by Holly Wortmann

“When it’s time for baling hay, it’s time for baling hay,” Gary Freeburg says on the way to his alfalfa field to check on a center pivot. Gary and wife Amy started as first-generation farmers in 1976. Together, with their sons, Jory and John, they own and operate Freeburg Hay LLC, a commercial hay farm in southeast South Dakota.

“The haying industry is very technical,” Gary says. “Timing is everything. When you’ve been doing this for over 50 years, people keep coming back. We have the sheds, tarp stacks and the setup to store the very best.”

The Freeburgs sell feed to buyers from every corner of the country. Sometimes, it’s 20 bales for pleasure animals; other times, it’s a truckload going to thoroughbred horses in Kentucky.

Quality and consistency

“It’s because of our consistency that keeps buyers coming back,” Amy says. “In agriculture, we’re sort of all in the same boat. Weathering the cycles in business keeps life interesting. Our business relationships are where it’s at. Gary enjoys selling hay to everybody.”

The Freeburgs’ goal is to consistently put up a high-quality hay that is tested and stored in a barn for their buyers. Irrigation allows more quantity in their product. Sixty percent of the Freeburgs’ 3,000 acres of alfalfa is sprinkler-irrigated by center pivots.

Jory helps run the main pivots for the operation. “We put our first pivot on alfalfa in 2006,” he says. “We made the investment in wells and irrigation, and implemented it when it seemed right. It changed our farm by helping us get up to five cuttings. Before the irrigation, we were only getting four — sometimes three if you weren’t getting the rains.

“Five cuttings is the biggest reason for the irrigation, allowing us to stay on that 28-day cut cycle. On new seedings, we’re getting four cuttings 80% of the time. Prior to that, we were only getting three. More cuttings mean more tons. Irrigation plays in high volume, where 6 to 7 tons per acre is attainable, versus 4 to 5 dryland tons per season.”

KEEPING TRACK: Thanks to their Valley BaseStation3, Amy can monitor all of the pivots and their operations from their main office computer. The Freeburgs have been running pivots to irrigate their alfalfa fields since 2006.

The Freeburgs manage their center pivots with BaseStation3 from Valley Irrigation. “A 100-foot antenna was erected in 2012 at the main office,” Jory says. “All the pivots are on a closed-loop automation system. Apps on our phones tie into the system, allowing us to manage irrigation from anywhere.”

Walking fields

Although the technology is set up for multiple users to remotely manage all center pivots without driving to a field, Jory says there is no replacing physically scouting a field.

“The system will tell you if the tire is flat and if the pivot stopped. But it won’t tell you if you have a plugged nozzle, and it’s never going to fix the end gun,” he says. “That’s why when we start up the system, we try to pressurize during daylight to see if there are any problems.

“The technology and automation make our life so much easier, but is the robot going to scrape out the end plugs or caked mud? It’s still up to us to feather out the marginal conditions. I don’t see a human being completely replaced by irrigation system technology — at least not in my lifetime.”

According to the Freeburgs, the most important management factor to consider when irrigating alfalfa vs. corn and soybeans is that alfalfa is kept on a 28-day cycle. “The biggest thing is if the first or second cutting is a little on the dry side. We’ll run a fast pass with the pivot, and that perks up the plant and keeps it to 28 days,” Jory says. “Then boom, it keeps going.”

“Watering is a constant game you have to play,” he says. “I have three weather apps that I’m constantly watching to make sure we’re not overwatering. Of course, less water means more passes. We do one-half inch per pass unless wiping, meaning the pivot won’t make a full circle, then it’s one-third inch. With the BaseStation3 system, I can track gallons and hours, and print those reports. This makes it easier when submitting each month’s usage” to the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

IN THE FIELD: Jory can also monitor pivot operations from the field with his smartphone. While technology can alert operators of problems like flat tires or other issues, it still takes boots on the ground to fix many of these problems.

While the Freeburgs have invested in the latest irrigation technology, the biggest challenge still comes down to something out of their control. “Mother Nature is the boss,” Amy says.

“She’s 150% in charge,” Gary adds.

Help along the way

The Freeburgs have a working relationship with Dreesen Farms. “Dreesen Farms handles the corn and soybean row-crop end. Tom and his son Jeff are an integral part of our business. We all work to support each other,” Gary says.

“When we are making hay in the summer, the Dreesens are there helping with the cutting. When it’s harvesttime, we help haul,” he says. “A friendship like ours is unique. Our kids walked to school together as kindergartners, and now we get to work together in our entities. If you don’t have family and friends, you didn’t do very well in life.”

“If you have that solid, grounded connection, you can get through anything,” Amy says. “There’s probably nothing harder for the young people than to work with their parents, because the parents have put it together initially. We never would be where we’re at unless we had family involved or somebody equal to them,” she explains.

“On the farm, you may have disagreements, but it is not like you won’t get over it,” Amy says. “I think part of the reason our children are well-grounded is because they grew up in the middle of a rapidly growing business. They saw it all and were right in the middle of it. They saw the telephone ring when times were good, and they saw when things didn’t go right. And they’ve proven to us they can handle it.”

The Freeburgs are living their business motto, where “every day is a hay day.”

“Let it go and continue on as a successful well-respected business,” Amy says. “We just want to continue the trajectory that we’re already on. It worked, it’s proven, so just keep that arrow going.”

For more information on Freeburg Hay, visit freeburghay.com.

Wortmann writes from Crofton, Neb.

.