Manitowoc County Discovery Farms Project Area, Site 1

This farm has graduated from the Discovery Farms program. Please see the Manitowoc County Discovery Farms Area graduation papers for on-farm research results.

Name of farm:
Soaring Eagle Dairy

Discovery Farm since:
Fall 2004 surface water site

Family:
Jim and Sandie Fitzgerald and their three daughters: Kelly Goehring, Julie Maurer and Stacy Fitzgerald

Location:
Northwest of Cleveland, Manitowoc County, WI

Enterprises:
Milk
Corn and alfalfa for on-farm feeding

 Farm photo tour - view here

Research and advisory team:
Dennis Frame, UW Discovery Farms
Fred Madison, UW Discovery Farms
Eric Cooley, UW Discovery Farms

Research opportunities:
This farm was chosen to represent conventional, total confinement large-scale dairy operations that have associated cropland. Farm location is in the Great Lakes Basin and a region once glaciated. Gentle to moderate sloping (2-6 percent slopes) landscape. Nutrient and soil sediment loss in surface discharge of fields with liquid dairy manure.

Conservation practices:
All manure is incorporated within 72 hours with a disk.
Follows USDA -- 590 nutrient management standards -- phosphorus based
Grassed waterways
Manure storage system

Monitoring in place:
Monitoring removed in Fall 2006.
Intermittent stream surface monitoring station.
Surface water runoff quality of corn and alfalfa with liquid dairy manure. Manure is applied to cropland typically in fall. Spring manure applications and applications to alfalfa ground between cuttings are also occasionally conducted. Manure is held in a pit when conditions warrant no spreading.