Farming Technique       

Estimates of average equipment use, chemical inputs, seed inputs, and acreage yields for the Cannon River region were made based upon  interviews with local farmer  Dave Legvold and Northfield John Deere representative Jim Estrem. The estimates are based on an “average” acre of conventionally farmed land assuming the following: the farmer owns his own John Deere equipment; the farmer tills his land two times: once in the fall to incorporate crop residue, and once in the spring to finish the field before planting; the farmer uses genetically modified Roundup Ready® corn seed and Roundup® from Monsanto, and the farmer applies an anhydrous ammonia and 9/23/30 starter fertilizer in the spring, as well as root worm insecticide.

The acre is not meant to be isolated, but one piece of a larger farm. Clearly, it does not make sense to farm one acre of land using large equipment. However I use the acre as a way to break down large numbers into a size that the average person can understand. Likewise, I use John Deere equipment for my analysis and describe the new models, which are currently available for purchase. A local farmer may have an older tractor or one from another manufacturer, however, the size and power of any tractor they would use would need to be similar to those I present.