Grinning ear to ear - Our CO-OP

Transcription

October/November 2011
Grinning
ear to ear
Corn growers benefit as prices, yield
converge for near-record year
Also inside
MTSU opens new state-of-the-art
dairy facility - p. 6
Co-op feeds help show goat owners
find success - p. 14
Columbia horse trainer works magic
with mustangs - p. 22
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contents
Cover Story
8 Grinning ear to ear
Corn growers across the state and region are enjoying a rare convergence of high prices and
promising yields with what could be the biggest crop in Tennessee since 1917. Results from Co-op’s
proprietary brand of seed, Croplan Genetics, are especially good for growers like Greg Freeze, right,
and his son, Russ, left, who say they’re having their best corn crop ever after growing two high-peforming hybrids recommended by Tennessee Farmers Cooperative agronomist Jack Christian, center.
ON THE COVER: Coffee Farmers Cooperative members Russ and Greg Freeze say Croplan Genetics 5189 and 6725 have been
some of the best-yielding corn hybrids they’ve ever planted. It was their first year to plant the brand’s seed.
— Photos by Mark E. Johnson
News and features
6
10
14
22
28
34
38
Midnight move
Middle Tennessee State University dairy ushers in a new era in agricultural education.
6
‘Stronger together’
Ag leaders and farmers gather at forum to celebrate successful harvest and share challenges.
600 miles to success
From Florida to Tennessee, goat producers trust Co-op to develop champion herds.
Mustang language
Columbia horse trainer Kimber Goodman has a way with the West’s legendary equine.
40
Walls of time
Distinctive Revolutionary War-era home, Dixona, predates the state of Tennessee.
Brady’s learned a bunch
Director’s first year on TFC board has been an eye-opening and fulfilling experience.
Turnover makeover
Bert and Dalyn Patterson revitalize the 65-year-old Armstrong Pie Company in Linden.
TenneScene
In every issue
4 As I Was Saying
Jerry Kirk celebrates the 200th edition of
our popular country church feature with a
current photo of the first: Choates Creek
United Methodist Church in Giles County.
16 New at Co-op
Learn about 17 new products available
at your hometown store.
17 Neighborly Advice
Grounding electric fences, gun safes, trail-
riding safety, winterizing sprayers, and
energy and fat in beef and equine rations.
Cowan’s Railroad Park is home to a replica of Major William Russell’s log cabin that served
as Franklin County’s first courthouse in the early 1800s. Cowan’s first settler, Russell was
so influential in the early development of the region that when Franklin County was created
in 1807, his home was designated by the state legislature as the place for holding courts. It
served as such until a permanent county seat was established in Winchester and a courthouse
erected in 1814. The Cowan Bell newspaper was responsible for the 1975 reconstruction of the
cabin, which is furnished with antiques from the pioneer era.
— Photo by Allison Morgan
38 What’s cookin’?
Caramel creations offer gooey goodness.
42 Every Farmer Has A Story
Meet Howell Moss, who, after 20 years as
Marion County Mayor, is back on the farm.
3
As I Was Saying
‘Our country churches’ number hits 200
B
ack in the mid-1980s, our small Tennessee Cooperator staff faced a
dilemma. Our “Courthouse Gallery” — in which we ran a picture and a
bit of information on a Tennessee county courthouse each month for a
span of just over eight years — had run its course. When the Campbell County
Courthouse in Jacksboro was shown in September 1985, all 95 courthouses had
been featured.
Since the Gallery series had been so popular with our readers, we simply asked
them for suggestions on something to replace it. “Why not picture churches?”
Jerry Kirk
came reply after reply. It was a logical choice and one that our staff enthusiastically embraced. Tennessee is a special place in that, as a whole, most of our ruContributing Editor
ral residents are faithful church-goers, and with hundreds of churches of varying
denominations scattered across and into every corner of our state, we have plenty of possibilities for
subjects month in and month out.
“Our Country Churches” debuted in the January 1986 issue, and with this month’s installment
our special gallery has reached a meaningful milestone — the 200th photo in the series.
And in commemoration of the feature’s longevity, we’re running a 2011 picture of the first church
we featured in 1986 — Choates Creek United Methodist Church in Giles County. The striking
“new” photo of the church was taken recently by Cooperator Assistant Editor Mark E. Johnson.
It was just before Christmas in 1985 that I was driving from Pulaski to Lawrenceburg on Highway 64 when the gleaming white frame Choates Creek church caught my eye. Stopping for a closer
look, I decided that the church, with its simple architecture and the Christmas wreaths hanging on
the two front doors, would be perfect to launch our “series of photographs to show where our rual
Co-op friends worship.”
Not only has “Our Country Churches” become a favorite feature with our readers, but church
members and leaders from congregations all across Tennessee eagerly submit photographs and information to be considered for publication. And the first 200 churches to be featured have given an
intriguing glimpse of what religion is all about in rural Tennessee.
Methodists are the leaders in the number of churches we’ve featured thus far. A total of 75
churches with “Methodist” in their names have been included, followed by Baptists with 64, Presbyterians with 35 and Churches of Christ with 14. Other denominations represented in the first 200
featured include Church of the Brethren, Episcopal, Friends, Church of God, Lutheran, Union, and
Nazarene.
We’ve learned some interesting — and sometimes fascinating — facts about churches and congregations as a result of write-ups and photos forwarded to us for the gallery. A picture submitted
by Wanda Shanks from Buffalo Valley Presbyterian Church in Putnam County, for example, shows a
herd of buffalo that returned “to their old stomping ground” to graze on the lawn of the church.
Waldens Creek Missionary Baptist Church, founded in 1894, is nestled at the foot of the Great
Smoky Mountains in a quiet, off-the-beaten-path community, away from the hustle and bustle of the
tourist destinations of Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg.
Fellowship United Baptist Church in the small community of Amathwaite in eastern Fentress
County celebrated two milestones in 2007. Organized in 1857, the church turned 150 years old
that year, which also marked the 100th anniversary of the construction of the present-day building.
The present-day sanctuary completed about 1920 at historic Woodland Baptist Church in Haywood County is an example of a sophisticated ecclesiastical design that combines craftsman influences on the exterior with an interior floor plan known as the Akron Plan, according to Bob Bond.
Salem Presbyterian Church in Washington County was founded by Samuel Doak in 1780. That
was 16 years before Tennessee was admitted to the Union.
Baileyton United Methodist Church in Greene County celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2005
by creating a Centennial Walkway with engraved bricks placed in memory and honor of loved ones.
Calvary Presbyterian Church in the Big Lick area
of Cumberland County was organized in 1921, and its
beautiful stone structure was built by local volunteers
in the heart of the Great Depression.
As “Our Country Churches” continues in coming
months and years, why not send us pertinent information and a clear color photograph of your church?
Mail to Allison Morgan, Tennessee Farmers Cooperative, P. O. Box 3003, LaVergne, TN 37086 or e-mail
amorgan@ourcoop.com.
A black-and-white photograph of Choates Creek United Methodist
Church near Pulaski in Giles County illustrated the very first “Our
Country Churches” installment in January 1986. As this recent 2011
color shot shows, the beautiful little church is still an eye-catcher
for passers-by on Highway 64. It’s the 200th image in the popular
Cooperator feature. — Photo by Mark E. Johnson
4
Volume 52, Number 10
Published by Tennessee Farmers
Cooperative in the interest of better
farming through cooperation and improved
technology, and to connect the Co-op
community through shared experiences,
common values, and rural heritage.
Editor: Allison Morgan
amorgan@ourcoop.com
Assistant Editor: Mark E. Johnson
mejohnson@ourcoop.com
Communications Specialist: Chris Villines
cvillines@ourcoop.com
Contributing Editor: Jerry Kirk
jkirk@ourcoop.com
Senior Graphic Designer: Shane Read
sread@ourcoop.com
Graphic Designer: Jason Barns
jbarns@ourcoop.com
Layout & Production Coordinator:
Travis Merriman
tmerriman@ourcoop.com
Editorial Assistant: Polly Campbell
pcampbell@ourcoop.com
The Tennessee Cooperator is distributed
free to patrons of member Co-ops. Since
each Co-op maintains its own mailing list,
requests for subscriptions must be made
through the local Co-op. When
reporting an address change, please
include the mailing label from a past
issue and send to the following address:
Tennessee Cooperator
Tennessee Farmers Cooperative
P.O. Box 3003
LaVergne, TN 37086
Phone: (615) 793-8339
E-mail: tlewter@ourcoop.com
Guest Subscriptions:
Guest subscriptions are available for
$12.95 per year by sending a check
or money order to Tennessee Farmers
Cooperative at the above address.
TFC’s website:
www.ourcoop.com
Find us on Facebook & Twitter:
www.facebook.com/
TennesseeFarmersCooperative
www.twitter.com/TNFarmers
TFC Board of Directors:
Chairman — Larry Rice, Covington,
Zone 1
Vice Chairman — Wayne Brown,
Chuckey, Zone 3
Larry Paul Harris, Wildersville, Zone 1
Amos Huey, Kenton, Zone 1
Clint Callicott, Only, Zone 2
Donald Jernigan, Christiana, Zone 2
Kenneth Nixon, Carthage, Zone 2
Johnny Brady, Riceville, Zone 3
George Smartt, McMinnville, Zone 3
Chief Executive Officer — Bart Krisle
NOTICE: This publication is for
informational purposes only. Tennessee
Farmers Cooperative, its affiliates,
subsidiaries, and member Co-ops are not
responsible for any damages or claims
that may result from a reader’s use of this
information, including but not limited to
actual, punitive, consequential, or economic
damages. Tennessee Farmers Cooperative
makes no warranties or representations, either
express or implied, including warranties of
merchantability or fitness of any product/
material for a particular purpose. Each
article, document, advertisement, or other
information is provided “AS IS” and without
warranty of any kind. Tennessee Farmers
Cooperative reserves the right to alter,
correct, or otherwise change any part or
portion of this publication, including articles
and advertisements, without detriment to
Tennessee Farmers Cooperative, its affiliates,
subsidiaries, or member cooperatives.
®
Co-op Month sets stage for Year of Cooperatives
Each October, cooperatives across America celebrate
the role, achievements, and
contributions of our nation’s
co-ops. This year, the celebration takes on a special emphasis
as the first “International Year
of Cooperatives” is launched by
the United Nations to share the
cooperative message on an unprecedented scale during 2012.
The theme of the 2011 Co-op
Month is the same as that of the
International Year — “Cooperative Enterprises Build a Better
World” — reflecting the benefits
cooperatives bring to their members and communities.
In particular, farmer-owned
businesses have a responsibility
to not only protect their members’ investments but also to
provide products and services
that protect their livelihood,
says Bart Krisle, chief executive
officer of Tennessee Farmers
Cooperative.
“Cooperatives really do build
a better world because we put
people first,” says Krisle. “As
a cooperative, we’re focused
on being good stewards of the
farmers’ equity in our business
and then providing a return on
that investment. We can never
forget that we’re here for the
benefit of the farmers.”
Worldwide, approximately
1 billion people are members
of cooperatives, including some
70,000 farmer-members of the
TFC system. Along with many
of its 56 locally owned member
Co-ops, TFC is a member of the
Tennessee Council of Cooperatives, which also represents
electric, telephone, milk, and
tobacco cooperatives along with
financial institutions and the
Tennessee Farm Bureau Federation. Like TFC, these co-ops
are democratically controlled
enterprises that exist to serve
their members, whether those
are the customers, employees,
or the local community.
Unlike most companies
where control is tied to the
level of investment, co-ops are
governed on the basis of one
member, one vote. So as well
as getting the products and
services they need, members
help shape the decisions their
cooperative makes.
And rather than rewarding
outside investors, a cooperative shares its profits among the
members. For TFC, this means
any savings above the cost of
doing business are returned to
members through patronage.
“I am proud that we are farmer-owned and that the money
we return goes back into the
local communities,” says Krisle.
“Over the past 25 years, Tennessee Farmers has returned $205
million in cash to our member
cooperatives. In turn, those
Co-ops have returned $185 million to their farmer owners.”
This October’s will be the
63rd Co-op Month celebration,
which started in Minnesota in
1948. A special “Co-op Week”
is designated for Oct. 16-23.
“Co-op Month is a good time
to learn more about your cooperative business and its advantages,” says Krisle. “Cooperatives
like TFC were born out of selfhelp and responsibility and are
dedicated to serving the needs of
our member-owners. It’s not just
that Co-ops are good citizens.
Any business can choose to do
that. Co-ops are good citizens
because they are cooperatives.”
For more information on
Co-op Month and the International Year of Cooperatives,
visit www.coopmonth.coop and
www.2012.coop.
News briefs
UT Biomass Field Day is
Oct. 25, 26 in Vonore
The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture will show
off its expertise in biofuels production and processing research
at a new, two-day field day event geared for farmers, industry
representatives, and the general public.
Day 1 of the event, Tuesday, Oct. 25, is organized as a traditional field day at Color Wheel Farm in Monroe County. Owners
Brad and Kim Black will open up their farm — including their
183 acres of switchgrass — to field day visitors.
Day 2 on Wednesday, Oct. 26, will be on the site of the new
Tennessee Biomass Innovation Park in Vonore operated by UT
partner and field day co-sponsor Genera Energy, LLC. Each
day will operate independently, and visitors are welcome to attend either or both days. Admission is free, but preregistration is
strongly recommended. Reservations and more information can
be found at the field day website at www.biomassfieldday.com
or by calling Genera Energy at 865-974-8258.
Cattle reclaim state’s top ag spot
Tennessee agriculture “beefed up” in 2010 with cattle and
calves reclaiming the top spot in agricultural cash receipts with
$545 million. In 2009, soybeans held the top spot but were
ranked second in the latest reports at nearly $518 million. Broilers, at $475.5 million, were third followed by greenhouse/nursery at $297.8 million. Corn ranked fifth at $287.3 million.
The state’s cash receipts for all commodities totaled $3.08 billion, up 3 percent from 2009’s $2.99 billion. Crop cash receipts
accounted for 57 percent of the total.
5
MIDNIGHT move
Middle Tennessee State University ushers in a new era of education with the opening
of a state-of-the-art dairy facility
By Mark E. Johnson
At Middle Tennessee State University’s new Experiential Learning and Research Center in Lascassas, the first of the dairy cows being transferred from the school’s
Manson Pike dairy in Murfreesboro exits a trailer around 1 a.m., Sept. 21. All 70 milk cows would be moved during the cool, rainy morning.
A
lthough the surprise
midnight milking was
undoubtedly a little
strange for the 70 cows at
Middle Tennessee State University’s dairy on Manson Pike
in Murfreesboro, they nonetheless filed into the 40-plus-yearold milk parlor like troupers,
deposited their goods, and left.
Murfreesboro
l
It was the second milking
of the day on Monday, Sept.
20, and though the cows didn’t
appear affected by it, there was
definitely excitement in the
cool, damp air. Several area
farmers had arrived in pickups
pulling livestock trailers, and a
larger-than-normal contingent
of students from the university’s
School of Agribusiness and Agriscience was on hand, dressed in
their work clothes.
Around 12:15 a.m., the first
10 of the freshly milked cows
were ushered aboard a trailer
to be hauled, for the first time
in their lives, from the property.
About 20 minutes later, having
finished their milking, the last
four cows exited the parlor and
were directed to the staging area
where, for the next two hours,
students and volunteers loaded
trailers until nothing but calves
remained on the property.
It was the end of an era for
the Manson Pike dairy but
the beginning of an exciting
new one at MTSU’s brandnew, $4.4 million Experiential
Learning and Research Center
(ELRC) at the former Guy
James farm in Lascassas. That
afternoon, the cows would be
milked for the first time at the
facility, marking the realization
of a vision that had been initiated more than a decade before.
“Almost 11 years ago, [Dr.
Harley Foutch, now retired director of the university’s School
of Agribusiness and Agriscience]
came to my office and laid out
this plan of consolidating the
dairy and other farm programs to
make the MTSU farm as student-friendly and as accessible
as possible — one of the best in
America,” said MTSU President
Dr. Sydney McPhee during the
dairy’s grand opening event the
previous Thursday, Sept. 15.
“So it is a wonderful experience
to stand here today and see the
reality of that dream.”
The grand opening at the
gleaming, hilltop dairy attracted
more than 300 ag industry representatives, university officials,
state dignitaries, and curious
farmers who were eager to see
the new facilities that had been
under construction for the past
10 months. Along with the $2.7
million dairy facility, the 435-
LEFT: The last night of milking at the Manson Pike dairy — purchased in the late 1960s — was a busy one, with cows moving through the parlor in the old barn and out to
a staging area to be loaded. RIGHT: MTSU dairy herdsman Jason Tanner, right, and recent graduate Vanessa Young complete the last milking in the old parlor. To view a
brief YouTube video of the last milking and transfer of the cows, go to http://bit.ly/poeTqv.
6
LEFT: Thomas and Peggy Williams, retired dairy farmers from Norene, tour the milking parlor during the Sept. 15 grand opening event. They say they remember when Guy
James sold the farm and were interested in seeing what MTSU had done with the property. RIGHT: More than 300 people attended the opening of the dairy facility.
acre ELRC includes a new hay
barn, farm shop, and updated
student garden along with the
40-head purebred Angus operation that has been located on the
property for four years. Longterm plans include moving the
school’s swine operation to the
farm, along with the milk processing plant currently located
on the Murfreesboro campus.
With capacity to milk 16 cows
at a time, the dairy features a
double-eight parallel milking parlor with rapid-exit gates. A computer-controlled milking system
includes individual animal-ID
and cow-activity measurements,
along with real-time milk weights
and milk-quality measurements.
An in-line heat exchanger
precools the milk to 58 degrees
before it enters a 2,000-gallon
bulk tank to be cooled again to
38 degrees. The equipment was
purchased through and installed
by Valley Farmers Cooperative’s
Dairy Sales and Service. Supplies like Herdsman fencing
came from Rutherford Farmers
Cooperative, which also helped
sponsor the grand opening.
During his grand opening remarks, Tennessee Commissioner
of Agriculture Julius Johnson
praised Foutch’s successor, Dr.
Warren Gill, for bringing “renewed spirit and energy” to the
project, along with Farm Labs
Manager Tim Redd and other
staff and students.
“From the [Department of
Agriculture], we appreciate this
accomplishment here today,”
said Johnson. “What you have
to really think about is what the
students are going to experience because of this facility and
what they will take back to their
farming operations or agribusinesses. This is a great day, and I
congratulate you because this is
quite an accomplishment.”
Some two weeks after the
Sept. 20 move, Redd reported
that the success of the transfer
matched the excitement of the
grand opening event.
“Honestly, the biggest surprise
of the whole thing has been how
smoothly it’s all gone,” he said.
“We anticipated more problems
than we had, by far. I think it
helped that, as a university herd,
our cows are used to a lot of
different people being around.
That wouldn’t be the case with
the cows I used to milk on my
own farm. If someone different
came into the barn, the cows
wouldn’t know what to do. But
these cows have adapted like
nobody’s business. Their production numbers dipped just a
little but are pretty much back to
normal. We’re thrilled to death.”
Gill added that the opening of the ELRC has been the
“highlight” of his career and that
he expects the facility to create
a “buzz” within the collegiate ag
community.
“Our students have really become a part of this project, and
they are our best recruiters,” he
said. “They go back home and
talk with their parents, siblings,
and friends about what’s going
on. This facility is really remarkable. It sits on a beautiful spot
overlooking the student gardens.
Combine that with the new
equipment and the comfort of
the animals, and it makes for a
pretty powerful story. I couldn’t
be more pleased.”
Some of the mixed herd of Holsteins and Jerseys relax in the “pack barn” of the
gleaming new facility. Farm Labs Director Tim Redd says he’s amazed at how well
the cows have adapted to their new surroundings.
LEFT: Three Holsteins feed on fresh hay
in the pack barn. Redd says the herd
will be introduced to the pastures of the
435-acre farm gradually as new fencing
and paddocks are installed. ABOVE:
MTSU animal science majors Lindon
Harris, left, and Megan Pohl, center,
help Tanner complete the first milking at
the new facility around 1 p.m., Tuesday,
Sept. 21, as others in the background
watch.
7
ABOVE: As he shells a field of Croplan Genetics 5891 corn in northwest Coffee County,
Russ Freeze sees the yield monitor hit well above 200 bushels per acre throughout
most of the field. RIGHT: Russ, left, and his father, Greg, grew Croplan hybrids for the
first time and say they produced some of the best-yielding corn they’ve ever had.
“This year’s good yields
and good prices are certainly
good news for producers,” says
orn growers in Tennessee Chuck. “It doesn’t usually
happen that way because prices
are on pace to realize a
rare convergence of high typically trend down at harvest.
Now, we have seen some negaprices and high yields for what is
tive pressure on prices recently,
anticipated to be the state’s largbut growers got a lot of corn
est production since 1917.
harvested early and sold off the
Tennessee’s overall corn
combine that brought $7 or
production is forecast at 96.56
better, capturing some of these
million bushels, up 29 percent
from a year ago. Corn yields are higher prices.”
While yield reports are generexpected to average 136 bushels
per acre, 13 bushels better than ally good across the region,
varied weather conditions
the five-year average, according
caused results that were just
to reports from the National
as varied from farm to farm.
Agricultural Statistics Service’s
Those challenges began early in
Tennessee field office.
And with corn prices reaching the season when corn plantings
near-record levels and still hover- were delayed by excess moisture
and floods in May and then
ing in the $6 range, better-thanstressed by hot, dry weather
average yields can translate to
through much of the summer.
better-than-average profits, says
Despite those conditions, test
Chuck Danehower, University
plots and on-farm performance
of Tennessee Extension farm
show that Co-op’s proprietary
management specialist. Decembrand of seed, Croplan Genetber corn contracts traded for as
ics, fared especially well this
much as $7.79 at one point earsummer, says Ashley Plymale,
lier this fall, he said, close to the
seed and agronomy adviser for
all-time high of $7.99 in 2008.
Winfield Solutions, the brand’s
parent company
and a subsidiary
of Land O’Lakes
cooperative.
“We’ve definitely stood our
ground,” says
Ashley. “I
couldn’t have
asked for betHenry Farmers Cooperative precision salesman Jon Futrell,
ter
performance
left, discusses the outstanding performance of this field of
Croplan 6725 with Lynn Grove, Ky., producer Kyle Murdock. out of Croplan
Story and photos by Allison Morgan,
Mark E. Johnson and Chris Villines
C
8
hybrids, considering the year
we’ve had.”
Alternating periods of too
much rain, too little rain, and
too much heat made corn production especially challenging
for Kyle Murdock, who farms
3,000 acres of row-crops and
tobacco with his father, Ray, and
family friend, Nathan Musser,
in Lynn Grove, Ky., about 10
miles from the Tennessee line.
“We had a real wet spring
and a small window of time to
get our corn planted,” says Kyle.
“We got about 400 acres planted
in April, and then it started raining. It was a solid month before
we could get back in the field.
After that, we had hardly any
rain from the middle of June
until early September.”
Under this pressure, the
Murdocks were especially
pleased with the performance
of the two Croplan corn hybrids — 6725 and 7505 — they
grew on their farm this season.
It was their first experience
with the Croplan brand, which
they learned about from Kyle’s
younger brother, Trent, who
completed two summer internships with the company.
“I was tickled pink with the
Croplan corn,” says Kyle. “It
can obviously stand the stress.
Both averaged in the 150-bushel-per-acre range, and we saw
the yield monitor hit 200-plus
several times. They had good
stalks and were standing up well
when we got ready to harvest.
Standability is something we
look for because we only run
one combine, and we need
something that will stay there
until we can shell it.”
Ashley, who helped the
Murdocks select those hybrids
according to soil test data, says
both 6725 and 7505 helped fill
a need for medium-maturity
corn in their wide-ranging crop
mix while delivering excellent
drought and disease tolerance.
The agronomist says his recommendation took into account
Croplan Genetics’ “R7 Placement Strategy,” which promotes
choosing the right genetics to fit
the farm’s soil type, population,
cropping system, traits, plant
nutrition, and crop protection.
“If I had to rank these, I’d
look at soil type first,” says Ashley. “You can take a really good
hybrid and make it a really bad
hybrid if you put it in the wrong
fields.”
Although their family connection to Croplan inspired the
Murdocks to try the brand’s
hybrids in the first place, Kyle
says their performance is why
Croplan will, without a doubt,
be in their plans for next year.
“It’s something we’ll definitely plant again, even without
my little brother’s recommendation,” laughs Kyle.
The 2011 season was also the
first for Coffee Farmers Cooperative members Greg Freeze
and his son, Russ, to include
Croplan Genetics hybrids in
their 1,000 acres of corn. The
Freezes, who say they’ve had
their best corn crop ever this
year, first learned of the Croplan
brand at an Aug. 18, 2010, field
day at the company’s Answer
Plot site in Manchester.
“We were impressed by the
information provided at the answer plot,” recalls Greg. “While
we were there, we spoke at
length with [Tennessee Farmers
Cooperative agronomist] Jack
Christian, and he recommended
several Croplan varieties.”
Jack met with the Freezes
a few months later, Greg says,
to help them determine the
appropriate hybrids for their
crop ground that is spread over
locations in Coffee, Warren,
DeKalb, Van Buren, and Rutherford counties. The Freezes
wanted to plant different sec-
LEFT: Kyle Murdock, who farms with his father, Ray, and family friend, Nathan Musser, is “tickled” with their first year of growing
Croplan corn. With challenging weather throughout the season, they were pleased that their two Croplan hybrids averaged 150
bushels per acre. RIGHT: Tennessee Farmers Cooperative agronomist Jack Christian checks the moisture content of Greg Freeze’s
just-harvested corn. Jack helped the Freezes, Coffee Farmers Cooperative members, choose the two Croplan hybrids they planted.
tions of the same field with
multiple corn varieties to get a
“real-world” comparison.
“They wanted to check [the
Croplan hybrids] against what
they’ve been planting,” says
Jack. “We looked at the different fields and soil types and
placed the varieties accordingly.”
The Freezes settled on
Croplan 5891 and 6725
planted alongside other common brands. In the only field
shelled as of presstime, the
Croplan 5891 has “kicked their
behinds,” says Russ.
“We had around 75 acres
of 5891, and it weighed out at
about 208 bushels,” he adds.
“It would’ve averaged more, but
we had four acres in a little low
area that was drowned out by
rain. The top end was 258-260,
and with [most of it], the yield
monitor would hit 230 and 240
and hardly move. We haven’t
gotten into the 6725 yet, but it
looks good, too.”
Russ says that aside from the
obvious yield benefits, he likes
the drydown capabilities of the
TOP: Greene County diversified producers Mark Klepper, left, and his father, Alan,
utilize Croplan 6725, 7505, and 8221 on a majority of the 250 acres of corn they grow
for grain. ABOVE: The Kleppers show some of their Croplan corn to Tennessee
Farmers Cooperative field agronomy specialist Tom Bible, second from left, and
Greene Farmers Cooperative sales associate Matt Horne, far right.
Croplan corn. Jack attributes
this to northern genetics.
“Sometimes a southern type,
which is very tight, takes longer
to dry down,” he explains. “But
5891 has some northern characteristics that allow it to open
up in the tip a little and helps
the ear to dry faster.”
Unlike the Freezes and Murdocks, Greene Farmers Cooperative members Alan Klepper and
son Mark are well acquainted
with the successful performance
of Croplan hybrids on their diversified farm that includes 750
acres of row-crops along with
beef, swine, and poultry operations. This is the third year
they’ve planted Croplan hybrids,
and each year they’ve set aside
more acres for the brand.
“We planted 275 acres of
corn this year, and two-thirds
of that is the Croplan because
it did so well last time around,”
says 30-year-old Mark. “We
averaged as high as 180 bushels
per acre in the past, which is
really good for this part of the
country. This year’s crop looks
just as competitive.”
The Kleppers planted three
Croplan hybrids — 6725, 7505,
and 8221 — on bottomland
straddling Lick Creek in Greene
County’s Romeo community.
The natural moisture retention
of the land combined with the
root strength and drought tolerance of these hybrids helped the
corn stand up to a mostly dry
summer. The growers say they
were particularly encouraged by
the performance of 6725.
“Since we get tied up doing
other things around the farm,
we wanted a shorter-season corn
that would come in quicker so
we could get it out of the field,
yet still produce a high overall
yield,” Mark explains of the 113day 6725. “I haven’t run the
combine yet [as of Sept. 16], but
I’m confident that the 6725 will
be my best corn this year.”
TFC agronomy specialist
Tom Bible says Alan and Mark
are smart to “not put all of their
eggs in one basket” and follow
Croplan’s recommended path of
planting multiple hybrids.
“That way, you can match
your varieties to your soil types,
planting time, and fertility,”
notes Tom. “Certain genetics in
the corn respond better to a lot
of potash, whereas others like
to be planted early and thick.
The key is getting everything
matched up right.”
As growers make plans for
the 2012 season, Croplan’s
Ashley Plymale says they will
have more choices than ever of
high-performing hybrids.
“You’ll see some new faces in
the Croplan corn lineup, and
they all look really good,” says
Ashley. “Their test weight and
grain quality stand out, which
directly correlates to yield. But
whatever you choose, be sure to
follow the science. You can’t just
pick out a hybrid from a seed
guide or base a decision on last
year’s yield. That’s not the right
answer in today’s agriculture.”
Croplan Genetics corn hybrids,
contact your local Co-op, ADI
manager, or TFC agronomy
specialist or visit online at
www.croplangenetics.com.
9
Speaking at the Agricultural Forum Sept. 19 at First Farmers & Merchants Bank in Columbia, Tennessee Agriculture Commissioner
Julius Johnson discusses successful state programs farmers have benefited from in recent years. Earlier in the event, Tennessee
Farmers Cooperative Chief Executive Officer Bart Krisle, right, spoke about the Co-op system’s advantages and challenges.
‘Stronger together’
Ag leaders gather to celebrate harvest, share challenges
By Allison Morgan
L
ong before this year’s
crop harvest had neared
completion, agricultural
industry leaders were lauding
its success during the first-ever
Agricultural Forum hosted by
First Farmers & Merchants
Bank in Columbia on Sept. 19.
The event was designed to
bring together a “who’s who”
of Tennessee agriculture along
with a number of area farmers
to share their perspective on the
status of the farming industry
and celebrate a promising fall
harvest, said Tim Pettus, First
Farmers Bank president.
“It doesn’t happen often that
price and yield come together,
and it’s cause for celebration,”
said Pettus, who moderated the
roundtable-style meeting for the
audience of around 100 guests.
“Our farmers deserve a year like
this. We just wanted to bring a
little recognition to them and all
the agricultural businesses and
institutions that support this
important industry in our state.”
10
The latest numbers show
that agriculture is a $3.2 billion
industry in Tennessee — up
from $2.8 billion in 2009 —
generating an additional $78
billion in economic activity
and accounting for 10 percent
of the state’s jobs. During his
remarks to the forum audience,
Tennessee Commissioner of
Agriculture Julius Johnson attributed the industry’s growth
in part to successful initiatives
like the Tennessee Agricultural
Enhancement Program and the
state’s burgeoning poultry, agritourism, produce, and biofuels
businesses.
“We’re aggressively trying to
do those things that we think
will increase demand for your
product and open up new
markets,” said Johnson. “The
department wants to be customer-friendly and regulatoryfriendly, and we’re committed
to be there to serve agriculture
in any way we can.”
Tennessee Farmers Cooperative Chief Executive Officer
Bart Krisle was also among the
forum’s speakers along with
officials from the Tennessee
Farm Bureau Federation, Tennessee Livestock Producers,
the University of Tennessee,
UT Extension, and other area
agribusinesses. The group was
“hand-picked,” said Pettus, to
represent a cross section of
the industry’s most important
players.
to its members over the past
25 years. He emphasized that
TFC and its member Co-ops
must make smart decisions that
allow the cooperative to grow,
gain efficiencies, offer value,
and manage risk.
In his message, Krisle also
affirmed the critical need for all
of the state’s ag-related groups
to work together to combat the
often louder, more vocal antiagriculture forces.
“We have to remember that
farmers are in the minority
of our population,” he said.
“Many forces out there are
opposed to production agriculture, and they don’t mind sharing that perception. Whatever
differences we face, all of us in
this room need to be aware of
what’s going on around us, be
involved in our industry, and
be united with one voice for
agriculture.”
Krisle’s message was a common theme among the day’s
presenters like Richard Groce,
UT Extension agent and director in Maury County, who also
pointed out the need to educate the non-farming public
about the role of agriculture in
their lives.
“Today, for the first time in
human history, the majority of
people have no contact with
their source of food — other
than buying it or eating it,” said
Groce. “The startling fact is
that we will need to produce as
much food in the next 40 years
as has ever been produced. I
think agriculture is up to it,
but the number of farmers has
steadily been decreasing.”
l
Columbia
“Obviously, this could have
been a much bigger meeting,
but we are all here for a reason,” said Pettus. “We wanted
this to be a total learning
process, and I’m hopeful the
discussion will encourage new
relationships and challenge us
to work together to improve
agriculture in Tennessee.”
Krisle used his time at the
podium to explain how TFC’s
federated system works, pointing out with pride that the
farmer-owned business has returned more than $205 million
Describing the other agricultural entities
represented at the forum as “partners,”
University of Tennessee President Joe
DiPietro explains how the research
programs at UT work for the benefit of
farmers, families, and their communities.
Keith Farmer, manager of
Maury Farmers Cooperative,
said he’s seen firsthand how
those numbers have changed
the Co-op’s business.
“Our demographics have
changed a lot lately because we
went from serving thousands
of farms down to a smaller
number,” said Farmer. “We’ve
tried to attract new customers
by offering products for homeowners and for women, but our
heart and soul are still with the
farmer.”
Damon Deese, manager of
neighboring Lawrence Farmers
Cooperative, agreed.
“As Keith said, there’s that
old country saying of ‘dance
with the one who brung you,’
and that’s what the Co-op
continues to do,” said Deese.
“But you also have to work with
the smaller, hobby farmers and
homeowners who need your
products and services, too.”
These agricultural shifts
also mean state lawmakers
continue to be further removed
from farm life, said Rhedona
Rose, Farm Bureau executive
vice president. That’s why, she
said, broadening the public’s
knowledge about agriculture is
increasingly important.
“As we go into the future, I
think we’re all nervous about
the changing demographics
in the state,” said Rose. “Our
elected representatives now
serve based on a ‘one man, one
vote’ decision of the population, and [in Tennessee] we are
rapidly becoming a very urban- and suburban-dominated
legislature. Since less than 2
percent of our population is
involved in agriculture, our
voice has to be stronger than
it’s ever been. It’s a challenge,
but I think it’s one that folks in
this room and farmers across
this state are willing and able to
take on.”
The state legislature’s budget-cutting decisions in recent
years have had a direct impact
on the University of Tennessee
and its Extension and research
programs, said UT President
Joe DiPietro, who echoed the
need for all forum representatives to work in partnership to
ensure further industry growth
and success.
“When land grant universities were founded in the 1860s,
it was all about partnerships
intended to educate the masses
and bring the problems of the
people back to the university
so we can solve them,” said
DiPietro. “We’ve had a great
experience working with Farm
Bureau, with Co-op, and with
everybody who has spoken here
today. But you need to realize
that the university is stressed,
and we need you more than
ever when it comes to your
advocacy, your help, and your
support. Continue to be our
partners, and we’ll all be stronger together.”
H.A. Threet, left, of Lawrence County and Wick Halliday, Maury County, visit during
a break in the Agricultural Forum program. They were among a dozen or so farmers
represented at the event. — Photo by John Hatcher, hatcherimages.com
11
12
13
LEFT: When this full blood Boer buck, Sugar Rey, took home the national grand champion title in June, it was a thrill for his owners David Chillon, second from right, and
Ana Stewart, third from left — especially since David has only been raising Boers on his family’s Delca Ranch in Webster, Fla., since January. Also pictured, from left,
are fellow Boer producer Roger McSwain, who bred Sugar Rey; judges Anton Ward, Sherri Stephens, and John Edwards; and holding Sugar Rey, friend Eric McLemore.
RIGHT: Some 600 miles away in Murfreesboro, Tenn., eighth-grader Tanner Herring is also racking up awards with his Boer goat 4-H livestock project. Tanner plans to show
this wether, Snickers, in the upcoming Heart of Tennessee Meat Goat Classic at the Tennessee Livestock Center in Murfreesboro Oct. 21-22.
miles to success
From Florida to Tennessee, goat producers trust Co-op’s
feed, expertise to develop champion-quality herds
By Allison Morgan
W
hen Florida’s David
Chillon and Ana Stewart captured the 2011
American Boer Goat Association
(ABGA) national grand champion title in June with their prize
buck, Sugar Rey, they followed
in the footsteps of Tennessee
producers Jeff Pearcy and Jeremy
Gurley of Sunshine Boer Goats
in Decaturville, who took home
that same award the year before.
Since then, the Floridians
have developed another commonality with these Decatur
Farmers Cooperative members:
They, too, are now Co-op customers.
“At every show, I kept seeing these orange Co-op feed
bags,” says David, who operates Delca Ranch in Webster,
Fla., near Orlando. “I wasn’t
having success with my feed
at the time and knew I needed
to find something else. I gave
Tennessee Farmers Co-op a call,
ordered a truckload of feed, and
the change in the animals has
been unreal. Their weight gain,
their health, just everything is so
much better. It’s been exciting.”
It’s been a whirlwind year for
David, who eased into the goat
14
business innocently enough by
purchasing four Boers as pets
for his mother, Betty, last January. But David “fell in love” with
the goats himself and decided
to try his first show in February.
He immediately started taking
top awards and says he’s been
“spoiled” by success ever since.
“We’ve been winning and winning and winning,” says David.
“I’ve just been lucky, I guess, to
find the right goats at the right
time. People tell me they can’t
believe I’ve been doing this for
six months and already have a
national champion when they’ve
been working their whole lives to
get one. It’s overwhelming.”
As he continues to develop
his champion-quality Boer herd
— now numbering between 100
and 150 head — David says
he fully trusts their health and
nutrition to Co-op feeds. About
every month and a half, he
orders a truckload of Co-op 16%
Pelleted Goat Grower (#93461),
Co-op Foundation Goat Mineral (#96554), and Co-op 16%
Pelleted All-Purpose Goat Feed
(#93458), which are manufactured at TFC’s Tenco Feed Mill
in East Tennessee and delivered
more than 600 miles to David’s
central Florida ranch.
animal health products suitable
“Even with shipping it down
here, the Co-op feed is the best for modern-day goat production.
“Even 20 years ago, there was
bang for your buck,” says Dalittle money or prestige in goats
vid. “It’s just outstanding. I’ve
— they were pretty much an
had tremendous success with
afterthought,” says Davis, noting
it, and I’m proud to tell everythat Tennessee now ranks secone what I use.”
As goat production has grown ond in the nation in meat goat
numbers behind Texas. “But the
exponentially over the past two
decades, Co-op has worked hard explosion in the goat population
and goat producers has driven
to build the kind of trust that
would lead producers like David the organization of special sales,
to source feeds all the way from auctions, and breed-specific
shows all over the country. At
Tennessee to Florida, says Dr.
Co-op, our knowledge base has
Paul Davis, TFC nutritionist.
grown, too. We’ve learned more
He and other Co-op animal
about nutritional requirements
nutrition experts have become
of goats and what kind of feeds
leaders in the industry and are
often called on
to participate
in University
of Tennessee/
Tennessee
State University
Extension goat
programs and
speak at national and international conferences. Along the
way, Co-op has
also developed
a larger, more
Tennessee Farmers Cooperative nutritionist Dr. Paul Davis
gives a presentation during the National Goat Conference
targeted offerlast September on the campus of Florida A&M University
ing of feeds,
in Tampa. He and other Co-op animal nutrition experts are
minerals, and
often called on to speak at goat-related conferences like this.
and supplements we need to
provide. Change has been fast.”
The popularity of goat production is also changing the
face of youth livestock events,
which have traditionally been
dominated by sheep, cattle, and
hogs. Today, meat goats are the
fastest-growing 4-H animal science project, says Davis.
“Because of their size, docility,
and gentleness, goats lend themselves to such a great project for
kids,” he explains. “They don’t
take a lot of land or equipment,
and they’re funny and curious
and have so much personality.”
Those traits were what led
Tanner Herring, a 4-H’er and
eighth-grader at WhitworthBuchanan Middle School in
Murfreesboro, to start showing
Boer goats four years ago. He
was given his first Boer doe,
Sydney, in 2008 by next-door
neighbors Woody and Kelly
Woodard when the couple dispersed their herd.
“They asked me if I wanted
to keep one when they decided
to sell out,” says Tanner. “I
showed her in 4-H and loved
it. I started using all my show
money for breeding fees and
buying goats, and it just kept
building up from there.”
Tanner now has 11 Boers
tucked away on the Woodards’
three-acre pasture that they
allow him to use behind their
Murfreesboro subdivision home.
Naming his operation “Triple
HHH Farm” in tribute to his
paternal great-grandfather’s
cattle ranch in Texas, Tanner intends to continue expanding his
herd and recently completed an
artificial insemination course.
He plans to use that expertise to
breed three of his does this fall.
Tanner has also been accumulating dozens of awards from
4-H shows and ABGA and International Boer Goat Association
junior events across Tennessee.
His biggest win so far came in
July at the Central Region 4-H
Meat Goat Show in Shelbyville
where his doe, Sable, won the
supreme overall champion title,
besting more than 200 entries.
“I like being able to go out
there and be competitive,” says
Tanner. “I know that if I do good,
I’ll have something to show for
all my hard work. At the end of
the day, I’m doing what I love to
do — and goats are what I love
to do over anything.”
He hopes to continue his winning ways at the inaugural Heart
of Tennessee Meat Goat Classic Oct. 21-22 at the Tennessee
Livestock Center in Murfreesboro. He plans to show six goats,
but a win with his wether, Snickers, could be especially lucrative. Co-op will add $300 to the
winnings for the grand champion
wether and $200 for the reserve
champion. If the winner feeds
Co-op products, then the “bonus” prize is doubled.
“This event is going to be
like an Expo for goats, bringing
together junior exhibitors from
all over the state,” says Davis.
“Co-op is proud to add this bonus prize money for the winner
and will be doing the same for
the state market hog, market
lamb, and market steer shows
throughout the coming year.”
Such support by Co-op is
one reason why Jill Herring
says she and her husband,
Donald, have never considered
shopping for feed anywhere
else but Rutherford Farmers
Cooperative, where they purchase Co-op 16% Pelleted Goat
Grower (#93840) and Co-op
16% Coarse Goat Feed (#348)
along with other animal health
items and farm supplies.
“We’ve had such good results
from the Co-op, why change?”
says Jill. “They always have
helpful advice and the right kind
of feed to meet our needs.”
By design, Davis says, Co-op’s
goat-feeding program can certainly serve the needs of 4-H’ers
like Tanner with a handful of
Boers in the backyard as well
Co-op debuts updated
goat feed program
T
his fall, Tennessee Farmers Cooperative will
be reintroducing its lineup of goat feeds and
minerals organized in a comprehensive program
with an updated package design and product naming — all for customer convenience. TFC nutritionist Dr. Paul Davis says that, except for some minor
“tweaks,” the feed formulations haven’t changed.
“This is really a repositioning and streamlining
of our products,” says Davis. “I don’t want our
customers to think we’ve changed these feeds,
because we really haven’t. We’ve renamed some
of the products to make each a little more descriptive of its purpose.
This should make it easier for producers to determine the feeds and
supplements they need.”
Products in the goat feed line include:
• Co-op 16% Pelleted All-Purpose Goat Feed (#93458)
• Co-op 18% Pelleted Goat Starter (#93448)
• Co-op 16% Pelleted Goat Grower (#93840)
• Co-op 16% Pelleted Goat Grower (#93461)
• Co-op 16% Coarse Goat Feed (#348)
• Co-op 16% Pelleted Milk Goat Enhancer Feed (#93446)
• Co-op 17% Pelleted Show Goat Developer (#93326)
• Co-op Pelleted Show Stock Supplement (#93023)
• Co-op Supreme Goat Mineral (#96216)
• Co-op Foundation Goat Mineral with Zinpro (#96554)
For more information, consult with the livestock experts at your
local Co-op or visit www.ourcoop.com and click on “Animal Nutrition Brochures” under the Programs tab.
as larger operations like Delca
Ranch with a herd of hundreds.
“We recognize there are many
breeds, production systems,
markets, and producer goals in
today’s goat industry,” says Davis.
“No matter what type of operation, however, the nutrition has
to be right or the goats can’t do
what they are bred to do. They’re
not the old brush goats you
found on farms 20 years ago,
and we can’t treat them that way.
Co-op understands those differences, and we are an enthusiastic supporter and partner in this
promising industry.”
Tanner Herring’s goat project,
visit www.triplehhhfarm.com,
and to learn more about David
Chillon’s operation, visit www.
delcaranch.com. Details on
the Heart of Tennessee Meat
Goat Classic can be found at
www.hotmeatgoatclassic.com.
LEFT: Tanner and his black Boer, Sophie, show in the doe kid class at the Cannon
County Junior Meat Goat Show July 30 in Woodbury. Most events Tanner attends
are in Middle Tennessee. ABOVE: Tanner’s growing Boer herd is tucked away
behind his subdivision home on a few acres of land his neighbors allow him to use.
15
New at Co-op
®
Co-op Barbed
Wire Unroller
Ranch Hand Legend Grille Guard
Ranch Hand has paved the way in heavy-duty truck accessories by
setting high standards in design, manufacturing, and quality. This
tradition continues with the Legend Series line of grille guards for
full-size Ford, Chevy, GMC, and Dodge pickups as well as SUVs.
They give your vehicle a customized look while providing excellent
front-end protection. Standard features include a black powdercoat finish for superior corrosion resistance, a custom punch plate
insert to match your vehicle’s billet grille, wraparound loop design,
support loops, and frame mounting. It comes with the necessary
mounting hardware and detailed instructions. Available options are
Hammertone finish and rubber bumper pads on uprights.
#161920 — 2011 Ford S-Duty
#161921 — 2011 Chevy 2500
#161922 — 2010-C Dodge 2500
#161923 — 03-09 Chevy 2500
#15310
The new Co-op Barbed Wire Unroller (#15310)
takes the work out of stretching barbed wire. The
unique design of welded hitch pins at the ends of
the spool allows the spindle to be mounted on tractor lift arms
for easy barbed wire unrolling. This item may be bought in a
pull cart combo (#15313) or a receiver style mount combo
(#15314). The cart (#15311) or the receiver
mount (#15312) may also be
purchased separately.
#15313
#15314
MDS Double Round
Bale Stabber
#300936
This 3-point double-tine,
double round bale stabber from
MDS is made of forged steel and
has a lift capacity of 6,000 pounds.
Tines are fully tapered for easier
penetration and removal. It also features
fully tapered sockets for tine support.
MDS Manure Bucket with Grapple
#19050-1
#19056-1
#19051-1
Herdsman Electric Fence Chargers
Chargers, or energizers, are the heart of your electric fence
system. Herdsman brand electric fence chargers won’t let your
fence lose its power! All Herdsman chargers have handy built-in
maintenance features that extend the life of your fence.
l Herdsman Solar 6 (#19050-1) is a 6-volt fence charger that
helps keep your fenceline powered with low-impedance technology
and a powerful solar panel. This unit will power 25 miles of fence
with 1.4 joules for 21 days in total darkness.
l Herdsman Solar 12 (#19056-1) is a 12-volt fence charger that
will keep up to 30 miles of fence powered with 3 joules. Its solar
panel is superior in charging the sealed rechargeable battery.
l Herdsman 30DC (#19051-1) is a weatherproof, portable,
compact 12-volt fence charger that is ideal for livestock or predator control. This battery-operated charger will keep up to 30 miles
of fence powered with 3 joules. A low-impedance feature helps
maintain maximum power for a longer time span.
Herdsman charger model 30 (#190531) and model 50 (#19052-1) are 110120-volt AC-operated chargers that will
charge 30 miles and 50 miles of fence,
respectively. Charging single or multiwire high-tensile fences are what these
chargers were born to do. Standard features include advanced
built-in, computer-controlled circuitry and digital voltage meters.
l
16
The MDS Manure Bucket
(#300925) features a 11⁄4-inch
tine diameter and high-strength
steel bucket shell. The bucket is
available in widths of 60, 66, 72,
and 78 inches. The tine has 241⁄2
inches of useable length with 6-inch
on-center tine spacing. The grapple option
(#300933) features four standard tines with a 49-inch opening.
Maxilator Accumagrapple
The Maxilator Accumagrapple
(#301307) is a user-friendly implement that can accumulate and grapple
from eight to 10 square bales of hay.
The Accumagrapple allows you to use
one piece of equipment in the field to
gather and load your square bales from
either side of your trailer. Bale lengths
can be from 36 to 41
inches. The Accumagrapple is made of 1.25-inch
scheduled 40 pipe,
2-x-2-x-11⁄4-inch square
tubing and 4-x-1⁄4-inch
channel iron. All Maxilator equipment is coated
with thermoplastic and
manufactured in the U.S.
New at Co-op
®
Gripple Fencing Products
On a damp day in 1986, wire salesman and entrepreneur Hugh
Facey found himself on a wet hillside in Wales discussing the woes
of fencing with a frustrated farmer who was aggravated by cumbersome ways of joining fence wires by bending and knotting. Hugh
listened intently, convinced he could think up a better way of connecting two pieces of wire together, and the idea for the Gripple
was born. From the farm to the garden, from the construction site
to the factory, there’s a Gripple to suit every purpose.
#19115
#19112 and #19113
#19116
The Gripple Torq Tensioning Tool (#19117) not only tensions
the wire but also regulates the load applied, delivering consistent
results every time and maximizing the life of the wire. This tool
allows you to tension wire up to 880 pounds with minimal effort. The integral torque gauge measures from 220 pounds to 660
pounds and is designed to work on all Gripple units up to a 6-millimeter diameter.
#19114
The Gripple Wire Joiner and Tensioner (#19112 and #19113)
are four times faster than knotting or other traditional methods.
The simple push fit maintains the inherent strength of the wire
while maintaining a high load holding function as well. The one-way
movement allows for easy maintenance of retensioning. Use with
the Gripple Torq Tensioning Tool for easy installation.
The Gripple Barb (#19115) is designed for use with larger-diameter barbed wire. This tool allows you to join and tension barbed
wire in seconds and is suitable for 121⁄2-gauge and 14-gauge wire.
The one-way movement allows for retensioning.
The Gripple T-Clip (#19114) is a revolutionary new way to secure
a fence at an end post. The T-clip is five times faster than knotting
and is ideal for awkward, tight spaces where knotting is cumbersome. This item comes in two sizes for both stock fencing and
barbed wire applications.
The Gripple ready-to-use GPAK Bracing & Anchoring Kits
(#19116) provide bracing and anchoring solutions that dramatically
reduce installation times. The GPAK is ideal for fencing bracing,
trellis anchoring, or for structural bracing of poly-tunnels. Easy tension adjustments are made with the Gripple Torq Tensioning Tool.
#19117
17
Neighborly Advice Fencing
Is your electric fence properly grounded?
T
hree
things
are
necessary
to make an
electric fence
effective:
a source of
power or an
Jason Jones
energizer,
Tru-Test Inc.
a properly
Territory Sales Manager
constructed
fence, and effective ground system. Several factors impact a
grounding system, including the
soil itself and the use of proper
grounding technique.
The composition of the soil
plays an important role when
grounding an electric fence.
Soils with low mineral content
are less conductive and therefore do not provide an adequate
ground field. Another factor to
consider is the moisture content
of the soil; dry soils will also
be less likely to provide proper
grounding.
Proper construction of the
ground field is a necessity. To
correctly build the ground
system, several materials are
needed: ground rods, ground
rod clamps, and wire to connect the ground rods. The use
of galvanized ground rods and
galvanized wire, rather than copper, is encouraged. When mixed
with galvanized products, copper
will corrode (e.g., copper ground
rods connected to galvanized
wire or ground clamps or copper
wire connected to galvanized terminals of the energizer).
Neighborly Advice Gun safes
Gun safes protect
peace of mind
F
or firearm owners, a gun safe is a worthwhile investment to protect yourself, your
family, and your property. Guns should be
stored in a safe, secure place so they don’t end
up in the wrong hands, stolen, or damaged.
Choosing a quality gun safe is the first step.
The best choice is a fireproof safe that is difficult to break in to. Safes are available in a variety
of dimensions, depending on how many and
Chance Martin
what size guns you intend to store. And if you
HLS Product Manager
don’t have guns, you likely have other valuables
that can be stored and protected in the safe as well.
Co-op carries safes by Cannon, the No. 1
manufacturer of gun safes in the world.
These safes are fireproof from 30 to 60 minutes and can hold 24 to 36 guns, depending
on the model. Plus, Cannon products are a
great value, providing the same advantages
found on safes costing hundreds more. The
company even offers free replacement if the
safe is broken in to, so you can be confident
in the security of your treasured valuables.
Check with your local Co-op for the gun
safe that is right for you in protecting your
possessions, peace of mind, and — most
importantly — the people you love.
18
Ground rods that are 6 feet
long driven in the ground 10
feet apart is recommended. If
you are unable to drive the
ground rods 6 feet into the
ground, try driving at an angle.
Depth is important for reaching
moisture, but having 6 feet of
surface contact with the soil is
the next best thing. You need
at least three ground rods and
maybe more, depending on the
energizer.
Connect the rods with
12.5-gauge insulated wire
and ground rod clamps to the
ground terminal of the energizer. Make sure that all connections are tight.
Keep in mind that the
ground system needs to be just
as conductive as the fence.
Rusty wire on a fence will not
carry voltage, so rusty wire or
rebar or T-posts that have rusted (or will rust) cannot carry
voltage and will not provide an
adequate ground system.
The diagram above can help
you construct a grounding
system or determine if your
existing method is adequate.
Neighborly Advice Equipment
Take time to winterize sprayers this fall
F
all is
the
time
to celebrate the
completion
of another
growing
season and
Paul Arnette
start thinkTFC Ag Equipment
ing about
Product Manager
plans for
next year’s crop. But before we
get too far ahead of ourselves,
winterizing farm equipment
like sprayers is an important
task that can make our lives
much easier when we pull
them out of storage for next
season’s use.
Because their operation relies on water and other liquids,
sprayers are especially susceptible to cold-weather damage.
It’s extremely important that
they are prepared to withstand
freezing temperatures. Winterizing includes cleaning, check-
ing, and storing the sprayer to
prevent freeze damage and have
it ready for use in the spring.
Start in late fall by thoroughly cleaning the sprayer to remove any chemical residue and
removing any parts that could
be damaged during the winter.
Run the pump until all liquid is
out of the system, making sure
you don’t run the pump dry for
more than 30 seconds. Then
shut off the engine and fill the
tank with clean, clear water.
Pump the tank empty again.
Remove the strainers and
wash them by hand with soapy
water. Be sure to wear chemical-resistant gloves for safety.
Rinse the strainers and either
store them or place them back
in the sprayer where you can
find them next season.
Look closely at the nozzles,
nozzle bodies, and check valves.
Thoroughly clean the nozzles
and related hardware to prevent
chemical residue from build-
ing up and hardening over the
winter, which can dramatically
reduce the sprayer’s performance. Are there old nozzles
on the sprayer that haven’t
been changed out in a few
years? If that’s the case, you
might as well budget for new
nozzles. For what they cost,
they’ll save you that much in
crop protection products and
aggravation next year.
Place a 50:50 ratio of antifreeze and water in the sprayer
tank. Start the engine and
allow the pump to operate just
long enough to fill the system
with the solution. Loosen the
caps on the nozzles’ bodies so
the antifreeze can completely
fill the boom line. Tighten the
caps when the boom line is full.
This helps to keep hoses from
cracking and drying out and reduces the amount of moist air
trapped in the sprayer. Let the
antifreeze sit in the valves and
pump to avoid freeze damage
and reduce rusting. If possible,
store your sprayer in the barn
or out of the weather to reduce
the amount of damage from
sunlight hitting the hoses.
When you’re ready to use the
system again, start the engine
and allow the pump to operate
until all the antifreeze has been
pumped out of the system. Fill
the tank with clear water and
one bottle of ammonia-based
cleaning liquid (approximately
1 quart cleaner to 100 gallons of water). Run the pump
until this solution has been
pumped out. Refill the system
with clear water and pump dry
once more. Your sprayer is now
ready to go to work!
Inspect your sprayer
throughly during this winterizing process. If you find parts
that need replacing, check with
your Co-op. We have access to
a wide range of sprayer parts,
nozzles, and accessories for just
about any model.
19
Neighborly Advice Equine
Trail-riding safety: a little horse sense goes a long way
N
othing’s
better
than a relaxing trail ride
with friends
on a crisp
fall day.
And
Amanda Cornwell
there’s not
HLS Product Manager
much worse
than a trip to the emergency
room or an unplanned visit from
the vet after a trail ride with
friends on a crisp fall day.
While trail-riding is, for the
most part, a safe, low-risk activity, there are inherent dangers
involved. You are, after all,
riding a very large animal across
uneven ground through nature,
where bugs, bees, snakes, squirrels, and other sneaky animals
live around, under, and within
bushes, trees, fallen logs, and
underbrush. Fall leaves get slippery, stones move underhoof, ornery horses kick at one another,
and people just do goofy things.
Simply put, stuff happens.
While we can’t remove all
risk, a little common — or horse
— sense goes a long way toward
avoiding injury.
• First of all, prepare your
tack. It should be sturdy and
in good working order. If you
plan to tie your mount at some
point, bring a halter with a lead
rope. Never tie a horse by the
reins. It’s not tack, exactly, but
take along a hoof pick or a small
pocketknife. A pebble or thorn
in a hoof can ruin the day for
you and your mount.
• Before you leave, always
let someone know where you’re
going and when you expect to
return. Bring a cell phone or
GPS if possible, dress weatherappropriate, bring some snacks
and bottled water, and wear the
proper safety gear.
• How about your horse? He
should be calm and traffic-safe.
If you’re not sure, ride in a pasture alongside a road and invite
a dirt bike or ATV driver to ride
nearby. Whatever you do, don’t
bring a disobedient, hyper, or
anti-social horse on a group trail
ride unless you want yourself to
be blackballed from all future
rides with that particular group.
20
• When you set out on the
trail, walk the first half-mile or
so to warm up your horse and
his muscles. Keep at a distance
of two lengths to avoid being
kicked, and go the speed of the
slowest horse or rider. Be aware
of where problems might occur,
like at a water crossing or when
passing a dog kennel. Be courteous and warn riders behind you
of low branches, stumps, holes,
and other hazards. Also, it’s
always a good idea to go slow up
and down steep hills unless you
are a Hollywood stunt rider.
• One last tip: Walk your
horse the last half-mile home.
This will not only cool him
down but will discourage him
from learning to rush back to
the barn.
Just remember: When you
tell someone you’re going to
“hit the trail,” be sure you do
it with your horses’ hooves and
not the side of your head. That
could ruin a perfectly wonderful afternoon!
And don’t forget to visit
with the professionals at your
local Co-op for all your equine
needs.
Neighborly Advice Animal Nutrition
Determining energy level from feed labels
I
n the
world of
livestock
feeds, protein is the
“rock star.”
When the
merits of a
Dr. Paul Davis, Ph.D. feed or supplement are
TFC Nutritionist
discussed,
the level of protein is always
mentioned. While protein is a
component of hooves, hide, hair,
organs, muscle, and several body
chemicals, as an industry we
tend to overemphasize protein
and underemphasize energy.
Over my career, spanning
hundreds of producer meetings
and farm visits and thousands of
phone calls, I have contemplated
the reasons for our industry’s
obsession with feed protein content. I’ve concluded that it is related to the fact that “energy” is
not listed on the feed tag. While
protein is almost always listed
first, a guarantee of energy either
as total digestible nutrients
(TDN) or net energy is conspicuously absent. To those interested
in providing adequate nutrition
to beef cattle, this omission
should be of great concern.
Beef cattle nutrition and ration balancing deal largely with
creating a feed and offering it in
an amount to meet the animal’s
nutritional requirements in a
safe, manageable, and economical manner. Many factors affect
nutritional requirements, such
as sex, age, body weight, and
stage of production. Energy
is always needed in the greatest daily amounts and is one of
the nutrients most affected by
stage of production. Regardless,
often we know the least about
the energy content of a ration.
Knowing that energy value is
synonymous with calories, cattlemen often use fat percentage as
an indication of energy. This can
be very misleading.
While fat is an energy source
and, pound-for-pound, provides
2.25 times the calories of carbohydrates, it is not the tell-all with
regard to energy content. Fat is
also considered in some calculations of TDN and has some
bearing in the calculation of net
energy for gain. However, fiber
fractions and their digestibility
have a larger bearing on the
energy value of a feedstuff.
The fiber in a feedstuff is categorized as acid detergent fiber
(ADF) and neutral detergent
fiber (NDF). Acid detergent fiber is comprised of mostly lignin
and cellulose and is inversely
related to digestibility while NDF
is ADF plus hemicellulose and
is inversely related to intake. A
feedstuff high in ADF is low in
digestibility and low in energy.
A high-NDF feedstuff may limit
the voluntary intake by cattle.
Thus, fiber and carbohydrate
content has a much larger bearing on energy value than fat. It
would be very easy to have feed
with an appreciable amount of
fat listed on its label that would
be low in total energy. Conversely, a feed that is low in fat can
be very high in energy. Without
laboratory analysis, energy is difficult to determine.
When comparing and choosing feeds, energy is not represented by fat content. The total
ingredient makeup must be
considered. Choose feeds with
high levels of soluble (digestible) fiber, which is easily converted to energy by cattle and is
abundant in ingredients such as
wheat middlings, soybean hulls,
corn gluten feed, and citrus
pulp. Non-structural carbohydrates such as sugars and
starches are energetic and may
be appropriate in some rations.
Feeds with corn or other grains
indicate this type of nutrient.
Some grain by-products and
roughage products can be high
in ADF, thus reducing the overall energy value of the ration.
Likewise, the overuse of fat can
be detrimental. The total dietary fat level should not exceed
6 percent for mature cattle or
about 4.5 percent for growing
cattle. High fat levels can lead
to reduced digestibility of feedstuffs, interfere with vitamin
and mineral absorption, cause
fluctuations in feed intake, and
may result in scours.
While it is unfortunate that
energy content isn’t more easily
determined from a feed tag, paying attention to ingredient composition and content of nutrients
other than fat is the best way to
estimate energy value without
chemical analysis. In today’s
economic environment, it makes
little sense to transport, process,
mix, and feed rations that are
inferior in energy.
Work with Co-op livestock
experts to help assure the provision of adequate energy to your
livestock.
Supplementing fat in equine diets takes balance
M
any
horse
owners understand the
benefits of
increasing dietary
energy
Todd Steen, M.S.
content with
TFC Nutritionist
supplementary fat. Indeed, additional fat
can lead to improved stamina,
endurance, and body condition in performance and lightly
worked horses. Substituting fat
for starch as an energy source
can help relieve painful muscle
conditions such as tying-up,
modify behavior, and potentially
aid with certain metabolic conditions. More recently, the focus
has been on supplementing specific fatty acids. Calorically, all
fats are somewhat equal in that
they provide about 21⁄4 times as
much energy as an equivalent
portion of carbohydrate. Differences between fats lie in the
concentrations of “essential
fatty acids.” These fatty acids
are essential because the animal
cannot synthesize them, and
they must be included in the
diet daily to meet requirements.
The two most commonly discussed essential fatty acids are
Omega 3 (linolenic acid) and
Omega 6 (linoleic acid). Generally speaking, Omega 3 fatty
acids are “anti-inflammatory”
compounds that are beneficial
in reducing swelling and pain,
while Omega 6 fatty acids are
considered “pro-inflammatory,”
benefiting the animal’s immune
function during times of disease and infection. Thus, it is
important that the relationship
of Omega 3 and 6 be balanced
when adding fat to horse rations. While the exact proportion of these two compounds is
not specifically known, greatly
exceeding a ratio of 5:1 (Omega
6:Omega 3) reduces benefits of
fat addition even to the point of
interfering with forage digestibility and metabolism.
Oils from grains (corn, barley,
oats, rice, etc.) all have higher
percentages of Omega 6 than
Omega 3. Fresh forage contains
higher proportions of Omega
3, albeit in low concentrations.
Most unsaturated oils, such as
sunflower and corn, contain
high concentrations of Omega
6 while flax, canola and, to a
lesser degree, soybean oils contain more Omega 3.
Be aware that simply increasing the amount of fat fed may
not be suitable for every horse.
The Journal of Veterinary
Medicine reported research
that found ponies fed in excess
of their calorie requirement
produced a 25-fold increase in
blood insulin concentration.
This suggests that glucose intolerance and insulin resistance
potentially can occur in horses
fed high-fat diets when energy is
fed beyond their caloric needs.
Remember, insulin resistance
increases risk for laminitis.
Therefore, understanding of
energy needs is important when
deciding the best possible ration
for the horse.
Feeds formulated by Tennessee Farmers Cooperative take
these factors into account to
provide appropriately balanced
products. Please feel free to
contact equine specialists at
your local Co-op to help in providing the best ration for your
horse.
21
Columbia horse trainer Kimber Goodman uses a backing technique to help gentle Adobe Red Storm, a mustang gelding. Only two months after being rounded up as a feral
member of a wild mustang herd in Wyoming, “Stormy” is training for competition in the Extreme Mustang Makeover in Murfreesboro Oct. 21-23.
Columbia horse trainer Kimber Goodman finds niche
communicating with the West’s legendary equine
K
imber Goodman leans
close to the mustang gelding, speaking in hushed
tones. The animal is calm and
responds to Kimber’s gentle
commands. With a slight tug on
a rope, the equine trainer coaxes
the horse to lie on his side, and
after several more minutes of her
nearly inaudible murmurs, Kimber is allowed to drape herself
across the spotted gray body.
Kimber looks up and smiles
broadly at her husband, Sam,
watching from outside the training pen.
“This is what total trust is all
about,” she says quietly.
It is nearly incomprehensible that only 60 days ago, this
horse — now named Adobe
Red Storm — was a nameless,
feral member of a mustang herd
roaming the scrubby prairies of
Wyoming, one of some 38,000
“wild” horses spread across 10
states, as estimated by the U.S.
Department of Interior’s Bureau
of Land Management (BLM).
Malnourished and fighting for
survival, “Stormy” was part of
a BLM roundup and, in an extremely fortuitous stroke of some
far-away computer key, was assigned to Circle G Ranch Equine
Training Facility in Columbia
under the care of Maury Farmers
Cooperative members Kimber
and Sam.
22
“In the wild, you, me, and
everything else is a predator to a
mustang,” Kimber says. “If you
can show a mustang that you are
a herd leader who will protect
them, they will follow you to the
ends of the earth.”
l
Columbia
Since being introduced in
2007 to the mustang adoption
program administered by the
BLM and the Mustang Heritage
Foundation (MHF), Kimber has
honed her skills as a “herd leader.” She was raised on a 1,600acre cattle and horse ranch near
the Cheatham County line in
West Nashville and developed an
uncanny facility for communicating with horses by watching
her father, W.D. Dozier, a trainer,
farrier, and blacksmith.
“I’ve been around horses as
long as I can remember,” she
says. “It’s just second nature.”
After years of training “conventional” breeds, Kimber says
she was apprehensive when the
subject of mustangs arose.
“A dear friend of mine
suggested I get involved, and
my first reaction was, ‘Why
would I want to fool with a
mustang?’” says Kimber, who
formerly specialized in the Arabian breed. “I turned my nose
up. But after I was exposed to
them and talked to the [AMF]
people, I became interested.”
Kimber consults with her husband, Sam, while training 5-year-old mustang Twin
Peaks Black Crow on the “playground” obstacles of the couple’s training facility.
Mustangs are freeze-branded by the
Bureau of Land Management after they
are captured. Each brand contains
coded background information.
In 2009, Kimber applied to
be a trainer for the Extreme
Mustang Makeover through
the MHF. Trainers are issued a
mustang that they must gentle
and train within 100 days to
compete in the Makeover, a
two-day show that culminates in
a competitive bid auction of the
horses with proceeds returning
to the BLM program, she says.
“Acceptance as a trainer
also enrolls the individual into
the Trainer Incentive Program
[TIP],” explains Kimber. “You
can become a TIP trainer
without doing the Makeovers.
Guidelines state that the approved trainer is responsible for
gentling the animal and locating
a buyer within a 90-day period,
after which they are reimbursed
for their expenses.”
Kimber’s first mustang was
a rambunctious gelding she
dubbed Nevada Two Socks.
“Those first few days, he
showed me a thing or two,”
she laughs. “He tore up my
round pen panels, tried to eat
me, tried to stomp me, and
a few other things. But we
ironed that out within a few
weeks. He was a blast — I had
a great time with him.”
Working with Nevada Two
Socks was a learning experience,
she says, pointing out that mustangs require a different training
approach. Upon arrival at the
ranch, each horse is offloaded
into a secure stall in the Goodmans’ renovated, 100-year-old
barn. After a few days of acclimation, the mustang is moved into
a small, outdoor stall and then to
a special, high-walled ring where
it is introduced to tack. At each
step, Kimber works to calm the
animal and gain its trust.
“They are extremely smart,”
she says. “They’ll test you at
the beginning, so you have to
be on your feet.”
Sam, a custom motorcycle
shop owner and longtime
farmer, says you can’t handle
mustangs the “old cowboy way.”
“In the movies, those guys
jump on their backs and hang
on until the animal is subdued,”
he says. “That’s not the way to
break a horse. Kimber works
with them for several weeks
before ever getting them under
the saddle. It’s all about the
groundwork. They just need to
know what’s going on and what’s
expected of them. When they
figure that out, they usually don’t
even buck at all when Kimber
rides them the first time.”
Kimber quickly learned that
in contrast to a healthy dose of
spirit and intelligence, mustangs
usually arrive at their adoptive
home extremely malnourished.
“It’s just the nature of their
hard-scrabble lifestyles on the
plains,” she says. “They’re on
their own and rely on what the
earth can provide for them.
When we bring them into
domesticated life, we often find
them to be underweight with
poor coats and ragged manes.”
Early in 2011, she met
with Tennessee Farmers
Cooperative equine specialist
Kim Smith to develop a new
nutrition program and began
feeding Co-op Winner’s Cup
Advantage 1200 (#319).
“We use Advantage because
of the fat and protein it contains
along with all of the vitamins
and minerals,” she says. “Since
we started with it, I’ve gotten nothing but accolades and
compliments on how good my
horses look, how wonderfully
they’ve developed their muscular systems, the quality of their
manes and coats, and the evenness of their demeanor.”
The feed, she says, eliminates the “energy spikes” often
associated with high-sugar
“sweet feeds.”
“Just as humans don’t need
a lot of sugars and carbs in our
diets, the same is true with horses,” she explains. “They should
have high fiber and lots of protein, and that’s what Advantage
provides. Plus, they enjoy the
taste. They eat it up right away,
there is very little waste, and
because of the high quality, it
takes less to maintain them. My
feed bill has gone down since
I’ve switched to Advantage.”
Kimber says the feed works
equally well with all the horses
— usually between 10 and 15
— she keeps at any given time.
Along with providing other types
of equine services, including
riding lessons, she has fully saddle-trained five mustangs since
2009. Last year, she showed one
of her favorites, Blazing Wyo-
ming, to within four points of
a top 10 finish at the Extreme
Mustang Makeover at Murfreesboro’s Miller Coliseum.
Such was her attachment to
the horse, she decided to bid on
him herself. Bids usually begin
at $125 — the standard BLM
adoption fee — and Kimber and
Sam decided beforehand that
$500 was their maximum bid.
“You’re riding your mustang
around the coliseum during the
bid process, so you can only
hear what’s going on over the
PA,” she explains. “Well, $500
was the first bid, and it went
to $800 immediately after. I
was just devastated, and tears
were streaming down my face.
Then it went to $900, $1,000,
$1,300, and they said it was
over. I knew he was gone.”
Kimber quickly left the floor,
removed “Wy’s” saddle, and returned to the bidding area to find
out who had “won” the horse.
“I had to sign some papers to
release him, and as I went to do
that, the lady reached over and
shook my hand,” she recalls.
“She said, ‘Congratulations
— he’s yours.’ It was then I
realized that Sam had been the
high bidder. He actually bought
him for me. It still brings tears
to my eyes, and Wy and I have
had some great experiences
together since.”
Kimber says there’s a wonderful sense of fulfillment in
transforming wild mustangs
into highly skilled mounts.
“For one thing, they make
wonderful, skilled companion
horses,” she says. “Wyoming
loves cows, and you can rope off
of him, herd, whatever. I’ve seen
mustangs do English riding,
dressage, reining, hunter/jump-
As a longtime epilepsy patient, Kimber
says working closely with mustangs
has a calming affect and has nearly
eliminated her seizures.
ing, and just about everything
else. I’m currently training one
as a trail horse for returning
combat soldiers with post traumatic stress syndrome. Horses
just have a way of calming and
bringing out the best in people.”
A sense of purpose is important for the mustang, she adds.
“In the wild, a mustang stallion has to fight nearly every day
just to survive,” she says. “There
can be only one stallion in a
group or herd, and the others
are shunned out. Here, in addition to nutrition, shelter, and
protection, we can offer them a
job, of sorts. They can become
what I call ‘valuable citizens.’
They are calm, well-rounded,
and can handle life. And they
make life much better for the
people around them.”
For more
information
ABOVE: Maury Farmers Cooperative
salesman Rob Eubank visits with
Kimber and Blazing Wyoming. RIGHT:
Kimber gentles Stormy, gaining his trust
using low-stress techniques.
To learn more about
Circle G Ranch and
Equine Training Facility, call
Kimber at 931-205-8195.
mustang adoptions, visit
www.mustangheritage
foundation.org or
www.blm.gov. You can
also see Kimber and
Stormy in action at the
next Extreme Mustang
Makeover event Friday
through Sunday, Oct. 21-23,
at Murfreesboro’s Tennessee Miller Coliseum. For
details, visit www.extreme
mustangmakeover.com.
23
Arrington new UT Ag Institute chancellor
Larry Arrington, who has
worked at the University of
Florida (UF) since 1981, is the
new chancellor of the University
of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture (UTIA) in Knoxville. He
began his duties Sept. 12.
Arrington, most recently professor of agricultural education
and communication at UF, was
recommended by UT President
Joe DiPietro and named chancellor by the university’s Board
of Trustees.
“The University of Tennessee owes much of its statewide
presence to the Institute of
Agriculture,” DiPietro said in
announcing the hiring of Arrington. “It is a critical part
of UT’s overall mission as our
state’s land-grant institution,
and many citizens rely on the
Institute for guidance through
its programs in agriculture and
agricultural research, youth
development, education, veterinary medicine, family and
consumer sciences and community development.
“Larry is a nationally recognized administrator and an outstanding leader, and his prior
experience will serve UTIA very
well in his role as chancellor.
I worked closely with him at
the University of Florida, and I
know with certainty he will be
a great fit.”
Arrington served as interim
senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources at
UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences from 2009 to
2010. Prior to that, he was dean
of the Florida Extension Service
from 2004 to 2009.
“It is really great to be at the
University of Tennessee,” said
Arrington. “When I was invited
up here to look around, I found
a fantastic level of commitment
among our faculty and staff and
a real belief in what they do.
The enthusiasm was incredible.”
A native of Plant City, Fla.,
Arrington earned his bachelor’s
degree in agricultural and
extension education at UF, his
master’s in vocational education at the University of Georgia and his doctorate in agricultural and extension education
at the Ohio State University.
He and his wife, Candace, have
three children.
24
Arrington was presented the
Gene Trotter Agricultural Leadership Award in 2010 by the
Wedgworth Leadership Institute
and received the Association of
Public and Land-grant Universities Award for Service to the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy last year. He was
named a distinguished alumnus
by Ohio State’s College of Food,
Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences.
University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture (UTIA) Chancellor Dr. Larry Arrington,
center, and wife Candace talk with Bob Brinkmann during a recent UTIA donor lunch.
Co-op sponsoring Vols radio,
football game TV replays
To fans of the University of Tennessee Volunteers, it may not come as a surprise to learn
that Co-op has inked an agreement to be a
sponsor of Vol Network programming.
After all, several 30-second Co-op radio ads
have been running since the Vol football season
began back in August as part of announcer Bob
Kesling’s daily Vol Notebook reports. Each ad tackles a different subject, from wide-ranging support of the
cooperative system to Co-op’s vast product lines. These spots will
continue throughout the Vols’ basketball season, too.
A 30-second Co-op television commercial produced by TFC’s
Communications Department is also airing during weekly replays
of UT games on Knoxville Channel 30 and SportsSouth TV stations. In addition, Co-op ads are featured in UT’s football, men’s
basketball, and women’s basketball guidebooks.
“We’re proud and excited about this new relationship with the
Vol Network,” says Keith Harrison, Tennessee Farmers Cooperative marketing, advertising, and promotions coordinator. “Co-op
and UT fans just naturally intersect — our coverage is basically the
same — so it’s just a no-brainer that we should work together.”
Harrison says the Vol Network is composed of some 70 radio
stations statewide with coverage throughout Tennessee and into
its neighboring states. The television programming also reaches
a wide audience. Replays of UT football games are broadcast on
Knoxville Channel 30 Sunday at 7 p.m., and SportSouth channels
Sunday at 10 p.m., Monday at 8 p.m., and Tuesday at noon (all
times Eastern). The TV commercial can also be viewed on Co-op’s YouTube channel at http://youtu.be/PB2y9TKJnGk.
25
Music-molasses mixture makes for fun festival
Activities galore await visitors to this year’s event Oct. 15 and 16
W
hen Mark Guenther
of Mossy Pond hitches
his horse to the vintage sorghum mill at Ellington
Agricultural Center in Nashville
in mid-October, it’ll mark the
19th year for the Overton County farmer to show thousands of
curious visitors how old-time
molasses are made.
Mark and wife Sherrie are
among talented, dedicated
demonstrators who return year
after year for the Music & Molasses Arts & Crafts Festival, a
fund-raising event staged by the
Tennessee Agricultural Museum.
The 2011 festival is Saturday
and Sunday, Oct. 15 and 16,
from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday
and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.
Parking is free, and admission is
$5 (children 4 and under free).
The sweet smell of cooking molasses will mix with
the vibrant sounds of country,
bluegrass, and gospel music
as this year’s festival, with its
theme of “Country Comes to
Town,” spreads over the three-
26
acre hillside site. Two full days
of activities are planned for
the entire family, says Museum
Director Anne Dale.
“Of course, we’re fortunate to
have people like the Guenthers
who come year after year, but we
also have many others who will
be making their first appearances
here,” Dale says. “It all adds up
to plenty of things for visitors of
all ages to see, do, and enjoy.”
While the molasses-making
area will still be a centerpiece
of the activities, visitors will also
be drawn to the 20-foot teepee
of Native American musician
and storyteller JJ Kent of Mt.
Juliet. They can go inside to visit
with Kent and perhaps hear the
NAMMY (Native American Music Award) award-winning “2009
Flutist of the Year” play a tune.
“Two Cooks and a Fire” will
also appear for the first time
at this year’s festival. Over an
open fire, Phyllis Razo of Murfreesboro and fellow cook Terry
Carter will demonstrate cooking
equipment, recipes, and utensils
from the 19th century. They’ll
even orchestrate an old-fashioned taffy pull each afternoon.
Historic log cabins provide a
fitting backdrop for such activities as apple butter-cooking,
soap-making, and blacksmithing.
The popular Country Hollow
area will feature turned wooden
bowls, metal and wire sculptures, live plants, crafts, and
holiday decorations. Nearby will
be the Front Porch Market, an
enterprise launched last year by
volunteers who design and make
unique items to sell, with all
proceeds going to the museum.
Among the handmade pieces are
handsome walking canes carved
by Henry Russell from wood
of cherry and walnut trees that
once graced the lawn of the Governor’s Mansion in Nashville.
As always, children can participate in fun and educational
festival activities. Leading the
way will be the popular “Farmer
for a Day” attraction along with
making pottery and visiting with
“Sam the Balloon Man.” Young-
At a special Music & Molasses Festival
exhibit, noted historian E.J. Neeley of
Arrington will give a moving presentation,
“And So We Mourn,” about how
Tennesseans dealt with Civil War losses.
sters can feed and milk goats,
compete in stick horse races, and
pick their own pumpkins.
Festival visitors of all ages
can enjoy free wagon rides as
well as numerous musical
and entertainment acts. As for
food, a wide array will be offered — from salads and smoked
turkey legs to white beans and
cornbread, barbecue, burgers,
sandwiches, and fried Snickers.
For more information on the
festival, call 615-837-5197 or
visit tnagmuseum.org.
27
Tennessee’s Hidden History Dixona
Walls of time
Since before George Washington was president, Dixon Springs’
historic home, Dixona, has watched over Smith County
Story and photos by
Mark E. Johnson
Built by settler Tilman Dixon 223 years ago, “Dixona” is reputed to be the oldest home in Middle Tennessee. Located along Highway 25 at the Trousdale-Smith county line,
the home was, among other firsts, the first Smith County courthouse, the area’s first tavern, and a popular overnight stop for traveling dignitaries in the 19th century.
W
hen Tilman Dixon
carefully located
and built the twostory log cabin dubbed “Dixona” near a bubbling spring in
North Carolina, he had no idea
the structure would end up
squarely in Middle Tennessee,
having never moved an inch.
It was the map that moved —
not the cabin.
Dixona, reputed to be the
oldest house in Middle Tennessee and the genesis of the town
of Dixon Springs, was erected in
1788 — 11 years before North
Carolina was halved and the
western portion became America’s 16th state: Tennessee.
Dixon Springsl
“That’s a neat little fact,” says
Faith Young, Dixona’s owner
and resident and a customer of
Smith Farmers Cooperative. “It
was the first courthouse, first
tavern, first post office, the first
everything around here.”
There were, in fact, many
firsts associated with Dixona,
which is located along Highway 25 on the Trousdale-Smith
County line. In early 1787, Maj.
28
LEFT: In 1797, future King of France Louis Philippe slept in this bedroom on the second floor of the log portion of the home.
RIGHT: Smith Farmers Cooperative customer Faith Young has owned and lived in the home since the late 1960s.
Tilman Dixon and Col. William
Walton, both lauded Revolutionary War soldiers, arrived in the
region to stake out their military land grants — the first two
recorded in the area that would
become Tennessee. Issued
March 14, 1786, Tilman’s grant
was for 3,840 acres along newly
named “Dixon Creek.” Five
years earlier, Tilman had been
part of a survey team commissioned by the North Carolina
Assembly to explore lands along
the Cumberland River, and the
soldier had taken special note of
the Smith County area.
“In those days, you apparently
had to be a jack-of-all-trades,”
says Stephen Young, a Nashville
attorney and son of Faith and
her late husband, Billy. “Tilman was not only the area’s first
settler, but he served as the first
postmaster, was one of the first
magistrates, and was the first
merchant and tavern-keeper. We
don’t know much about him personally other than he frequently
wore deerskins, enjoyed playing cards, and was a decorated
soldier.”
In fact, says Stephen, Tilman was noteworthy enough
as a Revolutionary War soldier
that he was mentioned specifically in a correspondence from
George Washington. This
reputation as a leading citizen
apparently followed him to his
new homestead, because in the
years after Dixona was built, the
home became not only a regional
gathering hub but also a popular overnight stop for dignitaries traveling between Knoxville
and Nashville. Included among
these were Revolutionary War
hero and first Tennessee Governor John Sevier and U.S.
Constitution signer William
Blount, who was instrumental in
the creation of the state of Tennessee.
In 1797, Dixona was even
visited by Louis Philippe — then
French Duke of Orleans and
later King of France. He was
traversing America on an itinerary laid out personally by Gen.
Washington, and in his diary
(published later to much commercial success), the Duke noted
that his traveling party “had, at
Major Dixon’s, the luxury of coffee and two beds for four.”
By the standards of the day,
the cabin was roomy enough
to handle a larger-than-average
contingent, but family legend
has it that the Frenchman rudely
demanded more space.
“They say that Philippe was
dissatisfied with his sleeping arrangements,” says Stephen with
a laugh. “He apparently wasn’t
happy that he was rooming with
Tilman’s two sons. The story
goes that Philippe said, ‘I’m a
prince and need a room of my
own,’ to which Tilman replied,
‘Well, my sons are princes, too,
and they’ll be in there with you!’”
Despite the Duke’s misgivings,
Dixona continued to emerge as
the region’s center of government and commerce. After
Smith County’s creation in 1799,
the county’s tribunals were held
there, and it became the Smith
County Court House for a time,
all the while operating as a tavern as well. During these years,
Smith County encompassed a
much larger area — some 135
by 100 miles — which no doubt
created lots of activity for Dixona
and often necessitated Gov.
Sevier’s presence at the home,
according to county records.
After Tilman’s death in 1816,
the property began changing
hands and became predominantly used as a private residence. It
passed into the family of Col.
James Vaughn, who decided to
enlarge it, and in 1858 added
two large, identical brick wings
and double porches, more than
doubling the size to upwards of
4,500 square feet. Only four
years later, Federal and Confederate troops clashed just a few
miles away to the west in the
Battle of Hartsville, but unlike
many large homes near Civil War
battlefields, Dixona was apparently unaffected.
“I’ve never heard mention of
the war in connection with this
LEFT: The Victorian design of the rooms of the brick wings, added in 1858, contrasts the rough log walls of the original section.
RIGHT: This vintage drum and many of the home’s other furnishings are correct for the time period, but not original to Dixona.
LEFT: The farm’s smokehouse, left, and kitchen house are believed to have been built at the same time as the main house.
RIGHT: Faith shares a laugh with her son, Stephen, left, and Smith Farmers Cooperative Manager Phillip Evitts.
place,” says Faith. “They didn’t
use it for a hospital, nor did they
shoot any bullet holes into it.”
Not much is known about the
home after the Civil War years
until it was purchased by Samuel
Martin Young — Billy’s grandfather — in the early 1900s.
It has remained in the Young
family ever since, and today the
exposed, hand-hewed beams and
logs are still strong and straight
and the foundation as stable as
the day it was laid. Facing due
south and shaded by towering
oaks and maples, the structure’s
natural air-conditioning — a
gentle breeze moving through
strategically opened windows —
has served its many generations
of inhabitants dutifully throughout some 223 years, even on the
hottest of summer days.
“The house was rented to various folks in the ’20s and ’30s, up
until Dad returned from World
War II in the mid-1940s,” says
Stephen. “He moved back in
and lived here until he passed
away in 2005.”
Stephen describes his father
as a “Renaissance man” who
would’ve been at home with the
likes of Tilman Dixon himself.
“Dad was a surveyor, hunter,
and fisherman and was a state
senator,” Stephen says. “He
even did great rockwork around
the foundation of the house. He
loved this place and was constantly working on it, making
improvements. And, of course,
Dad spent a lot of his time farming and raising cattle.”
Although historical record is
spotty on the subject, it is likely
that agriculture has been constant on the farm from the day
Tilman moved in. Stephen says
he recalls mention of the settler
raising commercial crops with,
possibly, slave labor. Remaining
just behind the residence are a
smokehouse and kitchen house
— both of which are believed
to have been built by Tilman —
that were used by the Youngs
until recent years to slaughter
hogs and cure meats. Now in
her mid-80s, Faith still has a
50-head herd of polled Hereford
cattle, the breed Billy introduced
to the farm in the 1960s.
“I’m still raising cattle,” Faith
says with a smile. “I’ve got help,
but I do the parts that appeal to
me, which is breeding them and
preparing them for sale. I probably spend three or four hours a
day dealing with them. We also
used to have corn and tobacco
but stopped those some years
back. And I can remember there
being 200 chickens on the place,
flapping around and roosting on
the porches.”
In an effort to protect the
home and farm — comprising
only 150 of the original 3,840
acres — Faith contracted with
the Land Trust for Tennessee in
2007 to donate the property as a
conservation easement, ensuring that the scenic, wildlife, and
agricultural resources of the land
will be permanently protected
and restrictions will be placed on
future development.
“Honestly, I can’t imagine
being able to do this and choosing not to do it,” she says. “I love
open spaces, and I want others
to be able to enjoy them, too.
[The conservation easement] will
ensure that my son’s children
and their descendants will be
able to come here and hunt and
fish and simply enjoy the place.
It just makes me happy to know
that Dixona will be protected
from now on.”
To arrange for a private tour
of Dixona, email Faith Young at
fthyoung@aol.com. To learn
more about conservation easements, visit the website of the
Land Trust for Tennessee at
www.landtrusttn.org.
29
30
Past TFC director Graham
dies at his Newport home
An effective leader, James R. Graham was
a dedicated champion of the Co-op cause,
serving as president of his local Cocke
Farmers Cooperative and chairman of the
board of Tennessee Farmers Cooperative.
James R. (Jim) Graham, an
award-winning farmer who
served on Tennessee Farmers
Cooperative’s board of directors
from 1985-91, died Sept. 9 at
his Newport home at age 75.
Funeral services were Sept. 12
at First United Methodist
Church in Newport where Mr.
Graham served on the Administrative Board and was active
in his Sunday School class.
Burial was in Newport’s Union
Cemetery.
Born in Jefferson County to
the late William A. and Myrtle
Seals Graham, Mr. Graham was
also preceded in death by his
wife, Yvonne Ladd Graham, in
2005 and a son, John Howard
Graham, in 1994. He is survived by three daughters, Julie
Graham Walker, Elizabeth Graham Parker, and Nancy Graham
Brawley; another son, James R.
(Jay) Graham; seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Mr. Graham was raised on
a farm in Loudon County. He
graduated from Loudon High
School and received an associate degree in agriculture from
the University of Tennessee in
Knoxville in 1957. After returning home in 1958 to manage
the family dairy farm when his
father was stricken with cancer,
Mr. Graham was named Tennessee Jaycees Young Farmer of
the Year in l959.
The Grahams moved to
Cocke County in 1969 where
they established a 1,500-acre
farming operation that included
corn, soybeans, wheat, and tobacco. In 1980, while farming
in partnership with son Jay, Mr.
Graham was named Tennessee/
Lancaster Southeastern Farmer
on the Year in 1980 by the Sunbelt Expo in Moultrie, Ga.
Farmer-owned cooperatives
played in important role in Mr.
Graham’s life and career as a
farmer and agribusinessman.
He was a member of Cocke
Farmers Cooperative for some
40 years, serving several times
as a director and three years as
board president. In 1984, he
was elected to a seven-year term
on TFC’s board of directors and
was chairman in 1991.
When TFC celebrated its
50th anniversary in 1995, Mr.
Graham pointed to unity as one
of the real strengths of the Co-op
system in Tennessee. “In our
federated system, we work from
local Co-ops up, and I think
that gives us more strength and
stability in our organization,” he
said 16 years ago. “There’s a lot
of camaraderie in our organization … making us stronger.”
Besides his Co-op affiliation,
Mr. Graham was at various times
chairman of the Cocke County
Commission, president of the
Cocke County Farm Bureau,
chairman of the Cocke County
Natural Resources Conservation
Service, and chairman of the
Farmers Home Administration of
Cocke and Hamblen counties.
31
A crowd estimated at 1,000 people, including beef producers, vendors, Co-op employees, ag industry professionals, and
special guests attended the Aug. 23 Co-op Knows Beef Bonanza field day at Miller Coliseum in Murfreesboro. The event was
created by Co-op planners to offer networking, fellowship, educational, and customer appreciation opportunities.
‘Standing room only’
In only its second year, Co-op Knows Beef Bonanza field day
packs the house at Miller Coliseum in Murfreesboro
Story and photos by
Mark E. Johnson
I
n just its second year, the
Co-op Knows Beef Bonanza has firmly established
itself as one of the premier
beef-related field days in Tennessee. A casual glance at the
Miller Coliseum parking lot,
meeting rooms, and lunch line
at the Aug. 23 event in Murfreesboro left no doubt that
Bonanza had arrived.
Murfreesboro
l
TOP: Tennessee Farmers Cooperative
Farm Hardware product specialist
Eric Saddler, right, visits with farmers
at a Co-op booth. ABOVE: TFC staff
veterinarian Dr. Kevin Cox conducts a
seminar.
32
“It was standing room only,”
said Keith Harrison, Tennessee
Farmers Cooperative marketing, advertising and promotions
coordinator and one of the
event’s organizers. “You literally couldn’t fit another person
into the meeting room during
several of the educational seminars. It was an exciting day.”
Following the model of the
inaugural Bonanza in Morristown in 2009, along with
several Beef Extravaganza field
days conducted by Mid-South
Farmers Cooperative, the event
featured three educational seminars, two demonstrations, and
a 54-vendor trade show that
filled the coliseum floor and
a large section of the venue’s
perimeter walkway.
Apparently, said Harrison,
the itinerary and pre-event
publicity struck a chord with
prospective attendees.
“We estimate that more than
1,000 people attended,” reported Harrison. “This includes
farmers, vendors, industry
partners, Co-op employees, and
special guests. Member Co-ops
arranged for 10 passenger buses
and five large vans to transport
attendees, and many farmers
drove themselves to the event.
We really credit the member
Co-op managers and employees for getting the word out
as well as the tireless work of
the planning committee led by
Williamson Farmers Cooperative Manager Larry Dale and
Lawrence Farmers Cooperative
Manager Damon Deese.”
Seminars conducted during
the event included “Managing the Cow Herd to Maximize
Reproductive Efficiency” by Dr.
Justin Rhinehart, University of
Tennessee beef cattle Extension
specialist; “Managing Nutrition
for Maximum Reproduction,”
Dr. Gary Bates, UT Extension
forage specialist, and Royce
Towns, with TFC’s Animal Nutrition Division; and “Healthy
Beef Trends,” Valerie Bass, Tennessee Beef Industry Council.
Rhinehart said it’s rare to
have such a large crowd assembled for an educational seminar.
“There were around 450
[attendees] at the two seminars
I presented,” he said. “The producers were very serious about
it, and I think they left the event
with some very valuable beef
production information for their
farms.”
Two demonstrations held on
the coliseum floor were also
well attended — “Bull and Cow
Reproduction” by Dr. Kevin
Cox, TFC staff veterinarian, and
“Injection Site Management”
by Dr. Jody Wade, B.I. Technical Services veterinarian. Cox’s
demonstration included a realtime breeding soundness exam
of a bull and a heifer reproductive soundness evaluation, and
Wade stressed the importance
of proper vaccination techniques using real-life examples.
Harrison deemed the trade
show a “resounding success”
with vendors representing
everything from hay equipment
to animal health products. Jason
Jones, territory sales manager
for livestock scales manufacturer Tru-Test, said the turnout
was “over the top.”
“I set up booths at many producer trade shows in the eastern
U.S., and this was easily one of
the best that I have worked,”
Jason said. “From 8:30 that
morning until after lunch was
served, I didn’t even have time
to go get a soft drink. Producers
consistently visited the booth,
and they all had great questions
and legitimate interest in the
products. I’m looking forward to
the next Beef Bonanza.”
Although a date hasn’t been
chosen, Harrison said, planners
are already looking into another
Bonanza. He urges producers to
“stay tuned.”
“An event like this requires
an enormous amount of planning, but the importance of
the beef industry in the Southeast will undoubtedly prompt
another Co-op Knows Beef
Bonanza sometime in the near
future,” Harrison said, noting
that cattle and calves led Tennessee’s agricultural enterprises
in 2010 with cash receipts of
some $540 million. “Along with
other seminars and demonstrations as well as the expertise of
the product managers and the
technical and field staff of the
cooperative system, the Co-op
Knows Beef Bonanza is just
another way Co-op can demonstrate its commitment to the
beef industry in our region.”
A standing-room-only crowd packs the Miller Club, a meeting room at Miller
Coliseum, for a seminar conducted by Dr. Justin Rhinehart regarding cow herd
reproductive efficiency. Organizers say several of the day’s seminars were heavily
attended as were the two demonstrations held in the arena.
33
learned
a bunch
Daily milkings have been occurring at Brady Dairy since 1921.
Here, Johnny and dairy employee Mark Hall are hard at work
during a recent afternoon milking.
LEFT: Riceville dairyman Johnny Brady is the newest Tennessee Farmers Cooperative director, elected in November 2010 to serve Zone 3 in East Tennessee. He and
youngest son Scott milk 100 head of registered Jersey cows twice daily and grow corn, orchardgrass, and Bermudagrass at their 300-acre southern McMinn County
property. ABOVE: Johnny treasures the moments he gets to spend with family, including looking at farm equipment with his 2-year-old grandson, Nate.
J
ohnny Brady’s shirt is
sweat-soaked after mending a fence on his 300-acre
Riceville dairy farm, but that
doesn’t seem to matter to the
young visitor waiting for him
when he arrives home.
Riceville
l
It’s Johnny’s 2-year-old
grandson, Nate Brady, who
hops up in “Papaw’s” lap to
look at farm equipment pictured in a sales publication.
“Big tractors!” Nate exclaims as he points, wide-eyed,
at a page featuring several of
these colossal machines of
little boys’ dreams.
Johnny and “Nana” — Cathy,
34
his wife of 32 years — exchange
ear-to-ear grins as the younger
of son Steven’s two boys excitedly flips through the pages.
Nate’s older brother, Noah, is a
kindergartener at Rogers Creek
Elementary School in Athens,
where Steven teaches math.
“Nate loves tractors,” the
proud grandfather says. “His
dad was the same way when he
was that age.”
Johnny says he, too, knew
from an early age that farming
— dairying in particular — was
what he was destined to do
with his life. Today, he and son
Scott milk around 100 head of
registered Jersey cows at the
same property where Johnny’s
late grandfather, Fletcher, and
father, Uyless, started dairy-
ing together in 1946. Fletcher
established this property and
milked the first cows in 1921.
“It’s always been a family-run
operation,” says Johnny, who
notes that his cows average 50
pounds of milk per day with 4.7
percent butterfat. “We take a
great deal of pride in the milk
that we produce and the quality
of our herd. And having Scott
here working side-by-side with
me each day has been one of
the most enjoyable things I have
ever experienced. He’s been an
integral part of our success.”
Johnny says he grew up
“learning the value of hard
work and being true to your
morals and Christianity” from
Uyless and mother Josephine,
who, at age 90 and 88, respec-
tively, still live in the family
farmhouse across Spring Creek
from where Johnny and Cathy,
their daughter Shelby, a student at Tennessee Wesleyan
College, and Scott reside.
“I was interested in farming from the get-go,” declares
Johnny, who has 33 head of
registered Angus cattle in addition to the dairy and raises
silage corn, orchardgrass, and
Bermudagrass. “I could do basically any job on the farm when
I was still in grade school and
learned to A.I. cattle when I
was just 13 years old. My father
had an old saying that I still
apply to my life and work today:
‘If you tell somebody you will
do it, then you do it [even] if it
takes the hide off.’”
This same philosophy is what
Johnny says he has witnessed
during his first year on Tennessee Farmers Cooperative’s board,
to which he was elected last
November to a three-year term
representing Zone 3. Johnny,
who’s also a director of his local
Valley Farmers Cooperative,
succeeded fellow Valley member
and dairyman Lowry “Whitey”
Dougherty of Madisonville on
TFC’s nine-member board.
“It’s gone very well thus far,”
Johnny says of his initial year
on the state board. “There have
been a lot of pleasant surprises.
I’ve seen how professionally the
business is handled and how
TFC, with due diligence, researches everything it undertakes. I’ve been very impressed
with how TFC works to ensure
Co-ops throughout the system
are on a level playing field.”
In making the rounds to most
of the Co-ops in his East Tennessee zone over the past year,
Johnny says he has enjoyed the
opportunity to see the similarities and differences in each of
these locally owned business.
“It’s an eye-opening experience to meet employees and
boards of the local Co-ops and
hear how they are trying to reach
people beyond the boundaries of
everyday agriculture,” he points
out. “I always leave impressed by
their knowledge and understanding of why the Co-op system
exists.”
Johnny adds that his time on
Valley’s board and the fact that
he is a full-time farmer have
been helpful in communicating
with other Co-ops and his fellow TFC directors. Success on
both levels, he says, sometimes
involves taking risks and making
unpopular decisions.
“When we started building
the new [Valley Farmers Co-op]
store in Athens a couple of years
ago, 99 percent of the people
thought we were doing it at
the wrong time because of the
economy,” admits Johnny, who
credits now-retired Valley manager Freddy Brewster and his
successor, John Walker, for their
leadership in the process. “We
actually rebid the project, got a
cheaper quote, and went ahead
with it. We’re serving a much
wider customer base now, and
our numbers are proving that it
was a wise choice.”
Johnny and Scott, center, talk with Valley Farmers Cooperative sales associate
Travis Crisp about the animal nutrition program in place for their dairy herd.
The Bradys are Valley members and Johnny serves on the Co-op’s board.
While acknowledging that
each Co-op faces its own
unique set of circumstances,
Johnny says there’s one key element to the road ahead for the
system as a whole: service.
“We must deliver on our
common goal of being the
easiest company to do business
with,” he stresses. “We must
offer the best value for the dollar yet still be competitive and
return a dividend to members
at the end of the year.
“Sometimes it frustrates me
when someone says, ‘I can buy
this product cheaper at another
place,’” he adds. “I say, ‘Do
you want your dividend check
back at the end of the year?’
Co-op has to make money for
that check to be available. I
don’t expect us to always be the
cheapest, but we should be the
one that very similar businesses
will set their prices by.”
Johnny says he’s always
spoken his mind, both negative and positive, on business
matters. And he believes the
“great group of people” on the
TFC board and at local Co-ops
appreciate this quality.
“No one takes anything personally,” says Johnny. “Everyone
has their own opinions, and
you learn to respect that. Regardless of the situation, I try
to keep a level head and be the
same person day in, day out.”
35
36
Cow/calf conference is Nov. 2
Dr. Ron Gill, known for his
work in Extension as well as
the stockmanship demonstrations and clinics he conducts
across the U.S., will be keynote
speaker at the Kentucky Tennessee Cow/Calf Conference on
Wednesday, Nov. 2, at the University of Tennessee Highland
Rim AgResearch and Education
Center in Springfield.
During his cattle work-
ing demonstration, Gill, the
program leader for Extension
animal science and associate
department head at Texas A&M
University, will be sharing Four
Basic Principles of Livestock
Behavior and how they can be
used to make cattle-handling
easier. This will be a live,
hands-on demonstration that is
sure to educate even the most
experienced cattleman.
This one-day conference
— a cooperative effort of the
Extension arms of UT and the
University of Kentucky — runs
from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and costs
$25 per participant. Activities
will also include tours of the
Highland Rim campus conducted by the individuals doing
the research and real-world
cattle-grading by Mark Barnett,
owner of Kentucky/Tennessee
Livestock Market. Breakfast,
lunch, and meeting materials
will be provided.
Preregistration is encouraged but not required. For
more information or to register,
contact Brad Greenfield at
615-446-2788.
Highland Rim AgResearch
and Education Center is located at 3181 Experiment Station
Road in Springfield.
Master Goat
Producer class
set Nov. 4, 5
Goat producers will have a
special educational opportunity with an upcoming Master
Meat Goat Producer Course
planned for Friday, Nov. 4,
and Saturday, Nov. 5, at the
Tennessee Farm Bureau Federation Building at 147 Bear
Creek Pike in Columbia.
The class, conducted by
the University of Tennessee
Extension and Tennessee State
University, runs from 1 p.m.
through 9 p.m. on Friday and
reconvenes on Saturday at
8 a.m., concluding at 4 p.m.
Supper on Friday and lunch on
Saturday will be provided. Organizers say intensive sessions
are planned so that interested
producers can avoid tying
up the eight nights it would
normally take to complete the
comprehensive materials.
Participants who attend all
sessions will receive a Master
Meat Goat Producer Manual
and a certificate of completion
The cost to complete the
program is $150 per person or
$50 if a participant has a state
Premises ID number. Registration is limited to 50 people,
and the deadline for registration is Oct. 15.
Contact Richard Groce at
931-375-5301 or rgroce@utk.
edu for registration information or Ricky Skillington at
931-359-1929 or rskillin@
utk.edu for program details.
Additional information and
a registration form can be
accessed online at: http://
cpa.utk.edu/workshops/
MMGP2011.html.
37
What’s Cookin’?
Chew
on this!
Gooey goodness of caramel brings
flavor of fall to variety of recipes
M
ore than just a stick-to-your-teeth treat
on autumn apples and in Halloween
buckets, caramel lends its salty, sweet
flavor and gooey, chewy texture to a wide variety
of luscious dishes and desserts.
Here’s an interesting fact about caramels: the color comes
from a reaction between the sugar and the protein in cream.
Called the Maillard reaction after the French scientist who discovered it, this is the same chemical process that happens when
you toast nuts, barbecue meats, or put on self-tanning lotion.
Have a glass of milk nearby when you try the rich, chocolaty “Fall Fest Bars,” a recipe submitted by Lucille Harrison of
Greeneville. This colorful recipe combines a brownie-like base
with layers of chocolate chips and melted caramel accented
with toasted walnuts and a sprinkling of holiday candies.
“These are great for football tailgaters and Halloween parties,” says Lucille, our Cook-of-the-Month for October/November.
Other recipes featured are Peach Caramel Cobbler, Ultimate
Caramel-Chocolate Pecan Pie, Caramel Apple Crunch, Cashew
Caramel Fudge, Fruit and Caramel Brie, Banana Turtle Cake,
and Rice Krispies Candy Deluxe.
Enjoy!
These colorful caramel-laden Fall Fest Bars will be the hit of tailgate parties or Halloween
festivities, says our Cook-of-the-Month for October/November, Lucille Harrison. — Photo by Mark E. Johnson, food styling by Allison Morgan
Clip, save, and serve
Fall Fest Bars
October/November 2011 winning recipe
What you will need:
Directions:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Preheat oven to 350º. Spray with cooking oil and
dust with cocoa powder in a 13-x-9-x-2-inch baking
pan. Melt caramels in a heavy saucepan with 1⁄3 cup
evaporated milk over low heat. When caramels have
melted, remove from heat and set aside.
In a large bowl combine cake mix, margarine,
remaining 1⁄3 cup evaporated milk, and walnuts. Stir
until well mixed. Press half of dough into prepared
pan, reserving the rest for topping. Bake for six minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips
over baked crust; drizzle caramel mixture over chocolate chips. Crumble remaining dough mixture over
caramels and sprinkle with M&Ms.
Return to oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes.
Cool slightly; cover and refrigerate for at least 30
minutes before slicing with a pizza cutter. Store
brownies in refrigerator in a covered container.
1 (14-ounce package) light caramels
2
⁄3 cup evaporated milk, divided
1 box chocolate cake mix
2
⁄3 cup margarine, melted
1 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
1 cup chocolate chips
1
⁄2 cup M&M candies
Lucille Harrison, Greeneville, Greene Farmers Cooperative
38
Peach Caramel
Cobbler
1 (29-ounce) can sliced
peaches
1
⁄4 cup all-purpose flour
1
⁄4 teaspoon sugar
1
⁄2 teaspoon grated lemon
rind
1 (11-ounce) package
refrigerated caramel
danish rolls with nuts
3
⁄4 cup ginger ale
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
Drain peaches; reserve 1 cup
liquid, set aside. Combine flour,
sugar, lemon rind, and nut mixture
from package of rolls. Stir in ginger ale and reserved liquid. Cook
until smooth and thick. Add margarine and peaches; bring to a boil.
Pour mixture into lightly greased
8-inch pan. Separate rolls and ar-
range on top. Bake at 355º for 18
to 25 minutes or until brown.
Yield: Eight servings.
Dorothy Jean Beckham
Waynesboro
Wayne Farmers Cooperative
T
Ultimate
Caramel-Chocolate
Pecan Pie
Crust:
2 cups chopped pecans
1
⁄4 cup sugar
1
⁄2 stick butter
Filling:
1 package caramels
1
⁄4 cup milk
1 cup chopped pecans
1 (8-ounce) package
chocolate
1
⁄3 cup milk
1
⁄4 cup powdered sugar
1
⁄2 teaspoon vanilla
Mix crust ingredients and
press into 9-inch pie pan. Bake
at 350º for 12-15 minutes.
Melt caramels with 1⁄4 cup milk
over low heat; stir often. Pour
over cooled crust and sprinkle
with pecans. Stir together chocolate, 1⁄3 cup milk, powdered sugar,
and vanilla over low heat, stirring
often. Pour over caramel-pecan
filling. Refrigerate and serve with
whipped topping.
Jim Buck
Pall Mall
Fentress Farmers Cooperative
T
Caramel Apple
Crunch
8 cups sliced, peeled tart
apples
33 caramels, divided
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons milk, divided
3
⁄4 cup all-purpose flour
3
⁄4 cup quick-cooking oats
3
⁄4 cup packed brown sugar
1
⁄2 cup chopped walnuts
1
⁄8 teaspoon salt
Dash ground cinnamon
1
⁄2 cup cold butter
Vanilla ice cream, optional
Place apples in a greased 13-x9-x-2-inch baking dish. In a heavy
saucepan or microwave, melt 25
caramels with 2 tablespoons milk,
stirring often. Drizzle over apples.
In a bowl, combine flour, oats,
brown sugar, walnuts, salt, and
cinnamon; cut in butter until
mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Sprinkle over apples. Bake at 375º
for 45-50 minutes or until golden
brown. Cool for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a heavy saucepan or microwave, melt remaining caramels with remaining
milk, stirring often until smooth.
Drizzle over dessert and ice
cream, if desired.
Yield: 12-16 servings.
Marie Patterson
Taft
Lincoln Farmers Cooperative
T
Cashew Caramel
Fudge
2 teaspoons plus 1⁄2 cup
butter (no substitutes),
softened, divided
1 (5-ounce) can evaporated
milk
21⁄2 cups sugar
2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1 (7-ounce) jar marshmallow
creme
24 caramels, quartered
3
⁄4 cup salted cashew halves
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Line a 9-inch square baking
pan with foil; grease foil with the
2 teaspoons butter. Set aside.
In a large heavy saucepan,
combine milk, sugar, and remaining butter. Cook and stir
over medium heat until sugar is
dissolved. Bring to a rapid boil;
boil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir
in chocolate chips and marshmallow creme until melted. Fold
in caramels, cashews, and vanilla; mix well. Pour into prepared
pan. Cool. Remove from the
pan and cut into 1-inch squares.
Store at room temperature.
Yield: Approximately 3 pounds.
Theresa Patterson
Taft
Lincoln Farmers Cooperative
T
Fruit and Caramel
Brie
1 (8-ounce) round Brie
cheese, rind removed
1
⁄3 cup caramel ice cream
topping
1
⁄4 cup dried cranberries
1
⁄4 cup chopped dried apples
1
⁄4 cup chopped walnuts
1 (1-pound) French bread
baguette, sliced and
toasted
Place Brie in a microwavesafe bowl. In a small bowl,
combine caramel topping,
cranberries, apples, and walnuts. Spread over Brie. Microwave, uncovered, on high for
60-90 seconds or until cheese
is heated through and slightly
melted. Serve with toasted
baguette slices.
Yield: Eight servings.
Mildred H. Edwards
Lebanon
Wilson Farmers Cooperative
T
Banana Turtle Cake
1 box super moist Devil’s
Food cake mix
1 cup buttermilk
1
⁄3 cup water
1
⁄2 cup plus 2 teaspoons vegetable oil, divided
3 eggs
2 medium bananas, finely
chopped
1 (14-ounce) bag caramels,
unwrapped
1
⁄2 cup evaporated milk
11⁄3 cups semisweet chocolate chips, divided
1 cup chopped pecans
Preheat oven to 350º. Lightly
spray the bottom only of a 13-x9-inch pan with nonstick cooking
spray. Beat cake mix, buttermilk,
water, 1⁄2 cup oil, and eggs in
large bowl on low speed for one
minute, scraping bowl as needed.
Pour half the batter into pan.
Bake 25 minutes.
Melt caramels with evaporated
milk in saucepan over medium
heat, stirring frequently until
smooth. Stir in pecans.
Sprinkle warm cake evenly
with bananas; pour caramel
mixture over top. Sprinkle with
1 cup chocolate chips. Carefully
spread remaining batter over top.
Bake another 30 minutes.
In a small saucepan over low
heat, melt 1⁄3 cup chocolate chips
and 2 teaspoons oil; stir constantly until smooth. Drizzle over
cake. Bake for 20 minutes.
Wayne Kreis
Wartburg
Scott Morgan
Farmers Cooperative
T
Rice Krispies
Candy Deluxe
2 sticks butter, divided
8 cups mini marshmallows
8 cups Rice Krispies
1 (14-ounce) bag caramels,
unwrapped
1 can sweetened condensed
milk
Heat 1 stick butter and
marshmallows in a double boiler
until melted. Add Rice Krispies.
Divide mixture in two portions;
press half into a 2-x-9-x-13-inch
pan. Melt 1 stick butter, caramels,
and milk until smooth. Pour over
Rice Krispies in pan, and then
repeat first layer.
Rhonda Coblentz
Guthrie, Ky.
Montgomery Farmers Cooperative
Facebook exclusive!
We receive so many great recipes
each month, we can’t print them all!
But you can visit us on Facebook for
more recipes available only to fans of
our page. In October and November,
we’re featuring “Brownie Caramel
Cheesecake.” Visit www.facebook.com/
TennesseeFarmersCooperative and click
on “Notes” to get the recipe.
Breakfast for supper in January
During the dreary, cold days of January,
comfort food can serve as a pick-me-up
when we’re dreaming of warmer weather.
And there’s nothing more comforting
than having breakfast for supper — especially since many of us don’t have time
to cook a real breakfast in the morning.
We’re featuring your favorite “breakfast
for supper” recipes in our January “What’s cookin’?” column. The person
submitting the best recipe will be named Cook-of-the-Month and receive
$10. Others sending recipes chosen for publication will receive $5.
Monday, Dec. 5, is the deadline for submitting these recipes.
Don’t forget: Only recipes with complete, easy-to-follow instructions
will be considered for publication. Several recipes are disqualified each
month because they do not contain all the information needed to prepare
the dishes successfully. Recipes featured in “What’s cookin’?” are not independently tested, so we must depend on the accuracy of the cooks sending
them. Always use safe food-handling, preparation, and cooking procedures.
Send entries to: Recipes, Tennessee Cooperator, P.O. Box 3003,
LaVergne, TN 37086. You can submit more than one recipe in the same
envelope. You can also e-mail them to: amorgan@ourcoop.com. Be
sure to include your name, address, telephone number, and the Co-op
with which you do business. Recipes that appear in the “What’s cookin’?”
column will also be published on our website at www.ourcoop.com.
39
TOP LEFT: A vintage photo of the Armstrong Pie Company operations from the 1950s shows how a team of workers made the scrumptious fried pies
mostly by hand. The company was started by Billie Armstrong in 1946 in Hohenwald. RIGHT: Dalyn and Bert Patterson bought the company in 2007 and
relocated it to a renovated hardware store in their hometown of Linden in Perry County. LEFT: Today, many of the pie-making processes have been
automated, but it still takes dedicated workers like, from left, Sherry Wilson, Michelle Bell, and Joanne Warren to turn out quality products.
Turnover makeover
Bert and Dalyn Patterson revitalize 65-year-old Armstrong Pie Company
Story and photos by Allison Morgan
T
he story is as American
as … well … apple pie.
A small business is born
from humble beginnings, experiences overwhelming success,
expands into new markets, and
creates jobs in the community.
And this particular business —
Armstrong Pie Company — has
repeated this success story at
least twice in its history.
The company was founded
in 1946 by Billie Armstrong,
a skilled cook and savvy entrepreneur who began making
scrumptious Southern fried
pies in her Hohenwald home
and selling them to eager
friends and neighbors. When
demand outgrew her own
kitchen around 1950, she and
husband Avery opened a bakery
in downtown Hohenwald and
operated the popular business
there until Billie died in 1984
at age 72.
40
After her death, the company
was sold and moved to Centerville, where it remained until
2005 when it was relocated to
Phil Campbell, Ala. Two years
later, Linden businessman Bert
Patterson learned the company
was up for sale.
l
Linden
“Armstrong Pies had been a
really big company years ago, but
it had dwindled down to a small
production with a limited delivery route,” says Bert, a native of
Perry County. “I’ve eaten these
pies all my life and so have many
people around here, and I didn’t
want to let that tradition die.”
Bert had retired in 2006
after owning and operating a
wide range of businesses —
from a motel and mobile phone
company to a clothing factory
and car washes — and told
his wife, Dalyn, that the pie
making equipment. While it
company would be just his remade logistical sense to move
tirement “hobby.” She says she
the factory near their home, the
knew better from the get-go.
“I think he felt like this would Pattersons, customers of Perry
be more nostalgic than anything, Farmers Cooperative, say it was
also a chance to bolster the econbut it’s ended up as a full-time
omy of the county, which has
job for both of us,” says Dalyn,
suffered from some of the state’s
who also owns a Shelter Insurhighest unemployment rates
ance agency and a Merle Norafter its auto parts factory closed
man Cosmetics business in Linin 2008. Most of Armstrong’s 12
den. “Bert’s just that way. He’s a
employees are displaced workers,
businessman, and he’s not going
a special point of pride for Bert.
to do anything as a hobby for
long. He’s going to make it
a full-blown business.”
Since then, the Pattersons have given the
company a complete
makeover that’s paying
off tremendously. Their
first step was to move
the factory to downtown
Linden — about 15 miles
from where it originated in
Hohenwald — setting up
shop in an old hardware
store that they renovated Judy Kelley captures freshly packaged turnovers
and outfitted with pieand stacks them in crates for delivery.
“Born and raised here, I
wanted to help out the community as much as possible
with job opportunities and tax
dollars,” says Bert. “We have
excellent employees who seem
to be very grateful for their jobs,
and they all get along and keep
everything running smoothly.
That’s something we don’t have
to worry about at all.”
Since the new factory opened
for business in September 2008,
those employees have helped
the Pattersons grow the Armstrong brand to pie-in-the-sky
heights, from 60,000 pies a
year when they purchased the
company four years ago to more
than 800,000 pies today. Where
Armstrong Home Style Turnovers could once only be found
locally, they’re now in supermarkets and convenience stores
from Florida to West Virginia.
“They were only in about
60 places before,” says Bert.
“Now, we deliver to 940 stops
ourselves, not counting the distributors we work with. There’s
no telling how many locations
they’ve got.”
Improving some of the
processes and packaging methods helped expand those markets, says Dalyn. The Pattersons
added barcodes and nutritional
information on the back of each
wrapper — both features demanded by many of today’s distributors and store chains — and
installed a machine to seal the
packages automatically rather
than stapling bags shut by hand.
“We started out doing it just
the way the pies had always
been done, and it would take
us longer to staple them than it
would to cook them,” says Bert.
“We ramped up production so
quick, we’d be here until 11 at
night, and we’d go through every
stapler in the building.”
The Pattersons also more
than doubled the number of
flavors available in the Armstrong line. Chocolate remains
the most popular flavor, but the
turnovers now come in 12 other
varieties, ranging from staples
like peach, apple, and cherry to
more exotic flavors like coconut,
Bavarian crème, and pineapple.
First sold for 15 cents each, the
pies now cost retail customers a
little more than $1.
While turnovers account for
about 80 percent of the business, the company also continues to make piecrusts for
commercial customers like restaurants, cafeterias, and hotels.
The crusts are still made with
the original “secret formula”
perfected by Billie Armstrong,
who introduced an early version
of the frozen piecrust to retail
customers in the early 1950s —
before companies like Pillsbury
jumped on board with the idea.
“She was making frozen
piecrusts and packaging them
two to a box,” says Dalyn.
“They were so popular, she got
swamped and couldn’t keep up
with demand. Unfortunately,
bigger companies took her idea
and ran with it.”
In addition to these company
staples, the Pattersons have
recently expanded their product line to include cookies and
3-ounce pecan pies, chess pies,
and chocolate tarts. One cookie
variety, Nini’s Homestyle Toffee, is made with a recipe from
Bert’s mother, Dorothy Patterson — affectionately known
as “Nini” by her grandchildren,
including the Pattersons’ daughters, Sarah and Rachael.
“I bet I’ve eaten 10,000 of
those cookies in my lifetime,”
says Bert. “They’re so delicious,
we put them in a two-pack. You
can’t eat just one.”
For all the changes, however, the Pattersons say they’ve
purposely kept many things the
same. They still use Armstrong’s
distinctive, colorful, yellow-and-
magenta logo, and they haven’t
altered the formula of the turnover dough and piecrust, either.
Though they’re no longer made
in Mrs. Armstrong’s kitchen, the
Pattersons say they believe the
company’s founder would be
proud of the products that still
bear her name and legacy.
“When you’re making something with so much history,
you’ve got a lot to live up to,”
says Dalyn. “We hear all the time
from customers who talk about
how wonderful our pies are now.
Many of them say they are just
like they used to be. And that’s
the biggest compliment of all.”
For more information on the
Armstrong Pie Company, visit online at www.armstrongpie.com.
After the turnovers are cooked for 31⁄2 minutes in a deep fryer, Cory Gunderson
arranges them on trays to cool. Then the pies are transferred to an automatic
packaging machine, where they are wrapped in glassine paper and sealed.
Tasty task
Armstrong Pie Company worker Michelle Bell adds peach
filling to the dough before folding it into a turnover.
When Billie Armstrong started her pie company in 1946, she and her crew
did most of the work by hand — even crimping the edges of each turnover with
a fork.
Today, the sheer volume of business means the company’s new owners, Bert
and Dalyn Patterson, have had to automate many of the processes to keep up
with demand. Their turnovers start with the dough prepared in a 500-pound-capacity commercial mixer. Then it goes to the “dough separator,” which is the only
1940s-era original machine left from the previous incarnation of the company.
This contraption cuts the dough into flat circles or “pucks,” which then go to a
three-person assembly line.
One worker feeds the pucks into an automatic dough-roller to flatten them
again. Another adds a dollop of filling with an ice scream scoop and then folds and
crimps the edges with a turnover machine. The third worker loads the pies onto a
conveyor belt that will carry them through the deep-fryer to cook for 3 minutes.
At the end of the line, another worker captures the pies, places them on a tray,
and sets them aside to cool. In a final step, the pies are loaded into an automatic
packaging machine where they are wrapped in glassine paper, sealed, and stacked
in containers for delivery or shipping.
41
Every Farmer Has A Story Howell Moss
His own terms
Story and photos by Chris Villines
After serving 20 accomplished years as Marion County’s mayor,
Howell Moss happily returns to his agricultural roots
H
owell Moss is in the
midst of counting, and
he’s quickly running
out of fingers.
“Let’s see, there was the
development district, the human resource agency, the county
commission …,” he calls out,
sitting in his Jasper farm’s office
with son Shane on a recent raindrenched day that quashed their
plans of combining corn.
Jasper
l
“Then there was the finance
committee, all of the health
boards, the sanitation corporation …”
The list of organizations
grows to 17 before he is finished.
The significance? At one time,
Howell chaired the boards of
each. Simultaneously. As the
top elected official — county
mayor — in his native Marion
County, as Howell was for 20
years, such commitments came
with the turf.
“One meeting would start,
and when it adjourned the next
one would begin,” chuckles
Howell, 61, who farmed full
time before becoming mayor and
continued to pursue agriculture
while in office. “After that, there
would be another meeting, then
another, then another. There
were times I would go straight to
the field after work and run the
combine wearing a suit and tie.”
Howell grew up in a family
known for growing crops — not
economies. The Mosses were
farmers, plain and simple, and
Howell had followed suit upon
marrying wife Trecia in 1970,
purchasing the family dairy from
his ailing father, M.J., before
transitioning over to a successful
hog, beef cattle, and row-crop
operation. About as close as
Howell got to politics was serving on the boards of both Marion
Farmers Cooperative and the local Farm Bureau. (Shane is now
a board member at each).
42
Marion Farmers Cooperative member Howell Moss runs a combine over one of his corn
fields. Howell and son Shane grow 900 acres of corn, soybeans, and wheat in Jasper.
“I did have a distant relative,
Forrest [W.F.] Moss, who was
the Tennessee commissioner of
agriculture under Gov. Buford
Ellington, but I had never run
for anything in my life,” says
Howell. “I just decided that the
county needed somebody to do
something because it was going
nowhere.
“Here we were, with 26 miles
of interstate, an unlimited water
supply, and a location that joined
Chattanooga. We had everything
in the world to offer yet very
little to show for it.”
Upon declaring his intentions
to run for county mayor, Howell
says the reactions he got were
varied.
“A lot of folks were surprised
but supportive,” he says. “Others would ask, ‘Why would you
even consider doing that?’ I even
had people flat-out tell me that I
couldn’t win the job. But I had
my mind made up.”
Howell proved his naysayers
wrong by winning the election,
and his legwork during his fiveterm tenure would pay dividends.
He says that when he left office
in September 2010 and resumed
full-time farming at his 300-acre
homeplace along Highway 28
and at 600 other acres around
Jasper where he and Shane grow
corn, wheat, and soybeans, he
took comfort in the fact that he
left Marion County in much bet-
ter shape than when he arrived.
“We brought in 17 industries
and added about 2,500 goodpaying jobs,” Howell points out.
“Every company that we brought
in has grown since coming here.
Once the industrial expansion
took place, we were getting
revenue without raising taxes,
so we built six new schools, a
new justice center, and a new
health department. We’ve raised
our standard of living in Marion
County, and I believe other
communities throughout our
10-county development district
now respect us.”
Being new to the political machine, Howell didn’t have a thick
Rolodex of contacts to pull from
when he began his industrial
recruiting process. So he took a
bold first step and went straight
to the state’s top official, thenGov. Ned McWherter.
“I didn’t know bull about
what I was doing … not a clue,”
Howell confesses. “I was too
dumb to know that you don’t just
call and ask if you can come and
meet with the governor. But he
agreed to see me, and ironically
Forrest Moss was a dear friend of
his, so that helped. He called the
commissioner of economic and
community development [Carl
Johnson], who came over and
spent some time with me.”
The fortuitous meeting was a
watershed moment for Howell
and Marion County. Less than a
year later, vinyl siding company
VeriForm became the first new
prospect to set up shop in the
county, hiring 70 employees.
Their workforce has since grown
to 250.
“Once we landed VeriForm,
the state got a little more confidence in us, so they would
bring me another prospect [to
meet with],” says Howell. “We
landed just about every one they
brought here.”
Content to now leave the
county’s matters to a new regime, Howell says he is happy to
be back to his agricultural roots.
He says there are several parallels that can be drawn between
his two career paths.
“I used to tell people that
running a county government
wasn’t that much different from
farming,” he says. “You always
have more than you can do, you
always need more than you can
provide for, and you never have
enough money to do any of it.”
Howell adds that he’s enjoyed
being able to spend more time
with Trecia — a 22-year employee of the Marion County Farm
Bureau — their eight grandchildren, their daughter, Cheris,
who lives in Murfreesboro, and
Shane.
“It’s been nice coming back
home and going back to more
of a normal life,” he says. “You
miss a few of the people, but
it’s been a year now, and I’m
perfectly happy just being a
farmer where I can pull the
tractor under a shade tree in
the field and eat a sandwich or
sit on the porch with friends
and family on a rainy day.”
And though “a lot of things
went undone” at the farm during his mayoral stint, Howell
says he has no regrets.
“I believe every generation
should step up and do what it
is supposed to do for the future
of that area,” he says. “Some
force called on me for that
purpose, I guess.”
From 1990 through September of 2010, Howell kept
an intensely busy schedule, working “in town” as
Marion County’s mayor while still tending to his
responsibilities on the farm. Despite never having
run for political office before, Howell won and was reelected four times before announcing that he would
not seek a sixth term. These days, you’ll most likely
catch him involved in his “absolute favorite activity”
of tending to his crops and 75 head of beef cattle.
43

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