Hickman County
Farm Profiles
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While the DeWeeses also have hill ground and various other soil types to work with, the river bottoms are tricky. Like many other row crop farmers in the far western portion of the state, the DeWeese brothers have turned to contract growing of hogs in order to diversify their operation and maximize their profit margin.
Farmers have utilized their offspring to carry out the work of their operations for generations. The large families of the past may have even come about, in part, because of the need for more help on the farm. But as times have changed, equipment and processes have gotten more efficient and streamlined, so more acres of row crops can be tended with fewer people.
Jerry and Valarie live and farm on the first piece of land they bought together in 1967. By purchasing other farms, their Springhill Farms operation has grown to nearly 1600 acres of cropland, with 200 additional acres of unplanted land, and 300 acres of rented farmland.