Page 42 2026 Spring Farm Outlook LINCOLN DAILY NEWS March 2026 Also, soil high in organic matter is less prone to erosion and retains fertilizer better.” Another benefit of chicken manure’s organic matter is that “it feeds soil microbes and allows organic nutrients to break down faster, making them available to plants more quickly.” "Our biggest challenge is weeds in our crops. They are the biggest robber of yield. When you cannot use chemicals to kill them, that means you must make timely passes over your fields to keep them clean. Weather impacts us greatly and we must be ready to get into the fields at the correct time." When he needs to get rid of the weeds in his crops, Kristopher uses a weed zapper attached to his tractor that zaps the weeds with electricity. “Another challenge we have as an organic industry is imports coming into the US from abroad claiming to be organic but most likely is a non-gmo soybean from countries that do not allow gmo crops.” During planting season, one of the kids can often be found helping their parents in little ways and riding in the tractor or the combine beside Kristopher, so perhaps there will be a fifth generation farming the land. Jim said Kris still asks for farming advice. At times, Kris will take Jim’s advice but other times he does things differently than Jim. As Jim said, “I sold the car but kept the keys.” Being an organic farmer, Kristopher utilizes similar methods to the ones his grandfather used. He said the farm has come full circle in that way. [Angela Reiners] Sources: The Pros and Cons of Chicken Manure Fertilizer
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MzExODA=