Following a conservation plan has been part of the history for Worley Farms, a diversified agricultural operation in eastern North Carolina's Wayne County. Bryant Worley has a copy of his grandfather's conservation plan, written in 1950, and his father's plan written in 1963.

“When you compare my present conservation plan with those, it's easy to see that best management practices have changed through the years,” Worley says. “For example, my grandfather's plan includes the advice to plant kudzu on highly erodible land. But we have always tried to keep abreast of the latest best management practices to use on our farm.”

Using those conservation practices has been an important part of managing livestock and crop enterprises in an environmentally sensitive area. Bryant and his wife, Debbie, live only a few yards from the Burden Branch of the Neuse River. That river has been a lightning rod for concerns about the effect of swine and poultry production on the environment.

“I strive to be an environmental steward because I want my children and grandchildren to have the same opportunities that I have had,” Bryant says. “Playing in the woods by the banks of clear streams, breathing fresh air and having clean water to drink are things I have enjoyed in my lifetime. I believe that having these things, while also raising a family with the income from a working farm, are both possible.”

Diversified approach

The Worley operation includes about 1,100 acres of cropland along with 300 acres of woodlands. The crop mix is diversified, including corn, soybeans and wheat along with 150 acres of tobacco and cotton most years.

Eight 720-head, tunnel-ventilated finishing units grow up to 15,000 hogs each year under contract with Maxwell Foods, based in Goldsboro, NC. The family also grows about 60,000 tom turkeys a year, plus keep a 20-cow beef herd.

Bryant and Debbie have been joined in the farming operation with their daughters and sons-in-law: Ben and Carmen Worley Thomas and Kelvin and Brooke Worley Norris.

“There's a special bond that develops in a multigenerational farm,” Bryant observes. “I was able to work side-by-side with my father, and Debbie and I worked together to build our own farming operation. Now I have daughters and sons-in-law who work along with us. It's also going to give our grandchildren a chance to grow up on the farm, and we hope we can instill a good work ethic in them as well.”

The hog units, built in 1993, are feeder-to-finish, with pigs coming in at 55 to 60 lb. and marketed at 240 to 250 lb.

From the start, the site was designed to have a minimal impact on the environment and on nearby neighbors. The operation was built on Debbie's family farm. Most of the timber was harvested from that farm, but the Worleys left the front portion to provide a visual buffer between the hog operation and its nearest neighbors. Pine trees were planted in the harvested areas as well.

The family also planted ornamental cypress trees near the entrance to the swine unit, adding beauty and buffering the operation from the nearby community volunteer fire department headquarters.

The exhaust air from the tunnel-ventilated buildings is directed to the back side of the finishing site, which is adjacent to a large timbered wetland area where there are no homes. That directs any dust and odors away from neighbors.

Nutrient management

With a wide range of crops, ranging from row crops to small grains to permanent pasture, the Worleys have a lot of flexibility in applying nutrients from their livestock and poultry operations.

“With the price of fertilizer rising, we have been trying to use our manure nutrients to replace purchased commercial fertilizer whenever we can,” Bryant says. “It's especially a good fit for the corn crop. We installed a center-pivot irrigation system in 2004, and it really helps us capture the value of our nutrients as we apply them to growing crops.” The pivot system features drop nozzles that help keep odors from drifting away from the field.

Manure samples are sent to a state laboratory for analysis, as required by the farm's nutrient management plan. A crop consultant soil samples the farm's fields every year, allowing the family to make better decisions as to where the turkey litter or swine effluent can be most effectively used. “Turkey litter, being a solid, can be hauled farther, while all of our swine effluent is piped,” Bryant points out. “It's all about the most efficient use of the nutrients.”

A storage facility provides an environmentally safe area to store turkey litter until it can be land-applied. A global positioning system allows precision application of the litter. Applying litter and effluent helps build the sandy loam soils that are typical for this area.

“We definitely see that it improves the tilth of the soil, and increases organic matter,” Bryant says. “We don't apply the effluent unless something is green and growing. We try to time it according to when the crops need it.”

Because nutrients can leach easily from these soils, the family applies a relatively small amount of effluent with each pass of the pivot.

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