Rory Schmier: A Ranch Manager's Perspective on Hay Production in the Durango Area

Rory Schmier is a ranch manager based in Arboles, Colorado, where he oversees a 300-acre premium grass hay operation in the Durango area. A southwestern Colorado native, Rory grew up around agriculture and began his working life as a farm hand straight out of high school, spending six years learning the rhythms of rural life before exploring other paths. He returned to the Durango/Arboles area in 2012 and stepped into ranch management at his family's longtime hay ranch, where his grandparents had raised hay, registered Hereford cattle, and quarter horses for decades.

Today, Rory is responsible for nearly every aspect of the operation, from planting and harvesting to irrigation, equipment maintenance, fertilization, and buyer relationships. He also manages two rental homes on the property. Outside of work, he enjoys riding dirt bikes, boating, hunting, and tackling home projects, and he occasionally volunteers his handyman skills to help elderly neighbors in the community.

1. Rory Schmier, what first drew you into ranch life and agriculture?

It's in my blood, honestly. My grandparents ranched their whole lives in southwestern Colorado, raising hay, registered Hereford cattle, and some of the most respected quarter horses in the country. I grew up around that work and took my first real job as a farm hand right out of high school. Six years of it. The land teaches you things you can't pick up anywhere else, and once it gets in you, it doesn't really leave.

2. What does a typical day look like running a 300-acre hay operation?

There's no real typical day, which is part of why I like it. One morning, I'm checking irrigation lines, the next I'm watching the sky, trying to decide if we should cut today or wait two more days. Equipment breaks, weather changes, and buyers call. You learn to keep a running list in your head and stay flexible.

3. What's the most underrated skill in ranch management?

Patience. People assume it's all about hard work and long hours, and yes, those matter. But the real skill is knowing when not to act. When to leave a field alone, when to wait on a cut, when to hold inventory instead of selling. Agriculture rewards people who can read conditions and resist the urge to force things. I've seen good operators lose money because they couldn't sit still. Some of the best decisions I've made on the ranch were decisions to wait another day.

4. How does weather factor into your decision-making?

Constantly. Hay quality lives and dies by the weather. You need a stretch of dry days to cut, dry, and bale properly, and if you misjudge it, you can lose value on an entire field. I watch forecasts the way some people watch the stock market. Even then, you're making your best guess. Colorado weather has its own sense of humor.

5. What goes into producing premium grass hay?

Soil health is the foundation. You can't fake your way to good hay if the ground underneath isn't right, so we pay close attention to fertilization and rotation. After that, it's timing. Cutting at the right stage of growth, properly drying the windrows, and baling at the right moisture level. Get any of those wrong, and the quality drops fast. Buyers can tell the difference, too. They're not just buying weight; they're buying nutrition for their animals, and the operations that take quality seriously build long-term relationships. Reputation in this business travels by word of mouth, and once you have a name for putting up clean, consistent hay, the phone keeps ringing.

6. How do you balance crop production with the other responsibilities of the ranch?

Honestly, the calendar runs the place more than I do. Certain weeks belong to the hay, no negotiation. In between, I handle property maintenance, tenant issues for the rental homes on site, equipment upkeep, and buyer relationships. I try to front-load the maintenance work in slower seasons so that during cutting and baling, I can stay focused on the fields. The trick is staying ahead of small problems. A broken hinge or a leaky line is easy in March and a disaster in July.

7. What advice would you give someone considering a career in agriculture?

Be ready for work that doesn't care about your schedule. Animals and crops don't take weekends off, and neither does the weather. If you go into it expecting predictability, you'll burn out. If you go in expecting to learn something new every season, you'll do well.

8. How important is equipment maintenance in an operation like yours?

It's everything. When you're trying to get hay off the field in a tight weather window, a broken baler can cost you a whole cutting. I spend real time in the off-season going through every piece of machinery, looking for the small stuff before it becomes the big stuff. Belts, bearings, hydraulics, all of it. People underestimate how much of agriculture is really mechanical work. If you can't keep your equipment running, the rest of your knowledge doesn't matter much. The same goes for irrigation systems, fencing, and outbuildings. The infrastructure has to be ready before the season, not during it.

9. How has the agricultural landscape in southwestern Colorado changed over the years?

I've watched a lot of shifts. Water has gotten tighter, input costs have climbed, and the margins are harder than they used to be. At the same time, equipment has gotten better, and the science around soil and irrigation is miles ahead of where it was when I was a kid working a neighbor's place. The operations that survive tend to be the ones that take the new tools seriously without losing the old habits. You still have to walk the fields. No app replaces that. The folks doing well around here are the ones who treat ranching as a craft, not just a business, and they pass that mindset to whoever works alongside them.

10. Looking back, what's the thread that ties your years as a farm hand to managing a ranch today?

Respect for the work. As a kid, I was the one pulling weeds and stacking bales, and I never forgot what that side of it feels like. Now I'm making the bigger calls, but I still try to lead the way I wanted to be led back then. The land tells you the truth either way.