Dealer Spotlight - Verdi Plus/Paul Overby

Value-Added Management Solutions for farmers and ranchers is the mission of Verdi-Plus, Paul and Diane Overby’s business dedicated to help producers mange and increase farm and ranch profitability. Verdi (pronounced vaer-de) means “value” or “worth” in Norwegian, a tribute to their heritage.  Thus, Verdi-Plus means “Value-Added.”   The name conveys their commitment to provide management solutions to add value to their customers’ operations.

But the story starts a few years back.  Paul and his wife Diane were "older-than-average" beginning farmers when they moved back to north central North Dakota in 1993 to assume operation of the family farm from Paul’s parents.  Paul had previously served as a vice-president at Great Plains Regional Medical Center and Diane was an advertising account rep for the Telegraph in North Platte, Nebraska.

They set aside briefcases and power suits to run the Overby farm operation, Lee Farms, a diversified small grains farm.  Crops grown on their 1750-acre farm include malting barley, canola, field peas, flax, hard red spring wheat, hard white spring wheat, winter wheat, durum, and oil sunflowers, along with hay and pasture land.

Paul and Diane began converting cropland to no-till in 2006.  They have also incorporated a seven-year rotation plan of “stacked rotations” based in part on research by the Mandan, ND USDA-ARS center and SDSU Professor Dwayne Beck, manger of Dakota Lakes Research Farm.

In addition, Paul’s active research interest in variable rate field management was put into practice in the fall of 2004.  Field zone mapping began that fall, using satellite imagery as the initial source to develop management zones on Farm Site.  As of 2008 over 1000 acres of the farm are zoned and being applied with variable rates of N in the form of NH3. In 2009 and 2010 the pastures will be divided into grazing cells and a grazing management plan will be implemented for the nephew who leases the land for his cattle.

Farm Works software is a key component of helping to manage and apply all that diversity.  After researching numerous software options, Paul and Diane chose Farm Works software in 1999.  From initially using it for field and financial records, their use of Farm Works has expanded to using Site to develop variable rate N prescription maps and analyze yield maps.  

They also use the “Mate” packages for field operation record keeping and data logging, soil sampling their zones, guidance, and the variable rate nitrogen management program.  The fencing plans for the cell grazing system will be developed on Site and installed using Site Mate.

Based on their satisfaction using Farm Works, and their desire to help other farmers succeed, the Overby’s approached Farm Works about establishing a dealership in North Dakota in 2006.  They established their business, Verdi-Plus, in January 2007.

Verdi-Plus has been active in presenting its business at North Dakota ag trade shows for the last two seasons, attending about 9 events per year. Diane and Paul enjoy sharing their experience in using Farm Works with prospective new customers, and meeting and helping existing Farm Works customers at these events.  Through these shows, they are building a growing base of Farm Works users in North Dakota.

In addition to providing the full line of software and hardware products offered by Farm Works, Verdi-Plus also builds Field Management Zone maps for producers and agronomists based on SatShot imagery from Agri ImaGIS Technologies.  These maps can be used to VRA fertilizer, seed, herbicides, and fungicides using Farm Works Farm Site and Farm Works or Raven hardware.  Farmers can also learn how to use SatShot to build their own VRA maps.

Paul has also given presentations at ManDak Zero-Till,  the Lake Region Extension Roundup, and other events, on his experiences using variable rate nitrogen management.   Paul has been working with the "Dakota Center for Technology Optimized Agriculture" Center of Excellence at Lake Region State College since its inception in 2005.  He is also a part-time farm commodity marketing club instructor for about 50 farmers through Lake Region State College.  He has a BS in Ag Education from NDSU.

Paul serves as a supervisor for the Rolette County Soil Conservation District and is a member of the Northern Plains Resource Conservation and Development Council.  He is also a board member of the Rolette County Ag Improvement Association.

Diane and Paul both teach Sunday School classes at their local church.  In their spare time, they enjoy cross country skiing, playing with their yellow lab/golden retriever cross dog, Grady, and working on their project of restoring a 1917 two and one-half story farm house.

Verdi Plus
5237 78th Street
Wolford, ND  58385
Phone: 701-351-0913
E-mail: paul@verdi-plus.com