200 -Foraging Around, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 9,2002 Rotational Grazing Right Choice For Pond Hollow Farm Beef Operation DEANNA CUNFER Carbon Co. Correspondent MARTINS CREEK (Northamp ton Co.) Elwood and Pauline Fox of Pond Hollow Farm, Martins Creek, know they made the right decision in converting their farming operation to intensive rotational grazing. When asked if there were any re grets or anything they would have done differently, without hesitation both said, “We wish we would have started this in the 19505.” Until the early 1980 s, Pond Hollow Farm was a typical dairy farm. After the couple decided it was time to get out of the dairy busi ness, one of their sons ran the dairy for a few years. When the decision was made to completely shut down the dairy operation, the couple had to decide what direction they were going to take in regards to the future of the family farm. They had old machinery and had to decide if they were going to buy new equipment or do something where they could utilize the equip- You may be asking, “What does BR mean?” BR stands for a Branched Root characteristic in alfalfa. Chemgro Seeds Paragon BR is an alfalfa with a branching root system. In tough wet conditions, Paragon BR will utilize a branching ll, s h| j Rewsum root system in poor areas. A taproot is utilized under „ . Moderate Resistance normal conditions. BR means longer lasting stands of alfalfa in fields with less than perfect soil conditions. More of the root system stays above the water table, better securing the plant in the soil when freezing and thawing occurs. This branched rooted trait will adjust accordingly as the moisture stress intensifies. Paragon BR is a must for those uneven fields with low wet areas. Places where conventional alfalfas tend to die early, Paragon will provide you with high quality, even stand of alfalfa for a full four years. Paragon BR is a fall dormancy 3 alfalfa, with an excellent winter hardiness of 1.6. It is well adapted to the soils, conditions and diseases we face here in the Northeast. Chemgro P.O. Box 218 East Petersburg, PA 17520-0218 £ 1 (800) 346-4769 (GROW) 717-569-3296 “Quality SEEDS, at reasonaßk prices” ment they had. About that time, the couple went to a meeting about rota tional grazing and this idea got their interest. The farm had been feeding heifers for a dairy from New Jersey for about eight years. The Foxes were going back and forth across the state line to pick up calves or drop off heifers that were close to freshening as often as three times each week. Occasionally the dairy would trans fer a cow and her calf back to Pond Hollow Farm if the cow didn’t fit into the milking line. After a while the couple started realizing that let ting the cow raise the calf on pasture . was an idea they wanted to pursue. They noticed that the Holsteins did not fatten on grass alone and de cided to start using beef bulls for their breeding. Through a very af fordable agreement with another farmer, Fox leases a bull each year. He exposes the cows to the bull from July 18 through Nov. 1 for freshening to start around May 1. Calving lasts for a three-month period. Disease Resistance Remtunl I OW Ketislanctr </ -/ Elwood and Pauline Fox celebrated their 50th wedding anniver sary with a gathering of family and friends in November. One of their friends painted this farm scene for the couple and presented it to them asagift. Most of the bulls Fox has leased Any cows that do not breed are were Hereford or Simmental. He culled from the herd. also purchased one or two Belted The couple takes care of castrat- Galloway bulls. You can now see the ing the calves. One benefit of seeing beef influence coming into his herd. the beef influence in their herd is the Fortunately, the Foxes have expe- absence of horns, thus eliminating rienced very few calving problems. another procedure that had to be Fox feels this is probably due to the done in the past, fact that the cows are not fed grain Shortly after switching to the and thus avoid overconditioning. (Turn to Page 10) It's Not Just For The Big Boys. Maybe you run a few beef cattle. Or The rugged Model 5008 V-rake you’ve got a small breeding operation, boasts 55" diameter wheels on Nothing big. But big enough to wish tapered bearings and 40 stout teeth you could put up your own hay. on every wheel, so you don’t miss a single stem. And the Model 830 round baler, with low-profile pickup and windrow gathering wheels, lets you control bale size and density to build Hesston’s got a complete line of hay 39”-wide bales up to 54” in diameter. tools built to work with tractors no .. . . , .. , ... Visit your Hesston dealer to bigger than 30hp. The Model 1004 learn more disc mower, with its low-profile cutterbar and segmented hex rTn nobody hnow* hay Ilka dnveshaft, delivers fast 5-1/2’cuts, iwmu easier maintenance and less wear. i aoco i* Hlillflvll ‘Til now, you figured that was strictly for big-time operators. Well, think again. SEE YOUR DEALER TODAY! C.J. WONSIDLER BROS. Finland Rd., Quakertown, PA 215-536-1935/ 215-536-7523 Rts. 309 & 100, New Tripoli, PA 610-767-7611 ZIMMERMAN'S FARM SERVICE School Road, Rt. 1, Bethel, Pa. 717-933-4114 STANLEY’S FARM SERVICE RD 1, Box 46, Klmgerstown, Pa. 570-684-2088 HERNLEY’S FARM EQUIP., INC. 2095 S. Market St., Elizabethtown, Pa. 717-367-8867 UMBERGER’S OF FONTANA RD 4, Box 545, Lebanon, Pa. 717-867-2613
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers