Sie sind auf Seite 1von 4

Volume 19 Issue 6 November 2009

OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF CROP QUEST AGRONOMIC SERVICES, INC.

FIVE RECOGNIZED FOR

YEARS OF SERVICE
Five founding members of Crop Quest were recognized for 30 Years of Agronomic Service during the annual Crop Quest Full Staff Meeting on November 11, 2009, in Wichita, KS. Kent Davis, a Colorado native, began his career in agronomy in May, 1979, in Great Bend, KS with Servi-Tech after earning his General Agriculture degree from Colorado State University. After two long years in Kansas, he was given the opportunity to return to Colorado to start a division in Yuma, on Valentines Day (Feb. 14) 1981, where he later became the division manager. Accepting a new challenge in January, 1985, Kent moved home to the Front Range of Colorado to start a new division. He has remained the Colorado Front Range Division Manager during his 17 year tenure with Crop Quest. He obtained his CCA certification in 1993 and is a member of the National Association of Independent Crop Consultants and the Colorado Consultant Association. Kent enjoys working with farmers and fellow employees while getting to do something he is passionate about. He receives great satisfaction from the freedom of this career. Although he has tackled some challenging times in agriculture, such as the 1980 drought and the PIK year of 1983, Kent prides himself on the service he has provided his customers. He even had a customer in Yuma, CO, who called at Christmas time to tell Kent to go to the store & buy himself a pair of boots as a thank you for the work Kent did. Kent and his wife Carrie have been married for 19 years, and have two children Kirsten and Frederick. Jim Gleason graduated from Fort Hays State College (yes, it was still a COLLEGE back then...) in 1979 with a degree in Agriculture. He immediately began work as an agronomist with Servi-Tech in the Macksville/ St. John area. He proceeded to serve as the St. John Division manager from 1983, until the founding of Crop Quest in February, 1992, where he was named Crop Quest Eastern Region Vice President. In addition to working with many producers in Central Kansas, overseeing the Eastern Region and assisting with recruiting full-time and intern candidates, Jim is an elected member to the Crop Quest Board of Directors. Knowing that he has assisted farmers in contributing to the statistic of one American Farmer now being capable of feeding 125 other people is one of the most rewarding aspects of Jims career. He also commented that he works with the best people in the world both as co-workers and as customers. Married for 22 years, Jim and his wife Linda have two children Kristin, a K-State junior majoring in FACS Education and Jeffery, a sophomore at St. John High School. Upon graduating with an Agronomy degree from Kansas State University in 1978, John Hecht initially began his agricultural career with Dekalb Hybrid Wheat Research. It didnt take long for John to realize his passion was working with and helping farmers. Therefore, he accepted an agronomist position with Servi-Tech on March 1, 1979. Moving up the ranks, he became the Great Bend, KS Division Manager in 1982 and

Jim Gleason

Kent Davis

John Hecht

Continued on Page 3
1

Crop Quest Perspectives

ERRATIC NATURE OF CLIMATE CHANGE CREATES MULTIPLE CHALLENGES FOR GROWERS


Global climate change doesnt come in a neat package. Extreme high or low temperatures or drought or flooding do not come in predictable cycles, though climatic changes clearly affect all these weather phenomena. For farmers, it all adds up to a big crapshoot, says Jerry Hatfield, Laboratory Director at the National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment in Ames, Iowa. Hatfield reports that in the last decade in the Midwest we have seen more wet springs with significantly more rainfall for longer periods of time. Subsequently, we see longer dry periods rainfall patterns tend to be not as evenly distributed as they were as recently as five to six years ago. We are also seeing nighttime temperatures increasing more rapidly than daytime temperatures, which can have an indirect, but dramatic impact on crops. Overall, I think we will see dramatic changes in high and low temperatures and rainfall patterns, if not total rainfall amounts, Hatfield says. For example, in the Southeastern U.S., growers were plagued by hot, dry weather in the growing season, but had the coolest July on record. How crops adapt to these kinds of dramatic changes will be critical in the future. Many people think global climate change means hotter or cooler weather long-term or floods or Jerry Hatfield extended droughts, but those are more long-term trends. Agriculture can adapt to long-term weather patterns. Its the in-season changes in climate that wreak real havoc on crops, the USDA Laboratory director contends. The biggest challenge for farmers, relating to climate changes is and will be water usage and management, Hatfield says. We are not only seeing variable precipitation, we are seeing varying forms of precipitation. For example, changes in the snow pack are already creating the need for changes in cropping systems in California and other states, he notes. As a component of our farming systems, we need to figure out how we are going to make the most efficient use of water to continue to produce crops in an efficient and productive manner. These decisions will encompass various farming techniques from crop selection to soil management practices all related to water management. Technology will play a role in evening out the extremes of weather that we go through. For example, a drought tolerant hybrid may not lose as much yield as less drought tolerant varieties. Or, looking at other extremes, some varieties may be bred to withstand too much water in some parts of the growing season, store the moisture and have reduced yield losses in drought periods, Hatfield explains. Another piece of the water usage puzzle involves irrigation, especially across the Plains and western states. The erratic nature of climate change increases the need to know precisely when to apply available irrigation. For example, how much yield increase do we get by applying the most water dur2 Crop Quest Perspectives

ing grain fill from these new drought tolerant varieties? There likely will be seasonal dynamics that are different from traditional weather patterns requiring growers to look at different capabilities of the varieties and of potentially different crops altogether. A big question is how to bring together water management to help build the agricultural systems of the future? Hatfield says there is a genetic component. New GMO products and plant varieties are coming on the market at a rapid pace, and it will be critical to figure out how these new innovations fit into an overall, sustainable farming program. There is a soil management component to developing these farming programs of the future. We refer to many of the soil management practices as taking the E out of ET (evapo-transpiration). Can we keep residue cover on the soil and limit evaporation so that soil water in the profile goes toward making a crop? We know the more water through the plant by transpiration, the greater the total biomass and ultimately more grain yield, Hatfield stresses. Anything we can do in soil management to increase water availability during the season pays dividends in terms of improved plant productivity. Hatfield explains that the typical Plains grain farmer needs to be aware of variable precipitation in the future. The grower must ensure they are growing crops that can best capture and use every raindrop, keep it in the soil, and make it available to the plant at the optimum time the plant needs it. Hatfield also adds that grain farmers have done a good job of matching rainfall patterns with nutrient application of the crop. They are going to need to refine the water infiltrate management in the nutrient package. Farmers will need to be very opportunistic to manage around these dramatic changes in weather patterns. There is no doubt success in managing weather variability within the season will come down to making good crop management decisions, Hatfield contends. Organizations like Crop Quest will play a pivotal role in helping farmers make these sound decisions. In this variable climate, variability will have a multiple set of scales. Over a large range, the scale of differences can be dramatic and likely wont be consistent across a relatively small geographic area. Having an organization, like Crop Quest, with good communication and professional skills will be an asset in helping farmers in any one particular location to make better management decisions. Indirect affects of weather variability may change the range of insects, overwintering of insects and changes of diseases. These changes will likely occur much more quickly than they have in the past. In Iowa, corn rootworm could go from a one generation insect to a two generation insect a result of relatively minor climate change. That subtle difference would have an enormous impact on insect control, Hatfield stresses. I think these indirect impacts of climate changes on weeds, insects and diseases may cost farmers more money in the long-run than will the actual weather variability. Having a well-trained professional consultant or organization of consultants will be a big benefit to growers trying to cope with these indirect, often subtle results of climate variability, Hatfield concludes.
www.cropquest.com

CROP QUEST RECOGNIZED AS A WINNING WORKPLACE


For the second year in a row, Crop Quest has been recognized as a finalist for The Wall Street Journal and Winning Workplaces 2009 Top Small Workplaces across America. Out of the 630 nominations, there were 329 applicants and only 35 were selected as finalists. At a conference and dinner meeting held in Chicago recently, a group of Crop Quest owners were on hand to receive the honor and plaque. In addition to the finalist listing, there were 15 companies selected out of these 35 who were recognized as the top 15 winners. Crop Quest will continue to strive for this additional honor in the coming year. According to information from Winning Workplaces, The Top Small Workplaces Award recognizes an elite group of businesses and nonprofits who recognize the value of investing in their people and illustrate the practices they use to create highly successful organizations. These organizations are typically growing, financially healthy, have an active and engaged workforce, and are led by visionary By: Ron OHanlon leaders. President It is our customers and Member, National Alliance employee/owners who make of Independent Crop Consultants, CPCC-I it possible for Crop Quest to Certified be recognized in this manner. Our motto is Employee Owned and Customer Driven and this keeps us striving to meet the needs of our customers, hoping to exceed their expectations while helping our employee/ owners find satisfaction and fulfillment in the work they do. Recognition such as this also helps our customers know that they have chosen a professional agronomic services company who takes pride in the service they provide in addition to the employee/owners having a stake in the success of their company.

served in this same position for Crop Quest from 1992 to 2000. Seeking a new challenge, the Hechts (John and Deb, who have been married for 24 years, and their four children Kevin, Alex, Lindsey and Meghan) moved to Farmington, NM in 2000 to begin work on both the Navajo Indian Reservation in northwest New Mexico and the Ute Indian Reservation in southwest Colorado. With this move, John became Crop Quests Special Projects Manager where he now oversees the projects on these two Reservations in addition to projects along the Red River in Oklahoma/Texas/Arkansas, south Texas, southeastern New Mexico and along the Green River in Utah. Although the move to Farmington was one of the most challenging aspects of his career, John has thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to work with very special customers while learning about diverse cultures. Adopting the motto Theres no place like home, John and his family returned to Kansas in 2008, and John continues to pursue new projects while based in Colwich, KS. Following a similar career path, Cort Minor graduated with a Natural Resource Management (aka - agronomy degree) from Kansas State University in 1978. Upon graduation, Cort worked two years for Garst / Pioneer Seeds in Garden City, KS before signing on with Servi-Tech in 1980. He became the Garden City Division Manager in 1984 and continued with this title when he helped form Crop Quest in 1992. Adding to his responsibilities, Cort is a 16-year Crop Quest Board Member. Deciding to apply his agronomy expertise to new endeavors, Cort moved to Roswell, NM in 2006 to develop a new Crop Quest territory in the Pecos River Valley. He enjoys working with the variety of crops produced in New Mexico such as chilies, pecan tree orchards and other alternative crops. He boasts that he has had the privilege to work with the greatest group of farmers in two very different areas. Corts efforts in

Five Recognized ... Continued from Page 1

building this new territory are succeeding as he will now be hiring a summer intern for 2010. Cort and his wife Connie have been married for ten years and have three step-children Kyle, Jana and Brandon. Crop Quest President, Ron OHanlon, helped form Crop Quest with Rollie Stukenholtz and 65 other agronomists from Servi-Tech. Ron had worked for Servi-Tech from 1979-1992 as an agronomist in the Pratt Division, as the Pratt Division Manager, and then as the Eastern Kansas Regional Manager. He started as Crop Quest President at Pratt, KS but in 1993, he and his family moved to Dodge City, KS where the headquarter office is located. Starting another agronomic service company was one of the most stressful and challenging times of Rons career, but it has also been one of the most rewarding. Ron is proud of working with the greatest customers (farmers) and employee-owners. He has gained great satisfaction by watching new employees grow into exceptional agronomists in addition to helping bring Crop Quest into the 21st Century with the use and implementation of computers/technology. Ron received both his BS degree in Animal Science in 1973 and MS degree in Agronomy (Soil Science) in 1979 from Oklahoma State University. Before determining that agronomy was his career destination, he worked as the Herdsman Supervisor of 300 head of purebred cattle for the USDA/Ft. Reno Experiment Station and then as the Canadian County, OK County Extension Agent, 4-H. Ron and his wife Mary have been married 34 years and have been blessed with six children and three grandchildren. Congratulations to these five outstanding agronomists for their commitment, dedication and efforts to helping farmers succeed.
Crop Quest Perspectives 3

Ron OHanlon

Cort Minor

Crop Quest Adds New Consultants As It Moves Into New Territory


Crop Quest continues to expand its operations eastward by establishing a new division in West Central Missouri based out of Warrensburg. Agronomist David Renck, who will oversee the Missouri operation, joined Crop Quest in midSeptember after previously working with ServiTech and Missouri Farm Association (MFA). In 2005, Renck graduated from Texas A&M with an Agriculture Economics degree and went on to earn an MBA at A&M as well. He worked as an agronomist for Servi-Tech in Lincoln, NE for a year before moving to Missouri. With MFA, Renck worked in seed, chemical and DAVID RENCK fertilizer sales and agronomy. Renck says he is particularly interested in nutrient management and expects to be working with corn, soybean, wheat, alfalfa and pasture. He is looking forward to developing Crop Quest business in Missouri. Having grown up on a farm in Northeast Arkansas, Rencks crop production roots run deep. But there is another dimension to his farming and crop growing background: Rencks wife is an agriculture economics professor at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg. For Brady Huck, working in Crop Quests Dodge City office is something of a homecoming after having earned his degree in animal science from Kansas State University last spring. Two days after graduation, he returned to the area where he grew up. Huck is enjoying the other side of the agriculture business now that he is a Crop Quest agronomist consulting with farmers who mostly grow irrigated corn, dryland wheat and milo. He plans to use his experience as a third-generation cattle producer to develop a deeper understanding of the challenges crop growers face in increasing their yields and maximizing profits. Hucks father and grandfather own a registered feed stock operation with 250 pure bred Angus cattle, so he underBRADY HUCK stands the interrelated aspects of crop and livestock production. Growing up on the livestock side of the farm, Huck now says he has a practical appreciation for the interdependence each segment of the agriculture industry has with the other.

Crop Quest is an employee-owned company dedicated to providing the highest quality agricultural services for each customer. The quest of our network of professionals is to practice integrity and innovation to ensure our services are economically and environmentally sound.

Mission Statement

Crop Quest Agronomic Services, Inc. Main Office: Phone 620.225.2233 Fax 620.225.3199 Internet: www.cropquest.com cqoffice@cropquest.com

Employee-Owned & Customer Driven

PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID DODGE CITY KS PERMIT NO. 433

Crop Quest Board of Directors


President: Director: Director: Director: Director: Director: Ron OHanlon Jim Gleason Dwight Koops Cort Minor Chris McInteer Rob Benyshek

Das könnte Ihnen auch gefallen