When I stopped by, milk trucks were backed into the loading dock, manure trucks were loading and hauling liquid manure to cut hay and grass fields, a crew was installing new fans in the barns, the milking crew was hosing down cows, a 48-year employee was hauling a 40,000-pound batch of premix from the on-site mill, calf feeders were setting up pens on asphalt strips, the field crews were clearing trees for more silage production and covering the haylage pile. At the same time, Abe Harpster, partner and oldest of three brothers, was graciously being interviewed and had a sales rep waiting in line.
Forages
At 85 employees strong, Evergreen Farms is a powerhouse among dairies but not through employee numbers only. Throughout the incredible labor pace typical of most dairy operations, Evergreen Farms does not lose track of the details.
With 4,000 acres of corn (20-inch corn rows with 38,000 to 40,000 plants per acre), I was surprised on a farm tour to discover a pickup-sized patch of 4-inch corn at the edge of a field where the rest of the corn stood nearly thigh-high.
So I asked about it. Harpster explained that for some reason the drill hadn’t started right at the edge, so when the error was discovered, they went back in and replanted. It seemed an awfully lot of trouble to replant just a pickup-sized patch when the rest of the 4,000 acres looked very productive, but I found this same attention to detail evident throughout the operation.
“We try to farm like a little farm. We try and use all the resources on the existing farms,” says Harpster. This goal at first glance may seem simplistic, but for a farm of over 6,000 acres, it’s not as simple as it sounds.
Over the years, several smaller farms were acquired and added to the homeplace, and each farm had some pasture, a house, likely a bank barn and other resources. The result of the acquisitions is that now Evergreen Farms manages around 50 homes, 20 bank barns and a myriad of small pastures. Yet every corner is fully utilized.
It’s typical to see two or three head of dry cows or heifers grazing in a 4-acre or 5-acre pasture. Literally, heifers or dry cows from Evergreen Farms are spread over 35 pastures across three counties. Inconvenient as that may be, this kind of detailed management permits Harpster to acknowledge, “We’re forage self-sufficient.”
To maximize production, Evergreen Farms double-crops most of the corn ground. The first 500 to 600 acres of corn harvested are double-cropped with fall oats.
Another 500 to 1,000 acres of silage ground are double-cropped with spring triticale or rye. In dry years, all of the corn is used for silage, but in a year with good rains the surplus can be used for grain corn.
The hay stands (orchardgrass or reed canarygrass and alfalfa mixed) typically last four years and are cut on a 30-day average with four or five cuts per year. They strive to have the hay cut, dry and chopped for haylage within two days, not using any of it for dry hay.
Harpster says with the use of a late-maturing grass and an early cut schedule, the result is forage with improved digestibility and high protein. After four years, the grass slowly takes over the stand and requires crop rotation.
Challenges
One of the reasons Evergreen Farms has chosen to farm so many acres is so they have ground to spread manure on. Manure liquids are separated from solids, and liquids are spread six days a week on new-cut hay/grass stands.
A fleet of manure trucks are built and maintained during the winter, using a variety of chassis and axles – so no two trucks are alike. In the winter, a concrete manure-holding storage contains waste for spring application.
Harpster says, “Our biggest negative is the visibility of our manure. Someone will say, ‘Hey, I got behind one of your manure trucks today.’” To maintain community relations, Evergreen Farms mows the grasses along the highways and tries to keep a clean presence in the community.
They use their Spruce Creek stream access to help raise money for community projects, organizations and events, such as fly-fishing tournaments. “We believe in our community,” says Harpster. “It’s important to be good stewards of our land and community.”
Non-traditional board meetings
With a total of 6,000 acres farmed, and additional land rented, taking care of the land is a priority for Harpsters. Brothers Abe, Aaron and Andy have split responsibilities but hold one goal: to be efficient, profitable and good stewards of the land. Abe manages the milking herd, Aaron manages the replacements and dry cows, and Andy manages the crops.
Yet all three meet together daily. “We have lunch together every day with Dad, who fixes lunch for us when he’s home,” says Harpster. Their father, R. Wayne Harpster, has been retired from the dairy at least 10 years but provides a unique opportunity for an informal board meeting every day. “We may not talk about anything, we may just eat lunch,” says Harpster.
“Some come late or leave early, but it’s that one time of the day we all make contact. Sometimes we utilize the lunches for professional help and sometimes invite our attorney, or banker, or realtor, or nutritionist, family members, someone from the university or a consultant for advice or professional help. Even if they’re just coming to see me, they touch base with my brothers, too.”
This uncommon avenue for detailed communication has significant benefits. Harpster explains, “Pretty much we do everything with a unanimous decision, which is pretty unique. We maybe won’t make a decision as quick, but our whole idea is that three heads are better than one, and if we make 100 decisions we’ll make more right ones.”
Added value
Spruce Creek is home to some of the best fly fishing in the nation. During my tour of the dairy, I kept thinking how hard it must be to concentrate on dairying when good fly fishing was so close at hand. But Evergreen Farms has it covered. By providing guest lodges, they’ve also been able to monetize this resource.
Recognizing the value of the stream as early as the 1970s, Harpsters preserved the resource by fencing it from the cattle, providing various access points. Today, private and family groups regularly book the lodges for weddings, reunions, community events and fly-fishing expeditions.
Kicking around new ideas
Like most dairies, Evergreen Farms has to constantly re-evaluate their operation in light of industry shifts and available resources. Harpster says if the dairy grows, more feed and more handling facilities will be needed, and the farm is sitting on expensive real estate.
So there’s a point where they have to wonder if bigger is really better. Should their land holdings grow so that 100 percent of the feed can be grown on site? Would a pasture-based dairy be more profitable for their location? Should they raise contract heifers?
Harpster says, “I’m open to options. I’m trying to figure out what the consumer wants. Within five to six hours travel we have access to a large consumer base – New York, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Washington, Cleveland, New Jersey. So what can we do to maximize our percentage of the retail dollar? That’s what I want to figure out. I don’t necessarily want to get bigger; I want to get better.”
There seems to be no corner of the 6,000 acres that is not utilized to its fullest advantage. It’s that careful attention to detail and dissection of consumer demand that sets Evergreen Farms apart. FG
