Nick Kleiber Grain Farm LLC

Farm Story

Nick farms 1100 acres near Plymouth. He and his wife, Amanda, have three kids ages 5, 8, and 10 years old. Nick grew up helping his grandparents on their dairy farm and began renting farmland from his grandparents to grow crops on. Nick eventually purchased his own property, which he now farms exclusively, and continues to expand upon.

Steps Towards Conservation

Nick attended seminars where he first learned about soil health. He listened to other farmers working on soil health, and paid attention to how they were succeeding environmentally and economically. When Amanda heard about the Demonstration Farm Network, they jumped at the chance to get involved and try some of the practices they have heard about. Nick says, “I really wanted to see it [the soil health and no-till practices] happen in Sheboygan County where we have the heavier clay and the cooler Lake Michigan weather.”

Nick’s currently working with cover crops and no-till planting. His goals include using them to improve the soil health and continue to reduce erosion. He also intends to use less fertilizer on his cash crop, due in part to the cover crops and increased soil health from them. Nick plans to demonstrate that these practices can work in varying conditions (specifically, his clay soil), can be profitable, and are sustainable. He will be conducting in-depth soil tests to see the differences. Stay tuned to Between the Lakes Demonstration Farm Network to follow his results.

Benefits of Conservation Agriculture

Nick has noticed an increase in the yield of the long term no-till fields. He says, “some of my fields I’ve been no-tilling the longest have become my highest yielding fields.” Nick is seeing less sheet erosion and he noticed the water quality of the creeks next to his property have improved.

Advice for Others

For others interested in trying conservation agriculture practices, Nick recommends to “give it a fair shake. Don’t just go off of one year’s data.” He also reminds farmers to compare their own practices to their own practices rather than to others’. “Don’t get wrapped up in the neighborhood coffee shop talk,” Nick says, “you really don’t know what [yield] everybody else is getting.” To compare your own practices, he recommends you, “keep a field and work it the way you have been working it to see the actual difference.” Nick also notes that it’s OK to ask for guidance from others too. “People that are doing it [conservation practices] are not afraid to tell you what they’re doing. They enjoy talking and learning from each other.” Nick has found his local watershed group to be an especially great place for networking and talking specifics with other farmers.