by Jody Spear and Kelly Meyer –
CLEAR LAKE – Brian Thomsen, a typical Iowa farmer, was busy last week. After getting his chores done, early Thursday morning, he began loading his planter to start his planting season.
“We’ve been working ground since Tuesday,” said Thomsen. “Some people are saying that we’re getting a late start this year, but not really. My father, in previous years, had written down in the Seed Shop, the days that he got started planted. There was April 28th, 29th and even a May 1st. All years turned out good.”
Thomsen grew up learning learning values that most hardworking farmers do. He’s a dedicated family man, has respect for Mother Nature and gives credit to God. Along with his wife, Angel, “And that’s what she is,” says Thomsen, they instill these values into their children, Brett, Bridger and Drake.
Brett, who is 18 and a senior at Clear Lake High School, will be a third generation Thomsen farmer. “He’s coming up in his fathers footsteps,” explained Thomsen. “Tuesday night, he helped me by applying herbicide and nitrogen to the soil.”
Bridger, who is 10, turning 11 next week, is learning to drive this year and doing very well. “I teach my boys starting at the age of 10 how to drive. We do this in our driveway and around our property with a golf cart or tractor, getting them used to the pedals and learning how to steer. We practice and they get hands on experience, that’s how they learn. I’m “Old School” with the older ways of doing things. I still use a marker to make straight rows and we don’t use a GPS, like many farmers do these days.”
And then there’s Drake, “Who is 3 years old, going on 14. He’s so smart,” beamed Thomsen.
Brian lives close to his mother, Millie, since his father died, keeps an eye on her and helps her out, when she needs it. Brian and his dad, Frank, farmed together. Even after Brian got his own land, they continued working together, “Dad had his land and I had mine, but we worked together sharing equipment and labor. And I miss him.” The last part of his statement was heartfelt and filled with emotion. “Dad gave me the advice to never plant at night. With the darkness and the dust, you just don’t know what you’ll get.”
That brings us back to farming. After Brian and Brett worked the land on Tuesday, Brian said, “When you work the land, it brings the moisture up from the underground. To help prevent sidewall compaction, you want to plant when it’s dry, so I let it respirate for a day or two.”
That brings us to Thursday morning, Brian was ready to fill his planter with corn seed. He put a little seed in the bottom of each hopper, then he started adding some powder like substance. “This is Powdered Graphite. My theory is, most farmers fill their box, then add graphite. I like to add a little seed, add the graphite, then fill the box. I feel like it mixes sooner.”
Powdered Graphite helps seed slide through the fingers and the mechanisms of the planter easier. It’s a seed lubricant.
After filling the boxes, and giving some time to explain some of his methods, Brian got into his John Deere tractor and headed out to begin planting. He began his journey to help feed America.
One week after talking to Brian, driving out in the rural areas of North Iowa, the tiptop leaves of the new planted corn are starting to peek out and take a look at what they’ll call home for the next six months.
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