Quality Horse Care . We take care of all the details involved in managing and caring for the horses to allow the horses to perform their best and allow their owners to focus on enjoying them .
Sales . We are happy to assist you in selling your horse or finding your next partner . We accept select horses on consignment .
enjoys an excellent reputation for their product and customer care .
From early spring to late fall the Lutmans are cutting , baling , stacking and hauling hay . All by machine unlike years before when much of it was hand labor . If it ’ s a sunny day , they are in their fields . They farm some 1,200 acres in total . Over the years they have been able to assemble 350 acres of contiguous leased farmland to their 150 acre farm . These parcels are in conservation easement providing a win-win for land owners who get tax breaks and farmers who want access to protected farmland to lease . Easements also help to ensure that precious farmland is preserved against the threat of overdevelopment .
The Lutman farm operation supports three Lutman families , which is rare these days . Tommy explains that their specialty is small hay bales primarily serving the thriving Loudoun equine industry .
“ We sold around 100,000 bales last year and we may exceed that this year ,” says Tommy . Close to 80,000 bales came from the 600 acres they farm . Additionally , “ we ’ re hauling 30,000 to 40,000 hay bales out of Maryland to supplement what we have here so that we have product on hand into the winter ,” Tommy explains .
It ’ s always a dice roll for the farmer to calculate how much to grow , when to harvest , along with hundreds of additional variables . If they get their calculations wrong they ’ ll have too much unused stock and profits will take a hit . Ryan says . “ We ’ ve been fortunate over the years and usually come within just bales versus hundreds of bales that can ’ t be sold .”
Cultivated hay
There is generic hay then there is Lutman hay . It all starts with field preparation . That ’ s where Chris , Tommy ’ s other son comes in . Both sons attended Virginia Tech in the agriculture program . Ryan studied business and Chris specialized in crop soils and environmental science . “ Chris loves the agronomy aspect of farming — it ’ s all about soil care and soil development which becomes very important in farming , obviously . He mixes his own fertilizer and nutrients and has his own sprayer . Although the making of the hay is a lot of www . bel-montfarm . com dornataintor @ gmail . com michelle . mahoney @ live . com
( 571 ) 334- 5295 Dorna ( 703 ) 835- 6859 Michelle photo : Greg Morgan , path aerials