A Farmer Explains the Benefit of Crop Dusting Over a Sprayer

[00:00:08.190] - Chris Griffin
Welcome to Back to Your Roots, a podcast that provides insight into all things farming, financing, and farm life, guiding you back to your roots.

[00:00:17.480] - Chris Griffin
Thanks for joining us today on Back to Your Roots. I'm your host, Chris Griffin, and on today's Back to Your Roots podcast, we have a pretty special guest, uh, pretty really interesting topic. We've got crop duster, Mr. Robert Houston, and he's out of Callaway County. He does crop dusting. He'll kind of explain that a little bit more. So, Mr. Houston, can you tell us a little about yourself, your farm, your operation?

[00:00:37.600] - Robert Houston
Yeah, first of all, I've farmed for 40-something years, and before that I was— I grew up on a farm. Well, I think it's 5 generations. I know my great-granddaddy and my granddaddy and my daddy and me and then I've got two next generations.

[00:00:54.820] - Chris Griffin
That's awesome. That's really nice.

[00:00:56.010] - Robert Houston
They're trying our best to make it work.

[00:00:58.750] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:00:59.720] - Robert Houston
It's a bad time. Yeah. You know how farming—

[00:01:04.220] - Chris Griffin
I'm right there with you. So yeah, we know. Yeah.

[00:01:09.110] - Chris Griffin
What crops do you guys—

[00:01:11.340] - Robert Houston
Corn, wheat, and beans. I'm about through with wheat.

[00:01:14.250] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:01:14.880] - Chris Griffin
Well, I think most people are.

[00:01:16.550] - Robert Houston
Yeah. We've got about 700 acres of canola this year.

[00:01:19.250] - Chris Griffin
Well, I was gonna ask that because I know a lot of my guys in Ballard, you know, we've got some guys that are doing some canola this year.

[00:01:24.330] - Robert Houston
Yeah, we had it last year.

[00:01:26.220] - Chris Griffin
So, and, uh, yeah, it's, it's, we'll see how that goes. We, I knew that was probably a lot of people were taking, getting rid of the, some people were getting rid of the wheat and doing the canola, it seems like. So, yeah.

[00:01:36.830] - Robert Houston
So another thing, a little unique about my farm is, uh, about, I think it's 5 or 6 years ago, Some hog houses got built just across the line, and I bought all the stuff to apply hog poop to my ground.

[00:01:56.000] - Chris Griffin
Really?

[00:01:56.870] - Robert Houston
And my idea, you can, you can put it on top of the ground or close to the top of the ground, or you can inject it in the ground. My thoughts were, I've slung dry fertilizer on top of the ground since early '80s. I've got some ground that was— I've only tended it once since '81.

[00:02:17.810] - Chris Griffin
Really?

[00:02:18.070] - Robert Houston
Like disk it and all. But anyway, this year we injected over 6 million gallons of pig poop where we're going to have corn next year.

[00:02:30.160] - Chris Griffin
That's crazy.

[00:02:30.720] - Robert Houston
And then I flew as soon as we got the pig poop injected Then I flew cover crop on it to help hold down erosion and it will grow good right there where that pig poop is and then I kill it in the spring and hopefully I get that nitrogen back as that deteriorates. It's a fairly unique deal.

[00:02:59.820] - Chris Griffin
Yeah, that's interesting.

[00:03:01.940] - Robert Houston
Plenty of other people doing it, but not over there. I just, the opportunity come to me. It's not easy to get somebody to take that, all that pig poop. It's a big investment. I got to have 4 big trucks, road trucks, 4 big tankers, and then the applicator and the tractor. I've got a dedicated tractor to that.

[00:03:28.630] - Chris Griffin
Just for that?

[00:03:29.150] - Robert Houston
Just for that.

[00:03:29.950] - Chris Griffin
I got you.

[00:03:30.600] - Robert Houston
Holds 8,500 gallons of pig poop in the tank.

[00:03:35.670] - Chris Griffin
Wow.

[00:03:36.070] - Robert Houston
That I inject it with. So.

[00:03:37.930] - Chris Griffin
Wow.

[00:03:39.220] - Robert Houston
Then I balance that out with 8,500-gallon tankers bringing it to me.

[00:03:46.460] - Chris Griffin
Wow.

[00:03:47.010] - Chris Griffin
Well, that's awesome. Tell us a little bit about how you got into crop dusting.

[00:03:49.670] - Robert Houston
I've been in farming for like making a living at it or trying to for 40-something years. And then got into flying. And my son and one of his buddies thought it would be a good idea to get into crop dusting, which is very unusual. It's usually a generational thing. But anyway, we just decided to get into crop dusting. And we started aiming towards that. We got some people to fly. We bought or my son bought some planes, crop dusting planes, and had other people fly them while we was getting, getting our chemical license, you know, for each state and commercial pesticide license. And you got to have several different hoops to go through on the airplane part.

[00:04:45.100] - Chris Griffin
I was going to say that's probably what, there's probably a lot of certifications you got to have and licenses.

[00:04:49.020] - Robert Houston
We had a lot of them, but not all of them. You've got to have a high horsepower. Of course, them crop dusting planes are really high horsepower.

[00:04:57.130] - Chris Griffin
Yeah, a lot different than what we're used to flying.

[00:04:59.380] - Robert Houston
And tail wheel, and you have to have commercial license.

[00:05:03.020] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:05:03.900] - Robert Houston
So while they were using other pilots, we was getting prepared to do it ourselves. And that's what we did. I did. And it's very rewarding, but it's challenging.

[00:05:19.850] - Chris Griffin
Are your sons still involved?

[00:05:21.190] - Robert Houston
Well, he did up till last year, had a fatality.

[00:05:25.370] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:05:25.760] - Robert Houston
And it just took all the fun out of it for him and he's sold out.

[00:05:30.820] - Chris Griffin
I got you.

[00:05:31.370] - Robert Houston
I've still got my old plane because I—

[00:05:34.110] - Chris Griffin
Well, we were looking at it before we started on here and you've got some pretty neat planes if you kind of go into that a little bit. You got your crop dusting plane and This guy's a— I already know he's, he's a thrill seeker. So we only talked for 5 minutes. He's a lot more of a thrill seeker than I am. So, but you could tell he was getting excited talking about his planes and showing them to me. And so kind of talk about that a little bit. All your different planes and what you got at your, at your shop and—

[00:05:56.590] - Robert Houston
Well, before I got—

[00:05:57.010] - Chris Griffin
I'm going to get you excited, I guess.

[00:05:58.450] - Robert Houston
So before I got into the— or we got in, me and my son and his friend or our friend got into the crop dusting. I'd done been flying for a while.

[00:06:09.180] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:06:09.800] - Robert Houston
I didn't have my license for very long, but I've been flying a long time and I decided if I was going to keep doing this and especially if I took somebody flying, I needed to get the license and all. So anyway, as soon as I got the license to fly, straight and level doesn't do anything.

[00:06:31.150] - Chris Griffin
That just doesn't get you going, does it?

[00:06:32.990] - Robert Houston
I flew home from Branson Friday.

[00:06:36.680] - Chris Griffin
Boring.

[00:06:37.390] - Robert Houston
Boring.

[00:06:37.950] - Robert Houston
Yeah. Yeah, it was. Only thing made it good Friday was I had a 30-something mile an hour tailwind. I got home from Branson in an hour and 10 minutes.

[00:06:49.290] - Chris Griffin
That's not too bad there. A lot better than driving that sucker. I know that. So yeah.

[00:06:53.930] - Robert Houston
But anyway, we got into that. And then so I got pretty comfortable with bigger planes and it got boring going straight and level. So I got an aerobatic plane and I mean, I put like 150 hours on one plane in one summer. And if you knew anything about airplanes, that is lots of hours and hardly any of them were straight and level.

[00:07:22.480] - Chris Griffin
Yeah

[00:07:22.580] - Robert Houston
I didn't buy it to go straight and level.

[00:07:24.930] - Chris Griffin
So do you ever talk any sucker into getting in the plane with you and going in there?

[00:07:30.090] - Robert Houston
Yes.

[00:07:30.570] - Chris Griffin
Are they terrified or like— Do they underestimate you?

[00:07:34.260] - Robert Houston
I love taking people up. Like taking a— I've never took a woman up that didn't like it. Now, 8 out of 10 men will get sick.

[00:07:43.900] - Chris Griffin
Really?

[00:07:44.940] - Robert Houston
Maybe 2 out of 10 women will get sick.

[00:07:47.200] - Chris Griffin
Huh. Well, they're always— they're tougher than we are.

[00:07:49.430] - Robert Houston
They're better backseat drivers.

[00:07:51.350] - Chris Griffin
Yeah, they're a lot better than we are. So you're kind of going in. I know you're talking about like the certification and training and stuff like that.

[00:07:58.520] - Robert Houston
Yes. Well, what I was getting around to, I had like 400 or 500 hours of aerobatic flying before I got into the crop dusting plane.

[00:08:08.380] - Chris Griffin
So you'd already been kind of doing that?

[00:08:10.610] - Robert Houston
There was, it was all second nature and muscle memory.

[00:08:14.400] - Chris Griffin
I got you.

[00:08:15.020] - Robert Houston
I've had in the farming, I've grown up with the computers for that, you know, the John Deere GPS and all that kind of stuff. Different spray pumps and tips. So there was very little it took to get adapted to the flying because like I say, the flying was just second nature already for me.

[00:08:38.390] - Chris Griffin
Because you'd already been used to doing it.

[00:08:39.510] - Robert Houston
That's right.

[00:08:40.320] - Chris Griffin
Moving around and doing all that type of stuff.

[00:08:41.830] - Robert Houston
And doing unusual attitudes. People think the crop dusting is that somebody out there showing out. That's not showing out.

[00:08:49.210] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:08:49.690] - Robert Houston
But it looks that way.

[00:08:51.070] - Chris Griffin
I'm sure. Yeah, it definitely looks that way for sure. So, you know, I know we just talked about how much, how exciting it is. And I know sometimes when you have something you're really passionate about and you love and it gets you going, but when you get, I know you said you put 150 hours in one summer on a plane and you still do crop dusting now and everything. Do you still kind of get a rush when you get in that plane? Do you get excited?

[00:09:13.200] - Robert Houston
Like, I want to do it. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:09:16.410] - Chris Griffin
It gets you out of bed in the morning.

[00:09:18.480] - Robert Houston
On those days. If, if I now, if I've been in it for 3 weeks, I'm not as excited.

[00:09:24.900] - Chris Griffin
You're about ready for a break. Yeah, probably. Yeah.

[00:09:27.070] - Robert Houston
Yeah. And I've cut down a lot. I'm not near as young as I used to be.

[00:09:30.640] - Chris Griffin
Well, and I, I was wondering about that because it's always, you know, you can always tell when somebody talks and when they're passionate about something and they really love it. And before we even started on the podcast, we were just sitting here chatting beforehand and I was like, man, we need to start. We need to start recording because I was like, we're going to miss out on some good stuff here. So, so let's dive a little bit deeper. What's, you know, to the average person out there, you know, maybe only seen, you know, somebody crop dusting one time or doesn't know much about it, you know, what's the benefit of spraying your crops with an aerial application and what, you know, what does that do for the farmer and their operation as well?

[00:10:04.710] - Robert Houston
Well, one of the main ones is timeliness and it's a convenience to a lot of farmers if they don't have enough time themselves personally to do it. Or like if it's over the top of corn, if they get one of those ground rigs, it'll knock down a lot of corn. And if I don't have bad luck, I'm not going to knock any corn down.

[00:10:26.200] - Chris Griffin
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[00:10:27.440] - Chris Griffin
Well, and I want, you know, because that's one thing, you know, that question was one when I saw them, I thought the same thing because I don't know much about it and, you know, kind of what that benefit looked like for the farmer. And so that makes sense. So basically, you know, from a timeliness standpoint.

[00:10:42.060] - Robert Houston
And if it's too wet.

[00:10:43.450] - Chris Griffin
Too wet, something like that. So that's, That's where the benefit comes in and where you kind of your role rolls into that farm operation.

[00:10:50.840] - Robert Houston
And a lot of it, a lot of times there's been of course, I'm on one end of it on that part it's most of the time, if you didn't have tracks already established in a field, like in a field of beans or something, there's been enough studies that you can about pay for the application with a plane. I've got some on my phone where they've done that. You can pay for the application by the amount that you destroy.

[00:11:17.650] - Chris Griffin
I got you.

[00:11:18.610] - Robert Houston
Like with a 90-foot boom.

[00:11:20.300] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:11:21.190] - Robert Houston
So there, that's not the only thing, but that's another.

[00:11:26.380] - Chris Griffin
Well, and that kind of goes, you know, that kind of goes into my next question. What I was going to ask you is, you know, talking about the difference in crops not having, you know, soil compaction and, you know, and getting run over with the sprayers, you know, and when they're out there, I mean, like you said, just from that standpoint, you know, what they're paying for the aerial application, it's saving some of that crop, helping with some of the soil compaction, which, you know, if you look at the cost benefit of that, probably weighs in the favor of the farmer. You made a comment, and I don't know if you'll be able to repeat it word for word, but talking about how you're, you know, you see the same guys, you don't go from Florida to Michigan.

[00:12:05.780] - Robert Houston
No.

[00:12:06.150] - Chris Griffin
You see the same guys every year, year in and year out. You have a relationship with them. And tell them what you said. You said something about, you know, I'm here for the farmer or—

[00:12:15.140] - Robert Houston
I am a farmer. I'm a farmer first.

[00:12:17.160] - Chris Griffin
And you know that.

[00:12:18.100] - Robert Houston
I spray crops with a plane second.

[00:12:20.600] - Chris Griffin
And we thought, I thought that was really good, you know, just hearing it because we were talking about... And nothing against, you know, the helicopter applications, but their, their, their, you know, format on how they make money and how they do stuff is different. And you were just talking about how, you know, you stay in your area and you know the people and they know you and You built a longstanding relationship, which there's always something to be said about that. And I think they know, I think you know they're going to take care of you and you take care of them. And you guys both benefit from it, which is the most important.

[00:12:51.700] - Robert Houston
I like to feel like they want me there and then appreciate me being there.

[00:12:59.160] - Chris Griffin
Yeah, for sure. So as far as how you charge, and this is, I mean, you don't have to go into super detail, but you know, is it, do you charge per acre? Do you charge how many miles or hours or, or the difficulty, you know, of, you know, because I know some areas and acreage might be more difficult, I guess, than others. Or how does that work for you?

[00:13:21.310] - Robert Houston
Okay. On the spraying end, that's chemicals spraying. I usually charge just an acre.

[00:13:28.810] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:13:29.030] - Robert Houston
Per acre. But I limit myself to about 20 miles from the...

[00:13:33.430] - Chris Griffin
okay.

[00:13:34.180] - Robert Houston
From wherever I'm loading at.

[00:13:36.580] - Chris Griffin
I got you.

[00:13:37.390] - Robert Houston
And like this last year, I didn't go to Murray Airport. I didn't go to Mayfield Airport. I didn't go to Paris. I've been to all three of them.

[00:13:45.620] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:13:46.020] - Robert Houston
You know, but I just limited myself to if I can't do it out of the house, I ain't going to do it.

[00:13:51.540] - Chris Griffin
Yeah. Because we were looking at pictures you've got. I mean, you got, you know, a grass runway.

[00:13:55.840] - Robert Houston
Yeah.

[00:13:56.230] - Chris Griffin
Right there. Yeah. A good one right at your house. So that's pretty cool.

[00:13:59.220] - Robert Houston
Very comfortable.

[00:14:00.080] - Chris Griffin
That's pretty neat.

[00:14:01.820] - Robert Houston
A crop duster gets so frustrated at a regular airport. Somebody— and it's not their fault, but I've got a different agenda than they do. Somebody in a 150, that's a little small, slow, general aviation plane. They'll get in the pattern. Well, technically, I'm supposed to— if I'm coming up and they're done in the pattern, I'm supposed to stay behind them. Well, they go out there plumb out of sight and turn, and then they land on the first third of the runway and then taxi down through there at about 5 miles an hour to the other end.

[00:14:38.810] - Chris Griffin
And that just and for somebody who doesn't like to fly flat and straight, that probably just frustrates the heck out of you.

[00:14:43.980] - Robert Houston
And it eats up time. I'm out there circling thinking, ah.

[00:14:48.160] - Chris Griffin
So legally you have to stay behind them.

[00:14:50.110] - Robert Houston
Don't have to legally, but it's—

[00:14:52.010] - Chris Griffin
Kind of a courtesy or—

[00:14:53.060] - Robert Houston
Well, it's partly courtesy and part of the rules. Yeah. I guess it is legally.

[00:14:56.360] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:14:58.140] - Robert Houston
Accepted that way. But now, and then I don't take off on a regular runway out there at Murray or— they'll— you take off into the wind.

[00:15:08.770] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:15:09.500] - Robert Houston
That gives you more lift sooner.

[00:15:12.230] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:15:13.360] - Robert Houston
Well, if I loading on one end of the runway—

[00:15:16.690] - Chris Griffin
Then you got to go all the way.

[00:15:17.890] - Robert Houston
I'm not going to do it. I'm going to take off downwind.

[00:15:20.620] - Chris Griffin
You got to do what you got to do.

[00:15:21.980] - Chris Griffin
At your own place, you can do whatever you want.

[00:15:23.410] - Robert Houston
That's right. That's right. And that's what makes my own place so comfortable.

[00:15:27.230] - Chris Griffin
Hey, there's something to be said about that.

[00:15:28.560] - Robert Houston
I don't have to say I'm— announce that I'm coming in.

[00:15:31.620] - Chris Griffin
I can do whatever. You just land and take off wherever you want.

[00:15:35.200] - Robert Houston
I can come in at treetop high from either side. It don't matter.

[00:15:39.490] - Chris Griffin
You can do a loop-de-loop right for you. You can do whatever you want.

[00:15:41.470] - Robert Houston
Well, I won't do that in that plane. It burns— that old plane of mine burns like 60 gallons an hour.

[00:15:47.220] - Chris Griffin
Really?

[00:15:47.700] - Robert Houston
Yeah. Justin's had planes that would burn 90-something gallons an hour.

[00:15:53.320] - Chris Griffin
Is that just because of the being an application, you know, like the type of being a spraying plane or is it or is it just the age of the plane?

[00:16:02.320] - Robert Houston
No, no, it's the jet engines.

[00:16:04.390] - Chris Griffin
I got you.

[00:16:04.710] - Robert Houston
It's just.

[00:16:05.120] - Chris Griffin
Just got to have them in there and it just burns that much fuel.

[00:16:07.510] - Robert Houston
They're more dependable than a reciprocating engine.

[00:16:10.960] - Chris Griffin
I got you. Okay.

[00:16:12.010] - Robert Houston
And you can get more power in a lighter package.

[00:16:15.310] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:16:15.690] - Robert Houston
If you saw that picture of my plane.

[00:16:17.720] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:16:17.960] - Robert Houston
The nose is sticking way out there.

[00:16:19.870] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:16:20.270] - Robert Houston
That's because that jet engine is so much lighter than the old round engine that used to be on it. It's got to be way out there to get the center of gravity right.

[00:16:29.690] - Chris Griffin
Huh.

[00:16:29.940] - Robert Houston
And then that makes the torque. I mean, it makes the plane even fly different. You've got to— your knee will get to hurting before the day's over. Push, taking off, pushing on the rudder to keep it going straight down.

[00:16:41.540] - Chris Griffin
Oh, really?

[00:16:41.860] - Robert Houston
There's torque way out there.

[00:16:43.380] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:16:44.290] - Robert Houston
Yeah.

[00:16:44.780] - Chris Griffin
That's interesting. So, you know, you talked about, you know, we've obviously talked about, you know, how you charge, the type of different planes you got.

[00:16:52.930] - Robert Houston
I didn't get around to the dry stuff.

[00:16:54.220] - Chris Griffin
Well, you talk about it.

[00:16:55.180] - Robert Houston
Okay. The dry stuff. It's not our favorite thing to do.

[00:17:00.360] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:17:00.570] - Robert Houston
Dry.

[00:17:01.240] - Robert Houston
But we can spread urea and stuff on top of corn.

[00:17:06.250] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:17:06.650] - Robert Houston
We do that a lot. Or Justin did down south a lot. I do some, but my old plane don't I can cube out too quick. It just won't hold enough that I can get over the ground. But then we do also do, I do a right smart of cover crops. Okay. Seeding cover crops, interseeding it into the crop before, right before they harvest it. And then I'll do some on my own even later just to have cover crop.

[00:17:33.000] - Chris Griffin
So how many acres do you farm personally?

[00:17:35.430] - Robert Houston
About 2,300.

[00:17:37.070] - Chris Griffin
Okay. So you got a lot going on. You're not very busy.

[00:17:42.730] - Robert Houston
No, no. Well, I can stay pretty busy.

[00:17:45.380] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:17:45.620] - Robert Houston
For an old fella.

[00:17:46.340] - Chris Griffin
I have no doubt.

[00:17:48.510] - Robert Houston
But with the dry, it's a combination of if it's oats, it's real light. I can't get much in there. I can't get over much ground. So I've got to charge more. And then I'm coming back all like I'll land like

[00:18:04.740] - Chris Griffin
So you're having to go back and forth.

[00:18:05.870] - Robert Houston
4 times an hour. I'll land 4 times or 5 times an hour. Just, just backwards and forth. And if it's very far, I've got to charge for mileage too.

[00:18:16.550] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:18:17.350] - Robert Houston
With the spraying I do.

[00:18:18.090] - Chris Griffin
So from that initial spot to get to there.

[00:18:20.880] - Robert Houston
Yeah.

[00:18:21.510] - Robert Houston
Yeah. Because I'm having to come back so much, I don't have the money handle on, but very little.

[00:18:30.190] - Chris Griffin
So what I would say, you know, I guess Another question we had, you know, just thinking about this, you know what I mean? Obviously around here, corn and beans, but you know what, what is probably the most, what different type of crops do you spray? You know, is it just corn, beans, wheat, or is it, I mean, is it everything?

[00:18:46.320] - Robert Houston
You know, I've done everything from cotton.

[00:18:50.280] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:18:50.830] - Robert Houston
I went down there and helped Justin some, but you know, we do cotton, canola.

[00:18:55.390] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:18:56.290] - Robert Houston
Now he did rice. That's a big deal south of here. I mean, that just keeps planes busy. And in the rice and you getting rice and cotton country and you're flying all the time. But up here I don't do much but just corn, wheat, and beans.

[00:19:12.000] - Chris Griffin
Corn, wheat, and beans. Yeah.

[00:19:12.950] - Robert Houston
Yeah. And canola, a little canola.

[00:19:14.660] - Chris Griffin
And I kind of figured that's probably the answer, but I, you know, I didn't know, like you said, in the past you've done a few others and, and I know different areas, you know, like, you know, the crops vary. So, and you can go just 3 or 4 hours south and it's completely different. You know what I'm saying?

[00:19:27.470] - Robert Houston
Completely different.

[00:19:29.010] - Chris Griffin
So, you know, I'd say, I mean, this would be a loaded question probably. What's the maximum distance you've traveled to spray?

[00:19:38.940] - Robert Houston
You mean from my airplane? Yeah. Well, like about 20 miles.

[00:19:42.500] - Chris Griffin
20 miles about all the way down.

[00:19:43.430] - Robert Houston
I've gone 22. My plane is limited.

[00:19:46.180] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:19:46.580] - Robert Houston
It was built to be a gas. You use less gallons per hour with a gas engine. I can only hold 80 gallons. Well, if you burn 50-something an hour, you can add that up and after about an hour and 15 minutes, I need to be—

[00:20:03.420] - Chris Griffin
You gotta be going back.

[00:20:06.870] - Robert Houston
Majority of the time when I take off, my mainest concern is fuel to get back. It's just that old plane. It, like some of the other planes, will hold 300 gallons.

[00:20:18.880] - Chris Griffin
Really?

[00:20:19.280] - Robert Houston
Yeah.

[00:20:19.620] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:20:20.420] - Robert Houston
Yeah.

[00:20:20.920] - Chris Griffin
So, you know, I know you fly to different, you know, you're talking about flying to Branson and stuff like that. What's one of your longest trips and even just making stops? Have you flown from like just for a trip?

[00:20:32.040] - Robert Houston
Like with a passenger?

[00:20:32.860] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:20:33.330] - Robert Houston
Yeah. Well, Branson's, and I've gone down Texas.

[00:20:38.000] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:20:38.870] - Robert Houston
Right at Dallas. Addison, Allison.

[00:20:42.420] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:20:42.750] - Robert Houston
So anyway. I got my commercial license, but I don't have the IFR part. Instrument rated. I'm not instrument rated. So I have to pick where I can go. I don't want it to get bad on me. Can't get back.

[00:20:57.800] - Chris Griffin
Yeah, I got you.

[00:20:59.110] - Robert Houston
You get— it's like Branson. You, you can have a front between you. You know, it'd be clear here and be clear there, but not clear in between.

[00:21:07.900] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:21:08.240] - Robert Houston
We was going to come home Thursday. It was fine there, but it was just IFR, instrument flight rating.

[00:21:15.970] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:21:16.840] - Robert Houston
You couldn't see here.

[00:21:18.140] - Chris Griffin
I got you.

[00:21:18.880] - Robert Houston
So I just don't get way off.

[00:21:21.520] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:21:21.990] - Robert Houston
It ain't to say I couldn't. I just don't.

[00:21:25.060] - Chris Griffin
I think you could do it. After talking to you for about 20 minutes, I think you'd figure it out. He'd wing it. So.

[00:21:33.230] - Robert Houston
Well, I just had to land and wait for it to clear up.

[00:21:35.110] - Chris Griffin
Yeah, that's right. So, you know, the efficiency of aerial spraying versus farming, you know, the farmer doing it. I know we talked, you know, what the benefits was, but, you know, is there, you know, do they get more out of, you know, is there less, you know, waste? Is there, do you think it's a better way to do it, you know, for the cost? And I know sometimes it may not be, you know, it may not be the right fit for every farmer, but.

[00:21:59.460] - Robert Houston
It might not be, but even on my farm, I'd just as soon have the airplane do it as the ground rig do it. My limiting factor at home on my own ground is if it's like something that will kill my waterways, I can't cut off and on and not kill my waterways kind of deal. But I do a lot of spraying on my own just to keep tracks out of the field. I can get done quicker.

[00:22:30.610] - Chris Griffin
Yeah. Well, and that, that was something that, you know, we had written down is, you know, does wind factor into that when you're spraying? So, you know, I, you know, is it a situation where you've got, hey, I've gotta look and see, you know, what the wind speed is today? And, and because I, I don't need to be, cause we're gonna have some type of, you know, obviously that's gonna drift. And so can you kind of explain that? What's that cutoff for you and what, what do you feel comfortable and how do you kind of judge that when you, when you're starting your day.

[00:22:57.240] - Robert Houston
Yeah, a lot of, if it, it depends on the chemical too. You know, if it's a volatile chemical, I don't do 2,4-D, but just, there's some chemicals that are more volatile, like the fungicide. The only thing that really bothers me is somebody that doesn't understand what a fungicide is gets all tore up if they get some on them and it's not that big a deal. I mean, I'm not gonna try to get it on anybody. And that's the, when I leave the ground, fuel is one thing, but that's just in the back of my mind. But people is the main thing that I worry about. 'Cause they don't have a clear understanding of physically what I'm doing. And they don't have a good understanding about the chemicals either. They, it's, they're better now than they have been in the past, but then in another way they're getting worse because of phones and social media. They just, it, that's what I worry about number one when I leave the ground is, is there going to be a bunch of people there? Are they going to be friend or foe? And it's hard to tell the difference.

[00:24:15.970] - Chris Griffin
So if you had people, you know, when you're spraying situations before where—

[00:24:21.070] - Robert Houston
Yes.

[00:24:21.680] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:24:22.320] - Robert Houston
And what I'll do if there's somebody that just gets right on the down— you know what the downwind side means? If they get on the downwind side and got their camera or their phone up there, if they're at all possible, I'll just leave. If I have to just go and circle over here out of sight 'til they leave and I'll come back and do it, finish the job. If I'm lucky enough, I'll have another field and I've run 'em to death. They come to the next field and I go back to the other one. We've got a way of saving our passes and I'll save and then I'll go to the next one.

[00:24:56.700] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:24:56.910] - Robert Houston
And then I'll come back.

[00:24:58.410] - Chris Griffin
Well, that, I guess that, that feeds into the next question, I think, you know, pretty well is, you know, what's your, you know, over the years as, as you've done this, What's the biggest challenge that you faced and has that changed, you know, with being a crop duster? You know, is it, you know, compared to 15 years ago or even 10 years ago, you know, what challenge did you have then? And what is, you know, how's that changed in 2025 or 2026?

[00:25:22.290] - Robert Houston
The challenges are people.

[00:25:23.560] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:25:24.130] - Robert Houston
That's my—

[00:25:24.730] - Chris Griffin
just to understand that they have and then they— and there's a lot more false information. You know, people find stuff and if it's on the internet, it's true. And, you know, it's not always true.

[00:25:33.250] - Robert Houston
I've been spraying fungicide on one of my farms for years. And this woman has come up to me every year and say, you kill my trees. Every year.

[00:25:45.260] - Chris Griffin
You've killed them every year.

[00:25:46.700] - Chris Griffin
Every year.

[00:25:47.380] - Robert Houston
Every year.

[00:25:48.310] - Chris Griffin
Every year they've been killed, Shea. So what advice, you know, you know, a farmer that's on the fence on, you know, whether they feel like, you know, calling you and, you know, or call, you know, calling an applicator and, you know, seeing if crop dusting or doing it, this aerial application would be a benefit for them. You know, what would you tell them and what would be some things they need to look at to see if it's beneficial for them, for their operation?

[00:26:16.390] - Robert Houston
Well, one thing that if we do pattern testing, there is laws for airplanes, like I can't have my booms over 75% of my wings.

[00:26:33.110] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:26:34.290] - Robert Houston
And some of these other things, they're not even regulated. Like, and I've turned down stuff this year because I was afraid, not afraid, concerned that I might get drift on somebody else is something that it could possibly hurt, or well, like tobacco or hemp. Okay, just, just as a for instance, they test it. Okay, it's not that it'll hurt it, but it's not legal. So I need to know those things, and I'm not going to do them. I'm not going to risk it for that person. I'm not going to risk it for me. I've turned down several hundred acres this year.

[00:27:20.960] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:27:21.460] - Robert Houston
Because I just did, it's not worth it to me. I'm not gonna go out there and try and get an extra dollar and then cost me thousands in insurance.

[00:27:32.760] - Chris Griffin
Yeah. So I guess, you know, if a farmer's really looking at that, I think they just have to look at, you know, what, you know, what's the benefits and does it outweigh some of the negatives and vice versa for them if they're gonna do it themselves or.

[00:27:45.890] - Robert Houston
Yeah.

[00:27:46.300] - Chris Griffin
you know, with a JD sprayer and, or whatever, whatever is, whatever is their liking, JD or whatever Case. But I'm just, we're, yeah, you gotta do them all. I always go straight JD, but sometimes, well, I got it by default. So, but, you know, I guess it, you know, for them, it's just really them looking at their numbers and looking at, you know, what's going to be the best option for them.

[00:28:08.690] - Robert Houston
And then a lot of it has to, like, I can put I feel confident that my 2 gallons per acre, I'm putting a true 2 gallons and I'll do 3, but I don't like to fool with the other because I have to charge more and I just don't like fooling with it. So I, I'm not— this is not my number one job. Yeah, it's just one I want to do.

[00:28:34.510] - Chris Griffin
It's— that's what— that's the reason I was saying this one. When you talk to— like when I'm talking to you, this isn't, I feel like you don't do, you definitely don't do this for the money. You do it because I think you, I think you enjoy doing it. And I think you build some great relationships doing it. And I think for you, that's really just in the 30 minutes we've talked, I think for you, that seems really important.

[00:28:57.150] - Robert Houston
It is.

[00:28:57.650] - Chris Griffin
And I mean, and I think that's important for a lot of people, you know, I mean, I think a lot of, a lot of successful stuff is built on, you do it for the right reasons and you build good relationships and the rest kind of takes care of itself, you know, so.

[00:29:08.290] - Robert Houston
We do pattern testing. There's a lot of things about airplane spraying systems that is completely different, even backwards from what you do with a ground rig. I can take and have a tip as big around as my little finger, but if the angle of those tips on that boom, I can make that be a fine mist. By turning it down where that air hits it from the plane. Or I can—

[00:29:39.360] - Chris Griffin
See, I didn't even think about that because that's helping you with that actual application.

[00:29:44.210] - Robert Houston
A farmer, which I am first of all, but a farmer thinks if you want finer droplets, you just turn the pressure up. Well, with airplanes, if you study it enough and have done the pattern testing, have done your homework, and try to be a professional at it, you understand that actually turning the pressure up will make smaller drops with the airplane because you're spitting it out of that tip closer to the speed of the airplane. So it won't bust it up.

[00:30:17.090] - Chris Griffin
So there's a lot of, I guess it'd be, is that physics?

[00:30:19.620] - Robert Houston
Well, I guess.

[00:30:20.570] - Chris Griffin
I don't know.

[00:30:21.290] - Chris Griffin
I wasn't a very good physics person. So I think that's what that is. So there's some science that goes into that.

[00:30:27.240] - Robert Houston
There's a lot of it. And if you don't do the pattern testing and do the and care, you won't know that stuff.

[00:30:34.400] - Chris Griffin
So being— so a level of professionalism goes into that as well?

[00:30:37.420] - Robert Houston
I think so.

[00:30:38.400] - Chris Griffin
Yeah. Okay. I can handle that. So last question, I guess, you've been doing this for a long time and what's probably your most memorable experience? And that could be a loaded question too, because it may not come down to one. But for you, what's your most memorable experience in your time of doing this? One that just really sticks out in your mind?

[00:31:00.320] - Robert Houston
I don't know, really. Actually, you know what, probably I've had mishaps. I've hit some power lines.

[00:31:09.170] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:31:09.960] - Robert Houston
And that's not a good thing. I remember those.

[00:31:14.140] - Chris Griffin
Yeah. I would too, buddy.

[00:31:17.450] - Robert Houston
This place around here has got a lot of what we call widow makers. In the industry. That's where you hide telephone poles over here in a, in a fence row and another telephone pole over here in the woods and then run the wire across the corner of the field.

[00:31:36.940] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:31:37.820] - Robert Houston
Or there's a gap in the field, but they've hid telephone— they didn't hide them. It's just that I can't see them.

[00:31:44.650] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:31:45.450] - Robert Houston
And then you can't see wires. If I circle a field I'll just try every time to circle a field 3 times, even if I've sprayed it several times.

[00:31:57.030] - Chris Griffin
Really?

[00:31:58.210] - Robert Houston
Because if I'm looking for those guy wires and telephone poles is what I'm looking for.

[00:32:03.690] - Chris Griffin
Okay.

[00:32:03.930] - Robert Houston
First of all, a guide wire means that there's one at an angle from that. And telephone means there's pole, means there's something out there going somewhere.

[00:32:13.630] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:32:14.750] - Robert Houston
And, and in that 360-degree circle, there is only one time for a split second that you'll see them power lines.

[00:32:22.540] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:32:23.050] - Robert Houston
So you've got to have a mental picture of it before you dive down in there. You got to figure out what could hurt you before you ever go down in there.

[00:32:32.980] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:32:34.820] - Robert Houston
But anyway, I forgot what we was talking about.

[00:32:37.410] - Chris Griffin
Most memorable experience.

[00:32:38.440] - Robert Houston
Most memorable. All right. I know what it is. Other than other than something like that, which is not supposed to happen.

[00:32:46.080] - Chris Griffin
But it's— that's a memorable experience that sometimes you don't want to remember.

[00:32:50.400] - Robert Houston
And part of what the crop dusting is, I think, is it— you need to have total concentration. Literally, if you're 10 foot off the ground, it don't take long to hit the ground. No.

[00:33:02.520] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:33:03.320] - Robert Houston
You know, I fly about 120. Now, some of them fly at 140. but my old plane, it does about 120.

[00:33:10.380] - Chris Griffin
You mean like 120 feet off the ground?

[00:33:12.080] - Robert Houston
No, 120 to 130 miles an hour.

[00:33:15.110] - Chris Griffin
Okay. So how close do you get to the ground?

[00:33:17.120] - Robert Houston
About 10 foot.

[00:33:18.080] - Chris Griffin
My gosh.

[00:33:18.970] - Robert Houston
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it's just that way. 15. Part of that, if you're one width, the length of your wings to the ground, there or a little less, somewhere right in there is where it really needs to be. That's why you hit, you could hit a power line because you're going to be down lower than the power line.

[00:33:45.400] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:33:46.310] - Robert Houston
That's just the way it is.

[00:33:47.920] - Chris Griffin
Now we got off track.

[00:33:48.790] - Robert Houston
Oh yeah.

[00:33:48.900] - Chris Griffin
It's a memorable experience. Memorable. I'm not going to let you leave here without telling me that.

[00:33:52.380] - Robert Houston
I really think what it is is to have somebody send me a note, thank you for doing a good job.

[00:33:57.310] - Chris Griffin
Yeah, that's neat.

[00:33:58.760] - Robert Houston
I really do. And you know what? You don't get much of that, but when you get it, you remember it.

[00:34:04.860] - Chris Griffin
I mean, when you're in a business like that and you're working with people and you get that, it does mean something. I think it does. And you enjoy it. I've got some like that in my office I've kept for years. So yeah, I mean, that's a good answer. And I figured it was, you know, the first part was the mishaps, but Those are memorable experiences we'll probably want to forget about.

[00:34:28.580] - Robert Houston
Yeah.

[00:34:28.750] - Chris Griffin
But you learn from, I guess. And, and, but definitely building a good relationship and the people appreciating what you did.

[00:34:35.390] - Robert Houston
I usually tell people, you most likely you can get somebody to do a better job, but you probably, you'll have to look long and hard to get somebody that would try any harder than I do. And it's simply because that I come from other side of it. The person on the ground.

[00:34:52.360] - Chris Griffin
That makes a big difference.

[00:34:53.620] - Robert Houston
Yeah.

[00:34:53.920] - Chris Griffin
Yeah, that makes sense.

[00:34:54.680] - Robert Houston
There's ways to cut corners and get more acres quicker, but I don't—

[00:35:03.670] - Chris Griffin
Doesn't mean you always do it right.

[00:35:04.890] - Robert Houston
So I try my best to do as good as I can.

[00:35:10.320] - Chris Griffin
Yeah.

[00:35:11.380] - Chris Griffin
Well, I think that's a good spot to end, you know, just with him saying, you know, you do the best you can and do it right the first time and build good relationships. So, Mr. Houston, you know, we really appreciate you taking time. I know, I know you're, I know you're busy and I know you got a lot going on and it is, you know, it is December, which is hard to believe. I can't believe it's December already, but it's a little slower. So we caught you at a good time. And, but, you know, we really appreciate you coming. You know, we hope the Listers, I definitely learned some stuff because I didn't know much about this at all. Honestly, and that's the reason we do this podcast. You know, it's our whole point is, you know, for, for people in the ag community that maybe don't know much about it, you know, hopefully give some good information to people who are knowledgeable in the ag community, but people who aren't, you know, they're learning something new and, and, and educating them some as well. So thank you for joining us on Back to Your Roots podcast, and we'll see you next time.

[00:36:03.740] - Chris Griffin
Thanks for tuning in to Back to Your Roots, where we dish the dirt on all things ag. Be sure to never miss an episode by following and subscribing. While there, leave us a review about what you want to hear next. Stay in the know between episodes by following us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and TikTok. For more resources, go to our website at rivervalleyagcredit.com.