Off-Farm Income

Tiffany and her husband, Matt, both grew up in a city environment, St. Louis, Missouri, and did not have exposure to rural living or agriculture.  They were entrepreneurs, running an electrical contracting business for which Matt was the electrician, and they were busy!  So busy in fact that work and hustle were all that they knew.

A simpler life was calling to them however.  They started out just like so many people in the U.S.  They had a 3,000 square foot home, even though it was just the two of them.  While they were still there in the city they downsized to a home that was under 1,000 square feet.  This seemed like a radical move to friends and family, but really, for two adults it was very appropriate.

This simple living had sparked something in both of them, and there was a mutual thought that someday they would move out somewhere rural, live much more simply and even forget what day of the week it was.  Then, Tiffany was diagnosed with breast cancer.  This opened up a whole new perspective.  The thought that the opportunity to carry out your dreams may not be there tomorrow can be a strong motivator, and it was for Tiffany and Matt.  So, they made this vision a reality in short order and Wilderland LLC Glamping Cabins was born!

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1269_Tiffany_Ursch-121621.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Today's show is a replay of a special interview I did on how we view life and what you choose to do in situations that don't make you happy. Learn how to find purpose in your work and having faith in yourself. 

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1268-Recap_Of_Episode_558-120721.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

For the past several years the issue of mental health in the agricultural community has become more and more mainstream with some of the stigma slipping away.  About the time this really started to take hold Madisen Jolliff was noticing that this existed all on her own.  At the same time she was just coming into the FFA and looking for a project for her SAE.  Ultimately she chose to speak with farmers about these issues and try to help people open up.  The results she received were very unexpected, even for Madisen.

Madisen has friends who feel an immense sense of pressure and stress because they have or will inherit land that has been in the family for generations, and they don't want to be the link in the chain where it all ends.  She also has friends that experience stress because they will not inherit land and they cannot find their pathway into farming and raising their own livestock.  She finds herself experiencing both of these as she will one day inherit part of her families farm, but that will not be for a long time.  So in the meantime she is trying to figure out how to get her own land to continue growing her herd of cattle.

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1267_Madison_Jolliff-120721.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you.  I've got a very chilly farm update for you in today's show.  Also, a true story about a strange Christmas Eve that sounds like (and should be) a commercial for our sponsor, Guardline Security!

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Direct download: OFI_1266_Tuesday_Episode_-_122721_6.10_PM.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Fresh off of the high of the National FFA Convention I returned home to my studio and can you believe it, my very first interview with was with Tristan Wirkus, who had just one a National Proficiency Award!

There is literally so much good going on at the National Convention that I just cannot keep up.  My interview with Tristan has been on the calendar for weeks.  What great luck for me that he won the national proficiency in Environmental Science & Natural Resources Management.  Tristan has an absolute passion for the environment and the green spaces in his hometown of Stratford, Wisconsin.  This, in combination with the fact that his mother is an FFA advisor led him into this incubator that we call the FFA.

Since that initial participation in the 6th Grade Tristan's experience has grown and grown.  This ultimately led him to coordinating with dozens of stakeholders in Stratford to get trees planted throughout the city and along their Heritage Trail, and this ultimately led to the city receiving the designation of "Tree City USA".  If this were not enough, Tristan went to work testing water quality in a local pond so that changes could be made to make the pond conducive to a healthy fish population.  Once this was done the local police department started a "Cops And Bobbers" program to teach kids how to fish there.

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1265_Tristan_Wirkus.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Merry Christmas everyone!  I always love creating and recording our Christmas episode for your each year.  However, this year is a little bit different.  This year I have a guest on the show for Christmas who is a person who has done something very compassionate for people who are unbelievably less fortunate than anyone born here in the United States Of America.

You may remember from our rural crime episode #1240 that the final story I covered was about a woman named Caroline Clarin in Fergus Falls, Minnesota who had been helping families to escape Afghanistan and come to the United States.  She has initially been introduced to these families through her work as an agricultural advisor, through the USDA, in Afghanistan.  And of course after being there, meeting these families and seeing the poverty, corruption and violence for herself she was compelled to help them leave.

After covering that first story, I decided to reach out to Caroline and see if she would do an interview to discuss the amazing humanitarian work she had done and was still doing as part of our Christmas episode.  It turned out that the original story I had read mis-represented what had actually happened a little bit.  Today, she is on our show to discuss some of what she learned in Afghanistan, how she helped to get families out, what it was like when she learned the U.S. was pulling out of Afghanistan in August of 2021 and what she is still striving to do.

I cannot imagine anything more Christmasy, regardless of your belief system, than what Caroline did between 2013 and 2021 in helping five families relocate to the U.S. from Afghanistan or what she is still striving to do.  So, Merry Christmas everyone, and her is a heart warming story to help you appreciate just how good we have it in the U.S.

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Direct download: Caroline_Clarin_Episode_1264_-_121521_2.52_PM.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

The Mackay High School FFA Chapter holds a "Christmas Bazaar" every year, right after the Thanksgiving break to bring the small and isolated community as well as people from the surrounding communities together.  The bazaar features some food, some singing and Christmas spirit, but the real emphasis is on community support.  This year 49 different small businesses were able to attend for $10 per table and sell their wares to the community.  On average each vendor made over $1,000 at the bazaar.

At the same time that the businesses were gaining exposure, selling products and meeting community members, people from the remote area had a place to get together with friends and neighbors and do their Christmas shopping all in one location.  It is no wonder that this event has been going up and growing in success for up to 25 years now. Tune in for this fun interview on how this all comes together. 

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1263-Mackay_FFA-121621.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Since Christmas is almost here, I think this interview is appropriate! Learn how one FFA member is making a difference to children by purchasing them Christmas presents from money raised by the Wilcox County High School FFA Chapter of Rachelle, Georgia. Listening to this interview will surely get you into the holiday spirit. 

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1262-Replay_Of_Episode_737-120421.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Today's interview is special.  I rarely get to interview a student, or any guest for that matter, face to face.  However, I had accidentally scheduled an interview with Luke Jennings for when he would be at the National FFA Convention and I would be traveling to the convention.  So, we decided to do the interview in person in Indianapolis.  My studio for this interview happened to be the press box way above the field at Lucas Oil Stadium, so it was quite a different experience for me.

Luke came up for the interview after walking across the big stage at the convention for the third time!  He and his team had just been recognized for the performance in the parliamentary procedure competition.  However, how I had first learned of Luke was due to his nomination for a national proficiency award. Learn more in today's episode.

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1261_Luke_Jennings-113021.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Hi everyone, Merry Christmas and welcome to our Tuesday episode for the week of Christmas, 2021.  In today's episode I'll be talking about some career validation from law enforcement, making a slight revision to our previous rural crime episode and getting pumped for Montana State University being in the national championship game for the first time since 1984!

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Direct download: OFI_1260_Tuesday_Episode_-_122021_3.28_PM.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

The unbelievable stories that I am privileged to cover on this show just never stop!  Today I am talking with National Proficiency Finalist, Miles Lee.  Miles has an incredible story on many, many levels.

To begin, Miles grew up in the city but he and his family would vacation at his Great Uncle's farm in Alabama where they raised pigs and chickens.  At an early age this inspired Miles, and a love for farming and agriculture was set in motion.  However, there was more to it than just the livestock.  Miles found himself fascinated with the soil and the life within the soil.  He used to play soccer, and at slow moments in the game he would get scolded for digging in the dirt rather than focusing on the game!  That is not what the soccer coach wanted, but this agricultural podcaster couldn't be more thrilled!

As his love for the soil grew Miles noticed how often he smelled the bad odors coming from the landfill across the road from his house.  He told me that he thought to himself, "there's got to be a better way".  This led him to discover vermiculture and vermicomposting with help of a middle school science teacher.  Miles explored composting food waste in this type of system, but soon it was time for high school.

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1259_Miles_Lee-112721.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.ktvq.com/news/montana-ag-network/montana-livestock-brand-re-record-deadline-dec-31

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4U_0V1nLC8

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.eastbourneherald.co.uk/news/people/eastbourne-police-say-dog-attacks-on-sheep-leave-scene-like-a-horror-story-3496680

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/2-arrested-after-attempted-theft-at-farm-on-flood-damaged-sumas-prairie-1.5710575

https://www.farmersjournal.ie/ford-tractor-stolen-in-kildare-668526

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://fremonttribune.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/fremont-man-found-guilty-in-connection-with-farm-burglary/article_dc500ea5-1195-5687-b3b7-225fcb04394c.html

https://thatsfarming.com/farming-news/teens-arrested-tractor/

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Direct download: OFI_1258_Rural_Crime_-_121721_2.29_PM.mp3
Category:rural crime -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Today, Tom Boyer of the American Goat Federation, joins me to talk about the demand for goats, long term trends and the challenges of having supply meet demand for goat in the U.S.  It is a great time to be a knowledgeable goat producer with the correct infrastructure in the U.S., but the allure of high prices can also be the catalyst to getting some people into goats before they are really ready.  Tom and I will talk all about this and more in this episode.

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1257_Tom_Boyer-120421.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

In today's show, I feature a replay of an awesome interview with one FFA member who is making a goat business work. He is expanding and finding new ways to not only grow his goat herd, but also to grow his goat herd. Check out today's replay of episode 703.

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1256-Replay_of_Episode_703-120421.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

One of the great things about hosting this podcast is that I get to speak with people in every stage of development in their agricultural journeys.  Today, I am proud to speak with Shayla Russell.  Shayla is just beginning her sophomore year of high school in a beautiful part of Montana, and she is just beginning the development of her own cattle herd. Tune in for more about Shayla in this episode. 

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1255_Shayla_Russell-112721.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

I just wrapped up my annual "creative retreat" where I get to focus on nothing but growing, improving and sustaining the Off-Farm Income Podcast.  This retreat traditionally happens in Ketchum, Idaho and this year there was no snow.  So, I spent a lot of time walking into and out of town.  These walks took me to parts of town that I do not normally travel in, including passing by the Post Office.  At the Post Office I noticed a big banner that said "Join Us" in an attempt to recruit new employees at the postal service, and it dawned on me how much times have changed.  For people starting their working careers in 2021-2022, jobs that used to be perceived as impossible to obtain are now ripe for the picking.  What a crazy turn around in our country.

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Direct download: OFI_1254_Tuesday_Episode_-_121321_7.40_PM.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Back in 2018 I interviewed a high school sophomore named Kaelyn Sumner who was just starting her first agricultural business with honey bees called "K's Bees".  At the time she told me about her interest in insects, bees and doing research beyond her entrepreneurship SAE.  Fast forward to today, and Kaelyn is a freshman in college at Kansas State University and has followed through on all of those statements that she made.

Kaelyn is majoring in Agricultural Education with minors in entomology and food science.  She has already lined up work in the food production industry for her summers, and she intends on bring knowledge about food science back to the high school ag classroom as an ag teacher in a few short years.  In addition, she has competed in several research projects and seen a lot of success since we talked in 2018, including placing in two, national science contests.

Kaelyn is a great example of good goal setting and following through on what your vision is.  She has great advice for students in this episode!

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1253_Kaelyn_Sumner-112621.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

As you know, I don't normally conduct interviews for our rural crime episode.  However, every now and then an article about rural crime will pop into my inbox and compel me to do just that.  This week I am featuring an interview with Dr. Diane Charlton, Assistant Professor of Agricultural Economics at Montana State University in Bozeman.

Dr. Charlton and two of her colleagues collaborated on a study looking at the impact of migrant labor during peak work seasons to see whether or not crime rates increased.  Their results indicated that not only did crime rates not increase, they decreased when there was a large influx of migrant laborers and copious amounts of work to be done in agriculture.

In today's episode we will discuss her research and findings.

Direct download: Diane_Charlton_Episode_1252_-_12121_2.55_PM.mp3
Category:rural crime -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Carol Herden is an incredible agricultural sculptor, and this has led her to a full-time career doing what she loves - sculpting farm animals.  It is fascinating to me anytime I see an artist develop their craft into a career, and even more so when they do it creating art that resembles agriculture.  However, in Carol's case, her journey might be even more fascinating than that. Tune in for her story. 

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1251_Carol_Herden-112621.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Re purposing vintage and scrap items is a growing hobby for many people today. Not only is today's guest using old farm materials that might otherwise be burned or go to a landfill, she is creating unique artwork. This interview is a replay showcasing Monica's ag background and how that led her to creating artwork using farm scrap materials

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1250-Recap_Of_Episode_417-Monica_Wagner-120421.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Our guest today knows the meaning of a legacy, the meaning of hard work and the reward of seeing your hard work turn into revenue.  Jill Uken is a 3rd generation FFA student whose grandfather's membership inspired her and her brothers to join.  Jill also witnessed the sweet potato business that her older brother started when he was in the FFA, and she decided to carry it forward.

Today, Jill is getting a lot of attention for her project, but it has not come without hard work from everybody in her family.  Whether it was the planting of the 500 sweet potato plants, the weed control or the harvesting everyone found out what farming was like prior to the use of mechanized equipment.  That is precisely because they don't have any!  Illinois is not a place where you would expect to find sweet potato farmers, so there is no harvesting or planting equipment available to rent or borrow.  Everything Jill and her family are doing, is done by hand! Learn more about Jill in today's show. 

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1249-Jill_Uken-112421.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Well, out here in the West we are in a familiar pattern, a pattern of less than optimal forecasts that offer a bit of precipitation and then fall part as they get closer to us.  Right now we are experiencing a "weird" La NiƱa and it is keeping everything dry and warm.

For those of us out here in the West we are the complete opposite of all of you who farm with rainfall.  We have to get all of our precipitation in the Winter, store it as snowpack, then store it in reservoirs as it runs off to be able to irrigate with it during the growing season.  If we don't get that Winter snowpack, some really hard decisions will have to be made for all of us.

I'm trying to stay optimistic, and certainly it is not time to ring the emergency bell yet, but I have seen this pattern before.  This really started for us last winter.  We started out really strong and had a good snowpack, but then the precipitation just shut off and we had one of our driest springs on record.  I didn't like the lack of weather activity in the spring, but I thought we were going to be okay because of the snowpack.  However, it turned out that the dry spring reduced our ability to store all of that spring runoff.  With the soil being so dry from a lack of spring precipitation a lot of that runoff went into the soil and not into the reservoirs.  So, we were forced to stop irrigating early this year.

I spent this weekend up in the Ketchum and Sun Valley area of Idaho with my family.  We traditionally go up to the Wood River Valley on this weekend to play in the snow and to elk hunt.  I am used to seeing a foot of snow on the valley floor up there in early December.  However, this year there is only snow on the tops of the very highest mountain peaks.  All of the hills and mountains around Ketchum are completely bare, and the world famous Sun Valley Ski Resort is operating on a very limited capacity with man made snow.  We can still catch up, but looking at this area that is normally buried in snow and seeing it bare starts to wear away at the optimism.

Last Spring when I bought my hay for this year, I offered to commit to the farmer to buy just as much from him this year.  However, he wouldn't do it. He just said, "we'll have to wait and see if we get any snow this winter".  In my area we are already dealing with a shortage of hay because so many hay fields have been taken out of production due to development.  If there is not enough water to get the maximum number of cuttings, that shortage is going to be even worse.  That is going to drive prices up, and in the long run there will be some people who just can't get hay.

I find myself trying to figure out how to mitigate what could be a crisis right now.  I have an idea that I am pursuing that might allow me to keep quite a bit of the hay that I purchased this spring.  With the warm temperatures we have been having and lack of snow, there are still some fields near by me with quite a bit of forage in them.  It makes sense for me to see if I can lease them and graze them off while I still have the chance rather than feed the hay I have out in my stack yard.  If that does not work, I am going to have to figure out how I am going to find hay for 2022.  And, I will be forced to raise prices on my customers as well.

So, this is farming.  Admittedly, because we irrigate from snow melt and generally have nothing but fair weather during our growing season we don't seem to deal with crisis caused by weather as much as the rest of you in other parts of the country do.  But, it does occasionally happen, and it looks like we will either have an incredible burst of precipitation in the beginning of 2022 to get us back to normal, or this will be one of those years for us.  Let's hope for the precipitation for everyone in the West!

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Direct download: OFI_1248_Tuesday_Episode_-_12621_7.16_PM.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Our guest today, Avery Winters, is her FFA Chapter's President, raises pigs for her supervised agricultural experience and has been a Texas State Proficiency Finalist as well as a District Proficiency Winner in swine production - and she lives in a subdivision.  Across the nation we are seeing the enrollment in more and more high school FFA chapters coming from students who live in subdivisions.  This is due to two things - first, the outstanding success of the FFA as a program and the subsequent success of FFA students, and the fact that over time communities change and develop leading to the loss of farms and construction of homes.

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1247-Avery_Winters-112321.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Tip Of The Week

Pay extra attention to newly planted fruit trees?

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.alabamanews.net/2021/12/01/thieves-steal-farm-equipment-in-dallas-co/

https://wsbt.com/news/local/tractors-stolen-crashed-in-fulton-county

https://www.enewscourier.com/news/local_news/sheriffs-office-searching-for-stolen-farm-equipment/article_9af7e374-5202-11ec-b5e6-0f26cb659512.html

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-17/205-citrus-trees-stolen-from-south-australian-orchard/100624628

https://www.independent.ie/business/farming/news/rural-crime/appeal-for-witnesses-in-suspected-arson-attack-on-farm-41102258.html

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://roanoke.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/jury-cellphone-evidence-convict-man-in-montgomery-county-hemp-theft/article_8ef1fae8-52fb-11ec-b9ee-0b37f6205770.html

https://bulawayo24.com/index-id-news-sc-local-byo-212217.html

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Direct download: OFI_1246_Rural_Crime_-_12221_3.00_PM.mp3
Category:rural crime -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

One of my favorite things about hosting this show is catching entrepreneurs and families at the beginning stages of their journeys and being able to see their vision with them.  That is certainly true of my interview with Marrianne and Greg Russell, the owners of Rock Bridge Farmstead in Kentucky. Listen in for their whole story. 

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1245-Greg__Marrianne_Russel-112321.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

In today's interview I get to connect with a listener of the show and talk about how he and his wife are making their farm dream come true.  I will be speaking with Justin Farrish from West Virginia.  Justin has a really interesting farm story.  This farm was started by his great-grandfather in the first half of the 20th Century.  West Virginia is rocky, mountainous and filled with trees, so there was lots of work to do.  Justin talks about his great-grandfather digging out stumps by hand to clear land for grazing.  It is really amazing.

Today Justin and his wife have been able to move their family to the farm and start putting it back into production.  They had to start with remodeling the existing home and making it livable.  After that it there is fencing and more clearing to do.  They have done a lot of work already and have a lot ahead, but they want to carry this legacy forward and are prepared for this.

In the interview we talk about all the challenges that come with a multi-generational farm, including the pressures of keeping it in the family line.  We also discuss what Justin does for his off-farm income, and the culture of the area that he and his wife have moved their family into.

Here are the show notes from Justin's first appearance on the show:

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1244-Recap_Of_Episode_896-120121.mp3
Category:farming -- posted at: 12:30am MDT

Sometimes when I conduct an interview I can find myself talking for hours if I am not careful.  Usually this is because there are so many different aspects of the guest's story that I could investigate the time just seems to flow by.  That was definitely possible in today's interview with National Proficiency Finalist and Minnesota State Officer, Nicole Koziolek.

I did a decent job of adhering to my normal time constraints, but there is so much to Nicole's story that it was difficult to not spend 30 minutes on each aspect.  To begin, Nicole comes from a farming family and farming legacy.  And, she grew up with her two parents who were farming corn and soybeans in Minnesota.  Nicole is an only child, so she would go to the farm with them, which is about 30 miles from their home, because she did not want to be left home alone.  However, for many of those years Nicole would just ride along and visit.  She did not necessarily show any desire to learn about the farming itself.

Nicole really was not excited about being part of the FFA, but her parents both had been very involved and wanted that to happen.  Eventually, Nicole's mom talked her into attending one, exploratory, meeting just to see what it was all about.  Something special happened in that meeting.  Nicole was hooked.  So hooked, in fact, that she went out of her way to participate.  Nicole went to high school at Northfield High School in Northfield, Minnesota.  However, they did not have an FFA chapter.  The nearest chapter as at Randolph High School about 15 miles away.  So, Nicole drove every morning to Randolph and attended two ag classes so that she could participate in the Randolph FFA Chapter.  She would then drive back to Northfield High School for the rest of her classes.

When it was time for Nicole to start a supervised agricultural experience she was considering a placement SAE, working on her families farm.  However, her dad convinced her to take a little risk and try farming for herself with an entrepreneurship SAE.  She accepted the challenge but realized that all of those years in the cab of the tractor riding along could have been used to learn everything she now needed to know.  So, she started "learning to farm" at a rapid pace.

Five years after that initial meeting at the Randolph FFA Chapter, Nicole is now nominated for a national proficiency award.  She had progressed from renting 20 acres from her parents to owning 13% of the operation.  She is majoring in agricultural communications and marketing at the University Of Minnesota.  And, she is a state officer for Minnesota FFA.  It is a remarkable journey and the FFA was an incredible catalyst for this transformation and success story!

Direct download: Off_Farm_Income--Episode_1243_Nicole_Koziolek-112021.mp3
Category:FFA -- posted at: 9:21am MDT

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