Farming with family

LONG PRAIRIE, Minn. — Being named farm family of the year is fitting for the Middendorf family since all three of their grown children are involved on the farm.

Don Middendorf and his wife, Carolyn, own and operate an organic dairy farm near Long Prairie. Don purchased the farm in 1995 and married Carolyn in 1997. The couple has been farming together ever since. This year, the Middendorfs were named the Todd County Farm Family of the Year. The family was recognized in August at Minnesota FarmFest in Morgan for their farming efforts.

“It was a good feeling (to be named farm family of the year),” Don said. “We were surprised when they told us.”

Don and Carolyn have three grown children; one in college and two who are married and hold full-time jobs off the farm. Every day when they each get done with school or their jobs, Rachel, Hannah and Landon make their way home to their parents’ farm to help.

“I really enjoy it when everybody gets together,” Don said. “Everybody pitches in when they can. When we do hay, they take time off to come and help.”

Carolyn agreed and said her favorite part of living on a farm is being with family.

“I liked raising the family on the farm because I could always have the kids with me,” Carolyn said. “Now, they each bring their significant other and with all six of them together it is a houseful.”

The Middendorfs calve their herd of Fleckvieh crossbred cattle seasonally, primarily in the month of September. In the spring and summer the family milks 70-80 cows and after fall calving is wrapped up, the Middendorfs are milking 110-115.

“I like it because it is easier to catch them all in heat and make all my breeding decisions at the same time,” Don said. “When we transitioned to organic, we started breeding in the Fleckvieh for the grazing reasons. They are a pretty hardy breed.”

The Middendorf family also raises goats, chickens and quail on the farm. They raise two acres of sweet corn that they sell at a local business. They also raise a few Fleckvieh steers to sell direct to consumers online.

The Middendorfs installed a swing-8 parlor and a freestall barn in 2012 and became certified organic in 2018.

“I knew some guys in the area that were organic and my two brothers and I all made the transition together,” Don said.

Don and Carolyn use a mix of alfalfa, clover and a few grasses for their grazing pasture. They graze about 75 acres. Each paddock is two acres, and the cows transition to a new paddock each day. The cows are on pasture from early May until the end of October.

“We like being organic because we are constantly learning something new every day,” Carolyn said. “We really enjoy what we do.”

With all of their children active on the farm, the Middendorfs have a lot of options when it comes to making farm decisions.

“Each of the kids have talked about wanting to stay involved with farm so we will see what the future brings,” Don said.