Livestock

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Partners & Friends,


Livestock of various kinds have dwelled at this farm all but one of the 153 years since 1869, when the Doll family homesteaded the property. Before Phyllis and I moved here in 1992, the farm was known for the feedlots of up to 400 head of feeder cattle. There was also a thriving pasture farrowing hog enterprise and sheep on the farm. When we discontinued milking our 250 cows ten years ago, the chores and animal care did not halt. After selling the milking herd, we custom raised dairy heifers for about 6 years. When the pandemic hit two years ago, Ali raised almost 100 bottle calves while doing college from home. Nowadays, we have a very small beef herd and sell farm raised beef (let us know if you are interested). There are currently 9 goats here for Harper’s show and breeding herd. We also had 3 pigs for Finley’s 4-H project last summer. Over the years, the farm has been home to countless horses, dogs, cats, rabbits, and chickens. We love animals!


We bide our time waiting for dry weather and warmth to plant by fixing tile holes, hauling grain, cleaning out the barn and hauling manure, organizing storage, making final adjustments to the planting equipment, servicing the trucks and tractors, and putting together planting prescriptions and SOPs. With commodity prices at the levels they are, more than ever we want to make every seed count . Our seed and chemicals are on hand, and we will be ready to go in short order. Regarding the weather forecast, we anticipate short planting and spraying windows, similar to the past few years, which tests our strength and stamina. 🙂


The Ukraine situation has made several things unpredictable. Fertilizer is looking to be very expensive this next year, mainly because much of it is manufactured with natural gas. We have overcome a few parts supply issues. The commodity markets are quite volatile, which makes sales decisions difficult. The inflation factor has hit all sectors…and what goes up often does not come back down. Every government crop report adds volatility to the market.


The family is doing well. Phyliss and I were blessed to attend grandparents day at Trinity Academy on March 24th, where Harper was in the school play (Oliver Twist), Finley portrayed Queen Elizabeth I in the wax museum, and Abbott was in the second grade Reader’s Theater (Romeo and Juliet). Harper showed her Boer goats that weekend at the Little Sioux Showdown in Afton, Iowa and did very well, including a Reserve Champion Percentage Doe. Phyliss is currently spending time in St Louis with Miriam, Cora, Walker, and Lincoln while their parents attend a conference. Phyllis is also scheduled for surgery to remove the silicone oil from her eye in two weeks, with cataract surgery soon to follow. Prayers are welcome.

Here is a post from a Ukrainian farmer about an update on the whole situation, please have a read.

Fall Prices (we are mostly sold out of 2021 crop):

Corn—6.84

Soybeans—14.43


Feel free to like and comment,

Steve