ADRIAN, M.N. - Surrounded by fields of corn, soybeans and pasture land, the Tom and Trish Bullerman farm east of Adrian is home to friendly black Labradors, pigs that grunt and squeal and a black Angus cow-calf herd that can be seen dining on distant pasture land.
This is home for the Bullermans, who married in 1981 and settled on a quarter section in Little Rock Township two years later. Initially they ran a dairy - milking cows and raising crops - but when a dairy buyout program was offered in 1987, they took it.
Now, three decades after the milk cows left, the Bullerman farm has built a reputation in the beef industry, accelerating genetics in their registered black Angus cattle herd to market quality breeding stock. The Bullermans use both artificial insemination and embryo transfer in their 150-cow herd, with oldest son Tyler handling all of the genetics. A small portion of the herd is raised for competition in beef shows.
The Bullermans are Nobles County’s 2017 Farm Family of the Year, and will join 80 other Minnesota families garnering the distinction by their home counties during an Aug. 3 event at Farmfest in rural Redwood County. Locally, the Bullermans will be recognized at the Nobles County Fair Aug. 9, prior to the evening’s grandstand event.
Both farm kids - Trish grew up about five miles south and Tom grew up six miles north of their homestead (that site was designated as a century farm this year) - the Bullermans started raising hogs and cattle after their dairy herd was sold. They farrowed and sold feeder pigs until 1997, when the barn was destroyed by fire.
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“We were at a wrestling meet and the neighbors came over and got everything out,” shared Tom, “We maybe only lost five or 10 of them.”
After the fire, the Bullermans constructed a new finishing barn and began custom feeding pigs.
“It used to be everybody farrowed; now there’s hardly anybody that does that anymore,” added Trish.
As for beef, they initially started with some commercial stock before purchasing two black Angus heifers from nearby farmer Vern Engelkes. They liked the disposition of the black Angus and thought the breed would be a good one for their sons, Tyler and Trent, to show in 4-H.
“We always kind of liked to show,” said Trish. “We had registered Holsteins when we were first married and did some showing with them. I guess we’re glutton for giving cows baths.”
“I was never in 4-H but I’ve probably washed more animals than a lot of 4-H’ers,” added Tom with a smile.
