2008 MOA Farm Tour — Goats & Grains

To call Dave and Dee Turners' certified organic farm near Oilmont a dryland grains farm understates the conditions in recent years. The region between Cutbank and Chester has been bone dry, averaging several inches below normal in a region that normally receives an annual 12 inches of precipitation.

Yet the Turners have managed a living on the farm, which was homesteaded by Dave's grandfather 98 years ago. They grow certified organic winter wheat, spring wheat, barley and peas, and transport their wheat to organic flour millers in Utah. Goats are used to provide weed control and prescribed grazing services for neighbors.

On July 12, 2008, the Turners will host a tour of their certified organic, dryland grain farm near Oilmont. The tour is co-sponsored by the Montana Organic Association, Montana Department of Agriculture, Alternative Energy Resources Organization, and the Organic Crop Improvement Association, North Central Montana Chapter.

Registration begins at 9:30 a.m. The tour starts at 10 a.m. and will conclude by 3 p.m. A barbeque lunch with all of the trimmings is included, and a registration fee of $5 is being charged to help pay costs of the lunch.

Dave and Dee and their son, Matt, are 3rd and 4th generation farmers on land that includes the family farm homesteaded in 1910. The farm has grown to include about 3,000 acres with a rotation of winter wheat, spring wheat, barley, and peas. The entire farm is certified organic by the Organic Crop Improvement Association and has been for fifteen years.

The Turners will describe the long-established rotations and farming practices that have enabled them to adapt to the environmental conditions and succeed despite rainfall of just a few inches several years during the past decade. The tour will provide new and aspiring organic farmers, as well as established farmers, an opportunity to learn about organic farming methods in a challenging environment.

The practices include unique weed control, including a herd of 1,500 meat goats managed by Matt for the family's own weed control as well as custom weed work. Tour participants will have an opportunity to see the goats in action on nearby ground infested with leafy spurge. The goats' grazing activity also helps reduce the damage from wheat stem sawfly, which is a challenge in the region.

Cultivation is carefully timed in the fall and spring to provide maximum benefits for weed control. Soil fertility is maintained with rotations including a winter pea cover crop that is plowed down to improve soil health and fertility.

To reach the Turner Farm, drive 15 miles north of Shelby, then 14 miles east on Highway 343. Turn north on Willow Creek Road and go three miles. Turn left and go one-half mile, turning left at the first mailbox. Watch for two large, white fabric sheds.

Tour attendees are asked to pre-register by July 7 by contacting the Montana Organic Association at (406) 871-0019, by email at info@montanaorganicassociation.org, or by mail to the Montana Organic Association, P.O. Box 1675, Polson, MT 59860. For additional information, contact Lise Rousseau, (406) 871-0019.