Farm and Ranch Living April/May 2022

Sharon Blumberg Pflugerville, Texas Natalie Bright Canyon, Texas Courtney Buser Stoughton, Wisconsin Jenna Chalfant Ridgeville, Indiana Rachel Ekberg Loma Rica, California Kerysa Ford Phoenix, Arizona Karen Giebel Republic, Washington Donald Lee Grob Norman, Oklahoma Emilee Haubner Burnet, Texas Bethany Heldman Morgantown, Indiana Rob Kennedy Maryville, Tennessee Amber Kersenbrock Colby, Kansas Amber Mathys West Mansfield, Ohio Callie Miller Geneseo, Illinois Carrie Miller Kinsman, Ohio Lisa Minnick Logansport, Indiana Jennifer Myers Gardners, Pennsylvania Barbara Schumacher Mountain View, Missouri Cheryl Stunkel Buckeystown, Maryland Lisa Trice Cambridge, Maryland Dixi Wellman Waverly, Nebraska EDITORIAL CONTENT DIRECTOR Kirsten Schrader ASSOCIATE CREATIVE DIRECTOR Christina Spalatin DEPUTY EDITOR Marija Andric SENIOR EDITOR, FARM & RANCH LIVING Ellie Piper SENIOR EDITOR Lindsey Anderson Rios ART DIRECTOR Jessie Sharon LAYOUT DESIGNER Lulu Rader DEPUTY EDITOR, COPY DESK Dulcie Shoener COPY…

...and every other color under the sun! For many of us, it’s been a challenging few years, and some days it can be tough to look on the bright side. But springtime, with its warmer weather and brand-new blooms, always brings a smile. Sure, spring also signals cloudy skies. But to paraphrase the great Dolly Parton, if you want to see a rainbow, you have to put up with the rain. I’d like to think Dolly would enjoy this issue’s photo feature, which is brimming with rainbows and starts on page 50. You’ll find yet more color in Amber and Ryan Anderson’s ag diary (page 24). This Idaho couple has contributed to past issues of Farm & Ranch Living, and I’m so pleased the stars aligned to make their diary…

PATENT PENDING On page 20 of the Oct./Nov. 2021 issue, Ellen Bishop asked if we had any suggestions for naming her brother’s pot-warming invention. Mine is: Pete’s Penny-Pinching Percolating Poultry Pots. Love this magazine, I’ve subscribed for many years. DICK VENEMA HUDSONVILLE, MICHIGAN BACK IN THE SADDLE I have been a subscriber since Farm & Ranch Living first started, but over time I became disenchanted with the magazine. But when the latest issue arrived, I changed my mind. The stories are better, the photos are better—it’s just better all around. Whatever you are doing, keep it up! KATHY FORSYTHE MANHATTAN, ILLINOIS EDITOR’S NOTE: We welcome all kinds of feedback—and that includes constructive criticism. A magazine is nothing without its readers, so we depend on you to let us know how…

1. THIS LITTLE PIGGY LOVES FUN My mini pig Oliver and his brother, Henry, live at a horse stable in nearby Orange Park Acres. Oliver is 2 years old, and his favorite things include playing chase, belly rubs, new toys and tomatoes. ASHLEE DuCOING NEWPORT BEACH, CALIFORNIA 2. TEA FOR TWO On our dairy farm we have cows, donkeys, chickens, ducks, goats, alpacas, sheep, dogs and cats. But my daughter Lilly bonded with this particular chicken, Millie, right from the start. Millie is full-grown now and laying eggs. She always runs to Lilly first when we’re all outside. REBECCA BALLINGER JEFFERSON CITY, TENNESSEE 3. UNDER THE RAINBOW I farm in southern Wisconsin and our farm, Bec-Wel, is home to 40 Holsteins. I captured this photo while bringing them in from…

ASK CAROL ANN SAYLE what’s kept her 5-acre, family-run farm in Austin, Texas, going strong for three decades, and she’ll answer without a second thought. “At Boggy Creek, we have a motto: Don’t give up. We had a tornado here in 2001 and a drought in 2012—we didn’t have any rain for almost a year. Those are the extremes, but there are always problems to bounce back from. You just have to roll with it.” The ability to pivot has been critical to Boggy Creek Farm’s success. Eight years ago, the farm began using tarps to cover beds that needed composting. This method not only eliminated much of the need for tilling and weeding, but also greatly enhanced the health of the soil. And when the pandemic hit, the farm,…

Fifty-plus years ago my family farmed 50 acres in southern Wisconsin. We had eight Guernsey cows, from which we sold milk. We kept the milk cold in a tank surrounded by ice blocks that the ice men delivered every week. In addition to the 200 chickens we kept for meat and eggs, we raised 35 head of hogs—“mortgage lifters,” my dad called them. We supplemented their regular hog feed with fruit from our berry patches and our orchard, as well as with vegetable scraps from the garden. Our mom was so proud when she heard Dad’s name on the farm news report for having achieved the highest market hog price one week. An aunt, our mom’s sister, lived three hours away in Chicago and made the trip every weekend to…