I Don't make New Years Resolutions, I make Adventure Goals!

New years resolutions never work. If it was important enough to do, you wouldn't wait until a new year to promise to do it. I make New Year's adventure goals. My goals are things on my bucket list or something I want to learn. Here are my top 5 Adventure goals for this year.


 5.  Add Instagram to my growing social media presence. My TractorJen facebook page is agriculture centered, but I want to share a wider variety of my photography. I suppose Instagram and social media don't sound like adventures, but they are to me. ;)

La Push, Washington 

 4.  Use my Gopro to take more interesting pictures. I received a case and mounts for my Gopro for Christmas and I have some creative ideas for videos. I thrive on thinking outside the box.

I wore my Gopro chest mount as we toured the underground
missile launch control center in Coopertown, ND

 3.  Astrophotography- I love the dark skies we have here and I want to get some milky way pictures. Night photography is more involved than point and shoot, so there are lots of learning opportunities.

Picture of Jupiter through my telescope

 2.  Watch the solar eclipse- Aug 21 has a total solar eclipse crossing the United states.  Washington is not one of the total ecipse states, but I am hoping for good enough weather to see at least a partial eclipse. Maybe a day trip to the John Day fossil beds to record a full eclipse is possible, but unlikely. I am ordering my solar glasses and filters now!

 1.  Travel- We love to travel and I have devoted a wall in my house to document our adventures. This year we hope to drive down to Arizona and visit the Titan Missile museum and see a real Saguaro cactus. We also have several other shorter trips in the works. Most trips involve a museum and photgraphy. :)

There is some blank spaces on my wall!

I am a Farm Hand on a Corporate Farm

My husband and I both work for a corporate farm. This farm uses modern technology, has great big tractors, and has to be carefully managed to ensure financial success. That is only part of the story though. The Adams farm was established in 1897 when Davids Adams' parents, grandparents and uncles all homesteaded land in Eastern Washington state. David was born on the homestead in 1922.

David Adams with his older bother Clarence and his sister Vera

Dryland wheat farming was a struggle and they had to clear sagebrush and rocks, plant wheat and hope there was enough rain to get a crop. There were some lean years, and I often heard stories of how hard his family worked to get by. David passed away in 2014, and everyone misses his presence on the farm.

Adams harvest 1959

Davids' mother Ruth setting up harvest lunch in the field 1959 

Although this is a corporate farm, it still is a family farm and we feel part of the family. My husband has worked off and on for over forty years for the family. I moved here 25 years ago and have raised my family along side theirs. Our children went to the same schools and we celebrated the same milestones together. Just as plants put their roots deep into the soil, living on the farm has given me deeper roots to the land and the community.

Adams harvest 2008
David Adams drove combine until 2013

When I  farm, it's not about the money to me. It's about doing what's best for the land and the farm. I live here, I work here, and I love here. Farming has given me a long term perspective. What I do today can impact things for a long time. I work the ground now, but won't see a crop for two years.   The crop planted in September will be harvested in August the next year. Weeds allowed to grow today will spread seeds for years. I am responsible for the land. I will never own a farm, but I will always love farming.

Facts don't matter, only feelings matter

I have noticed on social media, that people have absolutely no interest in facts or even hearing both sides of the story. I am a middle of the road type person, and I know that there is always two sides to the story. Maybe it comes from being a mom. Ever had a kid running up to you in tears, "Mom! He hit me!" Should I punish the child that hit their bother without asking for the whole story? "Well she bit me first!" (Btw, I solved these fights by making them hug and say they loved each other!)

When I post a side of the story about GMOs  or the Dakota pipeline, I know it is only one side of a story. I am choosing to post the side that people aren't listening to, because it's not about the emotion. I have heard, "I don't care what the facts are, I FEEL these are bad."

So, are these things really bad. Not as much as they are portrayed. People say the evil seed companies control the farmer. Seed should be free. Reality is that farmers will buy the seed that helps them succeed. People say fossil fuels are poison and we have to eliminate our support for them. These are wonderful ideals. I ask, is it even possible? Are these people fossil fuel free? Are they ready to give up their comfy little lives to live fossil free right now? Reality is that right now, fossil fuels are important and providing infrastructure that is modern and safe is important.  I support alternative energy and being energy efficient, but realize change doesn't happen over night.

I love the Dakotas and their people. I support Native rights. I support the fight for clean water and decent homes. I support preserving their culture and honoring their past. I support their fight against poverty and drugs.

How many of the protesters that have come in the Standing rock protests will leave after the fight and not worry about these people again? They will leave to fight some other "windmill", because they are fighting evil and it makes them feel good. Meanwhile, people are left feeling angry and divided and the real problems have not been solved.

We all want the world to be a better place. My ideal is that we find some common ground instead of painting everything black and white. Are we really on opposite sides? Do we only look for what divides us, instead of what brings us together? Tearing people apart doesn't build anything. The one thing I love about the Standing Rock protest is that people are standing together.  I just wish it wasn't for an all or none issue.

Five Reasons why Farming is Still Hard

According to my other blog post, Farming is Easy. Although we can all agree that farming is much easier than it was fifty years ago, today's farmings is not without its challenges. These are my top five reasons why farming is still hard.

1. Actually steering.
Even with the modern technology, most farmers still steer their tractors occasionally. According to John Deere, their base system is accurate within 4-8 inches. I have seen it change that much over lunch break. It takes a big chunk of change to switch to full auto steer and most applications aren't worth it. I always steer when doing the edges of the fields, making my turns, and around obstacles. It isn't as easy at is seems. I drive an articulated tractor, which means it pivots in the middle rather than swivels the tires to change direction. That means I have two pivot points to factor in when trying to drive straight. If I turn my wheel to the left to avoid an obstacle on my right, the equipment will initially become closer to obstacle. This may result in a foot long gash in the service truck. Another factor to consider is pitch and roll. Our fields are not flat by any means and trying to run the edges requires constant compensation. My tractor may be leaning to the left, but my equipment may be sliding to the right. Add a concrete post in there and you have some excitement. The last factor I have to include is how far away and wide my equipment is from the tractor. I may run a 70 foot wide harrow and then switch to a 30 foot disk. The pivot points and turning radius are widely different and I still have to maintain an accuracy within inches. For example, if I am coming to edge of the field and I am doing a turn with the seventy foot harrow behind me, with a paved road and a slight downward pitch and a roll to the left, I better not be drunk.

2. Obstacles.
There are many obstacles in the fields and I discovered that everyone frowns upon me running them over. There are two main types of obstacles. Man made obstacles include fences, buildings, concrete posts, wells, corrals, signs, culverts, dams, roads, telephone poles, and high tension power lines. You might get away with flattening a metal fence post, but not flattening a fence that is holding a pasture full of cows. Natural obstacles include trees, rocks, cliffs, ditches bigger than your tractor, rock piles and scab rock. Some of these natural obstacles may change or remain hidden until too late.  One obstacle, the neighbors wheat fields, falls into the middle of manmade and natural. When doing the edges between the two fields, it is important to get as close as possible. Weeds can grow 8 feet tall in a six inch strip between fields, which robs important moisture and nutrients. However if your weeder slides a foot into mature ripening wheat, you will have unhappy relationships with your neighbors. The last obstacle to avoid is a bit more tricky. Vehicles, whether parked or on the roads must be avoided. You can bet your last dollar that someone's insurance company will become involved if you accidentally run over a vehicle, even if you have the right away and your tractor is ten times larger than that Prius.

3. Breakdowns. Even the best maintained equipment suffers breakdowns and failures eventually. Farm equipment is under a lot of stress and any contact with articles under point number two will result in things breaking. There is also the normal wear and tear that requires parts to be replaced. The important factor in breakdowns is too catch the problem as soon as possible. A broken bolt can soon result in losing something important and become much more involved than two wrenches to fix. If things are not easily fixed, it may then result in the painful writing of a very big check to the local equipment dealer.

4. Technology. I may have claimed in my last article that technology makes farming easy. Still true, but it can also make it a pain in the posterior. The most obvious problem is when it isn't working. Our GPS may suddenly drop in accuracy and drive my tractor into the neighbors field. The height sensor for the combine header may suddenly slam the header into the ground and fill it full of dirt and rocks. Those are fun times. There is also the problem of software and hardware upgrades. Recently we had to replace two touch screen monitors, which wasn't a problem until we switched them to the combines. They required an upgrade before they would work with my harvest programming. Its not much fun when the combine drivers are glaring at the person they feel is responsible for holding up the start of harvest. It kind of makes me feel bad sitting in the air conditioned cab while they sweat in the beautiful triple digit weather outside.

5. Fatigue. Its not the 12-16 hour days that make you feel fatigued. It's not a week of long days that causes fatigue. That is just being tired and exhausted. It is the week after week, month after month, year after year that causes fatigue. It is when the job you love, combined with the newest problem of the day, and years of hard work causes one to want to give up. Its when farmers are attacked by people that don't appreciate how much they care for the land and their animals. Its hard to fight that, but I remind myself farming is a lifestyle and not a job. I don't think I could handle a commute where I am not driving the largest vehicle around. Plus I love the views from my cubicle.



Farming still requires hard work, skill, and dedication. Plus it takes a special kind of person to go back  to work the day after they screwed up and broke something. Because in all likelihood, something will go wrong again.
PS: no actual Prius's were hurt in the writing of this blog

Five Reasons Farming is Easier than 50 years ago

In the last fifty years, things have changed a lot in the farming industry. By 1965 most farms had already converted to mechanization. Tractors and combines were used to till and harvest crops, instead of stables of draft animals. This was an important innovation for farms, but ultimately, farmers worked hard, physical labor as any oldtimer will testify. Technology has made farming a pretty cushy job according to them and here are the top five reasons why.

1. Climate control cabs to keep out the elements.
This was a major comfort upgrade and it became even better when they had reliable air conditioning and heaters. Depending on the time of year, farmers used to freeze, roast, or get eaten alive by mosquitoes. I've heard the most miserable days were running combine with no breeze. The chaff would settle an inch deep and the sweat bees would crawl inside your collar. How can I complain if my air conditioning is running a little warmer than I like? I am breathing clean, mostly cool air, and not being harassed by insects.

I love my cool ride!

2. Hydraulic equipment.
Most tractors and farm equipment didn't have much hydraulics, if any. We still run one set of old school rod weeders that use a lever system to put them in the ground or lift them up. The lever is squeezed to release a pin. I pull the lever down to lift the weeder out of the ground or push it away to put it in the ground. I release the lever and the pin slislides into the gear to hold it in place. It takes all my weight on the lever in order to set the right depth. (This is why I do not diet) Then I have to do it five more times. If I am weeding and it plugs up with big weeds and dirt, the weeds and dirt increase the weight I have to lift. I then clean it out before putting it back in the ground. Modern day weeders lift in and out of the ground with the touch of a button. They fold up for transportation with just a click. Hydraulic equipment is heavenly. Some rod weeders even have hydraulic controlled rods. This eliminates the need for finicky drive lines and the rod speed is easily controlled with hydraulic flow adjustments. If the weeds are big I can bump up the flow and not plug up. Did I mention hydraulic equipment is heavenly?

Each weeder is pulled by two chains, and the frame pulled by cables.
No backing up allowed!

3. Augers on my seed truck.
Filling drills is still a dirty miserable job, but I don't have to do it with a shovel and chute. Fifty years someone had to get in the back of the truck and shovel all the wheat to fill the drills. My seed truck has a hydraulic auger, so I can magically pull a rope and pour wheat into my seed boxes. Seeding requires long hours and I am already tired without the physical labor, thankyouverymuch!

Augers are almost like magic!

4. Horsepower. Tractors these days are big, efficient, and have the horsepower to do any job required. More horsepower means that equipment can be wider and speeds faster. More acres can be covered with less fuel and time. This is especially true in combines. My husband's first combine had a 12 feet wide header and he could walk faster than this combine could run. Harvest took longer, required more combines, and man power. What used to require five combines can now be accomplished with two combines and less time and effort. This reduces the risk of weather damage and driver fatigue.

This guy had it made in the shade!

5. Computer and satellite technology. Computers have dramatically changed farming in the last twenty years. Many tractors have GPS receivers allowing the tractor to steer itself! Rate controllers on equipment allows precision fertilizing, seeding and spraying. This reduces the amount of herbicides and pesticides farmers apply in their fields. On board computers also collect data from the field, which increases efficiency. For example, the GPS data from harvest can indicate the best and worst areas of yield and fertilizer can be custom applied. With completely straight lines and less overlap, my fieldwork looks as good as the veteran farmers.

Half a days work, over 200 acres harrowed.

Many people eschew the methods of the modern day farmer, but as someone that benefits everyday from these changes, I say hallelujah! Fifty years ago a farmer fed 28 people, The modern farmer feeds 155, with much less wear and tear on themselves. I can't imagine how farming will continue to change and improve in the next fifty years, but I am looking forward to it.

Busting some anhydrous ammonia myths

Last year we applied anhydrous ammonia to our fallow fields in preparation of seeding. Many people misunderstand the use of chemical fertilizers, so let's bust some myths.

The first myth is that farmers drench their fields, because conventional farmers don't know their land.


Nothing is further from the truth. Before we apply any fertilizer, the soil is tested. Soil tests include the existing nutrients in the soil, the organic material content, the pH, and salt. Samples are taken at the twelve inch, twenty four inch and thirty six inch depths.

Then a recommendation is made based on the desired yield, expected moisture, and soil properties. If we apply too much fertilizer, it will burn up the crop before it can produce anything. Over fertilizing is bad for the farmer and the soil. We only apply what is needed. An onboard computer is used to apply the precise amount desired. Newer technology can create a prescription based on yields and soil tests. Yields increase while using the same amount of fertilizer, but applied more accurately where it would best be used.

Another myth is that chemical fertilizer causes salts to build up in the soil and large amounts of water is wasted to flush them from the soil.

On our farm, the soil samples showed effects of salt were negligible. It would be impossible for us to flush salts from the soil since we are dry land farmers and apply no irrigation. It is also unlikely rain is a huge factor in salt reduction, since we receive less than ten inches of rain a year.

I have also heard the myth that chemical fertilizer kills the soil.

Initially anhydrous ammonia inhibits the microbes in the soil, but five weeks after application soil bacteria populations had returned to normal. Anhydrous ammonia can also increase organic material in soil and increase the amount of carbon stored in the top twelve inches.

Overall, anhydrous ammonia is a valuable and useful fertilizer that is used safely to increase yields and productivity on the modern farm.

Sources

http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/faq7758

http://fieldcrop.msu.edu/uploads/documents/Anhydrous%20Ammonia%20in%20soil.pdf

I believed the anti factory farm and anti-GMO popular opinion

I have a confession to make. I used to believe the anti-factory farm, anti-gmo, popular opinion. We should all eat local, organic, and all natural. Big business doesn't care and subsequently the really big farms are in it just for the money. I can understand as a society why we all believe this. We are isolated and disconnected from each other. Every day we get messages we are alone in this big mass of humanity.  Politicians are obviously out for power and money, and banks helped create this economic mess we are all struggling through. Even rush hour traffic gives us another example of how everyone cares for themselves and won't even let you merge. We feel we have to defend ourselves from this uncaring world. As parents, food quickly becomes our priority. We are trying to do the best for our families. So when information about antibiotics in our meat and pesticides on our produce is the hot topic, we become fearful and protective. We have to protect our family and our children because no one else will.

So how did my opinion change? How did I become an agvocate? It was actually because of an anti-milk meme I seen on Facebook. The one that claims pus is in milk we buy at the store. How shocking and disgusting! Then I had the small thought, is that really true. So I did a search, and came across a Facebook dairy page that disputed that claim clearly, concisely, and with evidence. I was impressed. I started to follow that page and several other farming pages. When some ridiculous meme crossed my page, I started to research its validity rather than have the knee jerk reaction of instant belief and shock. I found out something amazing. Farmers care! Really! They are just like me. They care about their families. They care about their land. They care about their animals. I also discovered that size doesn't matter. Whether they have a few acres and a few animals or would be considered factory farms, they provide the best care possible. I finally figured out that farmers don't sacrifice all their time and energy just for money. I don't believe anyone could work in the conditions farmers and ranchers do everyday, unless they loved it!

I want to thank all the farmers for their work and all the agvocates for showing me they care. In this world, it means a lot to find out I am not the only one that cares.