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Ryan Drozd
Allegan, MIRyan guides the overall financial decisions, but when it’s go-time and he’s in the fields, it all comes together when he sees those on-farm investments in action.
Operation overview :Acres:7,500Crops:soybeansorghumcornTillageMostly tilled; some no-till
What Drives Ryan?
While you’d think the grain markets have been a rollercoaster ride, Ryan thrives on the adrenaline rush. He loves seeing how their day-to-day efforts in the field and in managing their operation pay off financially and says it makes it all worthwhile — most of the time.
Fertility Program
Yield maps guide Ryan’s fertility decisions, including:
- Spreading potash after harvest and addressing pH issues with lime (sandy soils pose a challenge for holding calcium)
- Placing N and P in a 2×2 run (2” on side and 2” below seed) and adding micronutrients and biologicals in-furrow
- Applying magnesium in the spring
- Sidedressing N and P in-season or choosing to fertigate in cold weather
Why Biologicals
“We started using biologicals to push the envelope on yields, but if they can work with our fertility program and help us be more efficient with our fertilizer that’s good.”
Follow Ryan
Check out Ryan’s social channels for more firsthand information about him and Drozd Family Grain.
THE LATEST ON DROZD FAMILY GRAIN
With an eye on financials, Ryan wants his inputs to work harder
Located in the snowbelt of Michigan, Ryan Drozd is constantly challenged by wet weather conditions and sandy soils with low PH and CECs. He sees BioPath® as a solution to make the fertilizer he has work harder.
Follow Ryan this season as he tries to overcome these challenges with the power of biologicals.
"We try to mitigate our risk by staying on top of the details we can control, like the products we use. BioPath is one of those products where we’ve seen a lot of potential, so I’ll be looking at it this year to determine if it works financially for us to use across more acres."
Visit our Next Farmer:
Dave SchrockWhen farming is in your blood, you just can’t get away from it – even if a new heart is pumping that blood through your veins. Such is the case for Dave, who comes from a long line of farmers, but whose path to full-time farming was full of twists and turns.
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PREVIOUSLY: DROZD FAMILY GRAIN
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March 2024
PURCHASING THE RIGHT INPUTS TO MITIGATE RISK
As the “financial guy” of the farm partnership with his dad and brother, Ryan is focused right now on budgets for the upcoming season. And with the extremes in the industry in grain prices and inputs, he is paying close attention to the details.
“My brother handles a lot of the agronomic decisions on the farm, but I take my experience with the financials and grain marketing, and we sit down together to map out our full crop plan so we can purchase the right inputs.”
February 2024A Challenging Climate
While you think February would be a slower month for a Michigan farm, that’s not the case at Drozd Family Grain. It’s that unique climate that keeps them hopping.
“We’re located 15 miles from Lake Michigan, so everything we do is decided by the lake. We’re further south than most counties in Iowa, but our climate is a mix of Seattle, Minnesota and the Upper Peninsula all in one, while we are trying to grow 110-day corn.”
It’s that challenging climate that makes biologicals like BioPath helpful because they look for any advantage to work with the environment to get the most out of their crop.
“To bring a new product onto the farm, it has to be easy to use and bring consistent yield to pay off financially. While we all have a say in the matter, it still has to receive the green light from a financial and efficiency perspective.”
TruResponse™
See where our biologicals are working and where they are not. Get the data you need to put Mosaic Biosciences to work for you.
MENTIONED ON THIS PAGE
Liquid fertilizer complement