The Gillespie County Soil and Water Conservation District
would like to recognize Beyer Fertilier & Feed as the
Friend of Conservation award recipient.
The Gillespie County SWCD is proud to name Beyer Fertilizer and Feed as its Friend of Conservation for 2024.
Beyer Fertilizer and Feed is a local family run business located just 3 ½ miles north of Fredericksburg, Tx on Highway 16 in the heart of the Hill Country has been serving the Agricultural community of Gillespie County and surrounding areas for over 30 years.
The Beyers have partnered with the Gillespie County SWCD and NRCS for over 20 years assisting area landowners to apply sound conservation practices to the land.
Dwayne was born to David and Dorothy Beyer in Fort Worth while his dad was in the service. When Dwayne was 2 months old, they moved back to Fredericksburg to help his grandparents, Albert and Frieda Beyer, on the family farm.
Karen was born to Buddy and Allie Grobe in Fredericksburg.
Dwayne and Karen were married on May 10th, 1980.
Dwayne and Karen have 3 daughters Wendy, Jodi and Emily, and one granddaughter, Kolette. Wendy lives in Houston and works for Exxon Mobil as an auditor. Jodi and her daughter Kolette live in Fredericksburg. Jodi works for Hill Country Outfitters on Main St, and Kolette is in the 3rd grade at Fredericksburg Elementary School. Emily also lives in Fredericksburg, works with her parents at the store, and takes online classes from Central Texas College to earn her degree in business.
Dwayne & Karen Beyer have owned and operated the business since 1992. When daughters Wendy and Jodi were younger, they would get in the 18-wheeler truck and ride with Dad to pick up loads of fertilizer from the processing plant. When they were older, they worked at the store during summers off from school. Youngest daughter, Emily, was born on a Friday, and by Monday, mom and baby were back on the job; they have both been there ever since.
For 15 years the fertilizer portion of the business was named Six Oaks Farm under its original owner, Norman Wilke. When Norman wanted to retire, he talked with Dwayne several times about taking over the company, but Dwayne declined. He said he did not want the headaches of dealing with the public. After being asked for the 3rd or 4th time, Dwayne realized I am the shop foreman at a tractor dealership, I am already dealing with the public, so I might as well be working for myself. Dwayne took over the business on January 1, 1992, as Beyer Farm & Ranch Fertilizer working out of the original building Norman started in. In 1993, land was purchased on Highway 16 North to construct new facilities. A new fertilizer building was built with a truck scale, and the name was shortened to Beyer Fertilizer. In 1997, he started selling feed to have inventory moving during the fertilizer off season. The feed was stored in two van trailers as there was no warehouse at that time. The business was renamed to Beyer Fertilizer & Feed and In 2002, construction was completed on the main building where the store, feed and fertilizer warehouses, and offices are today.
Dwayne’s main goal in business and personally is to always provide those he works with the best products, tools, equipment, and knowledge he can so that they may achieve their goals when it comes to their farm, ranch, and conservation needs. That is why Dwayne and Beyer Fertilizer and Feed have been supporters and cooperators of the Gillespie County SWCD and NRCS for over 20 years.
While fertilizer is what got the business started it is not the only piece to the puzzle any longer.
They offer fertilizer in bulk, bag, and liquid forms as well as herbicides and pesticides for pasture, rangeland, and lawn use. They have a public truck scale, feed for most livestock, hay, sprayers and sprayer parts, plumbing parts, hardware, livestock medications, and hunting supplies. They also have a wide variety of rental equipment for field and pasture work and offer soil and forage testing to help customers make sound decisions when it comes to chemical applications.
For over 20 years now Dwayne has partnered with the SWCD and served as the manager of rental equipment owned by the SWCD. Dwayne rents out, maintains, and services several large liquid fertilizer/herbicide sprayers and a large capacity broadcast seeder for the district. He does this in addition to his own rental equipment so that more people will have access to equipment that allows them to manage their lands to their best potential.
Dwayne also regularly runs his own trials on herbicides that he carries in the store so that he can give firsthand accounts on the ease and effectiveness of their usage.
Dwayne has continually added new inventory over the years when he recognizes a need for his customers. In 2019 when doing some work of his own Dwayne noticed there was a lack of variety in products available to area to ranchers for livestock watering pipelines and facilities. He contacted the NRCS office with questions about what types of materials were allowed for use in their cost assistance programs. Working with NRCS and the SWCD he was able to not only add poly pipeline and fittings, and fiberglass troughs to his inventory but ensured the products he added were of the highest quality and met requirements for use in conservation programs, that were not extensively available prior.
He also seeks out conservation minded equipment to add to his inventory such as no till seeders capable to seed pasture and rangelands as well as food plot seeders for wildlife management.
Dwayne doesn’t only work with the SWCD and NRCS though.
He is Past member of Texas Ag Lime and Fertilizer Association and for many decades has been involved with the Hill Country Youth Commercial Heifer Show and Sale, Gillespie County Stock Show, Gillespie County Fair, furnishes facilities, labor and equipment for the Gillespie County Hay Show as well as serving as a committee member.
When he is away from the store Dwayne likes spending time with family, being active in his church, farming and hay work, and raising cattle and Dorper sheep. He is a member of Zion Lutheran Church where he has served on the church council for four terms and has been a member of the worship and evangelism committees, Cross Mountain Easter sunrise service, and property committee for many years. He has helped is daughter, Emily, construct numerous parade floats and also with the construction, set up and dismantling of the Christus Baum display at Zion for the last 5 years.
On his own property Dwayne has implemented no till planting for over 20 years on all his crop land.
With the help of NRCS Dwayne has completed multiple programs to install hundreds of acres of brush management, miles of cross fencing, and solar pumps. He implements even more conservation on his own such as planting native grasses and voluntarily excluding grazing along creeks to mitigate erosion and sediment deposition and building ponds for wildlife water.
The Gillespie County SWCD appreciates the service to community, continual promotion of good conservation, and the many decades of partnership and friendship shared with Dwayne and Family. For all these things we say thank you to our Friend of Conservation for 2025, Beyer Fertilizer and Feed.