Planting season will soon begin, but that does not mean farmers have taken it easy during the winter offseason.
Work continues on a farm even after harvest. Farmers perform a variety of tasks such as planning the next growing season, attending meetings, keeping the soil tilled until the ground freezes and maintaining farm equipment.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median salary for farmers, ranchers and other agricultural managers is $69,300. However, farmer incomes vary from year to year because of weather conditions and price fluctuations.
Some farmers -- such as Kevin Hunsinger of Mohamet, Ill., who doubles as a realtor -- work second jobs during the offseason. Others solely focus on maintaining their farms.
The below series of pictures and descriptions highlight what some Midwestern farmers do in the offseason, and what they love most about farming.
Photo by Darrell Hoemann/Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
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Kevin Hunsinger at his office in Urbana, Ill. When Hunsinger is not operating his 650-acre corn and soybean farm in Mahomet, Ill., he manages rental properties on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus. Hunsinger Enterprises Inc. was founded in 1979 and Hunsinger’s farm began production in 2006.
Photo by Darrell Hoemann/Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
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Kevin Hunsinger's business office in Urbana, Ill. Hunsinger said being outdoors is what he loves most about farming. He walks his farm's fields every evening, taking in the landscape. Hunsinger wants to pass the farm on to his sons, who he believes will also be farmers.
Photo by Darrell Hoemann/Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
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A multi-faceted man, Dennis Riggs owns and operates an ice cream shop called the Sidney Dairy Barn, a furniture shop called Fix-It Wood Furniture Refinishing and Repair, and sells cars at Shelby Dodge Jeep dealership.
Photo by Darrell Hoemann/Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
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Dennis Riggs works on his antique Jeep Forward Control truck at his home.
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Dennis Riggs works in his office. He said that his favorite part of farming is combining natural resources to produce a finished product.
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Chris Greer of Paitt County, Ill., owns and operates a 500-acre corn and soybean farm with his wife, Kristen. He acquired the farm in its fourth generation from his in-laws.
Photo by Darrell Hoemann/Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
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Chris Greer is 38 years old and works at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as a senior research specialist in agriculture. Greer said that farming is the most rewarding livlihood a person can have and that he feels lucky to be part of the small population that farms.
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Chris Greer said that he enjoys the agronomics aspect of farming and watching a crop grow from nothing to something. His hope is that one day, either his son or daughter will also farm.
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Brian and Craig Anderson at their dual farm in rural Mansfield, Ill. The brothers co-own and operate their great-grandfather’s 1,100-acre corn and soybean farm.
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Brian Anderson is a retired banker, and Craig Anderson is a retired University of Illinois employee. The brothers focus the winter offseason entirely on the farm. They work on equipment maintenance, market old and new crops, attend meetings, and procure the next growing season’s inputs.
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Planting time is April through June. Harvest time is September through November. Those two periods are the Anderson brothers’ busiest times of year. “What I love most about farming is being my own boss,” Craig Anderson said. “And doing the best with what you can control and hope ‘mother nature’ cooperates.”
Photo by Darrell Hoemann/Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
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The Anderson brothers want to pass on their farm to the next generation. They said that maintaining family farms and staying away from “competing mega-farms” are some of the biggest farming challenges today. The Andersons, both in their 60s, want to continue farming for the next 10 to 15 years. Craig Anderson said he hopes they can add more land assets soon, but the key to the farm’s future depends on the next generation. “Hopefully, we will be able to get the next generation involved in some manner to continue what the previous generations have worked so hard for,” Craig Anderson said.
Reporter Claire Everett made additional contributions to this story