News

Family traditions for two young farmers

By Heather Milbrath

01/10/2012

“It [North Dakota hard spring wheat] was the kind of durable, determined grain that could survive and flourish on the smallest possible margin-very much like the men who grew it.” Lois Phillips Hudson, “The Bones of Plenty.”

Farming is a job that has never been easy. That is why most of the people who undertake this career have a long tradition of agriculture in their family.

Nowadays with the advancements of technology, people are assuming that farming is becoming easy.

While things like GPS has made certain aspects of this profession easier, it also means that farming is now about not only working hard and being good with your hands, but also about working with technology.

For Tyler Neubauer, whose family has been farming east of Bottineau for four generations, farming is something that just comes natural.

“I have been running machinery on the farm since my legs were long enough to reach the clutch pedal.” Neubauer said. “As I learn more, I rent more land and expand my operation.”

Farming is also family tradition for Josh Stutrud as well. Stutrud is the fifth generation in his family to farm in Pierce County, near Barton. Stutrud started his own farming operation in his eighth grade year as part of his SAE (Supervised Agricultural Experience) project for FFA.

When asked why they want to take over the family operation, Neubauer and Stutrud had different reasons, but both favor the idea of self-employment.

“Farming to me is fun.” Neubauer said. “Ever since I was little all I thought about being was a farmer. I like the idea of self-employment and being in charge of the decisions.”

“I guess it’s like the old saying that farming just gets in your blood.” Stutrud said. “I like to take on the challenges that farming can present. Being my own boss is definitely a plus. I also like how hard work and dedication provide opportunities to farmers.”

One thing both Stutrud and Neubauer have in common is that they both chose to go on to higher education. Stutrud is attending North Dakota State University, while Neubauer is attending Northland Community and Technical College.

Stutrud is attaining a major in Crop and Weed Sciences, with a minor in Agribusiness.

“I decided that getting a degree in agronomy would be very beneficial for me since I wanted to come home to farm.” Stutrud said. “It will aid me in raising healthier and higher yielding crops. I could also open my own private consultant service if I would like.”

Even with this education both Stutrud and Neubauer will be earning, farming always presents many challenges farmers must face.

Neubauer feels that the greatest challenge for his farming future is government programs and inflation.

“Inflation will be tough since land, machinery, chemical, etc, are all very expensive to new farmers.” Neubauer remarked. “My dad has told me stories of when he was young and getting started, the interest rates on loans were huge and now we might be starting our way back there.”

This younger generation will be able to accept the new technologies better than the older generations. Those farmers who did not grow up in this technology age sometimes find it difficult to try to keep up with all the new advancements coming out. However, for Stutrud and Neubauer, who grew up with things like cell phones and GPS, as well as farming, it comes much easier.

“The greatest difference would be all the modern technologies that farmers use today, like: auto steer, Itec Pro, mapping, and RTK.” Stutrud said. “I am a big fan of the new technologies in agriculture, and I enjoy learning about them and how to operate them.”

One challenge that both Neubauer and Stutrud’s predecessors had to deal with and the one that will continue to be the largest determinant of success of farming is weather.

“Although we may never find a way to control the weather, hardworking men and women will continue to pursue this lifestyle. With farming you can control the planting and harvesting, but everything that happens between is out of your hands. I guess you really just have to plant your seed in the spring and pray that it comes out as a good crop in the fall,” they said.