QUITMAN — Tony and LeVonna Uekman of Quitman are in the “consignment” business.
Other farmers bring them their cattle “on consignment,” Tony said. He said they raise the steers or heifers, which are called “stockers,” utilizing an intensive rotational grazing system that allows them to put 200 pounds of weight on the cattle within 100 days.
“We are paid per pound of gain put on the cattle,” Tony said. “We basically get paid for our management of the cattle.”
The Uekmans, along with their son and daughter-in-law, Trey and Lindsey Uekman, have been named the 2012 Faulkner County Farm Family of the Year. In addition to the cattle, they also raise laying hens for eggs, hay, a large vegetable garden, fruit trees, blueberries, blackberries, grapes and muscadines for themselves, their family and their neighbors.
Tony said they have attained their goal of “200 pounds in 100 days,” until this year.
“Because of the drought, we had to let the cattle go early, reaching only 93 percent of our goal,” he said.
The Uekmans rotate the cattle to a fresh pasture every 12 to 24 hours by use of an electric fence. Each pasture or paddock has its own water supply, a “tank” made from a large tractor tire that was constructed by Tony and Trey.
“This gives them excellent-quality pasture for good gains and also allows adequate resttime for the grass,” Tony said. “All gains come from grass while on our farm.”
They take in 120 to 150 head of cattle in the spring and 75 to 100 head in the fall. They cut hay between sets of cattle or “as needed” to keep the pasture vegetative. They either use the hay for the cattle or sell it.
The family operates 133 acres, owning 80 of those and renting the rest. They have been on their farm on Buck Branch Road outside Quitman for 17 years.
Tony, 55, grew up in North Little Rock. He is the son of Pat and Eugene Uekman and a graduate of Catholic High School in Little Rock. He has two brothers and one sister: Gary Uekman of Jacksonville, Joe Uekman of North Little Rock and Debbie Chandler of Conway.
“I had my first garden when I was 11,” Tonysaid with a smile. “And when I turned 16, I asked for a tiller instead of a car.
“My grandparents, the late Theodore “Tate” and Clara Uekman, had a farm, and I watched him when I was a boy. He lost the farm to Camp Robinson, but he had acreage near where I grew up. I was always intrigued by growing something, even though I went to a big private school. Then when I met LeVonna, [farming] was a done deal.”
LeVonna, 52, the daughter of Bill Kennedy of Cabot and the late Elva Lemay Kennedy, grew up on a cattle and catfish farm outside Cabot. Le-Vonna has one sister, Cindy Neal, who lives on the family farm with their dad, and one brother, Mark Kennedy, who raises goats in Houston, Mo.
LeVonna is a graduate of Cabot High School and has a degree in wildlife management from Arkansas State University at Jonesboro.
Tony and LeVonna met on a blind date. They married in 1985. Both are now employed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resource Conservation Service. Tony is a soil conservationist for the White County office in Searcy, and LeVonna is a district conservationist and team leader for the Cleburne County office in Heber Springs.
Trey, 21, graduated from Heber Springs High School and is a student at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, where he is studying civil engineering. Lindsey, 21, is the daughter of Sam and Mary Parker of Greenbrier and a graduate of Greenbrier High School. She is employed at TLC L e ar ning C enter in Jonesboro, where she works with special-needs children.Lindsey has two years of college, and after Trey graduates, she plans to finish her degree and go into neonatalnursing.
The Uekmans do not have any plans to expand their operation in the foreseeable future.
“We will probably wait until we retire to make any maj or exp ansions,” Tonysaid. “With both of us working full-time jobs, plus caring for the livestock, gardens and lawn, we just don’t have time for much more.
“In the future, we would like to lease more ground to carry more livestock. And we are also considering raising our own grass-fed cattle, but we need to pay for the farm first.”
Tony said family members are honored by the Farm Family title and happy to be able to tell their story.
“We want to promote the grass-fed industry and the grazing industry in Arkansas,” he said. “We have many field days out here, as well as tours and demonstrations of our rotation grazing system.It does work.”
Tony and LeVonna are both members of the Cleburne County Cattleman’s Association, the Farm Bureau and the Petit Jean Electric Cooperative. LeVonna is a member of the Arkansas Forage and Grassland Council. A video, “Managed Intensive Grazing,” was produced on their farm and distributed across the country.
River Valley Ozark, Pages 59 on 06/21/2012