Menu
Farmer receives state conservation award at State Fair
INDIANAPOLIS -- Putnam County farmer Ron Sutherlin of Cedar View Farm LLC was one of 46 Hoosiers honored with River Friendly Farmer Awards for their soil and water conservation practices during a recent ceremony at the 2013 Indiana State Fair.
Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann recognized Sutherlin and the other winning farmers present during a Farmers' Day ceremony at the State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis.
Sutherlin was one of 26 recipients on hand to receive the award from the lieutenant governor and earn congratulations from Indiana Farm Bureau President Don Villwock, Indiana Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts (IASWCD) President Jeff Meinders and Indiana NRCS State Conservationist Jane Hardisty for their outstanding conservation farming practices.
"This is always a rewarding day to thank these men and women for the job they are doing to protect our environment," IASWCD president Meinders said.
Sutherlin's Cedar View Farm LLC is a 2,500-acre grain operation producing corn, soybeans, wheat and hay.
The business, located in the Eel Watershed, also includes a small farrow-to-finish swine operation that has downsized in the past two years from 200 commercial sows to 10 sows producing 4-H club pigs and fresh freezer meat.
Cedar View Farm also works closely with a family member's cow/calf operation.
Water quality has been improved on the farm by reducing nutrient runoff and leaching by decreasing soil erosion from the fields, creek bank stabilization and creek shading.
Soil is the most important asset Sutherlin has. His system strives to keep crop residue and soil on the field. Nutrient use is minimized by rates and timing. By maintaining quality soils and minimizing erosion, soils will maintain their productivity. He uses nutrient management plans, pest management plans, certified crop advisers, variable rate technology, cover crops, no-till, pre-side dress nitrogen tests, waterways, buffer strips, sub-surface drainage.
Since 2000, key conservation and agricultural organizations have sponsored the River Friendly Farmer Program. The statewide initiative recognizes farmers, who through good production management practices help keep Indiana's rivers, lakes and streams clean.