By Sirrina Martinez

Since 2021, the Maker's Way Fiber Mill in Brandon, S.D. has been serving the tri-state area and beyond, processing fiber from a variety of animals, including alpaca, llama and sheep. Some of their customer orders come from as far as Georgia, California, Montana and Idaho. Elizabeth Davelaar, who co-owns the mill with her mother and sister, Kari Davelaar and Erin Van Nieuwenhuyzen, said that the idea to start the mill came from a personal need to find a way to process her own materials.
"We started the mill because I couldn't find any local yarn in the area that I could use with the plants I was foraging and using for dye," she said. "This led me to a mill in North Dakota and I went to intern for a day. From there, I got my mom, Kari and my sister, Erin, involved. We purchased the equipment online through Facebook Marketplace and officially opened the mill in October of 2021."
The inspiration for the mill's name, Davelaar said, came from a two-fold idea.
"First, we do about 60% custom processing for people," she said. "We love to work with people to create the products that they can use or sell themselves. We make it the 'makers way.' The second part is that we are all Christians, and we believe in using natural fibers and honoring God in how we operate and make our products."
Around 60% of the mill's processing efforts consists of custom processing for farmers, and the remaining 40% of processing is done for the creation of the mill's own products to sell, Davelaar said.
At a high level view, processing animal fibers has a few steps. First, farmers will shear their animal, remove any fecal matter and vegetation that is stuck to the fiber and then send it to the mill. There, it is washed in hot water with a scouring detergent before being air dried. From there, it goes through a picker and carder, which opens up the fiber and brushes it into a more usable product. Next, all the fibers are combed into the same direction, Davelaar said, when it is run through a pin drafter. Finally, the fiber is spun into single threads and those threads are then plied into yarn.
The biggest factors that the mill looks for to identify quality wool or fiber for processing into yarn is staple length, Davelaar said. The staple length needs to be 3.5" or more. Other signs of quality fiber are a lack of "weak spots" in the fiber, and how fine it is. There are many factors, but these are the three biggest.
There are a few things that customers should consider before bringing their fiber to the mill, Davelaar said.
"We recommend that fiber is skirted well before it is brought to us," she said. "This means that all manure and vegetation is removed. Not only will this save customers money in the long run, but it also makes the best products. A good rule of thumb is if you don't want it in your finished fiber, don't send it to the mill. We do our best with every fleece we are sent, but our equipment won't get all of the vegetation out of the fiber."
Farmers who are interested in sending their products to the Way Maker's Fiber Mill should keep in mind that their lead time for processing can run eight months to a year, which is standard for the industry, Davelaar said. At this time they are only accepting a small number of new clients for the upcoming year.
Aside from selling their own processed yarn, the mill sells a variety of items on their website including knit hats, felted insoles, dried marigolds for natural product dying, felt coasters, eco-friendly dryer balls, bird nest starters and more.

Sirrina Martinez
Multimedia reporter
smartinez@pipestonestar.com

With spring beginning March 19, area producers are preparing to begin another season of planting. An unusual winter may leave many inside and outside of the industry wondering what the season will bring.
Devin Hulstein, a certified crop advisor with Beck’s Hybrids in southwest Minnesota, said that some farmers may begin planting soon to try out March beans and that, if the weather holds for the first week of April, there may be a lot of planters moving in the fields.
One common misunderstanding, Hulstein said, is that planting before the insurance date on April 11 will put a farmer at risk for losing insurance on that crop.
"You only lose the replant part of your policy," he said. "Your coverage stays the same. I also like to remember we live in Minnesota and the weather can always change quick. I don’t think any farmer would be opposed to a wetter second half of March."
The drought and warm winter the area has experienced could potentially bring a few troubles for the upcoming seasons, Hulstein said.
"If the topsoil stays dry even germination can be a problem," he said. "A seed needs to take up roughly half its weight in water to germ and get the ball rolling. The other matter is root worm. Root worm has been an increasing concern the last couple of years."
The weather can help with this issue in a couple of ways, Hulstein said. When water sits in the spring or fall it can kill some root worm eggs, this is something we haven’t had recently. On the other hand, a deep frost can do the job as well, he said.
"I usually say if people are starting to get nervous about water pipes freezing you can count on decreasing the root worm population," he said. "That’s another issue (deep frost) that we haven’t had the last two years. I recommend using a planter-based insecticide if possible."
In drought conditions, selecting the right variety of seed hybrid is key, Hulstein said.
"Corn can handle drought pretty well as long as it gets a few timely rains," he said. "A couple in early season and then a nice rain around tassel, usually middle of July or so, and then one during grain fill is key. Soybeans are pretty tough and resilient as well. August always makes or breaks soybeans. They can be the nicest looking soybeans you’ve ever seen, but a dry August will ruin them."
The opposite is also true, Hulstein said. Beans can be dry and shorter through June and July and looking tougher, but an August with ample rain can set and fill a large amount of pods.
There are some seed hybrids that are more drought tolerant than others, Hulstein said, including a seed from Corteva called Aquamax, and another from Bayer called Droughtgard. Although seed dealers are perhaps seeing a little more attraction towards them and sales increasing, that doesn’t mean they are the right choice for everyone.
"The number one thing is still the right hybrid for the right farm," he said. "And the highest drought tolerance score is not always that hybrid."
In terms of changes and trends the seed world has seen over the last few years, the newer germplasm and genetics being used today have "wowed a lot of people," he said.
"The amount of heat and lack of rainfall we’ve had three years in a row now and been raising decent crops for the most part yet has surprised a lot of farmers each year I think," Hulstein said.
His advice for producers going into planting season, he said, is that it is always easier to do it right the first time.
"I always like to see 24 full hours of nice temperatures to get that seed started," Hulstein said. "So if there is a cold snow or rain coming and you are questioning to go start that next field, if the snow or rain is 24 hours away or more go for it. If it might start when you finished the field, come back to that field when it is fit again."

by Kyle Kuphal

With each new year, come new seed products with traits to meet producers’ needs.
Trent Johnson, owner of Prairie Winds Seeds in northwestern Murray County, said one new product released by Bayer this year is the V4P, which targets pests such as corn rootworm. He said corn rootworm is a common problem, especially when planting corn on corn.
“A corn on corn situation where guys are corn on corn a lot, they’re gearing up to deal with disease pressure like that — beetle pressure or corn rootworm,” Johnson said.
Johnson sells Beck’s seed and said the company’s products are constantly changing and evolving based on new issues.
“They’re constantly trying to stay industry leading in new traits, new products, new treatments to deal with environmental and disease issues,” he said.
Among the traits available in hybrid seed is one that seems particularly relevant due to the drier than usual weather in recent years — drought tolerance.
“Those have definitely shined over the last three years,” Johnson said.
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, as of Feb. 6, most of southwest Minnesota remained abnormally dry or was experiencing moderate drought conditions. Johnson said producers remain focused on yields, however, and they’re selecting seed designed to maximize yields, along with some drought tolerance.
“Drought is a concern, but there’s always the hope for moisture, so I think that’s kind of taking the lead,” Johnson said.
He, like many, is hoping that this year brings more moisture. If the old adage about precipitation 90 days after fog holds true, he said, they could get their wish this spring.
Whether it’s the weather, pests or something else, when it comes to farming, Johnson said, every season presents a new challenge.
“I think that’s why, as farmers, we’re just always gearing up for a challenge,” he said. “There’s always something new. There’s always something that happens in that time frame that you need to get your work done.”
Johnson knows that well through personal experience. Between him, his dad, Rick, and his brother, Jonah, they have a cow/calf operation, raise hogs, and grow corn, soybeans and alfalfa. He added seed sales to that mix in March of 2022 when he started Prairie Winds Seeds. He’d also been involved in precision planting before entering the seed business.
“I enjoyed that, but knew I wanted to be more at home, on farm, be more involved in my own operation,” he said.
Johnson said he’d thought about selling seed before, but hadn’t found the right company. Then a former colleague approached him, who worked with Beck’s, and said he thought Johnson would make a good seed dealer. Johnson looked into it and decided it was the right decision and the right company.
“They’re a good company,” he said. “They stand behind their products, stand behind their dealers, stand behind their customers.”
He said that kind of support and a desire to help farmers succeed is important.
“Farmers want to feel like somebody cares about us and appreciates what we’re doing for the world, for the community,” Johnson said. “A company that backs something like that is huge, to me.”
Johnson sells corn, soybeans, alfalfa, and cover crops including cereal rye, turnips and radishes. His customers are in southwest Minnesota and into southeast South Dakota.
Johnson’s wife, Nichole, does photography and works part-time for Visit Marshall. The couple has three children, ages 2 months to 5 years.

Sirrina Martinez
Multimedia reporter
smartinez@pipestonestar.com

Around five miles southwest of Holland sits the property of Earl Giesbrecht, the owner of Giesbrecht Gardens. On this farmstead the Giesbrecht’s grow a variety of hydroponic lettuce and herbs in a greenhouse facility that the family constructed in the summer of 2023.
The facility, which was mainly constructed by the Giesbrecht family with some help from hired contractors, is approximately 144 feet long and 90 feet wide. Attached to the facility is a lean-to that the family calls “the hen house,” which measures around 90 feet long by 20 feet wide. Housed inside of the greenhouse are three large deep culture ponds, each which holds around 53,000 gallons of water, Earl said.
The operation dumps minimal water for its size, approximately 400 gallons a day. Otherwise, the rest of the water is used by the plants or evaporates. Their water bill, Giesbrecht said, is not a concern as they fill the pond from their well, however, heating the facility is accomplished through the use of propane. Sometimes on a good day in the winter, heating the greenhouse doesn’t require a lot of energy, he said.
“On a sunny day even in th winter time you sometimes won’t need any heat and the fans will turn on and vent a little heat out,” he said. “But when the sun goes down then the propane starts.”
Plants spend approximately two weeks in a little nursery inside of the greenhouse before being placed into the water. Some of the seeds are placed by hand and the rest are placed by a seed vacuum. When they are ready to go out into the water ponds, they are placed on rafts that float in the water, and the roots are typically pulled through the holes in the raft with another vacuum. The plants initially start out as 72 plants per raft, and as they grow, they are spread out to various rafts where there are typically 18 plants per raft. Fertilizer is applied to the water, but nothing is applied to the foliage of the plants. The time it takes to grow the produce is on average seven weeks from planting to harvest, Giesbrecht said, although this time of year can take a little longer.
“This time of the year is really slow,” he said. “We are at the shortest days of the year. Some of it is probably out here longer than that but that’s a typical length.”
It is a family run operation, where Earl, his wife Carrol and their children work together to plant and harvest their produce, with occasional help from hired hands. The family grows at least 10 varieties of lettuce  at a time in the facility, Giesbrecht said, including Butter Head lettuce which they market as a BIB variety, and Romaine lettuce, which is the most popular variety among customers. Additionally, they grow a variety of herbs. Giesbrecht’s primary customers are area grocery stores, restaurants and hospitals, he said, and his produce goes as far as Sioux Falls and Marshall as well. The lettuce is sold unwashed and uncut, much like you would buy at a farmer’s market.
Giesbrecht decided to use the hydroponic method of farming, because of the ability to grow produce throughout the year, and because of his interest in growing plants.
“We can grow them year round, we heat the water and we heat the air, and there’s no weeds,” he chuckled. “So those are some advantages. One of the biggest things is the year round thing. We go right through the winter and you can keep your customers all year round. I also like to grow things.”
In 2006, the Giesbrecht family moved from California and bought the farm that they now live on. Although they were residents of the West Coast state at the time, previous to the purchase, they were living in Zimbabwe, Africa, where they worked as missionaries. In 2011 the family returned to Zimbabwe to continue their missionary work until 2013. During that time, Gibesbrecht was only operating his welding business, AG Weld, on the farm and they hired someone to run the welding shop while they were gone. Before building his own greenhouse, Giesbrecht started growing his produce down the road in a greenhouse that was set up as a NFT system that used plastic channels in the water to grow the plants. After around three years, the family decided to move the operation to their property and built the greenhouse that they run today.