From the Fields: Tigers, cattle and hay, oh my!

By Kristin Kveno
The Land Staff Writer

August 15, 2008 03:15 am

— The battle with aphids is on at the Mischke farm and so far the good guys, not the bugs, are winning. When The Land caught up with Dale Mischke on Aug. 3 he was just in from checking soybean fields for aphids with son, Ethan.
Mischke reported that 20 miles south, his farm (just outside of Westbrook) aphids are not bad yet. But his farm got hit with them hard last week and that is when the spraying began.
“Excellent shape on moisture,” Mischke said after getting over 3 inches of rain since his last “From the Fields” report. Even with the warm days there still have been some fairly cool nights which is good for his cattle. The combination of warm temperatures and the right amount of rain has helped the crops catch up a little in growth. He believes that his crop is only one to two weeks behind from last year.
Most of Mischke’s corn was tasseled by Aug. 1. He also reports that their third crop of hay “is coming on fast.” He is still trying to get some second cutting done.
Mischke is getting more new hay customers, many of whom only have a few acres of hay to cut, and with the high cost of equipment they find it easier and more cost-effective to hire it out. “Dad spent a lot of time cutting hay when I can’t do it,” Mischke said.
Good news for the residents of Westbrook: Maynard’s, the grocery store that was destroyed in a fire in July, will be rebuilt. The store is expected to be open by November or December. The store will be larger than the one destroyed. “Good things can happen from bad things,” Mischke said.
Mischke has been “watching the markets go down the past couple weeks and expenses go up,” and keeps hearing about “$150 to $200 that guys are losing on each head (of cattle) they are selling.”
The family went on a trip to the Great Plains Zoo in Sioux Falls, S.D., to see the new tigers and cheetahs. Other than that, Mischke admitted he doesn’t “stray too far from the farm.”
Mischke has been trying to see his seed customers and put up crop signs. He was also heading to Farmfest with some of his Mycogen Seed customers. “It’s an annual trip to look at all the new toys,” he said. Besides Farmfest there will be “a lot of hay to do this week, too.”
From haying to tigers to cattle, this continues to be a full summer for the Mischke farm.

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