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Hog Outlook: Windbreaks around livestock facilities serve many benefits to producers and neighbors.

Kevin Schulz, Editor

August 8, 2022

4 Min Read
view of a hog barn on a farm
NATURAL BARRIER: A line or multiple lines of trees and other vegetation help mitigate the amount of odor and dust emanating from livestock facilities.Kevin Schulz

Like a good neighbor, pig farms are there.

All too often, pig farms get a bad rap because of the smell. Some of this is warranted because pigs do smell — so do cattle, chickens, turkeys, dogs, cats and humans. You get enough of anything together in one place, and you will have odor.

Pig farmers can do a lot for themselves and their neighbors to mitigate the odor emanating from barns — from specially formulated diets to pit additives to barn filters to a living barrier such as a windbreak or shelterbelt.

Even though it’s been said the best time to plant a windbreak was 10 years ago, the second best time is today.

Windbreaks, a line or two or three or nine of a variety of trees, planted around homesteads and livestock facilities serve multiple purposes.

First, a windbreak, in addition to other nice landscaping, adds “curb appeal” to any building site with or without livestock.

Also, rows of vegetation such as conifers and deciduous trees can “hide” livestock facilities. Not that livestock producers want to hide their facilities; they are proud of what they have built through hard work, blood, sweat and tears. However, livestock producers’ neighbors may wish to have the hard work hidden.

This isn’t necessarily all bad.

Odor barrier

Windbreaks satisfy not only the aesthetics of a farm site through neighbors’ eyes, but also the olfactory glands of those same neighbors.

When proper trees are selected, as well as placed and spaced properly, windbreaks have been found to reduce dust and ammonia dispersal created by livestock facilities. University of Minnesota Extension agroforestry educator Gary Wyatt, along with fellow Extension educators Shane Bugeja and Dianne DeWitte, recently presented the workshop “Windbreaks and Good Neighborship.” Wyatt shared research from one study that showed a single row of immature Leyland cypress trees reduce dust and ammonia from a poultry house by 30% and 18%, respectively.

Many other studies show similar results of vegetation mitigating the amount of odor and dust from livestock facilities.

As with anything and everything that farmers and livestock producers do, you need to have a plan, and the planting of a windbreak is no exception.

Wyatt said it is important not to “box in” your facilities, with the first row of trees at least 150 feet away from your hog barn. With considerations to setback requirements from property lines and other buildings on a site, proper spacing between tree rows and hogs barns may not be possible. This may be the reason you see livestock barns out in the open with no tree barriers.

When establishing a windbreak or shelterbelt to improve a livestock operation, producers need to consider the prevailing wind directions and annual snowfall, so as not to create a drifting issue.

Livestock producers can also go high tech, as some swine systems have electrostatic fences with high-voltage lines of barbed wire that “knock” down odor-carrying dust particles exiting barn fans.

Side benefits

In addition to mitigating odor and dust issues and improving a livestock farm’s curb appeal, windbreaks may also reduce the spread of infectious diseases, as some pathogens have been known to spread through aerosolization. Another benefit of windbreaks is that properly placed vegetation can reduce the seasonal costs of heating and cooling farm buildings while not disrupting ventilation.

It only makes sense to start planning your windbreak of the future to begin reaping all of the benefits. The key word there is “plan,” and plenty of organizations and agencies can help you decide on the proper mix of deciduous and coniferous plants to match your needs. Conifers that retain their needles provide year-round benefits. It is recommended to first consider plants native to your local area and, of course, those zoned for your growing region.

Consult with county soil and water conservation districts, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, natural resources departments or Extension staff to get a recommended list of plants suitable for your area. These agencies may also assist in mapping out your windbreak and direct you to available cost-share programs.

For online resources, check these sites on windbreak and planting practices:

Schulz, a Farm Progress senior staff writer, grew up on the family hog farm in southern Minnesota, before a career in ag journalism, including National Hog Farmer.

About the Author(s)

Kevin Schulz

Editor, The Farmer

Kevin Schulz joined The Farmer as editor in January of 2023, after spending two years as senior staff writer for Dakota Farmer and Nebraska Farmer magazines. Prior to joining these two magazines, he spent six years in a similar capacity with National Hog Farmer. Prior to joining National Hog Farmer, Schulz spent a long career as the editor of The Land magazine, an agricultural-rural life publication based in Mankato, Minn.

During his tenure at The Land, the publication grew from covering 55 Minnesota counties to encompassing the entire state, as well as 30 counties in northern Iowa. Covering all facets of Minnesota and Iowa agriculture, Schulz was able to stay close to his roots as a southern Minnesota farm boy raised on a corn, soybean and hog finishing farm.

One particular area where he stayed close to his roots is working with the FFA organization.

Covering the FFA programs stayed near and dear to his heart, and he has been recognized for such coverage over the years. He has received the Minnesota FFA Communicator of the Year award, was honored with the Minnesota Honorary FFA Degree in 2014 and inducted into the Minnesota FFA Hall of Fame in 2018.

Schulz attended South Dakota State University, majoring in agricultural journalism. He was also a member of Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity and now belongs to its alumni organization.

His family continues to live on a southern Minnesota farm near where he grew up. He and his wife, Carol, have raised two daughters: Kristi, a 2014 University of Minnesota graduate who is married to Eric Van Otterloo and teaches at Mankato (Minn.) East High School, and Haley, a 2018 graduate of University of Wisconsin-River Falls. She is married to John Peake and teaches in Hayward, Wis. 

When not covering the agriculture industry on behalf of The Farmer's readers, Schulz enjoys spending time traveling with family, making it a quest to reach all 50 states — 47 so far — and three countries. He also enjoys reading, music, photography, playing basketball, and enjoying nature and campfires with friends and family.

[email protected]

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