Here it is July already and I’m busy spraying the corn and beans with herbicide. While it would be great to not have to use herbicide, the fact is, all plants like the sun and rain so when the corn grows, so do the weeds. The weeds compete with the corn and soybeans for water and nutrients, which is bad news for farmers. Once the weeds are gone, the corn is able to grow taller, stronger and produce more kernels, which is good news for consumers. We can’t get to “knee high by the 4th of July” if the weeds take all the nutrients! Actually that little ditty is way out of date. If my corn was only knee high by now, I’d be in trouble. Here on our farm the corn is knee high by the middle of June!

It may sound strange for July, but we are hauling the last of grain from the 2008 harvest. More importantly, we are vacuuming out the bins and cleaning them in order to make sure that the new grain doesn’t get contaminated.

When I’m not farming, I focus on helping Bloomsbury Farm get ready. That’s the agritainment part of our family businesses. Now that the corn is high enough, I’ve started to work on the mazes. Last year I explained how the mazes are cut and this year is really no different, other than the pattern. This year’s 10-acre maze is based on the CBS Sunday Morning Show, celebrating 30 years on the air! To compliment the 10 acre maze, our smaller kids maze will be based on the local CBS affiliate. The mazes will be open for fun when Bloomsbury Farm opens to the public at the end of August. Aerial pictures of the maze should be ready next month.

Now for the best news! I get to take a weekend off! Usually a weekend “off” means a convention about farming or agritainment. But this time is just for fun–I’m going to the NASCAR races with my wife.

Later, Dave

As you recall, last month I was planting corn at an average of 25 acres an hour with that new 24-row planter I purchased earlier this year. The only setback so far has been the crankshaft in the 8430 John Deere tractor broke, so it had to be in the shop for about a week. The 8430 pulls the 24 row planter so I was glad it was fixed quickly and we finally finished planting all 2100 acres of our corn. On May 1, I started planting my first of 1400 acres of soybeans. The planter I use for that is a double-16 row planter. Overall, planting progress this spring has been great. While we have had rain, nothing like last year, so hopefully (as we can never be sure what Mother Nature sends our way) no major floods like last year. 

We have also been busy laying tile lines in our wet fields. Tile lines are perforated plastic tubes that are buried in the ground. When the field becomes saturated with water, the water percolates down into the tile line, which carries the excess water downhill to an outlet, such as a creek or ditch. Tile helps keep the fields dry enough to run equipment through, and keeps the crop from drowning in excess water. So, even if Mother Nature decides on an encore of last year’s weather, we are ready!

Good news! We sold our combine this week. Good news! That means get to order a new one for this fall! I’m looking at the John Deere site again and the excitement is building. You might think it is early to be thinking about harvest time when the crops have just been planted, but when you want to run a successful farm, you have to plan ahead. Well, enough play time, I’m off to the fields again! 

Late, Dave

We’ve had some great weather in April (look at that beautiful sky) and I was able to take the planters out for a test-run in the field! Unbelievable–at one point I was planting 25 acres an hour. Now that’s what I call using technology to your advantage!

Speaking of taking advantages of things, we have an Intern this spring–Carissa. Yes, there are still young people who want a career in farming! She (yes, she) has been following me around and wanted an opportunity to write the blog. So, I decided to let her have a shot at it:

“This year we will be planting three different varieties–white corn, yellow waxy corn, and yellow dent corn.  White corn is used for making food products, including corn chips, tortillas, and cereal; we sell our white corn to Quaker Oats in Cedar Rapids.  Yellow waxy corn contains roughly 25% more of a certain type of starch than regular corn.  Waxy corn is used by wet-corn millers to produce waxy cornstarch, which is utilized by the food industry as a stabilizer/thickener and in the paper industry as an adhesive.  Our waxy corn gets sold to Penford in Cedar Rapids. Yellow dent corn is what people usually think of when they hear the word ‘corn’ and is made into a variety of products including ethanol alcohol, batteries, rubber, skin care products, food additives, and many other things.  It can also be fed to animals.  The corn we grow for our corn maze is yellow dent corn.

We will also be planting two varieties of soybeans.  We will plant regular soybeans, which get used in soyfoods, coffee creamers, cooking oils, biodiesel, ink, paint, soybean meal for animal feeds, and many other things.  The other type of soybeans we will plant are Asoyia Ultra Low Linolenic Soybeans.  These soybeans contain 1% linolenic acid, whereas regular soybeans contain 7% to 8%.  Linolenic acid is the most unstable component of soybeans, thus beans with a higher percentage of linolenic acid produce oil that goes rancid quickly, and creates undesirable characteristics when used in cooking.  Low-linolenic soybean oil is used as an ingredient in crackers, cookies, and cereals.  It also produces foods lower in saturated fats and trans fat.”

Well, that’s a mouth full. It is a bit technical, but writing a blog and marketing is a part of farming in today’s world.

Later, Dave

You may recall that last year I bought a new John Deere combine, which was pretty exciting for me. Just this past February I bought a new planter. Of course, it was another John Deere (it’s a family history thing if you recall). The combine helps in the fall with the harvest and the planter helps in the spring with, well, the planting.

The planter is a machine with vertical steel disks that create straight rows, drops the seed into the row in a pre-determined spacing pattern, sprays it with fertilizer, covers the seed with dirt, and then smooths the dirt with some chains that drag behind.

My new planter has 24 rows of disks so it can plant about 30,000 seeds to an acre and it is almost entirely automated. While I have to “ride along” the steering is controlled by a satellite that feeds to the on-board computer. It monitors how many seeds are planted and how much fertilizer is used. Just like every other industry, it’s all about portion control!!

Technology is great and makes producing food for the world more efficient and economical.

Later, Dave

I thought I’d update some of the info from the past blogs. How about those floods? People speculated the harvest was going to be poor, but we had a fine year. We always find a way to deal with the weather.

The mazes we develop each year are always a hot topic and now is when we plan for 2009. Karen and I will be headed to a “maze convention” and a “haunted convention” this winter. Running a farm and a public entertainment business is serious stuff. If we don’t keep abreast of the new ways to entertain people, we get left in the dust!

Remember that new John Deere combine? In the words of my daughters, “that baby’s SWEET!” And I have to agree. It was great to get through the harvesting so smoothly. Even though it’s a new machine, winter is the time I have to check everything out to make sure it is ready to roll come spring planting time. Be nice if there was only that one machine, but I’ve got over 12 to keep in top condition.

The Pumpkin Blaster really lived up to its name. We were shooting pumpkins off every other hour and had a blast. (I think the visitors liked it, too!) During the “off” hour we ran our “now-famous” pig races. Yes, someone posted this crazy show on YouTube. Now that we are famous (check out the other Bloomsbury Farm videos), we might have to charge for autographs. But, back to the Pumpkin Blaster. . . I had this great idea to fix up the 6400 Chevy Truck my grandfather bought in 1949. I plan to mount the blaster on the flat bed so it will shoot the pumpkins farther and higher. I just might use the truck for parades, also. This project is keeping me busy during these cold days. Good thing my shop is heated.

For those of you who don’t know much about farming or running a pumpkin farm, it may seem like winter is a slow time. But we don’t sleep in or sit back and relax. We’re picking out seeds to be planted, thinking of marketing ideas, attending conventions, and generally coming up with better ways to farm economically and ecologically. It’s a great way to live!

Later, Dave

It’s the Farmer’s Life/Wife For Me!

Right now Dave is out tending the pumpkin patch, corn maze, animals and the farming operation. So, I decided to sneak in to try out this blog thing on my own!

I know this is Dave’s blog, but I have a lot to do with “What’s Happening on the Farm,” too. Aside from helping to manage Bloomsbury Farm, the pumpkin patch, corn mazes, Scream Acres, and care for my family, I also make many of the gift items for sale in the Sugar Shack–that is where we sell gifts and goodies. Pumpkins are available for purchase and you can even choose a pumpkin to send to a friend. I will personally make sure it gets sent safely and arrives in one piece!

This year, we have also added fudge to the list of goodies. We are making over 20 varieties, encompassing over 800 pounds of fudge so far! Some of our flavors this year add a lot of interest: Peanut Butter & Jelly, Peanut Butter Oreo, Apple Pie, Pumpkin, Raspberry Milkshake, Orangsicle and many more! While it is for sale in the Sugar Shack, we also take orders over the phone or by e-mail.

Another item we sell is honey. A local beekeeper brings the bees over and sets them free in our pumpkin patch. Once they are collected, the beekeeper returns to South Amana (about 30 miles from our farm), where the honey is produced. Then distributed back to us for selling in the little containers! That’s how we like to do things on the farm. We make as much as we can out of the gifts the good earth provides.

This was fun. Maybe I’ll do it again sometime when Dave isn’t watching!
Karen Petersen

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Between May and September, it’s “slow season” at Bloomsbury Farm–we do only special events.

But it’s coming . . . our “busy season” starts on September 22, when Bloomsbury Farm is open to the public. We’re open every day of the week from September 22 through October and the fun kicks into high gear. All the standard farm activities are open: petting zoo, hayrides, tire maze playground, barnyard buddies and Mabel the Milking Cow. . . . Then we throw in the special Fall activities such as the 10-acre corn maze, the 4-acre corn maze, Scream Acres, the Pumpkin Patch, and pig races (yes, we use real pigs!).

This year’s newest attractions include the Jumping Pillow (photo). As you can see, it’s just for kids—kids of all ages! I’ve been building the “Marriott,” some new digs for the farm animals and working on “Li’l Farmerville,” a special place for our li’l visitors. I’m also unveiling “Uncle Paul’s Pumpkin Blaster.” I built a cannon that shoots pumpkins up to 1/4 mile! We grab the ammo from the pumpkin patch, load up the cannon, point it over the corn fields, push the button, and BOOM off they go! I’m keeping the “Farmer’s Wife” busy also—Karen is making homemade fudge that will be available for purchase in the Sugar Shack, our “gifts and goodies” area.

At Bloomsbury Farm, it’s our job to make sure the farm adventure is memorable and coming up with new things every year is both fun and challenging! It’s coming . . . so I better get a move on, everything’s got to be ready in LESS THAN TWO WEEKS!

Dave

I actually had someone ask what I do on the farm now that the crops are planted but not yet ready for harvest. She wanted to know if this is when I get to “take a break.” I told her that she was right . . . I do get a break from planting! Instead, I:

• haul last year’s corn out of the bins to make ready for storage of the new crop in the fall;
• inspect the corn fields (and the ones used in the Bloomsbury Farm corn maze) so I can be sure the crop is growing properly and not attacked by some dreaded disease. Remember, I farm over 3,000 acres, so checking those fields of corn and the pumpkin patch is a full-time job in itself!
• pull out the John Deere tractors (8430 an 8420) to perform maintenance. While Jiffy Lube can get your oil changed in less than 30 minutes, maintenance on these tractors takes a big bite out of my “break from planting” time.

I’ve also spent time looking, deciding on, and finally ordering a new 12-row combine, the 9670 John Deere. This baby has 305 horse-power and can handle up to 79 bushels per minute! Let’s see, 3,000 acres, half of which are corn. That means I harvests about 280,000 bushels. So, if I tried to harvest all the corn from start to finish, it would take slightly more than 59 hours!

Speaking of farming, I was recently awarded the Conservation Farmer of the Year by the Benton County Conservation Commission, which recognizes outstanding producers/farmers who are using soil and water conserving practices in their farming operation. I’m pretty proud of this because as a farmer, the land is our lifeline. I want it to be in the best shape possible for the next generation!

Dave

CORN MAZING!

Here it is–the first aerial photo of this year’s large corn maze. Alliant Energy is the 2008 Sponsor with “Renewable Energy” as this year’s theme. It fits in perfectly with corn. To keep things even more interesting, there will be interactive stations throughout the maze!

If you like the idea of heading into the maze in the dark, don’t miss Wednesday nights in October: The Flashlight Maze. All the lights are off (we live in the country so no street lights) and you try to find your way with just a flashlight. As you can see, one might get a bit confused finding their way. Don’t worry, if you’re not back before sun up, we can always send in the National Guard!

Not everyone knows how the corn maze is created–it’s pretty cool. First the entire 10-acre field of corn is planted in the same manner as all the other fields are planted. (If you didn’t catch my last blog, one acre is about the size of a football field.) In July, once the corn gets about knee high, we pull out that trusty tractor (my fav with the GPS) and program the design into the computer. The tractor “maps” out the grids for the maze. The maze is then broken down into what I call puzzle pieces printed out on paper. We each take a puzzle piece and a container of Round-Up (herbicide) into the field, find the correct grid and blast away! The pattern of the maze is created when the Round-Up “kills” the corn where the walking trails are. This is definitely a situation where you “can’t see the forest for the trees,” but when all the puzzle pieces are put together, it creates a great maze!

Check out our site for photos of previous mazes and make plans to stop out when the corn is high enough to get lost in!

Later!

Dave

Hi, I’m Dave Petersen. This is my first blogging experience and I had planned to start by telling you about my family and our farm. However, due to the recent flooding, it seems that is all anyone wants to discuss. Of course we were affected by the floods, as was everyone in Eastern Iowa, but dealing with the weather, good or bad, is all part of being a farmer. While many of the roads surrounding our farm were closed due to flooding, our home sits up on a hill and we didn’t sustain any damage.

I am also grateful that I was able to get the crop in the ground in the spring. We plant a lot of corn and it helps that I am committed to keeping up with technology. I recently added a GPS to the main tractor and by entering the appropriate information, the tractor practically drives itself. Using GPS technology, I was able to plant over 3000 acres of land before the major flood hit.

In addition to farming over 3000 acres of land, my family and I own Bloomsbury Farm an agritainment business. It’s our goal to provide an entertaining and educational experience to everyone who visits our farm. We are located about 10 minutes outside of Cedar Rapids, which also makes it close to Iowa City. Many families come out for the day to play in the corn box (which is like a sandbox but without the sand), feed the goats, look at the huge machines, watch pig races and generally enjoy a beautiful day.  We are also a great destination for school field trips and for local companies to have company outings.

While some people may think everyone in Iowa is either a farmer or has lived on a farm, this is just not true. Many people from Iowa have never been on a working farm because they are born and raised in one of the major cities. Bloomsbury Farm provides a wonderful opportunity for people to learn about how farms work and their importance to the economy of Iowa, the nation and internationally.

As a matter of fact, we recently had a visitor who was originally from a large city but has lived in Iowa for over 30 years. While she had seen farmland as she traveled around the state over the last 30 years, she told me she had never been on a working farm—where farming was the major source of income for the family. It’s always amusing to see someone’s reaction to the large farming equipment. When she climbed into the cab of the tractor, she was shocked to learn it was air conditioned and to see all the technical equipment. As we planted pumpkin seeds, she asked many questions. One area of confusion to her was trying to relate to 3000 acres. I explained that an acre was about the size of a football field and you could see how surprised she was.

Watch for future posting discussing life on the farm!

Dave