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Farming a new frontier
 By Beth Forbes
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Denise Dailey and son Kyle (with his son Layton) raise microgreens on their southern Indiana farm. (photo by Tom Campbell) |
A coyote howl rises from somewhere nearby, as a couple walks hand-in-hand in the dark past a dilapidated barn. The stars shine, but there's no harvest moon to light the way on this crisp October evening. The woman heads toward a field and leads the way into a row of corn, cautiously at first, and then picks up the pace as her eyes become accustomed to the shadows.
She whispers to her husband behind her, "Hey, there's a trail that zig-zags off to the side."
As she parts the stalks to peer through--VAROOOM--a chain saw roars to life just a couple feet from her head. She screams, falling on her back, clawing at the ground with her feet kicking in the air.
At this point the storyteller laughs.
"That woman was totally terrified and loved it," chuckles Dallas Montgomery, owner of Montgomery farms in Underwood, Ind. He's talking about the haunted corn maze that his family created as part of a new business venture.
The Montgomerys--Dallas, Janine and their children--are among a new breed of farmers who are finding different ways to make money down on the farm.
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Hoosier Botanicals--a six-pack of herbs--provides a way for small growers and greenhouse owners to market their products. (photo by Tom Campbell) |
In the fall, they sell pumpkins and mums, give hayrides and send people through their haunted corn maze, which last year attracted 10,000 visitors. In the spring, they sell strawberries, in summer, sweet corn.
Janine remembers driving back to the family farm in 1996, after spending a few years living in Cincinnati. They liked living in the country, but they were not farmers. She was a nurse, Dallas, an engineer with a Purdue degree. Their 200-acre farm was small by modern standards.
"It must have come to me after too many hours of working at the hospital, but I asked Dallas about planting some sweet corn and tomatoes to sell," Janine says. She saw this as an opportunity for her to work at home and also give their teenage son and daughter summer jobs.
That first summer, their produce sales successfully added to the family income. The next year, they decided to grow strawberries as well. "My husband loves the farm, and our produce sales helped justify our keeping the tractor and Dallas' other 'farm toys.'"
Each year the enterprise has grown. Janine's specialty is growing mums; Dallas has a knack for marketing. Their tale is one of many success stories told by folks who have participated in the Ways to Grow program. The venture, targeted to small-scale farmers in southeastern Indiana, provides information and opportunities to learn about on-farm enterprises that can increase farm income.
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