Agriculture is often a tradition passed down from generation to generation, but as the new generation returns to their family’s farming roots, fresh ideas can grow for the farm.

Connor McCormick of McCormick farms near Caledonia caught the agriculture bug at a young age.

“For as long as I can remember, I’ve been helping my dad,” McCormick said. “I didn’t want to go to daycare growing up. I wanted to stay on the farm.”

Despite his passion for the industry, McCormick did explore other career options while attending St. Olaf College.

“It is tough to make a living, and I wanted to see what else was out there,” McCormick said. “I knew in the back of my mind that this is where I had to get back to. You can take the boy away from the farm, but you can’t take the farmer out of the boy.”

While in school, he was introduced to new conservation methods like cover crops and no-till farming. McCormick understood there may not be an initial payout from testing new methods, but envisioned long-term benefits for the field.

“If you believe in what you are doing, you will make it work, and you will cut costs elsewhere,” McCormick said.

While delivering a presentation on his techniques at a Land Stewardship Project workshop in March, he admitted his father was not fully on board with the ideas. There were reasonable concerns like whether or not the cover crop would act as a weed during a dry spell or draw too many nutrients from the soil. However, adding a few test strips to the field showed promising results.

Photo Credit: Land Stewardship Project

“We haven’t seen any major crop disasters like he was worried about,” McCormick said. “It’s actually been some of the best corn we’ve seen. Erosion has virtually gone away. So far, there have been no negative impacts.”

Part of McCormick’s presentation included a study that quantified dollar signs from building organic matter with cover crops and no-till agriculture. According to the study, it averaged $680 in benefits per acre.

“Even if you got $300 an acre for adding 1 percent organic matter, that’s huge,” McCormick said. “That’s your profit right there.”

Now entering the planting season for 2020, McCormick looks forward to working with land he recently purchased as he continues to establish himself as a young farmer in Southeast Minn.

“It has been my goal to have my own piece that I can manage and make some decisions,” McCormick said. “That’s the only way you learn is by making mistakes, so I’m excited to try some new things and see how it goes.”

He hoped to create a landscape in agriculture that can be carried into a new generation.

Agriculture is often a tradition passed down from generation to generation, but as the new generation returns to their family&rsquo;s farming roots, fresh ideas can grow for the farm.
Connor McCormick of McCormick farms near Caledonia caught the agriculture bug at a young age.
&ldquo;For as long as I can remember, I&rsquo;ve been helping my dad,&rdquo; McCormick said. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t want to go to daycare growing up. I wanted to stay on the farm.&rdquo;
Despite his passion for the industry, McCormick did explore other career options while attending St. Olaf College.
&ldquo;It is tough to make a living, and I wanted to see what else was out there,&rdquo; McCormick said. &ldquo;I knew in the back of my mind that this is where I had to get back to. You can take the boy away from the farm, but you can&rsquo;t take the farmer out of the boy.&rdquo;
While in school, he was introduced to new conservation methods like cover crops and no-till farming. McCormick understood there may not be an initial payout from testing new methods, but envisioned long-term benefits for the field.
&ldquo;If you believe in what you are doing, you will make it work, and you will cut costs elsewhere,&rdquo; McCormick said.
While delivering a presentation on his techniques at a Land Stewardship Project workshop in March, he admitted his father was not fully on board with the ideas. There were reasonable concerns like whether or not the cover crop would act as a weed during a dry spell or draw too many nutrients from the soil. However, adding a few test strips to the field showed promising results.
Photo Credit: Land Stewardship Project
&ldquo;We haven&rsquo;t seen any major crop disasters like he was worried about,&rdquo; McCormick said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s actually been some of the best corn we&rsquo;ve seen. Erosion has virtually gone away. So far, there have been no negative impacts.&rdquo;
Part of McCormick&rsquo;s presentation included a study that quantified dollar signs from building organic matter with cover crops and no-till agriculture. According to the study, it averaged $680 in benefits per acre.
&ldquo;Even if you got $300 an acre for adding 1 percent organic matter, that&rsquo;s huge,&rdquo; McCormick said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s your profit right there.&rdquo;
Now entering the planting season for 2020, McCormick looks forward to working with land he recently purchased as he continues to establish himself as a young farmer in Southeast Minn.
&ldquo;It has been my goal to have my own piece that I can manage and make some decisions,&rdquo; McCormick said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s the only way you learn is by making mistakes, so I&rsquo;m excited to try some new things and see how it goes.&rdquo;
He hoped to create a landscape in agriculture that can be carried into a new generation.

Join Pam Jahnke for the latest farm news. Heard daily on WOZN 96.7 FM and 1670 AM in Madison Wisconsin from 5-6am. Also heard on affiliate stations all over Wisconsin.

Join Pam Jahnke for the latest farm news. Heard daily on WOZN 96.7 FM and 1670 AM in Madison Wisconsin from 5-6am. Also heard on affiliate stations all over Wisconsin.

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