Introduction
Dave Cheney is a third generation swine farmer in Mason, Michigan. He has been
farming for twenty-three years, being the proprietor for twelve of those years. He studied
agriculture at Michigan State University, after which he returned to his family farm. The
operation consists of 1,700 acres surrounding the farm and a parcel of seventy acres
about three miles away. His farm has increased the acreage it rents and its livestock in
1993. Growing Degree days in corn is about 108 to 103 days. He is the sole proprietor of
this operation, employing two full time employees, which are students. His father also
helps out on the operation whenever possible. Most of the labour is used in the swine
operation but moved to the cash crops when necessary. He has involvement in a few
government programs such as Conservation Resource Program, which does the program
EQUIP. Dave does this program because seventy-five percent of the cost for a waste
containment program. When the money is available, he receives money from the USDA.
He also receives funding from the Farm Food Safety Act.
Soil/Issues/Irrigation
A variety of soils are found from loam to muck to sandy loam, which the latter composes
the greater extent of his property. Soil compaction is important because of the soil type so
tillage and planning time is important in this operation. Another soil issue is erosion into
the adjoining waterways. The surrounding property is tiled with filter strips because of
the soil type. On his property it is system tiled but the rental properties has old terracotta
tiles. The spacing on his property is fifty to sixty feet and the rental properties have thirty
foot tile spacing. Irrigation is not done on any of his acreage due to the crops he grows.
Crops/Varieties/ Seeding Date Rate and Management
He plants cash crops in a corn, soy and winter wheat rotation that is dictated by the
market in addition to the soils he has on his property. All of these crops in the rotation are
profitable. In Corn, some of the traits of the varieties he plants includes Roundup Ready
and BT Triple Stack . In the soybeans, he also plants Roundup Ready and Rootworm
Resistance. The planting dates for each of the crop vary but the target times of the
planting are as such: Soybeans are ideally planted on the 25th of April, Corn is planted
anytime after April 15th and wheat is planted after the 15th of September. His specialty is
raising field stock. The soybeans are planted in fifteen inch spacing at populations of
150,000 an acre. This is done because the greater ability to manage pests. The corn is
planted in thirty inch spacing at populations varying from 310,000 to 330,000 plants per
acre. The wheat is planted at 7.5 inches in 1.5 meters, with a plant population of two
million. The corn is done in rip-conventional tillage and the soy is predominately no till
with the exception of one field. His yields are comparable and exceed those of other
farmers in the county.
Livestock and Manure
This is primarily a livestock operation and this aspect has much of his focus and
resources. On this farm, he has 2,200 head of swine there permanently and sells 4,500
head if swine yearly. He purchases about 125 sows a year for breeding stock purposes
His storage is based on MNP which is a Michigan State University program.. He has
yearly samples taken for quality and his rationale for using manure is because he happens
to have it on the operation He follows the GAAMPS and stores the manure in a tank
under the barn where the swine are held. When needed, it is vacuum pumped into the
spreading equipment. He spreads the manure in April when the conditions permit via
direct application. He does however compost the animal carcasses due to the fact that it is
too expensive to render the carcasses.
Pests and Controls
No-till has unique problems due to weeds and residue management for other pests. The
no-till has a lighter yield weight due to some of the problems resulting from no-till. In
regards to spraying, he hires it out to the Mason Elevator Company. He feels that it is
more convenient to have the spraying done by somebody else rather than invest the time
himself. The wheat is treated with nitrogen applications, aphids (Fall) and fungicides
(Spring and Summer). The corn and soybeans are both treated with Roundup but he has
nitrogen and fungicides in the corn as well. In regards to scouting, Dave prefers to hire it
out for the wheat but he scouts the corn and soybeans. In those crops, he scouts primarily
for corn borer and aphids.
The key weeds on his operation include lambsquarters (which is developing a waxy coat
to resist management), wild oats, cheat, velvetleaf, and foxtail. The cheat is a problem in
his wheat crop of the rotation, whereas foxtail and velvetleaf arew a problem in corn, The
biggest weed problem in the soybean crop is lambsquarters. He manages these weeds by
spraying pesticides and using tillage that reduces the viability of the weed seed. Two of
the herbicides he uses the most is Roundup and Harness. He has spraying done both
before and after emergence of wheat so that no chances are taken with weeds emerging.
In soybeans, he does a full burndown before emergence of the crop. At corn he has
spraying done at reemergence of that particular crop.
In regards to insect pests, the only one that causes major issues is soybean aphid, which
he has a spray applied to eliminate the pest. In regards to nematodes, he simply plants
resistant varieties and hopes for the best. The only disease he has to contend with is an
occasional occurrence of white mold and he is not really concerned enough about it to do
anything in reaction.
Storage and Equipment
The equipment on his farm includes a 170hp combine, a tractor for planting, another for
tillage, and has four wheel drive tillage ripper. He also has a twelve row planter, with the
drill width of fifteen feet with twenty-two inch holes at seven and a half inches. Some of
the precision equipment he uses includes: Autosteer GPS (Global Positioning System)
and swath control for spraying and planting. This helps him to track his work via GPS
and the swath control helps him get around obstacles in the field without wasting product.
He has the capacity to store all his soybeans on the farm but rents storage for ninety
percent of the other crops. His storage of winter wheat is short term and in small
amounts. He also custom plants a hundred acres for another farmer because the farmer is
unable due to older age. He combines all of his own acreage.
Marketing
In regards to marketing his products, he does no forward contracting with his swine but
rather prefers to sell on a monthly basis. In regards to the field crops, he has contracts in
advance and he prices ahead for about seventy-five percent by mid-May. Dave has a
pulse on the market and acts accordingly. Dave alone markets the farm in addition to all
his other duties.
Fertilizers
In regards to phosphorus, it ranges from 50 to 350 on some fields. If he applies any
phosphorus it is in the spring before the crop is planted and uses a dry application. He
applies according to soil test which he has done annually. Potassium is also applied at
that time, also in dry form. The majority of his nutrients come from the pig manure.
Dave limes only when needed and that amount is about two tons an acre. Nitrogen is
applied as a liquid with a value of twenty-eight percent. This is done primarily in the
Spring and mostly in corn. It is applied in a split application, although dates vary
depending on needs. He has the fields tested for nitrogen levels on an annual basis.
Everything is applied in variable rates dependent on crop and the field he is dealing with.
His thoughts
Dave visits Washington DC twice a year to address issues in the pork industry and its
future with things such as price and environmental concerns. One such issue is ethanol
which has a negative impact for swine farmers but a boom for corn farmers. In regards to
retirement, he envisions himself retiring in his sixties. However he sees the scenario ten
years from now as a potential for the kids to be farming and to either fully move to field
crops or stop furrowing because of the inputs needed for the facility. When asked about
the profitability of his operation, he sees current profitability continuing into the future,
barring any disasters. He envisions changes in the market with swine exports continuing
to rise due to Free Trade agreements and globalization of agriculture. His future vision
does not see biofuels playing a big role outside of diversification of production. He sees
the environmental movement as a negative force in regards to farming practices and food
security. Farmers are limited in production “at the whim of the environmental
movement”. He also said that regardless of ones belief about global climate change is
gaining more adherents than actual temperatures. He envisions the next generation using
technology to produce even more food on shrinking farm acreage. In his words’ “Yields
in the future will be unbelievable to the current generation as they are now to previous
generations. My grandpa would be dumb founded at the technology and progress in
yields today”. In regards for advice for newly graduated Agricultural Students at
Michigan State, “With agriculture consolidating, if a student wants to get a job and earn a
good living, he/she must work very hard and produce results. Employers will simply
move on to the next person if results aren’t achieved.”
Sources of Help
In regards to advise for his operation, Dave consults veterinarian for his swine, feed
salesman, crop consultant for fertilizer applications and seed specialist from seed
companies. From what was gathered from the conversation, he indicated he had great
respect and trust of their knowledge to form a collective game plan for the farm.
In conclusion, Dave Cheney’s practices and sentiments are like those of any farmer. He is
worried about regulation, the rising costs of inputs, future of his farm and urban
development. However, he continues to have hope that with the technology of the next
generation, that farming will continue to be profitable. The biggest obstacle is that people
of the younger generation have to play by a new set of rules in a global economy.