Getting To Know Idaho Farmer Jamie Kress

Market to Market | Podcast
Apr 22, 2025 | 37 min

Farming in the elevation of Idaho provides challenges and a balance of timing for planting, treatment and harvest. Jamie Kress tells us about her operation in the West for another profile introduction for the 2025 growing season. We hear about wheat and pulse crops in the mix for this year. 

Transcript

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[Yeager] Time to get into the field for 2025. We're going to talk with the producer in Southeast Idaho. Find out what it's like to be in the valley between two mountain regions, and what it's like in the challenges of those two elevations. We'll talk elevation right out of the get, because that's what you do in Mountain Country. We're going to talk with Jamie Kress, find out what her and her husband farm. It's several different things over several thousand acres. What are the challenges that they face? What are they looking at with just the limited rainfall that they get each year? It's dryland area, so irrigation, not in the discussion, but Mother Nature is and a farming technique that's new to them. That received a few looks from the neighbors. I'm Paul Yeager, this is the MToM podcast. If you want to send me an email, drop it to me at Paul.Yeager@Iowapbs.org. It's springtime where I'm at. Springtime where you're at. It's super cold here today. What's it like where you're at today, Jamie?

[Kress] Oh, it is cold. It is windy. pretty grateful it's been warming up. So where I'm at here in the southeast corner of Idaho, we're just barely letting go of winter. Actually have snow on the high elevation fields here on my farm. but down low, it's about 45 degrees today. We do have a 25 mile an hour wind, which makes it rustler. We're just starting today with, some of our spring and our spring seeding. So glad to see winter in the rearview at this point.

[Yeager] So, how much of an elevation are you at then?

[Kress] Oh, man, that's the fun part about talking about our farm. We are in the mountain valley of southeast Idaho. So, to help you picture it, we our house currently where I'm sitting right now is in the bottom of the valley. And then we farm up both mountains on either side of that valley. So the bottom here is about 5000ft. And the highest point that we plant, crop on is at 6100ft.

[Yeager] And you're going to have to talk really slow with me about mountains, because this is a picture of where I grew up farming. And it is all, we won't say table top slab, but there is no such thing as elevation. So how does elevation play into any given year? Whether it's like you just said, let's start with seeding in spring, like today, what does it change?

[Kress] Okay, so elevation is everything on my farm. we're going to think about elevation in terms of when to be planting. So like I mentioned it's still winter time here, which means I have fields that are still snow covered, down low here in the bottom of the valley where we have a little less snowpack and it warms up sooner. We can get in the field sooner. So we're going to start this spring, and we're going to progress in elevation as the season goes on. Planting the highest elevation, at the end. So probably here on four weeks, we'll, we'll wrap up at the highest elevation. But some things that are kind of fun to think about is when my husband heads out in this sprayer or in the drill, he always has that elevation of mind, so he's not going to want to take and fill the sprayer up with a full tank of, whatever product or fill up the drill full of seed and head up to the steepest area of our farm. He is always thinking in the back of his mind how he's going to unload most of that, and then hit those very steep sections or difficult sections with the appropriate amount of weight from the product. So we're looking at it as we're farming. We're looking at it, in terms of what to plant, when to plant, also at harvest time it comes into play. Those higher elevations are going to be ripe later. So they are typically at the end of harvest. So we're used to it here. But the elevation is a part of just about everything we do.

[Yeager] We'll get into what you're going to plant. But I completely forgot to start. About what? How you got into farming. I understand you've been doing this for a while. your family has, right?

[Kress] Yeah. And I think I threw you off the moment I talked about elevation of mountains.

[Yeager] So I ask, I ask. We're okay. It's all right, Jamie.

[Kress] Right, right. So, my husband and I have been here on this farm since 2004. well, it's his family's farm, and they came here over 100 years ago. He likes to joke. They started out in good corn country and heard about free ground out west. So they headed out west. They went to northern Idaho first, where the really good ground is, and obviously there is none left. And as the story is told, by the time they made it to some good ground that they could settle on around 1912, they landed here in a high mountain desert environment. So it is great, beautiful, and mountainous as you might imagine. But I also have a lot of sagebrush and cold weather like you would think of on a desert and hot weather. So, although we like to joke about them passing up a lot of really prime farm ground, we are grateful to be here. And our kids are the fifth generation to grow up out here on the farm. our story to get here is not like or not unlike a lot of other farm families. We, both married after college, and we both pursued our careers. And eventually that desire to get back home and play in the soil really, got to my husband to the point where he looked into getting a transfer closer here to the farm with the company he was working with. And eventually he and I, bought our own farm about 30 miles from here because this farm could definitely use our help. But there wasn't necessarily, the funds available to pay for it. So we utilized, the FSA beginning farmer programs and established our own farm in 2004 so that he could, leave his professional career and, and start getting his hands into farming and kind of support our family while helping on this more established, dryland farm. And then as time has gone on, it's just evolved into, my father in law passed away, and, and we've built up the acreage here on this dry land farm and, we were able to sell the other one and, and use that money to pay off mortgages. I mean, I think it's a story that a lot of people, in agriculture, younger people, kind of associate, you know, it's the steps that we've all taken to get to the place where we are today. But yeah, I, I was not raised on a farm and I was raised in potato country on the Snake River plains. So everybody thinks Idaho potatoes. And that's where I grew up, about 45 miles north of here. My family, was in the tire business of all things. And, and so I felt like I had a good understanding of agriculture. But, nothing quite prepares you to be a farmer's wife, I'll tell you that.

[Yeager] Well, yes. And you do have a similar story, of those who. Because I'm guessing with your husband. When? When he did he think about farming even before college and go. I'm just going to go get an actor come back and work with, or it sounds like he did something completely different and then end it ended up couldn't get needed to get the dirt back under his fingernails.

[Kress] Right. His was, he didn't know that. He for sure wanted to come back and work as a career on the farm. he he knew he enjoyed it, but honestly, he says in his immaturity of of being a high school kid, it was kind of like, you know, I, I got to run the tractor instead. you know, go mess around with my friends. And so it was more of a lifestyle. It was more of just kind of what, what the family did. And so of course he did it, but his parents also worked off the farm. So I think in his mind, it was finding, a career that he enjoyed and that he could make money doing. So he's actually, an engineer, which in hindsight, has been one of the best things ever to have to have that mindset and that education has been really valuable farming. So definitely one he doesn't regret.

[Yeager] That is the same path my father took was in engineering, and he could fix things, and he could look at things and go, oh, seriously, what engineer came up with this? Because this doesn't make any sense. Sound familiar?

[Kress] It does. And, you know, at that point we as we've so I mentioned, we've been here as partners for, gosh, for over 20 years now. And we started making this joke he by you know, we, we talk about what piece of equipment we needed to buy and, and the budget and how it would all fit together and the timing and, and then I would say, now, how much money are you going to spend to make it yours? Because inevitably we would buy a brand new piece of equipment, and then he would see ways to make it better. And at first he was a little kind of taken aback, like, oh my gosh, you're just being silly. But, he really does look at everything and maximize that efficiency with that background. So it's a fun joke but so valuable.

[Yeager] So if he's in the tractor, do you get in the tractor to what's, where does your role fit then?

[Kress] My role is, I like to say my job is to be two steps ahead of him. But also, if you're a baseball fan, I bat. Cleanup is my job. So somehow I'm supposed to make sure I can keep him moving, and. And he's got everything you need to have an efficient day. But also I come behind and and just kind of pick up the pieces as they scatter. I'm also the office lady. I, I don't know what to call myself. everything, it's all the accounting, the administrative, the, making sure semis are registered and properly papered and managing contracts and just anything that moves through financially or administratively is, is my main task here on the farm. I tried for a couple of years being more engaged, especially during harvest. And my husband said, you know, I kind of need one stable person that I can pick up the phone and know that you can do anything I need you to do not necessarily be tied down to a piece of equipment. So we've kind of evolved to this place.

[Yeager] What about the grain marketing? Is that something you get into?

[Kress] So that is a task that my husband primarily takes on. He is far less emotional. And, which is which is surprising. So people tell me that it's usually the person with the emotional attachment to the crop that struggles to market. But he's a terrific marketer. He is aggressive but not greedy, and is really smart about when it's right to to kind of pull the trigger. And he's just a good marketer. So my job essentially is once that contract is in place, then I manage it. You know, maybe it's a basis contract or some type of futures. And we need to keep track of when, when we need to be locking or when some opportunities are open there to make, you know, to finish it off or make the extra dollar. But then also managing inventory. So have we delivered on the contracts and have we been paid on the contract and did did the the bushels, did they get recorded correctly. So unfortunately that that's an issue. I've caught a handful of errors, I guess I do every year. Honestly on other people's paperwork. So once, once he makes that execution, then I follow it through to the end.

[Yeager] And I've seen in print about your operation, we're talking several thousand acres. So this is a big that is no easy task to keep track of everything and multiple crops at multiple times in multiple markets. So not an easy task to say the least. So wow. That's all I have to say. That's great. Yeah.

[Kress] No, it's it's fantastic. And it's been a fun partnership between him and I to get to this point. ultimately, we found that there was a lot of money to be made or to be lost in what happens in the administrative and accounting world on a farm. And so, for me to be able to leave my job, I worked in deregulated telecom accounting, actually, that's what helped us get started farming. And so for me to be able to leave my job, I told myself I needed to be doing more than just writing checks. Right. And depositing checks. and so I found some really great ways to, to watch our money better and, to ensure things are accurate and to make sure we're capitalizing on, on opportunities and, and not missing things. So it's been good.

[Yeager] This is crazy because I'm married to an accountant, and I swear, that's the conversation we have almost every 3 to 6 months of where those expenses. But I'm not. I'm not farming all those acres like you are, just talking with farmers. So little easier, little less stress there in that situation. Jamie, let's talk about the, what it is that you plant. because, there's wheat, canola, mustard, I mean, everything. What is on that, checklist of everything that goes in the ground?

[Kress] Yeah. So where we're at right here in East Idaho, I kind of mentioned I grew up in the irrigated potato country. We're off that snake River plain, so I don't have access right here to irrigation. We rely on everything that comes from above to water our crops and to keep that soil profile full. So when we're looking at what we plant here, it's essentially, crops and varieties that can thrive in our rainfall, which is about 14in annually. We'll get about half of that in the form of snow over winter. The remainder, we just cross our fingers that it comes at the right time. Ideally for us, that's May. It's June. and then can I cut it with my combine? Right. we've got to be kind of specialized here. So it's one combine for this operation and, and everything needs to move through that. So back, you know, you go back to 100 years that I talked about and it was primarily a wheat fallow rotation. So the people that settled in this valley would grow wheat. Then they would let the ground rest for a year, which would allow it to build back up the moisture profile, and then they would plant wheat again the next year. And that was actually being done on our farm, clear until, the 90s, when there was a local farmer who established the safflower market in the area. And so my father in law started growing a little safflower to put in the mix of that constant wheat fallow rotation. And when my husband, came back, in the early 2000 and was more involved in the rotations and the choices of what we were planting, that's when we really started getting a little more aggressive. The technology was there to support us being a little more aggressive in terms of GPS, in terms of, application of different, herbicides and fertilizing. And so we realized that one of the ways we could make a few more dollars on the farm was to improve the rotation. So my husband started expanding and he started looking beyond safflower. Maybe we tried mustard as an oil seed. about eight years ago, we gave chickpeas a try and then also introduced a dry green pea. And kind of where we've landed at this point, it's I would say it's been about a 15 year evolution to get to where we are today. But, on our acreage, we typically will plant something every three out of five years, and it's a rotation between wheat and some type of oil seed and some type of pulse crop.Then with a couple of years of fallow tucked into that rotation, and that really gives us a good mix, we're not having the disease pressure. We had that wheat on wheat, rotation is not a rotation at all. Right? That's just not great for for diseases and and for having healthy crops. So, we we implemented that, but at the same time, we worked to get our entire farm over to no till, which is kind of scary for us because you're used to my husband was used to what had always been and what did it always look like? And so it took the help of one of his friends to really encourage him and help him understand, like, yeah, it's it's kind of ugly right now, but promise me you're going to love it. And now we're 100% no till, which is it's been fantastic. We have seen I mean, now I'm going to start like I'm like an advertisement for, for no till over here. But we've seen improvements in water retention, the soils more sponge like. We've seen improvements in erosion. We're not having the water erosion, the soil erosion, the wind erosion. it is just complete transformed what we can do. And I, I feel like if you take this combination of no till farming practices, combine it with the aggressive changes we've made in the rotation, we are growing significantly. I'm going to say easily double what it was when my husband and I came back. Production wise, we're doubling production, compared to what it was in the early 2000 when we came back and, and, I'm, I'm guessing more, but I don't I don't want to, to mislead you, but, it's just it's just turned things around completely. What we've been able to do on the same dirt by treating it differently.

[Yeager] So let's discuss what every farmer does, and that's look out the window at the neighbor and what the neighbor is doing. Is that what your neighbors are doing as well, or are you getting the looks from the neighbors now?

[Kress] We were the first people in our valley here to start the hotel, and we got a few looks from other people like, boy, that's that's crazy. That's not going to work. and increasingly there's been a lot of people follow. we're also kind of a leader a little bit in pushing some of the different crops. canola was not something that was widely grown in our valley until the last about four years. And, we were one of the first to figure that out. It's pretty great to be married to somebody who, has a science brain because he does the legwork to do what? He to figure out what we need to do to make things work, to find the right varieties, and to do, you know, some of that extra learning that's not as fun.

[Yeager] Well, the one thing, though, is you can find a product that you think is going to work. It's finding a market for it. So where are you taking some of these things?

[Kress] Oh, so the wheat is kind of the easy piece of the puzzle. Wheat delivery is 30 miles the max. We have to take it as, 120. A lot of it goes to Utah. It goes to the domestic wheat market. so it's milled domestically here in northern Utah and utilized by customers here in the United States. And that's that's for about, I would say a majority of our wheat, you would have to see some type of crop failure in Washington or Oregon for me to be exporting through Portland and meeting those needs, for the specialty crops. So the wheat or, sorry, the canola goes toward in Washington, which in a truck is about eight hours from here. So that one's complicated, that we try to haul all of our own commodities, back to I'm kind of beat the drum of we've always tried to figure out how to make a buck. And, so my husband became a trucker to figure that part out in the winter, we store everything on farm. I guess I should add, we don't take anything at harvest to any elevators. Everything gets stored on farm. And then, he delivers it all through the course of the winter. But not that canola. That one is is too far for, for it to make sense, but, safflower goes 30 to 60 miles, depending on where they're asking for it, chickpeas and dry peas. We have an agreement that we just need to get those, Oh, gosh. Probably 90 miles to an elevator. And then the person we sell to picks those up from that point. But, you know, dry peas, chickpeas, we're not going to put those in the ground unless somebody is committed to buy them beforehand. They're not something that you want to grow and have sitting here in your been waiting, for first spot to open up. We're also trying new this year is camelina. I'm not sure. I'm actually kind of hesitant to tell you, but I guess that's what makes this fun. We we can follow up this summer and see how it's going. We're going to put about 100 acres of camelina in, that also we'll have a kind of a hand-off point about 90 miles away. but it's going to end up in Montana and be used for sustainable aviation. Fuel is what we're told. So that's a brand new one for us. we've heard mixed reviews. We've heard it could be the best thing we've ever done. And we've also heard we might have a weedy mess on our hands. later this summer.

[Yeager] So did you say weedy mess? Not not weedy, but weeds. Is is a problem in the in that crop?

[Kress] Yes. Yep. Weed control in the camelina crop.

[Yeager] Okay. So where are the ideas for this coming from? To try something different?

[Kress] My husband. Yeah, he's just always, you know, diversity is helpful. It's helpful in terms of financial risk. It's helpful in terms of soil health. And, you know, even in, in your crop protection, you know, it gives you more modes of action when you're doing different, different crops in those fields on a regular basis. So it's really him exploring opportunities out there. and we've kind of been that way for a while. They're kind of reserved, just a little bit of acreage every year to dip our toes into something different, either a different, crop altogether, like camelina, or maybe it's, spring crop. And usually we grow a winter variety or, you know, vice versa. So there's always a little bit of scientific experiment thing going on here. on our farm.

[Yeager] It sounds like you have to balance three major things before you can even kind of, like, fully dive. You have to always contemplate the moisture you need a market, and then you need to have a willingness or quickly learn the knowledge if you're going to try something new. I mean, are those two of the biggest factors you have in determining what your acreage breakdown is each year?

[Kress] Yes. And you know, everything. It does go back to moisture, probably. Ultimately. one thing I talk about is trying new things. We're also really consistent in not getting not chasing markets per se. So, I mean, I'm here to tell you today that we don't have a lot of wheat contracted for 25 because the price just hasn't been great. Even, looking forward, it hasn't been great. but that doesn't mean we abandon it in our rotation because there is value in that consistency. it helps keep us maintaining a pretty even keel. Really, when we have that planned out rotation. So, yes, we're always going to look at moisture. but ultimately, we kind of stick to the plan, if you will, and will adapt a little bit within that plan, whether or not we have moisture. But if it's going to be a pulse crop, it's going to be a pulse crop. And so I'll look at the the agronomic needs or the contract price for the dry green pea or for the chickpea. And then we'll decide between those two. What's the best fit for this year. So that's the that's the amount of play we do. But overall pretty consistent. And ultimately, you know, the weather is what it is, right? You do just kind of do your best with what you know how to do and, and hope it turns out.

[Yeager] And that's all any of us can do. but let's look at, the type of wheat, I guess I don't remember what you said. Spring or winter. And is it soft? Red? Hard red. What are you growing?

[Kress] Okay, so on our farm, primarily, you're going to see a soft white wheat. And so that's planted in the fall. And then we'll follow up with a little bit in the springtime. So it could be. Well and let me, let me back up. There's too much we can do a lot actually in this part of Idaho. So we have a soft white wheat in the fall.  We have some hard red winter that we're planting in the fall. that one's tricky for us. A lot of times we struggle to get the yield and the specs, but when we get to harvest time, you know, maybe, maybe it's only a 55 pound test weight and not, you know, that doesn't work. but the varieties are kind of improving. So we've been trying to bring back some hard red winter into the rotation. And then for spring wheat, it's a lot of hard white wheat that will grow. and we tend to do less acreage of spring wheat just simply because it's cold here until it's not. And then it's hot. And sometimes we will burn up spring wheat. So we have to be mindful about how much spring wheat we tend to put the bulk of our wheat in in the fall.

[Yeager] I totally get it. I totally get what you're talking about. Yes, it's cold until it's not. And then you just flip the switch because it sounds like you can have several seasons in any given day. which is common for many of us. I mean, we'll go through them all the time. you also have, some off farm, interest groups that you are involved with, National Association of Wheat Growers. You've also done some leadership and some other organizations, tell me what those are. And what are what's exciting about those for you?

[Kress] Yeah. So honestly, I, I chuckle a little bit if, if I look back ten years, I would have never expected that this would be I'm going to call it a hobby. I would have never expected to be in this place. my husband was always very involved in the organizations, going clear back to when we first started farming. He discovered quickly that being involved, like with Idaho grain producers, for example, allowed him access to a lot of people who were experiencing same challenges and farming and farm families and and it was just a great place for him to learn and grow as a producer. And mind you, this is back in 2004, so we're still breeding and devouring all the farm magazines. And the internet really was not a gathering place quite yet to share information. You weren't texting your friends. and so it was a different time. And that's really where we got ingrained in this ag industry involvement, and it got turned on its head for me in particular, it's my region for Idaho. Grain producers back in 2016 was looking for their new representative on the state board. And, I was at the meeting but not involved in, in the selection of the officer. And my husband came and grabbed me from, a separate event. I was out there and he says, you need to come be part of this. You're just you're these guys want to throw you in, and I go, I don't know what you know. it was not it wasn't typical. Right. And I ended up being the first, woman to go through the chairs and become president of Idaho Grain Producers Association. And it's not that women weren't welcome. It's just we'd never done it. And so I was kind of, just just going for through that new territory and kind of figuring out how to how to be the new girl in the room. And fortunately, those guys were very supportive of and, very, very kind and welcoming. So that part was easy. But then then I got it in my blood. Right? Then I got on, as my Idaho assignment onto our national board at, sorry, the National Association. I was, on the board of directors there and really saw the value on the work that we were able to do at Nog, even on that level. And after several years, there was a spot where it was kind of obvious that if I was interested in running, it would be a good time to do that. And ultimately, as I thought about it, I thought, what's my what's the impetus, what's the drive to do this? And it was my friends. I looked around the room, and that particular year I had a friend whose entire farm had been decimated by a tornado, and another friend who had lost their entire crop and and heavily relied on crop insurance that year. And I just really knew that I was in a place where I wanted to help the organization succeed, because there were so many people that were important to me, that needed the voice and needed the continuation of a strong national organization. So, so there it was, throw in, throw my name in that ring to be, part of the office or election. And, it's been really fulfilling. It's been a really great opportunity to provide service that's meaningful. And, you know, my husband and I both it we've relied so much on that desire to get back as significant.

[Yeager] Now, granted, anything can change from the time we record this to when we release this. So just take that out of the equation. You talk about your husband and you plan things, not necessarily on what's hot, but how do you plan, when there are trade issues both domestically and internationally, does that impact you and your decisions of what to plant?

[Kress] Well, I would that's a big question. Right.

[Yeager] So only 30 minutes. You only can answer that for 30 minutes.

[Kress] Right. So I'm gonna have to say ultimately it doesn't affect what I plant. I've got to stick to the rotation. I've got to stick to kind of our proven way of doing business. But it does cause us to be a little more mindful. it helps us to understand that we've got to be, as calm but as aggressive as ever when it comes to marketing. So when we when we have a move in the market, if I know I can make money, then maybe it's time to sell 5000 or 10,000 bushels of wheat or whatever. it it does. I think it's going to cause us to be a little more careful on our asset purchases throughout the next year. I, like you say this could change. I mean, what I'm saying might not make any sense in 24 hours, but, as it is today, I would be hesitant to engage heavily in maybe replacing a sprayer or replacing an air drill when things are so unstable. So I think that would be, that's probably going to affect our farm more in terms of causing us to be a little more mindful. It if if by chance, we see the price of equipment become really inflated as a result of of all the, the tariffs and, gosh, even fear I feel like tariffs are not sometimes they just causes a little more demand or little demand is not the right word, but you can end up having things be more expensive than they need to. So I think we'll be a little more mindful. especially on the spending money side, on really big purchases. Anyway, until some of this settles down.

[Yeager] And then let's discuss, what you're going to do this. You said your husband's in the field spraying. yeah. What what do you do in mid April on your farm? What? What's the first thing that goes in?

[Kress] so the first thing that's going to go in right now is going to be canola and wheat. We'll put in, the spring canola spring wheat, and we'll move over to safflower. We actually have, oh, probably 700 acres of safflower, to get in as well. And those will be the, the next crops that go in. like I mentioned, we'll probably do chickpeas towards the end because of the field that they need to be in has such high elevation and, not quite ready to have equipment in it yet, but we'll spend the next month, working on, burned down prior to planting. Will be planting. And then once that gets situated, then we'll start working on the maintenance of that fallow. So the, the fields that need to be fallow, we're going to make sure that the weeds are well controlled. They're not utilizing the moisture, they're not propagating. And and so we'll do that. And then it'll be time to switch back to herbicide. So we'll be looking at you know, the herbicides for the crops that we planted that have started to emerge and, and the weed control there before they can establish a canopy.

[Yeager] And you're looking to get most of the things planted. You said in a month. So by mid-May to 1st of June is when you try to get everything planted. where is your more. That's about right.

[Kress] Yeah. Typically, I, I, we don't pretty much everything's in the ground by the first week of May around here.

[Yeager] Because you're not worried about a rainy season, it sounds like.

[Kress] Yeah. Sorry. Say that one more time.

[Yeager] It doesn't sound like you have to worry about, too much rainy days. in your playing game. 14in a year.

[Kress] No, no, we don't get rained out in the spring. A lot.

[Yeager] Well, let's talk about your moisture profile, then.

[Kress] Yeah.

[Yeager] is it what's it look like?

[Kress] It's okay. We're playing catch up from actually two crop years ago. it was pretty dry, and all of the moisture kind of came at the wrong time. And we ended up having adequate profile or soil profile moisture in there to get through last year's crop. But the water shut off. gosh, like April 15th, and we went pretty much three months without measurable rain. And so last year's crop, we felt, it was okay, but it definitely didn't meet its potential because of that rain that didn't come in the the back end of the growing season. So when we went into the fall, we were very low. We've had an okay winter in terms of, snow, like the snowpack and, trying to get that in the ground. The tricky thing where we live is if the air temperature warms up, but the ground is still frozen, will melt that water off and it will follow. Just just kind of like a kid in the sandbox, right? You dump it on the high area and it flows to the low area. So, we have, some of our water this winter that will actually just make its way to the snake River, which is, you know, it gets used for irrigation there, but, as of today, it looks okay. But what again? What happens in, May what happens in early June is really going to matter.

[Yeager] Yeah. Optimism. sounds though that you still have it. You still have the optimism right now.

[Kress] Yep. Always. You always have to have the optimism.

[Yeager] You do. All right, Jamie, thank you so very much for the time. I greatly appreciate getting to know you.

[Kress] Yeah. Thank you. It's been fun.

[Yeager] Be sure to sign up for our Market Insider newsletter. Comes at each and every Monday. Do that at Market to Market for new episodes of this podcast. Come out each and every Tuesday. We'll see you next time. Bye bye.

Contact: Paul.Yeager@iowapbs.org