Page 10—Foraging Around, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 11, 1998
Highest PFGC Award
(Contlnuad from Pag* 9)
I've been a member for 34 years,
been on the board for six years, was
president a couple of times, and
served on ,a couple of committees. I
go to the meetings when I can. They
deal with forage-related matters
better varieties, fertilizer, seed,
equipment. The emphasis used to be
mainly forages. Now it's pastures,
too."
Jim and his wife, Pat, farm 220
acres in Ferguson Valley, Mifflin
County. He plants 75 acres of corn,
80 acres of alfalfa, and some grass
hay. Ten acres of pasture frame the
front part of the barn. The dry cows
pasture in five acres. He and his
hired help of 10 years, Pam Bilger,
milk 55 Holsteins for a 19,000-
pound herd average.
"The best soil on our farm is
Frankstown," Hostetter said. "We
have some Edom silt loam and small
amounts of Elliber and Huntingdon.
I get five to six tons of forage, which
is good for these soil types. The
highest producers get six to eight
tons per acres. I have scales that I
used a lot, especially on yields that
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ly. One year, we had a three-acre
piece of corn in the corn club, and we
weighted all of the corn for total
production."
Hostetter utilizes his 20-year-old
manure pit to help manage manure
in order to lower fertilizer costs. He
believes he provides better feed for
this cattle and can produce milk less
expensively than with heavy grain
feeding.
Hostetter's emphasis on forage
began long before he started farm
ing on his own. He was raised on a
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farm in Lancaster County, then
moved to Mifflin County in 1953 and
worked as a DHIA tester for 12
years. There Hostetter learned
about forage production and was
given information to be passed on to
the farmer.
"Then for six or eight years, I par
ticipated in a state alfalfa growers
contest. The object was to see how
much quality alfalfa could be pro
duced per acre. We had to keep com
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machinery costs."
Fifteen years ago, spurred by his
desire to conserve soil Hostetter
purchased a no-till drill even though
he couldn't find much information
about no-tilling alfalfa. He remem
bers one time in particular when the
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soil and seed in a conventionally
tilled field washed away in a hard
rain one hour after planting. Now he
sows all his alfalfa no-till as soon as
the ground is ready.
Last year, Hostetter tried a leaf
hopper-resistant variety and was
please with the results. He planted
more this year with a "we'll see"
attitude.
"Even the best manager must
deal with the variables associated
with fertility, planting, and harvest
ing conditions, and weed and insect
control. Forages are top-notch feeds
for cattle and you're also raising a
good conservation crop with little
soil erosion. We're told often that we
haven't reached full potential for
forages."
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