AGCO Equipment: Another Common Thread for Women in Agriculture

<< See the full story, “Women in Agriculture: Finding Common Ground”

Another thing that unites many in this network of CommonGround women—aside from farming—is AGCO equipment, including Massey Ferguson® red, the telltale crisp lines of the White Planters™, GSI® storage and handling facilities, and AGCO orange.

Kristie Swenson on the farm in Minnesota.

“Everyone knows how to get to our house because of the Allis Chalmers flag,” says Minnesota CommonGround volunteer Billie Gervais. “Every piece of equipment we own, except our 4-wheel-drive, is AGCO.” That includes an AGCO LT75A and a DT225B, a Massey Ferguson 7724 and an MF8650, Sunflower disc and disc chisel, a Gleaner S68 with draper head and a White Planter.

Jackson, Minn., volunteer Kristie Swenson and husband, Trelin, run an 8500 Series White Planter with a 24-row, 22-inch row width. “The center-fill makes it easy to fill the planter,” Swenson says. “It does a good job of not having skips or planting doubles, and it’s easy to clean out the row units and change the plates when switching from corn to soybeans.”

The Swensons also own a Challenger MT765 they use to apply anhydrous ammonia. “The ultra-wide frame goes out to 132 inches, which is a little wider than the typical frame,” says Kristie. “This allows our planter tractor and sprayer to use the same wheel tracks, giving us the option to use the same tractor to pull equipment during different seasons. We also like that the tracks are narrow enough to fit our 22-inch rows.”

For grain storage, the Swensons rely on GSI. “They make good quality bins with nice access doors,” Kristie adds. “It’s easy to empty the grain out.”

South Carolina CommonGround volunteer Caci Nance’s family owns a Massey Ferguson 135, MF175 and an MF6608. “The 135 is our 8-year-old, Wyatt’s, first tractor,” says Caci, whose extended family owns Nance Tractor & Implement Inc. “We are using it to help him learn how to work on tractors by making him keep it cleaned up and in good working order.”

And, adds Nance’s husband, William, “The MF6608 is just the right size for many of the jobs at the dairy. We use it for loading feed, putting out hay, as well as turning the pack barn and rebedding. It’s probably one of the most used tractors on the farm, and it’s holding up well to the demands we put on it.”