The ISRC hosted its annual farm tour on August 7 for Iowa State researchers, staff and graduate students in ag-related departments. This year’s tour visited the Wessling Farm near Grand Junction, IA and Clayton Farms at ISU’s Research Park in Ames, IA.

Farmer and agronomist Sheila Hebenstreit (formerly with Landus Cooperative) and fellow farmers David Ausberger, Wade Sohm and Austin Sadoris spoke with the group about the Wessling’s farming operation, which grows 4,600 acres of corn and soybeans and finishes nearly 19,000 pigs each year. They talked to the group about no-till soybeans and low-till corn. They also mentioned that 500 acres (10% of their farmland) are put into conservation areas. Ausberger detailed the current challenges of farming with persisting drought conditions, high fuel costs, tripled input costs and limited profit margins, but he explained how low- and no-till farming can help save on tractor/equipment costs and soil erosion and is good for the implementation of cover crops. “Lean times drive decision making and make us look for ways to be more efficient,” said Ausberger.

Another stop on the tour was Clayton Farms (formerly Nebullam), an indoor vertical farm that grows local produce hydroponically, selling leafy greens, microgreens and cherry tomatoes through a subscription service and at their restaurant. Karen Tentner of Clayton Farms gave the group a tour of the main growing facilities and explained how the business originally designed and created the growing equipment and the software that runs the equipment. They planned to sell their equipment to new and expanding indoor farms. When the pandemic hit, they changed course, deciding to become indoor farmers themselves, which in turn led to their opening a restaurant in Ames. 

Because the time between harvesting and delivering their produce to the consumer is shortened, the greens are denser in nutrients compared to produce bought in a traditional grocery store where it may take days to be trucked in. From seed to harvest, it takes about seven weeks to grow the greens for their salads and smoothies. For lunch, the tour group sampled the salads, which were incredibly fresh and tasty. Clayton Farms opened a second farm in Edina, Minnesota in 2022 and plans to launch farms in eastern and western Iowa as well as in Chicago in the future.

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