By Julie Tomascik
Editor
Planting seeds deeper in the soil with some extra faith and hope is where you could find Chris and Zac Goodwin in mid-March.
The father-son duo was planting corn around Venus and Alvarado in Johnson County.
Dry weather conditions throughout the fall and winter led to a lack of soil moisture, forcing the farmers to plant the seeds deeper.
“The challenge is how dry we are, but we hope we get some good rains,” Chris said.
It’s an extreme contrast to the weather last year. Chris said a tremendous amount of rainfall—about 30 inches in May—ruined last year’s corn crop.
But the Goodwins have been very conservative in their approach for this year.
“We’re just trying to conserve what we have, trying to minimize our passes across the field,” Chris said. “We’re approaching this with caution because inputs are up tremendously. Some of the inputs are approaching 200-300% in price increase from last year, plus the fuel cost.”
They’re trying to minimize passes through the field to cut back on fuel and to not disturb the soil.
Uncertainty is the theme of this growing season. They don’t know when the next price increase will hit.
“Financially, this is one of the toughest years we’ve seen because there are too many uncertainties in the market,” Chris said. “We don’t know where this is going. The supply chain is already stressed from COVID.”
But it’s not just the cost that’s a challenge right now. Equipment and parts are difficult to find, too.
The Goodwins ordered parts for their planter last December, and they didn’t come in until late February.
“There’s a lack of parts, and we’re having to plan out farther ahead for purchases to make sure we have enough to cover every aspect of what we’re doing. We try to keep good stock of parts in our barn and plan ahead, but you just never know,” Zac said. “There’s such a supply shortage and getting stuff moved across the country and the world is such a challenge right now.”
Zac came back to the family farm after college. It’s where he enjoys being, despite the struggles that often come with the farming lifestyle.
“I took some internships, traveled the nation, saw differently lifestyles and had different experiences. But at the end of the day, all I wanted to do was come back home,” Zac said. “If I wasn’t farming, I don’t know what I’d do, because this is where my heart lies.”
Together, the Goodwins grow wheat and corn, raise cattle and have a hay operation.
And the Goodwins then buy their cattle feed from those mills.
“It’s full circle,” Zac said. “We pride ourselves on that.”
And Chris is proud to be farming with his son.
“For me, that’s the ultimate reward. I grew up with my granddad, with my dad,” he said. “But having my son back is the ultimate reward. My wife and I are involved, my son’s involved, and my daughter helps from time to time.”
But the Goodwins are concerned about the profit margin for the family farm. Ongoing drought, production costs and supply chain issues have been a consistent burden.
It’s one that doesn’t look like it will be going away any time soon.
Farming is always a gamble, though, and the variables changing.
But this year, each seed is being planted in uncharted territory. Despite the uncertainty, the Goodwins have faith knowing they are doing all they can.