Aldrich, Minn. -- Tom and DeEtta Bilek are discovering modern possibilities in an ancient grain. Buckwheat, suitable for northern Minnesota crop rotations, is finding its way beyond pancakes into mulches and even pillow fillers.

Although it sounds like a macho wheat variety, buckwheat's not related to wheat. It grows on a bush filled with white flowers, and as the flowers dry up, small black seeds are left on the stem for harvest.

The Bileks, who farm about 150 miles northwest of the Twin Cities, have found buckwheat a reliable crop for rotation, but a bit risky when it comes to prices offered at the elevator. About five years ago, Tom asked five or six other farmers to meet and talk with him about marketing buckwheat. Eventually, they formed the Central Minnesota Buckwheat Growers, a cooperative effort to realize more profit from their crop. Today, the association is working hard to establish good growing practices and firm up the buckwheat market.

Weed control is easy ...
Buckwheat comes up four or five days after planting and will grow on anything.

"It's inexpensive to grow. It's good for your soil," says Tom. "It doesn't require lots of moisture." The only exception is during flowering -- without rain during the three to four day flowering stage, the seed will not set.

Tom first became interested in growing buckwheat 20 years ago, when the Bileks moved from Hugo, Minn. to Wadena County, where DeEtta's mother sold them the family farm. There were about 110 tillable acres and another 110 acres of creeks, wooded areas and riparian land.

One 25-acre field had not been rented out. Tom decided to plant, but it was too late for corn or soybeans. He asked a neighbor for advice, and the neighbor suggested buckwheat.

"I've been more or less growing it ever since," Tom says. "It's not a big cash crop, but it fits in well to the rotation and helps suppress weeds."

Tom commuted back and forth for several years between his fire-fighting job in the cities and his more peaceful life on the farm.

Meanwhile, DeEtta became involved in the Sustainable Farming Association of Central Minnesota and the Bileks learned a great deal about rotating crops to add nutrients to the soil. They found that buckwheat helps release phosphorus bound in the soil "and makes the phosphorous available to the next crop," DeEtta says.

For more than a decade, the Bileks have eschewed herbicides. Instead, they rely on crops like rye and buckwheat to suppress weed growth and plant disease.

... finding consistent prices is not

Over the years, the Bileks sold their buckwheat to the local elevator. Prices ranged from 5 to 35 cents a pound. Tom figures he needs 14 to 15 cents a pound to make a reasonable profit.

His search for ways to market and add value to buckwheat led to organizing the Central Minnesota Buckwheat Growers. The cooperative now has 14 members; each paid $100 to join.

"It will grow as we establish markets and deal with volume," Tom says. "The first thing is you've got to get a price. Once it becomes profitable, growers will sign up."

The group applied for an Energy and Sustainable Agriculture Program grant through the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. The three-year grant is helping them study the impact of buckwheat on both soil fertility and the following year's crop, and to determine which varieties grow best in the area. Results are published in MDA's Green Books.

One of the co-op members has a field with low phosphorus levels. Since planting and plowing down buckwheat last summer, phosphorous levels have risen in that field.

"We're trying to do some soil sampling and some crop history," DeEtta says. "It's not the easiest thing to document data. It really takes a lot of work."

The group is also completing a buckwheat literature review and hopes to take plant tissue samples and publish an informational pamphlet for other growers later this year.

Clean seed is a boost
An AURI loan helped Central Minnesota Buckwheat Growers purchase a cleaner for added value because uncleaned buckwheat is docked in price. With clean seed, the growers also avoid the trucking charges for shipping extraneous material.

For two years, the co-op has stored buckwheat in bins at an Aldrich farm. Members recently sold their first semi-load to Minn-Dak Ltd., which mills buckwheat flour. Although they didn't make a reasonable profit, they moved some of the crop that had been stored for nearly two years.

Growers have learned that markets can change rapidly. Last year, the Bileks considered sending a semi-truck load to a Washington state processor to dehull the buckwheat. Hulls were worth $1.50 a pound for buckwheat hull pillows sold around Christmas. Just a few months later, however, hulls were selling for only 50 cents a pound.

The co-op hopes to purchase dehulling equipment designed for small operations. They'd like to sell groats as livestock feed, make pillow filler and sell hulls as landscaping mulch.

DeEtta says market indicators also show potential for selling buckwheat seed to other farmers who want it for nutrient plowdown and to "take advantage of the buckwheat markets."

"Buckwheat is one of those alternative crops that AURI is happy to help with," says Jean Rock, AURI program specialist in Crookston. "We can provide direction toward markets and help people diversify their crops."