Why we built a baleage dryer

By Nathan Weaver
First in a series

The seed for a mechanical hay drier was planted in my mind by an article in the May 2010 issue of Graze. On a visit to northern France, Joel McNair had talked with Jean-Luc Gaugain about his system for drying loose hay.

Jean-Luc’s system captured solar energy from air heated inside the black, steel roof and walls of his barn. This heated air was forced through loose hay to finish the drying process of forages that had been harvested at 30-35% moisture.

April 1, 2020July 26, 2020

Keeping a farm in the family

Corse family using grazing to maintain 152-year legacy

By Martha Hoffman
Whitingham, Vermont — For the past 152 years the Corse family has milked cows in south central Vermont.

Today, Leon Corse, his wife, Linda, and their adult daughter, Abbie, are doing their best to continue that legacy with organic-certified management tailored to their farm. And they’re helping others begin their own legacies through participation in the Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship, a program aiming to bring new dairy farmers into the industry.

February 1, 2020July 12, 2022

Doing what it takes to launch a grass dairy

Beichlers flexible with funding and market niche

By Martha Hoffman

Middlebrook, Virginia — Dairy experience was the main capital Ben and Kristen Beichler used when they started their grass dairy in 2017. An investor group covered the cash.

Since then, there have been plenty of surprises and curveballs, but with some creative solutions they’ve been able to employ, the Beichlers are happy with the direction they’re headed in feeding no grain, milking once a day, and selling raw milk herdshares.

January 1, 2020July 12, 2022

Greg Stricker’s once a day story

By Martha Hoffman
Greg Stricker had been eyeing OAD milking for six years, running the numbers to see what net profit would look like with the expected 30% drop in milk production.

Greg and his family, which includes his father, Forrest, milk 120 mostly Jersey cows year-round in southeastern Pennsylvania. Greg keeps a sharp eye on the farm’s finances. The Strickers do not feed any grain, shipping to Natural by Nature’s organic grassfed program. So while the milk price is higher than with conventional organic, the herd’s production levels are lower.

November 1, 2019July 24, 2020

Milking and processing at micro scale

North Country Creamery succeeding in rural area

By Martha Hoffman
Keeseville, New York — Small-scale dairy processing and marketing usually requires access to nearby urban markets.

However, in northeastern New York, far from large cities, North Country Creamery is finding success selling dairy products throughout the rural region.

August 1, 2019July 12, 2022

Controlling flies organically

A lot of little things are needed to do the job

By Hue Karreman
Flies happen. And controlling them on organic farms is an ongoing challenge. There are lots of spray products that help, but none seem to work as well as farmers would like.

Flies are parasites, and thus make the most of any situation. Almost all common parasites, external and internal, thrive in warm and moist conditions, so we need to keep those two factors front and center when thinking about fly control.