Story and photos by Karen Lee

A few rain showers didn’t deter 80,000 people from attending Farm Technology Days in Waterloo, Wisconsin, July 21-23. One of the highest-attended shows in recent years, people came from near and far to see the latest technology from more than 600 commercial exhibitors on display in the outdoor tradeshow and put to use at Crave Brothers Farm.

Tom, Charles, George and Mark Crave and their families hosted this year’s event in Dodge County. The traveling show is held in a different location across the state each year and put on by hundreds of volunteers from the host county.

More than 30,000 people took tram rides or bus tours through the farm. They also saw the on-farm cheese factory and anaerobic digester. Another 5,000 people took the specialized manure management tour to see the digester and manure application demonstrations.

Field demonstrations of cutting, merging, chopping, tilling and combining took place as the weather allowed. A ride-and-drive area allowed attendees to test drive equipment on site.

Farm Technology Days also highlights the work of the University of Wisconsin and its extension service through the sharing of recent research and educational programs in livestock production, milk quality, weed control, forage handling and storage, home landscaping and gardening.

Next year’s show will take place July 20-22, 2010, in Pierce County along the Minnesota border.

For more information, visit www.wifarmtechnologydays.com, the show’s official website. PD

 

Above: Farm Technology Days attendees didn’t have to question what it was they were walking on. They walked within the soil to see what comprised the fields of Dodge County.

Above: Each year, the Farm Technology Days Tent City sprouts up in one large Wisconsin hayfield. This year, volunteers in Dodge County planted the seeds at Crave Brothers Farm. More than 600 commercial exhibitors and university specialists set up displays on this 300-acre plot.