Howell Farms is a family farm producing corn, soybeans, processing tomatoes, watermelon, pumpkins and sweet corn in east central and northern Indiana. Soils in this area are average to very good and gently rolling to flat. The northern acres are of sandy soil with center picot irrigation. Adequate drainage is achieved through natural slope with tiling. The farm office and headquarters are in southern Delaware County, although our mailing address is Middletown, which is located in Henry County. The grain drying, handling and storage facility; shop and machinery storage; and the watermelon packing warehouse are located at the headquarters in Delaware County.

Stewardship and conservation of the soil under our management is of the utmost importance. Each field is annually evaluated of fertility and drainage requirements. GPS application of lime and fertilizer is standard practice with the ongoing goal of raising yield potential. Waterways are installed and maintained as needed to prevent erosion and all soybeans and a portion of the corn are produced using no tillage. Only the most advanced chemistries are used for pesticide application ensuring that the least product possible is applied to the soil. Strict adherence to all EPA guidelines and regulation is maintained at all times to further ensure protection of our personnel, production, environment and soil. Planting and application logs are kept for each field with careful notation of specific observations or needs. We follow the principles of Integrated Pest Management, IPM, to further ensure the judicious of pesticides on our farmland.

Since 1977 Howell Farms has produced fruits and vegetables as on means of diversification. As mentioned on the home page, this FAV production has grown to over 50% of total revenue. The two major fruit and vegetable crops are tomatoes for processing and watermelon. After tomatoes and watermelons are transplanted in May, they are scouted rigorously during the growing season for signs of insect or disease problems. These crops are contracted for sale before they are put in the ground. The 30 years of experience in growing fruits and vegetables helps to reduce the risk involved in the production of these high value crops. This inclusion of these crops is necessary in order to maintain the volume required to sustain a growing family farm located in an area with a shrinking land base due to urban sprawl and poor long-range planning.

Howell Farms uses John Deere equipment intensively to operate our own land. We have a long standing relationship with Reynolds Farm Equipment in Fishers, Indiana (reynoldsfarmquipment.com) and work with them to maintain all the equipment necessary of timely field work while maximizing the efficiency of dollars spent on machinery purchases and leases. With our management and equipment, we are also available for custom work on other farmland in the area. In the same mindset of aggressive, yet carefully planned growth and use of existing assets, we make ourselves available to assist in locating tracts of land for parties interested in making 1031 exchanges. See 1031 page on this site.