Posted: 9/28/04
Preserving as well as farming the land go hand in hand for Olingers
 Harold Olinger, 84, examines an ear of corn in one of his fields. |
By David Heiller
Argus News Editor
Dikes, ponds, and contoured fields, all overlooking the beautiful Crooked Creek valley.
And three generations of a family that firmly believes in conservation.
Itís easy to see why Harold, Jim, and Brad Olinger were chosen to receive the 2004 Outstanding Conservationist Award from the Root River Soil and Water Conservation District. Harold, 84, is Jimís father. Brad, 21, is Jimís son.
The farm, on the top of Crazy Corners Road above Freeburg, is about as picturesque as a farm can get in the hill country of Houston County.
The Olingers run a 100 cow/calf feeder beef operation, raising their feed and forage.
They use a lot of conservation measures, such as contour strip cropping, conservation tillage, livestock exclusion, and tree planting. Thereís a 120-foot pipe drop structure for erosion control, 5000 feet of diversions, and seven grade stabilization farm ponds.
Those are impressive facts and figures, and there are many more listed in the sidebar with this story.
But another measure of the commitment can be seen in their eyes and voices. Itís an invisible force, yet something that you can almost feel when you talk to them.
I saw it first when I sat down with them under a walnut tree in their yard on a warm September 16 afternoon.Harold was on his hands and knees, gathering walnuts and putting them in five gallon buckets. His fingers were brown with the tell-tale sign of walnuts.
Waste not want not at the Olingers, even when it comes to walnuts.They were selling the nuts to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
Just think, the walnut trees you see growing in 50 years might have come from Haroldís tree. Thatís quite a legacy.
Of course, the complexity of running a profitable farm on steep land in Crooked Creek Township goes beyond gathering nuts.
Harold was eager to show me that too, which he, Jim, and Brad did a bit later. But first we visited a bit, sitting atop overturned buckets.
Jimís voice was weak from a serious health battle that he is waging. Last fall while he was driving his tractor, he hit a bump and cracked 10 ribs. That unusual injury alerted doctors to do some tests. They discovered that he had a type of cancer called multa myloma.
Jim, 52, told me that he had just had a stem cell transplant. It was a sobering way to start our interview, and the illness is playing a role in how the farm is going these days. For example, Jim planted corn on April 28 this year, then went into the hospital on May 3 for six weeks. His calcium and protein levels are still 2-1/2 times higher than they should be. But he said things are looking optimistic. He didnít want to talk a lot about his illness, but he said that he is making progress in his recovery.
The illness changed the nature of the farm this year. They sold about 30 head of cattle because Jim wouldnít be able to care for them well. And Brad has been doing a lot more of the farm work in Jimís absence. Harold stated that several times, pride showing in his voice and eyes.
Both Brad and Jim have jobs off the farm. Brad does lawnmower repair at Breyerís Sales and Service in La Crescent and motorcycle repair at home. He graduated in the spring in diesel mechanics at Western Wisconsin Technical College in La Crosse.
With his dadís illness, Brad often works from 8-noon at Breyerís, then drives back to the farm. He has a room in an outbuilding on the farm where he stays.
I asked Brad if he would ever hope to farm here full-time. ěPossibly,î he answered.
Jim, who lives in La Crescent, does cement work and hangs wallpaper for off-the-farm jobs. I wondered how he could not live at this beautiful spot where he grew up. ěI still do live here,î he answered. ěIím here every day anymore.î
Wildlife important
Jim said they have some of their woods fenced to keep out livestock, because cattle can wreck trees. The Olingers do some logging too.
Planting trees like oaks, cherry, and walnut is a yearly occurrence and high priority at the farm. Harold planted a grove of pine trees about 35 years ago that are quite large now. Plants like that help keep soil in place, Jim said.
They get the trees from Pheasants Forever and the Wild Turkey Federation. Jim is active in both groups. There are fruit trees too, like apple, cherry, plum, and pear. A big garden lies behind the house. The Olingers grow a lot of their own food.
They also plant crops with wildlife in mind, like sorghum and corn. ěDeer now, theyíre on my third row of corn,î Jim said. He didnít sound real excited about that, but he wasnít too upset either. You get the feeling from talking to the Olingers that nothing much will bother them.
They have a lot of turkeys, but not many pheasants. Coyotes, foxes, and skunks keep that bird population down, Jim said. Coyotes took seven Pekinese ducks in one night, he recalled. Again, Jim didnít cuss that fact. Itís just part of life on the farm.
Soil loss on the hilly land is not a problem, Jim said. ěWeíve got dikes,î he said.
Harold was eager to show me the land, so we got in his pick-up and drove to two spots. The first stop was a good place for a photo, Harold said, because it showed several key parts of the farm. There was a pond, which in SWCD jargon is called a ěgrade stabilization conservation pond,î and pasture where cows had been turned out to eat the third crop of hay. Contoured strips of hay and corn lay in the distance And there was something else that Harold probably liked, although he didnít put it in words: a sweeping beauty to the land that lifts your spirit.
Jim explained how the crops are rotated. He pointed to a field that he would seed down with barley or oats and alfalfa. ěTo get some good seeding back in the ground, when I have more cows again,î he said.
The soil is hard clay, so they canít do minimum tillage and get a good yield. ěThe ground is too solid,î Jim said. A mold board plow that turns the soil up the hill prevents erosion, Brad said.
Harold then drove us to another spot even more majestic. We could look east down the entire Crooked Creek Valley. Even the city of Genoa was visible six miles away. Haroldís big grove of pine trees lay in the distance too.
Jim said they have a problem with deer eating corn because the fields are surrounded by land in the Conservation Reserve Program. ěWe sit here, the only one in the area with corn.î
ěBut our corn is real good,î Harold said. Itís easy to see where Jim and Brad get their optimism.
Jim reiterated that the deer damage doesnít bother him much. ěItís just the way it is, I guess.î
I asked Jim why they didnít have land in a soil bank. ěBecause we farm it,î he answered in typical Olinger logic. Dumb question.
The Olingers will combine the corn, then dry it. They will store half of it to feed to the cattle, and sell the other half.
Cows will clean up the alfalfa where we were standing, Jim said. Itís been hayed twice.
I remarked that it seemed complicated to keep all the rotations straight. The agriculture agencies in Caledonia help him with that, Jim said. ěThey work with you real good.î
After we returned to the house, Harold took me to a big machine shed. ěWeíve got good equipment to work with,î he said with a laugh.
Sure enough, everything looked in mint condition, especially his John Deere 7410 tractor.
ěItís seven years old but itís still new,î Jim said in mock disgust. ěThis is like sitting in a car, a Cadillac.î
ěHe runs in there before I can get in it,î Brad said, also in a teasing voice, referring to his grandfather. and the huge tractor.
ěItís the only thing that keeps me going on the farm, is the tractor,î Harold said.
That, and a certain love for the land.
Civic involvement
Harold was on the Crooked Creek Township board for Town Board for 25 years; FSA County Committee; St. Nicholas Church in Freeburg
Jim is a member of the Wild Turkey Federation and Pheasants Forever
The Olingers are avid sportsmen and have been active in developing food plots throughout Houston County for turkey and deer.
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Many conservation practices at the Olingers
Harold, Jim, and Brad Olinger have used conservation measures at their farm at 15497 Crazy Corners road near Freeburg for many years.
The farm has operated under a Conservation Plan since 1951 when Haroldís father, John, signed a District Cooperator Agreement. This century farm has had five generations in the Olinger family.
ěThe Olingers have demonstrated a life long commitment to conservation,î according to the Root River Soil and Water Conservation District nomination form. ěThat commitment has passed from generation to generation and continues with practices being maintained that are nearly 50 years old and still controlling soil loss,î
Here are some of the other conservation practices from the nomination form that Adolph Heimerdinger, district supervisor, submitted to the Minnesota Association of Soil and Water Conservation District.
ď Forestry improvement and establishment: The Olingers utilize livestock exclusion on 41 acres of forestland. They also have a Forest Management Plan and have done several tree plantings.
ď Pasture improvement and management: Pasture management includes rotational grazing, noxious weed control, and controlled grazing. Several multi-purpose ponds provide stock water to four separate pastures.
ď Cropland management: Conservation cropping sequence of CCCOHHH is integrated into a complete contour strip cropping system, alternating row and close grown crops.
ď Integrated pest management: Pesticides are used only as needed according to crop scouting.
ď Livestock and manure management practices: 100 head cow/calf and feeder operation
ď Daily scrape and haul: Manure is utilized on the farm as part of an overall fertilizer program
ď Wildlife practices: The Olingers have seven multi-purpose farm ponds which provide wildlife habitat. They also have 10 acres of land that is managed exclusively for wildlife Permanent and annual food plots are provided for turkey and deer.
ď Other soil, water and forest conservation practices: 120 foot pipe drop structure for erosion control; 5000 foot-plus of diversions; seven grade stabilization farm ponds.
ď Summary of your reasons for nominating this person for the award: The Olingers have demonstrated a life long commitment to conservation. That commitment has passed from generation to generation and continues with practices being maintained that are nearly 50 years old and still controlling soil loss.
Caledonia Argus
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