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Texas Agriculture Archive

November 21, 2003

Outstanding Young Farmer & Rancher Contest
Knowing the bottom line...

By Lana Robinson
Field Editor

Boyd Jackson, 33, of Lockney farms on the Texas Plains, where groundwater is scarce and weather doesn't always cooperate. All the more reason to farm smart, he says. The Floyd County ag producer attributes his success to knowing the bottom line.

"The only true way of measuring the success of a certain operation is the survival and financial health of that operation. We try to look at our bottom line, to see what we can do to stay above that line. You have to know when to stop spending money and what will maximize your profit on a certain crop," he says. "We use an extensive computer system with spread sheets to keep both our crop production and our money management."

Boyd grew up on a family farm and farmed with his father before striking out on his own 11 years ago.

"In 1993, I convinced a local trust officer to allow me to farm a piece of land that came up close to my house. That's how I got started," he notes.

Boyd's primary crop is cotton, but he also raises milo, seed corn, seed milo, wheat and cattle, for rotation.

"Our crops are 60 percent dryland and 40 percent irrigated. The dryland is hard year after year. We're using new technologies to try to maximize our yields. The irrigation is also hard in trying to make a more economical crop," he suggests.

The young farmer says the biggest challenge and difficulty in his part of Texas is the drop in the aquifer.

"Underground water is leaving at an astounding rate, and just managing around that loss has become quite a challenge," he says. "Every year, we have a smaller amount of water. We have to focus the irrigation water we have on a certain amount of acres to make the most production off those acres."

Boyd believes the water situation may require a closer look at all laws regarding water usage with urban and rural people vying for the same resource.

Topsoil erosion is another problem area farmers address through cover crops and conservation tillage practices.

"We use no-till methods to try to conserve moisture and groundwater to hold the soil. We use no-till when we don't have an economical reason to use the more expensive technologies," he reports.

Boyd also relies on genetically influenced cotton (Roundup Ready) and other crops in order to take full advantage of the conservation techniques.

"We're also using new varieties, such as Fibermax , which provides better quality, giving us a better chance at getting a little more profit out of our crop," he says.

Crop diversity plays a big role in Boyd's farming strategy.

"We use cattle to take advantage of some of our more marginal land, trying to give us a different avenue for revenue. We can't all depend on the same thing," he says.

"I go for seed, go for chemical and for parts. When we're harvesting, I fix meals and take them to the field," says Shanna, a business major at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, scheduled to graduate next April.

On the farm, the kids learn a lot about life in general. Just because you plant the cotton doesn't mean it's going to come up," she says.

Shanna stresses the importance of agriculture to their children—Lezlie, 11, Quinn, 10, and six-year-old J.W.

"I tell them it's real important for the rest of the world. The cotton we raise helps clothe the entire world, not just the people in Texas...with farming and agriculture—there's a lot of other industries that play into that, like the trucking industry, oil and gas. We support those by just farming.

A short-term goal for Boyd is to rent more land with a greater amount of water underneath it.

"My long-term goal is the purchase of my own land, because true profit and pride comes from owning your own land," he suggests.

Boyd says the most important thing he has learned over the years is to accept the advice of the older generation.

"Younger guys—sure, we're full of fire and vinegar—but we need to slow down and listen to the guys who've been there before. There are no new situations in agriculture. It's all been gone through before, for the most part. So many people try to dismiss the older generation. I think we need to embrace the knowledge that they have."

"I think the future of agriculture is going to be an evolution. We're going to have to change with the times. If we don't, we're going to be left behind," Boyd suggests.