Technology drives efficiency at Owl Creek Dairy

By Brianna Smith

At Owl Creek Dairy in Versailles, Ohio, farming looks a little different than it used to. While the Schmitmeyer family still rises early, cares for their cattle, and tends to the same ground they have for generations, they’ve added advanced technology and newer practices that are changing how they farm. Ryan and Krista Schmitmeyer view the addition of technology as just one of their many efforts to make their farm more sustainable, efficient, and resilient for the future.

Ryan and Krista have managed Owl Creek Dairy, named for the creek behind the farm, since 2013. With the help of three full-time hired hands, a few part-time helpers, and their six children, the family milks 400 head of Holstein cows and grows around 500 acres of crops. They also rent a swine farm near North Star. They raise corn, soybeans, wheat, alfalfa, and triticale, which all go back into the farm through livestock feed or bedding.

The family has been making a conscious effort to improve their farm in various ways.

“We’re just trying to do better every day,” Krista said.

One of the most significant changes on the farm came with the addition of the 360 Rain system, produced by 360 Yield Center. This in-season irrigation and nutrient delivery tool applies water and manure directly to the base of the crop through Y-drop hose systems. The self-propelled equipment features up to 2,900 ft. of 3-inch diameter hose and an 80 ft. boom. The tool is fully automated and operated through a smartphone app.

“In 2022, we were making all the preparations, like putting in underground lines,” Ryan said. “In the spring of 2023, it was the first year we had it delivered. They didn’t even have a way to get water and manure to it at first, so we worked with electricians and pump specialists. We helped make the prototype manure injection and cover crop injection skids alongside 360 Yield Center.”

Ryan had long envisioned a way to reuse the excess rainwater that runs off their fields in early spring.

“I had the idea of, man, it’d be great if we could store that water that’s running off in February, March, and April and be able to use it in May, June, July, and August or whenever we really need it,” he said.

Instead of relying on traditional center pivots, which apply water from overhead and can lead to runoff or crop damage, the 360 Rain system travels along the crop rows. It delivers water and nutrients right where they’re needed.

To make the system work, the family installed a pond and connected it to nearby tile lines to collect runoff.

“We’re pulling water out of the creek tile line at about 100 to 200 gallons per minute for three to four weeks. If any nutrients are getting taken through runoff, instead of going down to the Gulf of Mexico, we’re recapturing them and putting them back on the ground,” Ryan said.

They’re also using the system to experiment with interseeding and delivering micronutrients through the same irrigation line.

“We’re going to try using it with interseeding this year,” Ryan said. “We’re hoping to put some different natural fertilizer sources through it. The big one is calcium on our farm because we’re producing a lot of milk, and the calcium is going out on a set of wheels in a tanker. So we can dribble a dry gypsum product into the liquid stream. Typically, farmers have to put gypsum on either in the fall or the spring, and we can apply it on multiple passes and micronutrient doses instead of one big application, where there’s potential for runoff.”

The ability to deliver nutrients with that level of precision has also pushed the Schmitmeyers to take a closer look at what’s actually happening in their soil.

“Here at home, we’re probably sampling fields every year to every two years,” Ryan said. “On this one field where we are running the 360 Rain, we’re soil sampling, tissue sampling, and sap sampling multiple times throughout the growing season. We want to learn as much as we can.”

“It’s like functional medicine for your field,” Krista added. “Every field has its microbiome, its own set of nutrients it’s rich in or deficient in. You can’t just throw a bunch of fertilizer on it and hope for the best. It’s so much more intimate than that.”

That philosophy led them to expand their use of cover crops and recently try no-till and strip tillage as part of a long-term strategy to build soil health and reduce reliance on synthetic inputs.

“We’re hoping that dramatically increases our soil health, which, if all goes well, is supposed to decrease both herbicides and pesticides dramatically,” Krista said. “If we can use less and less input over time and still feed our crops and livestock, that’s the goal.”

Additionally, the family utilizes a few other pieces of technology in their dairy barns. They have robotic feed alley pushers and manure scraping robots. They also have invested in a milk taxi that efficiently pasteurizes and delivers milk to bottle calves. The device automates feeding curves based on calf age and adjusts volumes accordingly, similar to a cow’s lactation curves.

They also have implemented a few new husbandry practices.

“From day one, we partner our calves and raise them in pairs,” Ryan said. “A lot of times, we’ll find those calves, whenever they’re in the milking herd, standing or lying next to the calf that they were raised with. They’re finding a lot of data showing less stress on the animal whenever you can provide that. It’s supposed to be good for the calf’s social health.”

Technology at Owl Creek Dairy was on full display when the Schmitmeyers hosted U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins at their farm in late April. The visit included a demonstration of the 360 Rain system and discussions about regenerative agriculture, nutrient management, and soil health.

“The local NRCS agent called me and asked if we’d be willing to host some local politicians,” Ryan said. “A couple of hours later, he called back and said it would actually be bigger than we thought. Secretary Rollins wants to come out, and maybe Governor DeWine.”

What started as a local farm tour turned into a national opportunity. The Schmitmeyers were later invited to Washington, D.C., for a USDA roundtable alongside eight other farm representatives.

“We were the only farm that really talked about the soil health component,” Krista said.

 “It felt really good to bring that to the table. We do truly feel like we’ve been so blessed, and we think it would serve America well if more farms could implement things that help them with their soil and sustainability,” she added. “Even if we’re just a small part of a bigger movement, what a gift that would be.”

At Owl Creek Dairy, the work may be rooted in tradition, but the future is powered by innovation.