Ice Cube Anyone?

Melissa Sandfort

When is the last time you ever heard someone say, “Can you grab me a soda from the icebox?”? I bet it’s been a while. Let me translate: icebox or ice chest = freezer/refrigerator. And when I came across this large tong-shaped item my curiosity kicked in.

It’s an ice hook. In the early 1900s, folks would use this tool to “harvest” blocks of ice from ponds, wrap them in straw or sawdust to keep the ice as long as possible, and store them in an insulated building. They’d later pop one of those blocks in the icebox to keep food from spoiling … this was done long before refrigerators/freezers came about.

Back home there used to be an ice plant and after church on Sunday my grandpa would swing by the mill and grab some ice blocks for making homemade ice cream.

My flimsy ice tongs seem cheap and lightweight after lifting this monster! Thank you, Carl von Linden, for creating the refrigerator/freezer. I love that ice comes out of the door and not out of a pond.

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Iowa farmers from across the state are joining together to show RAGBRAI 2011 riders what Iowa agriculture is all about. Iowa-raised beef, pork and dairy products will be featured in free samples for RAGBRAI riders at several locations along this year’s route.
  • U.S. Wheat Associates welcomes Casey Chumrau as Market Analyst in its Arlington, Va. office.
  • The National Trust has revealed that members of the public will decide which flock of sheep will be bought by a working, commercial farm as part of the MyFarm experiment which aims to re-connect people with the day-to-day realities of farming.
  • United Soybean Board farmer-leaders recently voted to approve the checkoff’s new Long-Range Strategic Plan, which identifies six areas they believe are most critical to maintaining and expanding the U.S. soy industry over the next five years.
    Zimfo Bytes

    Looking At How You Should Manage Crop Nutrients

    Chuck Zimmerman

    CTIC TourOne of the stops on the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project field tour was Traub Farm. Our presenter was John Traub. The family farm grows corn, soybeans, specialty hybrid seed corn and hybrid sunflowers. The farm was named the Livingston County SWCD Conservation Farm Family in 2010. So they take conservation seriously.

    I spoke with John after his presentation. He says he got involved with the project through their relationship with the SWCD and NRCS. It just “made sense” to them. He says that many of the projects they have participated in provide rewards for doing so. For this project he says they didn’t have to do a lot of things different but they are doing more testing to find the right rate, timing and place to apply nutrients. He says people often get so busy they don’t take time to look at what they’re doing. One of the real benefits of the project for him is being forced to look at what the things are they should be doing.

    The Traub farm uses strip-till conservation systems with minimal tillage. They are currently comparing fall applied N with an RTK strip-till system to a conventional chisel plow system.

    You can listen to my interview with John here: Interview with John Traub

    CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photos

    AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by
    Ag Groups, Audio, Conservation, CTIC, Farming

    Illinois EPA Working With Farmers In Indian Creek Watershed

    Chuck Zimmerman

    CTIC TourThe Conservation Technology Information Center’s Indian Creek Watershed Project is funded in part by the Illinois EPA. Representing the IL EPA during last week’s field tour was Barb Lieberoff, Environmental Protection Specialist. I spoke with her during lunch.

    Barb says the Federal 319 Program, part of the Clean Water Act, is what where the program funding comes from. She says the IL EPA worked collaboratively with the CTIC to choose a watershed in which they could create some BMP’s for improving water quality. She says a TDML is being considered for the watershed. The Indian Creek Watershed was considered a good fit for the project. By being proactive early in the process she says that all the stakeholders involved are helping themselves in the long run.

    You can listen to my interview with Barb here: Interview with Barb Lieberoff

    CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photos

    AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by
    Ag Groups, Audio, Conservation, CTIC, Environment, Fertilizer

    Catering To Chefs Specialty Needs

    Chuck Zimmerman

    CTIC TourThe oldest family farm in Livingston County, IL is Spence Farm. I met Marty and Kris Travis, seventh generation farmers, on this unique farming operation during the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project field tour. The farm specializes in a lot of heirloom vegetables among other products. You can see a list of their products on their website.

    Marty says the quality of water is very important to him and he is serving on the steering committee for the project. He’s excited to see neighboring farms become aware of the project and hopes they’ll participate in it. He says that he’s hoping to “continue to increase the quality of our cropping area.” In the last year he says they had ninety five percent of their crop land covered in cover crop. He says it’s really cool to come out and see that the farm is still green in the winter.

    I believe Marty is picking a stalk from some radishes they let go to flower and seed. They were just one of many types of vegetables they grow for chefs in the Chicago area. Apparently the radish creates very tasty seed pods!

    You can listen to my interview with Marty here: Interview with Marty Travis

    Besides specialty heirloom vegetable crops the Spence Farm also raises some livestock. We were shown their guinea hogs. These are small size pigs that they keep in movable pens. They get moved as they eat weeds and other growing stuff under them. I recorded a video clip of Marty and Kris explaining this part of their operation.

    CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photos

    AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by
    Audio, Conservation, Farming, Food, Video

    Harms Farm Participating In CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project

    Chuck Zimmerman

    CTIC TourMy first stop on the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project field tour was Harms Farm. Our host was Kevin Harms (left) pictured pointing to a chart being held by Harold Reetz. Kevin’s farm is in southern Livingston County, Illinois. He’s one of the farmers that has volunteered to participate in this project.

    Kevin says they’re trying several different practices to try to more efficiently use nutrients, especially nitrogen. These practices include cover crops, side dressing, split application and using “environmentally smart” nitrogen. He hopes to find out how to more efficiently manage nutrients while improving water quality for the area. The multi-year project will allow them to do testing under different weather and field conditions. He says the corn crop in his area is in great shape while soybeans got off to a late start but are also looking good.

    You can listen to my interview with Kevin here: Interview with Kevin Harms

    CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photos

    AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by
    Audio, Conservation, CTIC, Farming, Fertilizer

    AGROTAIN Working On Indian Creek Watershed

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Martin Case AGROTAINField days and tours are heating up this summer along with the weather. During the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project field tour one of our stops put us right out in the corn, looking at the impact of various levels of nitrogen application. Martin Case, AGROTAIN, our sponsor for tour coverage, conducted one of the presentations. He’s seen here answering questions after his presentation. AGROTAIN is one of the sponsors of the tour as well.

    Martin gave us an overview of AGROTAIN and the company’s products. He was showing initial results from a nitrogen use efficiency study. This type of study can take several years to obtain all the results needed. He believes that nitrogen management is critical not only for the environment but also for the financial sustainability of the farmer. The study going on here on this farm is intended to show how using new technology like that provided by AGROTAIN can achieve these goals. You can watch Martin’s presentation here:

    CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photos

    AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by
    Audio, Conservation, CTIC, Fertilizer

    Photos From CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour

    Chuck Zimmerman

    I finally got back to ZimmComm World Headquarters and was able to get all my photos uploaded from yesterday’s Conservation Technology Information Center Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour. I’m working on interviews and will have more story posts to come so please check back often.

    In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the photos.

    CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photos

    AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by
    Ag Groups, CTIC

    Zimfo Bytes

    Melissa Sandfort

      Zimfo Bytes

    • The North American Meat Processors Association is partnering with 12 other meat industry organizations, FSIS, and six trade media to host the Third Annual E. coli Conference for North American Beef Further Processors.
    • The National Association of Farm Broadcasting Foundation awarded three college scholarships to deserving upper-classmen aspiring for a career in ag broadcasting and/or ag communications.
    • New Holland has announced the Boomer 555 contest. Beginning July 1 and continuing for the next five months, you can enter to win a five-year lease of a New Holland Boomer 30 compact tractor and loader.
    • The Angus Foundation was honored for excellence in producing publications and communication projects at the annual meeting of the National Agricultural Alumni and Development Association.
      Zimfo Bytes

      Precision Conservation Technology

      Chuck Zimmerman

      We couldn’t have had better weather for a farm tour than today for the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Day. Several bus loads of participants visited Livingston County, IL area farms to see and hear how they are implementing best management practices for things like nutrient management.

      One of the people working on the project with CTIC and a presenter today is Harold Reetz. I visite with Harold prior to the start of today’s activities. I’ll see him again next week in Sprinfield, IL for the InfoAg Conference. Since that’s all about precision agriculture and since that is an integral part of the BMP’s being implemented on the tour stops here we decided to call it “precision conservation.”

      Harold says the project purpose is to demonstrate different best management practices for nitrogen. It’s a relatively small watershed with mostly corn and soybean crops. So the goal is to come up with practices to improve nitrogen efficiency which will reduce the amount that will get into the ground water. Local farmers have volunteered in this first year of the project to implement suggested practices and it is their farms we visited. I’ll have interviews with each of them in coming days.

      The project is receiving funding from a variety of sources that includes the Illinois EPA. It is really a proactive approach to voluntarily manage natural resources without the need to have new regulations. That sure seems like a potentially win win situation for all parties.

      You can listen to my interview with Harold here: Harold Reetz Interview

      Post Update: I’ve updated the link to my photo album below:

      Here are some of my photos from today’s tour. I’ll have more after getting back to ZimmComm World Headquarters. The internet access here pretty well quit about half way through uploading. CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photos

      AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by
      Ag Groups, Audio, Conservation, Fertilizer, Technology