Q: We see you plant in spring and harvest in fall. What do you do during summer?
A: Like many farmers, especially dairy farmers, work doesn’t end when we pressure- wash and put away our planter.
For us, summer is loaded with everything your average row crop farmer does, such as applying spray to protect crops and equipment maintenance. All of our forages need to be harvested and stored before we can transition to corn and soybeans. May and June tend to be all hands on deck all of the time. We cut wheat and alfalfa, which we process into silage. We harvest some wheat and then double crop, or plant soybeans right into the stubble. All of this happens on top of daily tasks required on a dairy farm, such as cleaning barns, caring for animals and servicing robotic milkers.
July and August can be a bit slower. We cut and bale alfalfa for a third and fourth time. We also chop some corn to be processed into silage, which we use to feed our cows. If we are lucky, we may even have time to sneak off for a little summer getaway or just a few trips to a nearby pond for an evening of fishing.
Josh Reinhardt and his family milk cows and grow corn, soybeans, wheat and alfalfa on their farm near Red Bud. His grandparents started their Randolph County farm in 1954 with 10 chickens and two mules.
See more: Ask a Farmer: What big equipment do you have, and how do you afford it?
