My father sold our farm in
Pennsylvania in 1973 and moved us to Minnesota in 1974. According to all the
farming sources that I have consulted, the 1970s were a time of soaring farm income
and commodity prices. It was a time of prosperity for farmers. I, as a 16 year
old, was totally oblivious to the politics and financial dynamics of farming
though looking back now, I can see how my father was lured by the booming
economy to put his finances on the line in this huge family venture. And of
course, about the time that I finally made my escape from the farm in 1986
coincided with the falling land prices, rock bottom crop prices, and high
interest rates that led to a nationwide crisis in agriculture in the 80s. From
a historical standpoint, “If You Leave This Farm” is a story of farming in
Minnesota during these turbulent times. Maybe, that was part of the pressure
that shaped my father into the controlling patriarch that he became.
A description
from my book of planting our first year in Minnesota 1974
We load the bagged seed corn
unto the truck and head for the field. Heavy black clods stick to the tractor
tires, but in spite of the dampness, we begin planting. Paul discs the ground
ahead of the planter while Daddy puts the seed in the ground. Joseph and I man
the fertilizer truck and help reload the seed corn. As we sit in the truck and
watch, the green tractor fades into the distance before the speck turns around
and begins to grow larger again. Our Minnesota fields are so large they seem to
have no end. This one is over three-quarters of a mile long. Because of the wet
soil conditions, some of the rows make half circle detours around the wet
spots. It has begun to look like an earthworm has slithered over the black
earth.
Daddy has barely planted fifty acres of corn
on our first day of planting when the western sky begins to darken. Within
thirty minutes, storm clouds roll in, and the wind picks up. Daddy has just
made his turn at the other end of the field and started back toward us. The sky
grows darker and darker. Daddy is still just a growing spec in the distance
when the heavens release their torrents. Perspective is lost in the driving
rain and Daddy drives right into a wet spot instead of around it. He becomes
stuck in the thick goo. The tractor and planter are abandoned until the next
day and everybody runs for cover. This day becomes a repeating pattern over the
next couple of weeks as we struggle between rain and wet soil to get the corn
into the ground.
Amanda Farmer was born in Pennsylvania and
moved with her family to Minnesota at age 16. She lived and worked on the farm
until age 29. Amanda earned a master's degree in Nurse Anesthesia in 2007 and
currently works in that profession. She enjoys reading, writing, and most any
outdoor activity. She and her husband of 23 years live on a hobby farm in
southeastern Minnesota. They have one college-age daughter, 2 cats, a dog, and
some fish. All the animals were obtained in response to "P-l-e-a-se Mom!"
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