Breakfast on the Farm is Saturday

• Bousema brothers

Julie buntjer/daily /Daily Globe Steve (left) and Mike Bousema will host the sixth annual Breakfast on the Farm event this Saturday. The public is invited to come for free pancakes, sausages, juice, coffee and to see a variety of agricultural equipment.

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WORTHINGTON — Free pancakes and sausage, farm tours, photo opps with Princess Kay of the Milky Way and a sanctioned kid’s pedal pull are hoped to lure city dwellers and country folks to Saturday’s Breakfast on the Farm, hosted by Mike and Steve Bousema northwest of Worthington.

The sixth annual Breakfast on the Farm, sponsored by Nobles County Farm Bureau, is an opportunity to bring together people of all ages to celebrate agriculture.

The Bousema farm, located at 30812 240th St., will host the breakfast from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Visitors can find their farm by following Diagonal Road out of Worthington to the northwest, then turning left on 240th Street.

Brothers Mike and Steve Bousema have farmed in partnership since 1986, growing corn and soybeans. They took over the operation from their father, John, who had farmed in Nobles County since 1969. On Saturday, the Bousemas will have on display a variety of equipment, from a planter to a combine and corn head.

“We’ll maybe have it in line with the progression of what you use for equipment,” Mike said.

In addition to farming, the brothers sell Precision Planting parts that improve planter performance through monitoring systems, germination and singulation tools. For the past two years, they have also sold Capello corn heads through Worthington Ag Parts.

In addition to seeing the array of farm equipment on display, visitors will have a chance to see several educational displays. Worthington FFA Chapter members will be on hand with displays about crop and livestock production, while the Farm Bureau Safety Trailer will showcase grain bin, tractor and ATV safety.

Nobles County 4-H’ers will provide several fun activities for children utilizing the Soybean Project Box. 4-H Program Coordinator Kendra Van Beusekom said there will be three stations set up, giving kids an opportunity to make ink and oil from soybeans, as well as plant a soybean seed in Plaster of Paris. County 4-H Ambassadors will also lead yard games for the kids.

Younger children will be able to enjoy the bounce house set up onsite, and those ages 4 to 11 are invited to take part in the Pedal Power kids pedal tractor pull at 11 a.m., which is hosted by the Worthington Optimist Club. All participants will receive a free can of pop.

Also at 11 a.m., the Rock-Nobles Cattlemen will begin serving free cheeseburgers, while Princess Kay of the Milky Way Mary Zahurones, of Pierz, will hand out free ice cream treats with Nobles County Dairy Princesses Kayleen DeBoer, of Ellsworth, and Morgan Wieneke, of Lismore.

Minnesota beef and pork ambassadors will also be on hand to promote their products, while the state corn and soybean grower groups will display ethanol- and biodiesel-powered vehicles.

A trip to the Bousema farm would not be complete without a visit to the office in their shop, which boasts 89 fully restored pedal tractors, the oldest of which was made in 1949. The brothers have been collecting the tractors for about 20 years, and have everything from Case and Farmall to Ford and Oliver.

“When it comes to pedal tractors, we’ll lower our standards — we’ll take anything,” Mike said with a laugh. The Bousema brothers see John Deere as the top of the line, which explains why the John Deere pedal tractors fill the top shelves in their office.

The Bousemas have fond memories of driving a John Deere pedal tractor when they were kids, and now won’t hesitate to drive or deal long distance to buy the older models. Some of the Olivers in their collection came from South Carolina, which Mike said they had shipped.

“We either bought them restored or had them restored,” Mike said.

In addition to seeing the pedal tractor display, visitors will also get to see one of the Bousema team’s pulling tractors. The brothers have entered professional tractor pulling contests for the past three years.

“We’ve watched and travelled to tractor pulls for 30 years,” Mike said. “We always enjoyed watching them and the opportunity came along to get into it.”

The brothers travel up to four hours to compete in a pull, taking part in contests in both Minnesota and Iowa.

Daily Globe Reporter Julie Buntjer may be reached at 376-7330.

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