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| Joe Esh's cows relaxing in the barn. |
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| Joe's son teddering hay to dry it down. Plain Sect people prefer to not have close up pictures taken of them so we do not have pictures of Joe. |
Joe Esh is an Amish farmer who
owns and runs a small dairy farm operation (40 milking head) in Lancaster County, PA. After
finding Joe at the neighboring farm fixing a piece of equipment, he showed us
his true Amish nature by riding his scooter back home where we followed him and
spoke to him about the past, present and potential future of his farm.
Joe
started his farm in 1976 growing a few acres of corn and tobacco while raising
cattle for beef. A few years afterwards, he decided to drop tobacco and beef in
favor of alfalfa and dairy cows to become a dairy farmer, he has stayed true
ever since. Joe is a successful businessman having bought a total of 4 farms
over his lifetime. He currently manages 65 acres of corn and alfalfa fields and
a total of about 70 total cows, 40 of which are used for milk production.
Although Joe still uses mules to pull the planters on his field he is not
behind on other advancements in farming; Joe follows a nutrient management plan
to help reduce the amount of nitrogen lost from his fields and to minimize the accumulation of phosphorus in his soils. Joe's work to implement his nutrient management plan reduces nutrient pollution of nearby bodies of water and the Chesapeake Bay. At this stop we got to experience firsthand how a small
farmer operates and works.
- Joey
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