Clarkson Farms - Alfalfa Hay for Central Illinois

a return to business???

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 11:13:00 +0000

finally after a very very long wait, i was able to cut hay this week but now that it is time to bale, the baler wont cooperate, and to top it off, i have 3000+ bales of straw to get done over the weekend to boot. God willing, we will get some second cutting done and straw all before the potential rain this weekend. We did get to cut the timothy patch too so i'll have some of that hay pretty shortly as well. it wasn't quite as pure as i would have liked due to the rain but i definately hafe a high mix going. so remember to get some timothy hay ordered for your rabbits and guinea pigs or other small animals.

I am currently taking straw orders as well and already have 700 bales out of 2000 i had planned to bale. don't hesitate to get a commitment in to me and we'll work out the details. I can take straw with me on the way to work for $4 per bale. i just have a $20 minimum delivery request so let me clean up the mess in my truck and keep your car or suv clean that way.

fourth day of rain

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 16:08:00 +0000

as i sit watching the rain fall for the fourth straight day after we mowed i am beginning to wonder as many of my friends in the hay industry are, will we ever get started good? Went to Effingham to Dittamore Implement and traded for a brand new Agco Tedder rake. Always said we would never need one but after 3 straight years of very difficult seasons, i am rethinking that policy. We weren't even able to unload it before the rain hit, oh well . . .

Talked to another Gentleman from the Peoria area today about the timothy crop coming on and now have 2 rabbit/guinea pig customers on the books for when we cut so that is exciting news.

Looks like about 2-3 weeks and we should have a new crop of straw for your landscaping/mulch needs. Once again, if you are in the decatur area, All i mainly ask for is a $20 minimum order and i'll bring it to your house. I can come to the surrounding areas if need be but please ask for a delivery quote or you can always get a few neighbors together as well to help offset costs.

more next week, hopefully it will be news that i am baling again

wow, what a week

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 03:03:00 +0000

As my dad so aptly pointed out, i haven't updated in awhile. Managed to get some alfalfa hay cut in may for a change, Got approximately 500 bales of very very nice quality first cutting alfalfa put up sunday evening so if anyone needs alfalfa please contact me as i have about 400 left. I can deliver in the central illinois area between the rains for $4 plus a minor delivery fee based on the amount you are wanting. Baled some grass hay tonight but it had some wet spots and got a light shower yesterday. Got the inline baler and new koyker accumulator dialed in.

We added a camera to the baler system to watch the accumulator for plugs, misfeeds, etc and it works really fabulous untill yours truly cut the cable by accident. Figured out we need to reroute the hydraulic and electric lines coming up to the tractor.

keep tuning back in for hopefully more regular updates. Mention the website and receive half price delivery within 30 miles of oakley. we still have 400 bales of alfalfa for $4 available for purchase.

thanks and god bless

timothy hay

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 04:19:00 +0000

we are considering a small baler to make 8 x 11 bales for shipment for rabbits, guinea pigs, chinchillas, etc. Our plans are to put out an acre of timothy this spring and try producing bales that are easy to ship right to your door. I am very interested to hear of anyone in the area that has ideas or thoughts or any input for us as to how to make this a good venture into the rabbit market. I tradtionally put up a very good quality product for horses and have no fears about the rabbit industry but am unsure as to what the proper method is to break into the rabbit market with timothy and prairie grass hay. Feel free to contact me with any thoughts or ideas concerning the rabbit hay market for central illinois

facebook and networking

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 04:20:00 +0000

I know that this will come as no surprise to alot of people but i hadn't realized just how big facebook was till this weekend at a illinois farm bureau young leaders conference that i and my wife go to every year about this time. I was talked into starting a facebook page for the farm so you can follow our progress through the year and become our fan. I truly want to see how many people i can reach and prove to people in our community that facebook and my website are not just fads and that we can use them as effective and very powerful tools. Follow us on facebook and watch the fun!

you can search for my wife, Jessica Miller Clarkson, myself, Andrew Clarkson, or the farm at Clarkson Farms. As soon as i figure out how to post the link to facebook i will do so

january snows

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 04:24:00 +0000

well, after snow, cold, snow, cold and more cold, If you still don't have straw or need a few more bales, let me know and I can work out either letting you pick it up or we can deliver in decatur. The price is $4 per bale delivered in the metropolitan decatur area and I only ask for a $20 minimum order to help defray the gas a little.

I still have grass hay available for sale as well. It is late season but is clean and dry and smells wonderful still. Email or call with your needs and we'll set you up quick. I can deliver if need be to make it easier for you. Thanks for looking and don't hesitate to contact us for your needs now and in the future.

straw for sale, new products

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 00:17:00 +0000

We got busy and have almost 400 bales of good bright straw in the barn for your upcoming weenie roasts and fall needs. I can deliver straw to your weenie roast and pick it up again if you don't want to keep it. See me for your straw rental needs and contact me for your special rental or delivery rates. I live on the east side of decatur near oakley and work in harristown so I can bring your straw to almost anywhere you like in the area around decatur. I just ask for a $20 minimum order.

We also are an MDS manufacturing dealer now so Be sure to check out their website at www.mdsmfg.com and email or call me for a quote on your skid loader, telehandler or otherwise bucket needs and we will be happy to help you out

grass hay and new toys

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 03:00:00 +0000

It's hard to believe but september is here, and I have alot of hay to do in a short amount of time still. I talked to a lady tonight about having hay available in half size bales for chinchillas and guinea pigs. I've never thought about that market but There are bound to be alot of people in decatur needing timothy/orchard grass mix hay for chinchillas and guinea pigs that i could reach. Received word yesterday that my stepfather is doing much better and they think they got all the cancer with hopefully no chemo involved. Thank god for small miracles.

I took my wife to the farm progress show wednesday which was her first trip ever to the show. We checked out our newest purchase for the farm which we also pulled home tonight. We bought a Koyker bale caddie accumulator to better help pick up the bales with. I am posting a link to the youtube video of this machine in operation so you can better check it out. Hopefully we can post pics or videos soon of it running on our farm. thanks and god bless

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N96Llsvo_Q4&feature=channel_page

hay for sale central illinois

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 02:52:00 +0000

Wednesday night last we had a major storm blow through and knock over several corn fields in the area. luckily (for me) hay isn't too affected by this kind of thing and other than some tree limbs, we didn't suffer any serious damage. I am baling (or will be) later this week some very nice clover and orchard grass/timothy mix hay, It is making my barn smell absolutely wonderful. The show season and annual company/distributor meetings have also began at my job and to top it off, my stepfather is getting some major surgery wednesday morning so i probably won't be doing much in the field this week. Next week is the progress show which is very near me so I'll be there checking everything new out along with my wife, brother, and father-in-law. I'm kind of excited as this is my wifes very first farm progress show. Hopefully we'll have some very nice hay for sale for those of you who still need it later this week. Thank you for reading and as alway god bless. (keep my stepfather Bob Carlson in your prayers as he faces his surgery this week)

toolbar for sale

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 03:13:00 +0000

I have a couple of dmi toolbars for sale, they are in decent shape with no systems so you can build your own strip till bar for smaller acreages or do whatever you like with them. I would like $1500 ea for them. Please email with any questions and i can either email pics or take more if necessary. thanks for looking

straw and 2nd cutting

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 02:59:00 +0000

finished second cutting last night at 9:45 here at the farm. It seems like this year has been a major struggle for everyone in the hay business. I have some excellent grass and alfalfa fields that are ready to mow a second time and i have some excellent grass and alfalfa that haven't been mowed the first time yet. My new crop looks absolutely wonderful coming up but i cant decide if it will be too late to try to cut it again. If anyone out there has any ideas give me a shout please. Once again, i have 2nd cutting grass and alfalfa available at $4 and i will have some more mix available to price once i cut it later this weekend. If you need straw in decatur don't hesitate to call me and i can deliver. I am debating on renting out straw bales for parties this fall with the rule that if you break the bale you buy it. If there are any takers just let me know. thanks again and god bless
andrew

straw finally and 2nd cutting almost done

noreply@blogger.com (Jessica Clarkson) — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 12:48:00 +0000

We have been very busy maintaining our hay fields this summer. We got about half of the 10 acre field baled yesterday in the scorching heat. My husband and our help worked their tails off yesterday. No one passed out or got sick. Of course our summer hasn't passed by without any hitches. A cultivator shank ended up in the baler. So, of course, it was out of commision for about a week. A nice man we didn't know ended up loaning his baler to us. Many thanks to him! We have 400 + bales of rye straw if anyone is interested. We can deliver locally pretty reasonable within a 20 mile radius.

Got the baler out

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 02:19:00 +0000

Got the baler out and tried her out on some waterway grass that i didn't want to go to waste before I start bulldozing it out. Has a few kinks that i can iron out tomorrow while it is raining. Otherwise, for those who are waiting i have added pictures of the hayfield that I should be cutting shortly. We'll see how the weather is tuesday and probably either cut tuesday evening or wednesday evening. Don't hesitate to look me up or email me as I will post pictures as we progress. At this point almost 2/3 of the hay is spoken for on first cutting already. thanks for looking and as always, god bless

hay orders on schedule

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Sat, 23 May 2009 11:20:00 +0000

Weather is looking great, Let's see where the forecast takes us for monday and/or tuesday and it's time to cut hay. We already have some orders on the books so make sure you reserve your 1st cutting hay today by emailing me or calling me. it's $3 per bale and if you need delivery don't hesitate, we can work around that too and get your hay to you. We'll try to get some pictures on line later of the field before we cut it and to show stages as we are baling.

We are taking pre-season orders now

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 19:46:00 +0000

First cutting looks to be right on track for the memorial day time frame weather permitting. Schedule pickup from the field and guarantee your hay supply early. Contact us for more details. We will be happy to work with you on delivery also if necessary

Pictures from 2008 cutting

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 14:58:00 +0000

We've placed some photos in the gallery from the 2008 hay cutting. Take a look!

http://picasaweb.google.com/ClarksonFarms

Grass and Alfalfa Hay Available!

noreply@blogger.com (Andrew Clarkson) — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 21:06:00 +0000

We still have some 2008 grass and alfalfa hay available. We are also taking orders for our 2009 cuttings. Contact Andrew to arrange delivery today, at 217-972-9640.