Farmers have a way of making their homesteads unique. Whether it is an old tractor surrounded by a water feature or antique manure spreader filled with flowers, it causes many road-weary travelers to slow down and gawk. But one farm yard in northern Missouri may make you stop and take photos.

It is hard to miss this 6-foot-tall ear of corn, along Route DD between Hardin and Norborne, Mo. Made from a 100-year-old ash tree that blew down at the Don Wheeler Farm in Ray County, the corn ear catches a driver’s eye.

It took a local chain-saw artist a few months to turn the 9-foot stump into a giant golden ear of corn. The kernels came to life by grooves cut up and down, as well as left and right. Then a mix of stains created the bright colors of a harvested ear, a mustard color for the kernels and a pecan tint for the corn shuck.

BEST BEAN: A small replica of a soybean pod provides a talking piece for friends and family in the farm gazebo.

While the corncob itself is impressive, it takes a little more looking to find the soybean pod housed in the wooden gazebo out back. The unique three-bean pod was made from the front yard ash tree remnants. It is also quite large, as soybean pods go, standing 3 feet tall.

So next time a spring storm strikes a tree, consider making it into an agriculture masterpiece. It may become a notable stop along Missouri rural roads.