I love rural Kansas, writing and learning; Committed to faith, family & KSU; advancing all things rural, agriculture & and flex/remote work

Joined March 2021
Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Bill and Michelle Bakan from @MaizeValley share a story that hits close to home for a lot of operations. What started as a large-scale farm with row crops, dairy, seed production, and ag services ran headfirst into the realities of the 80s and 90s farm economy. Faced with the possibility of losing everything, they made a decision that would completely reshape their future. Instead of chasing commodity margins, they leaned into direct to consumer agriculture. That decision led to one of the most diverse agritourism operations in Ohio. Today Maize Valley features a busy farm market, winery, craft brewery, events nearly year-round, and experiences that bring thousands of people to the farm. From U-Cut sunflowers to weekly car cruise ins and a pumpkin cannon that draws crowds every fall, the business now generates revenue streams that outperform traditional cropping on far fewer acres. In this episode, Bill and Michelle break down what pushed them to change, how they figured out what customers actually wanted, and the systems they built to keep evolving. They also share the realities of competing in a space where others enter with money, while they built it out of necessity. This is a conversation about survival, reinvention, and what it really takes to give a farm a second chance. Watch now at youtu.be/4eIT4uOUdT0 #FarmingPodcast #Agrotourism #FarmBusiness #DirectToConsumer #Agriculture #FarmLife #RuralEntrepreneur #ValueAddedAg #FarmMarketing #SmallBusiness #AgInnovation #FarmFamily #MidwestFarming #agribusiness #plant2026 #plant26 #BrandtAg
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Older technologies have aided and perhaps enfeebled writers. “But with A.I. we’re so thoroughly able to outsource our thinking that it makes us more average, too,” @chaykak writes. nyer.cm/me7O4di
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
10 days. 4 farmers. 💔 Pressure is high on farmers & those around them- bankers, equipment dealers and others Check on your friends It’s ok to ask for help if you’re struggling. Please be here. You are loved.
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Best advice I've received for toddlers being mischievous was from my mom, who raised her own kids and also taught preschool for many years: Don't talk across the room for them to stop doing something and not follow through. Always follow through. As days go by, they may do something naughty over and over (grab something off the counter, come out of their room when it's bedtime, get out of their chair at dinner, etc.), but all you have to do is do it one more time than them. I've also heard it called "GOYA parenting" (get off your ass parenting). Say it once: "Little Susie, don't touch that vase please." If Little Susie doesn't do it (which she probably won't), physically get up, go over, and stop her hands. It's frustrating because you have to do this with so many things, so many times, but in my experience and my mom's, it's the only way to teach them you mean what you say and are 100% ready to carry it out. Then, and only then, will they start believing your commands as they get older. I'd just advise starting as soon as you can when they're small. Because when they're 60 lbs. at 7yo and you tell them it's time to leave the playground and they won't, it's a lot harder to go over and physically carry them to the car.
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Murray St. making it to Omaha is one of the best stories in college sports. This is their stadium it holds 800 people. Their head coach Dan Skirka literally cuts the grass. Gotta feel good for those guys.
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Roman Soldier Assigned To Guard Tomb Of Some Jewish Carpenter Looking Forward To Uneventful Weekend buff.ly/axNTWe8
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Clifton-Clyde is looking for a boys basketball coach. We have a 6-8 middle school social studies position open as well. We play in the very competitive Twin Valley League. Please share ⁦@sportsinkansas⁩ ⁦@KansasPregame⁩ ⁦@BrentKSHSAA⁩ ⁦@TVLSpotlight⁩
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Registration is OPEN: barretbanking.org/landings/a…
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WILL HOWARD IS GOING TO THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP.
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Congratulations to the Lady Eagles on finishing 3rd at the 1a D1 state Volleyball tournament! ⁦@TVLSpotlight⁩ ⁦⁦@scoresinkansas⁩ ⁦@sportsinkansas⁩ ⁦@KanzalandSports⁩
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Today vs March 21 Little tangent here. Scared dogs don’t make puppies… I’ve been farming my whole life. In 2011 I lost my dad to cancer and the family looked at me to put out the crop. My dad made decisions. He was a leader. When I became responsible to seed, fertilize, spray, etc… 3,000 acres I knew I had 1 talent from when I was a kid. I have a memory like no other. I can tell you what hybrid I plant, pop, rate, day the last 14 years because I am engaged. When everyone was telling me exactly how to do things. I was more curious of what happens when I change a variable here or there. What was the elasticity of that decision or management. In weather forecasting they have a similar system that I was somewhat inspired by called ensemble forecasts where they change variables slightly and see how weather systems behave differently as time progresses. I could lean on my memory. I was bored AF quite honestly to do the same thing over and over again. What happens to corn if you skip a row or 2 or plant it thin or thick? Beans…can you broadcast them? Can you plant wheat with a shit tank? Can you run it over? When it’s 4” tall… what about 6” what about 13” Could you rotationally graze inside a cash crop and empower edge effect elasticity and fertilize simultaneously? It would drive some people crazy as they would wonder if you should plant 160,000 or 176000 beans per acre? What’s the difference…nothing. What’s the difference between 20” corn and 2040” corn? Full season likes the latter….early yields best crowded. Fuck around and Find out isn’t just some tic tok deal. It’s how you don’t become a scared dog. It calms your nerves as most people freak out about things that don’t really matter. Because they never had the balls to try anything else than what their dad did. I always felt like I needed to learn why and how things worked if I was ever going to become a better farmer. What matters are the derivatives, the 1st principles. There is a lot more we can do in production agriculture. It’s not all about winning the yield contest. Sometimes it’s about learning what you don’t need. That creates freedom.
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Culpepper fires a laser to first base to end the top of the 6th 💥 K-State holds Cincinnati 3-0 through mid 6th. #KStateBSB x @thechosen1kc
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Replying to @dom_lucre
Names I’ve found so far, ⁃Alan Dershowitz ⁃Bill clinton ⁃Ron Eppinger ⁃Stephen hawking ⁃Al gore ⁃Prince Andrew ⁃Jon Luc Brunel ⁃Nadia Marcinkova ⁃Sarah Kellen ⁃Glen Dubin ⁃Johanna Sjoberg ⁃Annie Farmer ⁃Ross gow ⁃Brett Jaffe ⁃Phillip Barden ⁃Brian Basham ⁃Jean luc Brunel ⁃Gerald lefcort ⁃Hillary Clinton( named as Doe107) ⁃Micheal Jackson ⁃Joe Biden ⁃Tom pritzker
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Lady Eagles finish the season with a 4th place at State! Great work girls! ⁦@TVLSpotlight⁩ ⁦@HeadbandJesy⁩ ⁦@KanzalandSports⁩
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Clifton-Clyde Wakefield Sub-State Champs! @TVLSpotlight @HeadbandJesy @kpreps @KanzalandSports
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If K-State is your alma mater, then you may have known Barry Flinchbaugh, a renowned educator of agricultural policy. Last week, K-State announced the Barry Flinchbaugh Center for Ag Policy to continue his work and his legacy. Read the announcement at ksre-learn.com/flinchbaugh-c…
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Forty 40s ✅ The tradition continues! #EagleNation #Family
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Tonight a K-State student will have Pizza Shuttle for the first time and their life will never be the same again.
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
“Researchers suggest that local banks can provide relationship-based loans to individuals who may not qualify for financing from larger financial institutions” The Gospel According to @ICBA! We need more community banks, not fewer. HT @balcer_anne news.utexas.edu/2023/07/06/r… – at Baton Rouge, LA
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Deb Carlson Ohlde retweeted
Here it all is in one video. Elly De La Cruz drives in the go-ahead run. Then steals 2nd 3rd and home on 2 pitches. WHAT?!
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