feeding and
working conditions, as
well as a healthier and
more consistent envi
ronment for the calves.
Mark said he knows
they have attained a
less-than 1-percent calf
mortality since the
conversion.
Three years ago, the
Sechlers built a
Virginia-style heifer
bam that has made rais
ing animals more effi
cient and consistent.
Other changes loom.
A computer was pur
chased recently but has
not yet been incorpor
ated into the manage
ment of the farm. Mark
said his children, espe
cially Ryan have been
learning about the com
puter and have been
working on it. Eventual
ly, it may get used for
farm business.
Earning the Dairy of
Distinction Award is an
honor, Mark said. He
said that keeping the
farm looking nice is
important to him. “I just
like to have a nice
place.”
The red and white
Dairy of Distinction
sign hangs from a post
along the road in front of
the farm along with a
sign for Galliker’s
Dairy, a locally recog
nizable dairy that
receives milk from
Rocky Hollow Farms.
191