Three generations define 'outstanding'

Lynn Grooms
Nov 27, 2019
Nov 27, 2019

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Kelly Fruit and family with Norm and Sandy Fruit

Two generations of the Fruit family celebrate at the Richland County Outstanding Young Farmer banquet. From left are Sandy, Emerson, Kelly, Rachel holding Scarlett, and Norm Fruit. Young Finley Fruit holds the commemorative plaque.

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Norm Fruit, left, and his son, Kelly Fruit, milk 205 cows and farm 420 acres they own or rent. Both men have been recognized as a Richland County Outstanding Young Farmer.

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Kelly Fruit pays close attention to dairy rations. Early problems with digestiblity of corn has made him more aware of dairy-nutrition challenges, he says.

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With help from employees Norm and Kelly Fruit milk 205 cows three times daily in a tiestall barn. Their rolling-herd average is 30,000 pounds with a somatic-cell count of 60,000.

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The Fruits farm sits in the steep-sloped Driftless Area region of Wisconsin. A combination of contour-strip farming, no-till and the use of cover crops helps them to reduce erosion and improve soil health. Ed Liegel of Valley View Ag Service in Lone Rock, Wisconsin, works with the Fruits regarding cropping decisions. He says they farm on Balton soil. On rented acres the Fruits are continually working to rebuild organic matter lost to previous farming practices. Rebuilding organic matter even by a half-percent requires a lifetime, Liegel says.

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The Fruit family milks cows in a tiestall barn and stores corn in silos. One silo is dedicated to homegrown corn while another stores purchased feedstock.

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Four generations of the Fruit family celebrate in 2016 the first birthday of Finley Fruit. He’s seated next to Garland Fruit, who has since passed away. Standing are Kelly Fruit, left, and Norm Fruit. They and Garland Fruit each have been recognized as a Richland County Outstanding Young Farmer.

Contributed

Kelly and Rachel Fruit are recognized at the 2019 Richland County Outstanding Young Farmer banquet. The couple and their children, Emerson in Kelly's arms, Finley with plaque, and Scarlett in Rachel's arms live and farm north of Richland Center, Wisconsin. Perhaps the children will one day follow the family tradition.

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'There needs to be time to encourage and uplift,' says Jeff Monson during the Richland County Outstanding Young Farmer banquet. Monson serves as the program's president; he's a farmer and professional hoof trimmer.

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Lynn Grooms

RICHLAND CENTER, Wis. – The Fruit family has a nice tradition going. Three generations of the family have been named Richland County Outstanding Young Farmers. Kelly and Rachel Fruit just earned the county’s 2019 award. His parents, Norm and Sandy Fruit, received the award in 1992. And in 1966 his grandparents, Garland and Laura Fruit, were the county’s outstanding young farmers.

Lynn Grooms writes about the diversity of agriculture, including the industry’s newest ideas, research and technologies as a staff reporter for Agri-View based in Wisconsin.