Committed… is the single word that might best describe Latham® customer Dennis Morgan of Ogden, Iowa. He’s a husband, father, grandfather classic organist, crop farmer, Christmas tree farmer, gardener, carpenter and carver.  He also loves to cook.

“I love to farm. I love to sing. I love to play the pipe organ. I’ve combined all of these things into life, so there’s always a season to enjoy,” he says with a smile.

Playing organ has been 47-year commitment for this Boone County native. Dennis has served as a church organist from the time he was 16 years old. He played in Ogden for 36 years and has been playing in Perry for the past 12 years. Through the years, he’s played for almost 4,000 funerals and 1,500 weddings.

“I’ve played for classmates, then my classmates’ children and now for my classmates’ children’s children.”

Dennis actively served as church organist even while attending Iowa State University. He drove home from Ames on Wednesday nights for choir practice and then again on Sunday to play for the church service. He also pursued his love of singing with voice training that led to a spot in the Iowa All-State Chorus through the high school vocal music department.

Not only has Dennis been committed to music, but he was committed to farming and to earning his degree. He helped his father on the farm from planting through harvest, which left only the winter quarter open to attend college classes. As a result, it took seven years for Dennis to earn his Bachelors of Science degree in Farm Operations but he did it!

“You can always make time to pursue your dreams and your passions,” says Dennis, who met his wife, Linda, when she was traveling as a contemporary Christian singer and performed in his community. Linda’s parents were caretakers for the Assembly of God campgrounds, just outside Ogden, for 25 years.

After they were married, both Dennis and Linda helped cook on weekends for 50 to 500 guests. A quaint, gingerbread-esque cottage that used to be housed on the campgrounds has a place today on the Morgan’s farm. Linda used to teach piano lessons there, but she now works as a contractor for various organizations.

In addition to serving his community, Dennis served his country. He retired in 2009 with 20 years of service in the Iowa National Guard. Today his son, Paul, and daughter-in-law Heather continue to serve. Paul also farms with Dennis, and he and Heather are the proud parents of daughter Mia.

The Morgan’s oldest son, Luke, and their daughter, Anna, both help make wreaths during the Christmas season. Anna is married to Matt Haub and they have three sons: Carter, Gabriel, and Christian. Newlywed Luke and his wife, Tiffany, live in Boone. They’re expecting a child in June and have a son, Ben.

In the midst of raising their family and following their varied career paths, Dennis and Linda managed to plant Christmas trees. Their first trees were planted in 1985.

Tending a Christmas tree farm takes lots of time and energy. It takes five to six years for a tree to reach 5 to 6 feet in height. Seedlings are planted March and April. Trees are trimmed in June and July before new growth hardens; then tree farms are open for tagging and sales in early winter. The Morgan Tree Farm is open daily from Black Friday through Christmas Eve, from daylight to dark.

Wreaths were added to the Morgans’ product lineup in 1995 and have gained in popularity each year. Dennis says they like to have 30 to 40 wreaths available when the tree farm opens from the season, so making and decorating wreaths has become a Thanksgiving Day tradition for family members who come to their farm for a turkey dinner.

The opportunity to watch other families enjoy their own traditions has been a high point of his Christmas tree farm, says Dennis. Many of the same families come to his farm, year after year.

“It’s fun to watch the kids grow. Some people started coming when they were 2 or 3 years old and now bring their children to the farm. Some parents, who brought their young children with them to pick out fresh trees, are now bringing their grandchildren to the farm. I really enjoy seeing families take their annual photos in ‘the spot’ or hear about their traditions like making ornaments by cutting off the bottom of the trunk and burning in the year.”

One Christmas tradition the Morgan’s enjoy is making suet pudding. Dennis says the tradition began when he was a child. He “learned all the tricks of the trade” from his grandmothers, one of whom was German and the other who was Swedish.

“My grandmothers were naturalists before there was a name for it,” says Dennis. “They made the most of their natural resources by canning and cooking from scratch. All I wanted when they passed away was their recipe boxes, and I got them!”

Straight from one of those recipe boxes, today Dennis is sharing a time-tested recipe for Christmas Suet Pudding. He’s also sharing a recipe for Sloppy Joes that Santa himself taste-tested last weekend when he visited the Morgan Tree Farm to take photos with children and families.

Guten Appetit! Smaklig måltid!

FFA Barbecue

Ingredients:

• 1 pound hamburger
• 1½ T brown sugar
• ¼ c. chopped onion
• ½ c. ketchup
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. pepper
• 1 T. vinegar
• 1 tsp. chili powder

Directions:

1. Brown hamburger with onion and add the rest of ingredients.  Serve on buns.  Recipe multiplied five times will serve 20-25 people.

Sara Mohr was the photographer and she put us in touch with the Santa.  Santa had the most authentic looking reindeer.  When I looked out the reindeer, I would’ve sworn they were real!

COOK’S TIP:   Don’t chintz on the ingredients!  This recipe is delicious just as it’s written.  Last Saturday Santa Clause visited our tree farm to take photos with families, so we treated him to these maid-rites for lunch.  He said, “What would it take to get this recipe?”  We sent him home with a copy of it to share with Mrs. C.

Tyler and Michelle Sandven are happy to make their home in rural Humboldt, Iowa, where’s plenty of wide, open space for their energetic girls to roam.  Their oldest daughter, Sydnie, is 9; Rylie is 8 years old.  Their twins, Kylan and Kynlie, are 18 months old.

“We feel fortunate to raise our family on a farm where they’re sure to develop a good work ethic,” says Tyler.  “They really enjoy the animals and helping with chores.  Our older girls especially enjoy riding in the cab of the tractor while the cattle are being fed.  They also like helping bottle feed the calves.”

Having a family who shares his love of agriculture makes this Iowa farmer proud.

“Farming is all I ever wanted to do,” says Tyler, who was raised on a diversified farm in Humboldt County.  After graduating from Iowa State University with a degree in Ag Business, he was eager to return to the family’s farming operation.

Together with his dad and his brother, Tyler raises cow-calf pairs and has a feeder to finish cattle operation.  The family also feed hogs and raise a few horses, which his father especially enjoys riding.  Tyler, on the other hand, prefers to ride something with a motor.  In his spare time, he especially enjoys riding motorcycles and snowmobiles.  Riding a Harley across the Hawaiian island of Maui is one of Tyler and Michelle’s favorite memories.

Combining is passion for motorcycles with his love of farming are a few of the reasons Tyler enjoys his partnership with Latham Hi‑Tech Seeds.

“I like working with a family-owned business whose owners share a lot of our same values,” says Tyler.  “Plus, no one else hosts an annual Freedom of Independence Ride.  Latham’s annual “field day on wheels” has become an annual tradition for our family, as well as for some of my customers.  While it’s not for everyone, it’s an especially good time for those of us who enjoy riding bikes and taking in the countryside.”

Tyler has been a Latham® dealer for the past six years and appreciates having a solid lineup to sell of corn, soybeans and alfalfa.  For the second year in a row, Latham’s LH 5877 VT3 PRO was the Sandven’s top performer.  Even in extremely challenging conditions during the 2012 growing season, LH 5877 VT3 PRO produced a whole field average this fall of 190 bushels/acre, corn-on-corn.

While Tyler is high on this hybrid, he also understands the importance of “planting a package.”  He encourages farmers to plant a minimum of three or four different Latham® corn or soybean products with a mixture of offensive and defensive traits.  He says farmers also will want to mix maturities to reduce your risk.

Tyler will gladly visit with local farmers about the best products for their situations.  And if you’re lucky, Michelle might even treat you to a piece of her homemade Pumpkin Roll.  Today, just in time for the holidays, she’s sharing her recipe with us on TheFieldPosition.com.

In celebration of National Pumpkin Month, we’re taking the classroom outdoors to Enchanted Acres Pumpkin Patch in Sheffield.  This month I’ll have an opportunity to host classes from six different school districts with students ranging in age from preschool to 6^th grade.

Special thanks to Ag in the Classroom for helping provide educational learning tools that are age-appropriate.  This morning I’m looking forward to helping a preschool class make a mobile that illustrates the pumpkin life cycle.  This afternoon I’m looking forward to leading a math lesson for a group of 2^nd and 3^rd graders.  We’re going to measure the circumference of different pumpkins, as well as weigh them.  All age groups will get to walk into the patch and pick their perfect pumpkin.

Last week children were able to pick an ear of corn off the stalk in the field, shell it into their hands and then feed our four goats.  (I just loved hearing their giggles as they feed the animals.)  Another hit was petting our mini lop rabbits, Fluffy and Patches.

It’s my goal that students have as much fun as they can while learning where their food comes from.  They’ll also learn that Iowa’s corn and soybean crops are used to provide feed for livestock and humans alike.

We’re helping teach students that seeds – in this case pumpkin seeds – grow into plants that then flower and bear fruit.  Pumpkin can be used to make a number of delicious foods from roasted seeds to muffins.  We even mix up Pumpkin Pie in a bag and talk about the nutritional value of pumpkins.

Did you know that, like carrots, pumpkin is a great source of beta-carotene?  Beta-carotene, as it converts in our bodies to vitamin A, performs many important functions in overall health.  Current research indicates that a diet rich in foods containing beta-carotene may reduce the risk of developing certain types of cancer and offers protect against heart disease.

So, mix up a batch of delicious Pumpkin Muffins.  You won’t have to feel guilty about the indulgence because, after all, pumpkin is a good-for-you fruit!  Let your kids join the fun by mixing up this easy-to-make Pumpkin Pie in a Bag.  If we can mix it up in a pumpkin patch with a group of four-year-olds, you can certainly do it at home.  Best of all, you can make this pie without making a mess – or having to do a sink full of dishes.  Enjoy!