INDIANA NEWSWATCH
12
www.FarmProgress.com – July 2013
Indiana Prairie Farmer
David Ring: Hard work goes a long way
Key Points
■ David Ring continues the tradition of
dairying on the family farm.
■ Practicing soil conservation is a way of
life where soils are highly erodible.
■ Raising turkeys and using manure from
turkeys, dairy as resource diversify farm.
LEADER ON AND OFF
THE FARM: David Ring
tries new innovations
on his farm and pushes
others in the community
toward the future.
By TOM J. BECHMAN
I
F you haven’t heard of David Ring, Huntingburg, that’s only because you don’t
milk cows or live in southern Indiana.
He’s made the most of his variable land resource, stuck with his first love — dairying
— and taken advantage of other opportunities to grow the income base for the farm.
And during that time, he’s let his opinions
be heard in ways that make him a leader in
his region and beyond.
David is the fourth generation on a farm
that dates back to 1854. His son, Brent, who
farms with him, makes the fifth generation.
Dairy cows have been a key ingredient in
their farming operation for generations.
Today they milk about 100 cows and
achieve excellent production re-cords.
Farm what you have
What others say
“Being an innovative, well-respected
farmer in the community is a key attribute. Indiana is truly blessed to have
many men and women who have
this quality. But those that also have
the drive to make their community,
state and nation better are the ones
that truly make a difference in our
world. David Ring is such a person. I
am proud to call him a dear and respected friend, a great farmer and a
great leader.”
— Don Villwock, Edwardsport, president, Indiana Farm Bureau Inc.
“Over the past 10 years, I have personally worked with David Ring on
both agribusiness and communityrelated matters. I have found him to
be a very hardworking, dedicated
agribusiness producer while at the
same time having a deep interest in
the local community.”
— Eric Olinger, president, Freedom
Bancorp
“We are very proud of the innovations
that Dave has kept up with on his
farm and his ambitious undertakings.
... David is a true conservationist and
has been the area leader in a winter
radish program to replenish nutrients
back into the soils and alleviate [soil]
compaction.”
— Kevin Lubbehusen, president,
Blesch Bros. Equipment Co.
ttool where they harvest corn,
u
usually running it lightly in
bot
bo
both the spring and fall.
Cover crops are also becoming
a part of their tillage and soil management program. They seeded 400
acres of wheat, rye and forage radishes last fall. Using cover crops after
harvesting silage early is especially
important, David notes. Planting the
cover crops earlier than they can in
other fields also gives the cover crops
a jump on fall growth.
Diversify the operation
David Ring
at a glance
Master Farmer
--------------
David’s responsibility is to farm
primarily rolling land, some of it
highly susceptible to soil erosion.
He’s responded by installing tons off
soil and water conservation practices to
control water flow, and using no-till and reduced tillage on steeper soils.
The Rings run a Salford vertical-tillage
Corn, silage and hay aren’t the only
crops David grows. He also raises
wheat and double-crops soybeans
into the wheat stubble after harvest.
One of their more recent ventures involves putting up barns for turkey production. Both David and Brent have their own
facilities for birds. They each raise on contract for Farbest.
“The birds are often weighing nearly 40
pounds each when they come out of the
barn,” David says. Don’t expect to find one
of Ring’s birds in your grocer’s case as a
possible turkey for Thanksgiving. Instead
they’re used for other food made from
turkey.
A side-benefit of both the dairy and
turkey operation is having manure available
as a resource, David notes. They soil test
and apply nutrients by variable-rate technology. When they’re determining fertilizer
prescriptions, they base application rates
on meeting the proper levels of phosphorus
and potassium.
DEDICATED TO AGRICULTURE:
David Ring and his wife, Kathy, excel
at farming and at being leaders in the
local community and beyond. David also
taught agriculture for 16 years just to
help save the local program.
Age: 67
Spouse: Kathy
Town: Huntingburg, Dubois County
Crop operation: Corn, wheat/doublecrop soybeans and wheat
Livestock operation: The Rings milk
100 dairy cows and raise turkeys on
contract. Manure is managed as a
valuable resource.
Children: Brent (Jeri); Taryn (Rocky)
Shaun; Shane (Maci)
Employees: Kurt Best, Casey Kern,
Antonio Garcia
Leadership highlights: Indiana State
Department of Agriculture advisory
board member; Indiana Professional
Dairy Producers, charter member;
Milk Marketing co-op, director; Dubois
County 4-H Council, member; 2013
Dubois SWCD Conservation Farmer
of the year; former Beck’s Farm Family of the Year
Nominator: Calvin Seitz, Superior Ag
Notable: Ring taught vocational agriculture for 16 years while managing
the farm at the same time.