Farm Operations

    The company property is divided into two separate "plants" (short for crop plantation). These are referred to as the Lowery and Illinois Plants. In the early 1930's the property was farmed in cotton, rice, and corn. Now the crop concentrations are mostly rice and soybeans.

     Jude Zaunbrecher (pictured at right), Farm Operations Manager, is responsible for supervising the farming operation. Hydrology management is achieved with the use of a complex network of pumping stations located throughout the property. This ensures that the farmers have the appropriate amount of water available at the right times for their crops to survive. Roads and canals must also be maintained for the farm equipment and water flow to be functional. The property's extensive pumping system is supported by many miles of canals, laterals, the Bell City ditch, Lacassane Bayou, and the Mermentau River. Heavy equipment is used to clear waterways and repair damaged levees. 

(Below: Kirby Kingrey clears overgrowth from a canal on the Lowery Plant.)

       The tenant farmers work with the Lacassane maintenance personnel to coordinate crop planting, tending and harvesting. Pictured below is a rice crop in two stages: the picture at left is a young rice crop still in the growth stage, while at right is a crop ready for  harvest.