Step-up milking parlors were all the rage in 1997. They were inexpensive, got the job done – although cow throughput wasn't great, and often provided that necessary step for dairy businesses to grow and expand.
During the last 14 years, the Durfees' dairy farm has grown intentionally and incrementally. Nathan, their son, returned to the farm in 2005 after graduating from Cornell. They built two 3-row barns to accommodate the expanding herd, and added employees along the way. Durfees currently employ 7 full time and several part time people, all Americans. Adding cows from closed herds was Nathan's way to build equity in the business, investing in assets that appreciate and grow.
If you drove by their farm on Tuscarora Road today, you'd notice the impressive 2-story red milking complex. But you'd also notice their brand new road-side farm stand that replaced an older, smaller one earlier this year. Their stand has been a longstanding, convenient source of home-grown fruits & vegetables for Chittenango and Town of Sullivan residents. It also gives the Durfees a way to serve the community, providing a positive "glimpse" of a family farm operation complete with food that's good for you. This small enterprise on the farm is truly a family, extended family, and community effort involving Steve's mom and sisters, along with MaryLou's 4-H Club.
During their deliberate, step-by-step expansion, Steve, MaryLou, and Nate priced the parlor 3 different times. They also visited other parlors in NY. It was obvious that a step-up parlor wouldn't work for a 500 cow dairy. It needed to be "comfortable" for both the cows and milkers. They also wanted to reduce the number of milkers in the pit from two – as it was with the step-up design – to one.
Another consideration in planning for the construction of the parlor is that they worked with contractors who have worked together before. They know each other and make a point of sitting down together to discuss the work plan in advance. In this way, everyone is "on the same page" from the start and troubleshoot, for roadblocks that may come up. In this way, they avoid costly mistakes, like pouring concrete on top of an area that needs a drainage pipe.
It took 11 hours for the first milking in the new parlor. However, after 2 milkings in the new parlor the time was reduced to 5 hours and now, 2 months later it takes 4 hours. It reaffirmed their idea that, in many cases, cows recover faster from a major change in their environment than people. In their case, the oldest cow was the slowest to adapt. Can we learn anything from that fact? I think so. And I think any business considering expansion can learn a few things from Durfees' experience, too.
by L. E. Chase, Department of Animal Science, Cornell University
New York dairy producers received a number of awards at the recent World Forage Superbowl. This contest is held in conjunction with the World Dairy Expo held in Madison, Wisconsin. Producers submit samples of hay, haylage or corn silage for this contest. Over 400 samples were submitted from 23 states in all of the categories. Samples are judged based on lab analysis (60% of score), visual (20%), herd production information (10%) and calculated milk per ton (10%). There were 2 corn silage classes. One was for BMR hybrids while the other was for non-BMR hybrids.
Jon Merrell from Wolcott, NY had the grand champion BMR corn silage. He entered a Mycogen F2F488 sample. Other New York winners in this category were Jeff True, Perry (2nd), Jason Stoltzfus, Waterville (4th), Morrisville College (7th) and Covale Holsteins, Preble (8th). As would be expected, all winners used Mycogen BMR hybrids. Table 1 contains the data for the winners in this group.
Table 1. BMR Corn Silage Winners
| Farm | State | Hybrid | DM, % | CP, % | NDF, % | Starch, % | Ash, % | Fat, % | NDFD, % of NDF | Milk, lbs./ton |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J. Merrell | NY | Mycogen F2F488 | 36.3 | 8.1 | 36.4 | 33.2 | 3.8 | 2.8 | 75.7 | 3680 |
| True Farms | NY | Mycogen BMR | 35.8 | 8.5 | 37.3 | 33.4 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 75.6 | 3612 |
| Four Mile Creek | WI | Mycogen F2F488 | 31.3 | 8.9 | 37.8 | 32.2 | 3.8 | 3 | 69.4 | 3577 |
| J. Stoltzfus | NY | Mycogen BMR | 37.3 | 10.9 | 37.2 | 32.2 | 3.9 | 2.7 | 73.6 | 3611 |
| Trierweiler Dairy | MI | Mycogen F2F569 | 36.1 | 7.4 | 38.6 | 33.8 | 3.9 | 2.6 | 74.8 | 3580 |
| Putt Dairy | OH | Mycogen F2F665 | 35 | 8.6 | 36.5 | 34.4 | 4 | 2.9 | 69.2 | 3609 |
| Morrisville College | NY | Mycogen BMR | 33.6 | 8.5 | 38.2 | 33.2 | 3.8 | 2.8 | 65.8 | 3605 |
| Covale Holsteins | NY | Mycogen BMR | 35.1 | 7.9 | 36 | 35.1 | 4.2 | 2.9 | 70.7 | 3617 |
Jon Merrell from Wolcott, NY had the 4th place non-BMR corn silage. This was a Mycogen TMF 2Q298 hybrid. Table 2 contains the results for the top 5 winners in this group. Six of the top 10 in this group used Mycogen seeds. Three of the top 10 submitted samples of the Mycogen TMF94 hybrid. This is an older hybrid but still seems to perform well. The other 4 winners used Dekalb, Master's Choice, MC 590 or Pioneer hybrids.
Table 2. 2011 Non-BMR Corn Silage Winners
| Farm | State | Hybrid | DM, % | CP, % | NDF, % | Starch, % | Ash, % | Fat, % | NDFD, % of NDF | Milk, lbs./ton |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K. Leudemann | MI | Mycogen TMF 2N494 | 30.1 | 8.3 | 36.1 | 34.8 | 3.9 | 2.7 | 68 | 3583 |
| B&D Dairy | WI | Mycogen TMF 2Q716 | 36.2 | 8.1 | 35.3 | 37.2 | 3.7 | 2.8 | 65.2 | 3633 |
| Hickory Gables | MI | Mycogen TMF 2W727-2Q7 | 36.3 | 8.5 | 33 | 36.9 | 4 | 3 | 60.9 | 3591 |
| J. Merrell | NY | Mycogen TMF 2Q298 | 35.9 | 7 | 35.5 | 37.9 | 3.5 | 2.8 | 58.9 | 3623 |
| Gernatt Dairy | MI | Mycogen TMF 2N494 | 32.2 | 7.6 | 35.8 | 36.8 | 4.1 | 2.7 | 56.7 | 3568 |
It is important to remember that these results only apply to the samples submitted. This data should not be used to make hybrid comparisons from various companies. Hybrid comparisons can best be made using data from test plots where the various hybrids are grown in the same management and environmental situations.
Today's dairy cow looks much different than her ancestors did in 1970. Rarely do you see a sloping rump or the "beefy" appearance of a Milking Shorthorn or Dutch Belted cow. Today's dairy cow is much larger in size and scale, but she also eats almost twice as much forage and grain and produces twice as much milk as her ancestors did.
So how can we ask her to live in a barn – at least for part of the year – equipped with 40 year old tie stalls?
John Conway describes the new tie stall design.Today's dairy cow IS NOT the same physically as one born in 1970. Yet many dairy farmers use tie stalls built 40 years ago or more. However, new research from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food demonstrates the economic benefits of re-designing tie stalls for today's dairy cow. And since over 70% of Madison County dairy farms still house their herds in tie stall barns, it's only logical that CCE staff organize an on-farm meeting to look at these new findings. Roy Meeker, dairy farmer from Munnsville, hosted our meeting and John Conway, PRO-DAIRY dairy specialist, helped lead the discussion on cost/benefit analysis and pay-back returns. In one example, a farmer netted an additional $40,000 with fewer cows and stalls during a "low milk price" year.
Just like any business, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Madison County has been exploring ways to streamline our operation and still provide the information that you need in the most cost-effective way. So, we will be launching a new electronic version of the Madison Manager. You can still receive a paper version, but it will be a shortened format.
We’ll be making the following changes to Madison Manager:
- The New Electronic Version will be neatly organized so that you can just “click” the article title that interests you from the table of contents at the beginning.
- Past issues of Madison Manager will continue to be available here in the newsletters section along with other great information.
- The “mailed” version of Madison Manager will be 4 pages with condensed articles, dates and summaries, including references and addresses for further information.
- Beginning January 2012, we will need to start charging an annual fee for the mailed issue of the Madison Manager. The cost will be $10 per year.
- To Help You Make The Decision, CCE Madison County and local farmers markets are promoting locally grown products in a new way. For every subscriber who gives up their “snail mail” issue of the Madison Manager and moves exclusively to an electronic version, you’ll receive two(2) $2 coupons like the one below. The coupons can be redeemed at Farmer Market vendors in Madison County selling vegetables, fruits, grain products, maple syrup, poultry and livestock products and plants. The coupon expires November 5, 2011.
Go Electronic and take advantage of our wonderful locally grown products!
If You Are Ready To Go Paperless, please email our office at dme6@cornell.edu or just call our office today at 315-684-3001 and we will send out your coupons.
Beef Quality Assurance Program
Close to 20 beef and dairy producers from Madison and Oneida Counties completed certification in the Beef Quality Assurance Program™ on Saturday, April 9th. Carol Gillis, Executive Director of the NY Beef Industry Council, introduced the program and the rationale behind it - "...to ensure that beef and dairy cattle are produced and managed in a manner that will result in a safe and wholesome beef product for the consumer." The training concluded at the Brewer Farm, Canastota, owned by Paul O'Mara. Mike Baker, Beef Specialist with Cornell University, taught and demonstrated the basics in giving injections, reading and understanding drug labels, and other practices to enhance beef product quality, maximize marketability, and strengthen consumer confidence.
Do you have a farm stand? Does your farm offer shares in a community supported agriculture program? Do you raise animals or animal products for direct sale to consumers? Do you sell hay, bloodstock, Christmas trees or other agricultural specialty items at your farm? If you do, we want to hear about it.
New farm guides for Madison County are being developed. The guides will connect customers with farmers who produce food and agricultural products for retail sale.
If your farm or farm shop is open to the public, it qualifies for listing. Farmers who sell only through farmer’s markets will not be individually listed, but the farmers’ markets will be promoted.
The listing is free and we don’t want to miss anyone. Please fill out the Farm Guide Registration form to list your farm or shop. For further information, contact the Madison County Agricultural Economic Development Program and Cornell Cooperative Extension at 315-684-3001 ext. 125 or email lm523@cornell.edu.
Recent Field Crops Articles:
Late blight is a potentially very destructive disease that fortunately occurs very sporadically in most areas of the northeastern US most growing seasons.
- Late Blight Occurrence and Management in Potatoes and Tomatoes in the Northeastern United States
- Managing late blight in organically produced tomato
The Agricultural Program in Madison County addresses the educational needs of a diverse group of farmers and land owners in Madison County. They include:
- Dairy Farmers
- Livestock Farmers
- Field Crop Farmers
- Commercial Vegetable and Small Fruit Farmers
- Farmers who are exploring and starting entrepreneurial pursuits in agriculture
Our staff includes Karen Baase, Extension Issue Leader, who oversees and manages the Agricultural Program staff. Their respective duties are outlined below:
- Karen Baase – Full-time Agriculture Program Leader. Karen has been with CCE-Madison since 1991. She helps cover the dairy management program area, and currently oversees the work of the following program staff:
- Kathe Evans – Part-time Field Crops Educator. Kathe has been with CCE-Madison since 1999 working almost exclusively in the commercial field crops area. She has been part of the CCE system statewide for many years.
- April Winslow – Part of April's full-time responsibilities is overseeing the Ag-In-The-Classroom program and editing the Ag Pulse, a bi-monthly newsletter with an agricultural theme. It's designed for all municipal officials.
- Darlene Curtis –Part-time Administrative Assistant with CCE-Madison. Darlene specializes in desktop publishing.
- Lucille Farfaglia – Part-time Administrative Assistant and is the newest member of the Agricultural Staff.
- Beth McKellips – Full-time Agricultural Economic Development Specialist in Madison County.
- Lindsey McDonnell - Full-time Administrative Assistant with the Agricultural Economic Development Program. Lindsey has been with us since April 2010.
- Steve Miller – Half-time NYS Hops Specialist and half-time Program Coordinator with the NYS Farmers Market Nutrition Program."