Come rain or shine, Glenn and Toni Obermann know how to make hay. The couple earned top honors at the Ozark Empire Fair for the second time in three years.
The 2012 Ozark Empire Fair Hay Show saw record quality hay in the legume and grass/legume classes. The cool season and warm season grass classes posted Relative Feed Value average scores that were exceeded only two times in the show dating back to 1985.
Jim Stine of Clever, a long-time entrant and winner of shows in the past, served as judge this year.
"I'm surprised how good the hay is this year,” he said. “The alfalfa class and both grass classes are the best I can remember seeing. The hay all smelled great with no moldiness," said Cline.
WINNER:Glenn & Toni Obermann’s first place alfalfa and grand champion at the Ozark Empire Fair.
The high quality is attributed to an earlier than normal season with dry weather that allowed farmers to harvest hay in April and very early May. Some entered third cuttings, which typically is difficult to do at the OEF.
The Obermanns of Monett garnered the top honor with their alfalfa entry. It was cut June 12 and had a 230 RFV. The RFV makes up 60 percent of the final index in the show. The RFV combines the acid and neutral detergent values.