How is/ was the season?

paul

Well-known Member
Was kind of a grueling year this year down on the farm. Way too much water here in southern MN, I only made 75 small square bales in early
spring and 5 round bales late in fall (had to stop combining to bale them) that were good hay, everything else all year long was rained on junk.
Could not find 3 dry days. Was so much humidity and ground moisture even if it didn't rain, the gravel driveway would be wet in the morning,
couldn't get any hay to dry.

For a while there it was a wind storm every week, I would barely get the trees cut up and another storm would come and more broken trees,
three in a row. Corn was really bent over. Big bad hail storm just missed me, petered out a mile before it got to me.

In fall just as you think combining might go, we got 6 inches of rain in less than a week, most of it one long rainy day everything soaked in. Then
we have had drizzle, fog, overcast, and 20+ winds, over and over. Temps they kept saying 20 degrees below normal. The ground finally dried
out enough to go two weeks late, but the crop wouldn't. Beans wouldn't drop out of 16-18%, and corn was in the upper 20s.

Started harvest very late, and just kept grinding on. And on. Found out the heater doesn't work in the combine cab and been using treated fuel
and parking by an electric source for weeks now so cold.

Finished combining a week ago, still working on chisel plowing.

Yields were down some, just too much moisture all year long, and very little sun.

Everyone in farming just looks kind of stunned, wore out, frozen face. Was such a long year from planting to spraying to harvest, trying to work
around Mother Nature at every turn, and the many storms. Low crop yields and low prices.

Some fields of corn still out there a fair amount of harvest to go yet for some. I haven't seem any beans left, but I hear a few fields are still left.
The grind goes on.

Land a few miles west of me sold for over $9000 an acre last week, so I guess property taxes won't be going down (around $50 an acre here),
some folks still have money and optimism. Heard some folks lost their rented fields, a bigger outfit came in and payed over $300 an acre for
2018.

Well, finish my chisel plowing before thanksgiving I hope, and see what next year brings!

Paul
 
Some hard freezes mid spring knocked the hay and pastures back. The grassier first cutting was down by a third. Got the cows out on pasture late. It was getting real dry,then mid June we got five and a half inches of rain. That put some corn under water. No rain after that. The pastures were gone by late July and I had to start feeding. Got a good second cutting,but no third at all.
Got started picking corn in good shape,baled the stalks from the first corn I picked,then the big rains came. Last Friday and Saturday mornings it was down in the teens,so I picked corn with the duals on the 2-105 and managed to get through the wet spots in fair shape. By Monday it had thawed but I was almost done. I punched a new headland near the end of what was left and finished up. There's a little bit left down along one end,but the deer will make quick work of it.
Good thing I'm done because we've had another 1.35 inch since.
 
Started out on the late side as we planted both corn and beans two weeks or more latter than we like to. With the rain hay was hard to get made then in Aug the water stopped but very little heat so we did ok. Corn yeilds were 220's and beans averaged 67 bu. I thought the beans would be small and take a big yeild hit but the cooler weather helped. I have been here 12 years and this was the most difficult year to get work done.Did get some corn stalks baled last week and some fall tillage done. I will be glad to see the calendar say 2018. Tom
 
Last year i was done planting corn on may 7 this year was may 11. I cut the field corn by 20 acres and put on 20 more acres of sweet corn. I was lucky in that i have a 25 acre field that is usually low and wet so i put a 96 day hybred in there. It looked good through may when we had cool wet weather but the wet end never dried up and in august i could tell the nitrogen had leached out. it went 155 bu./acre which isnt bad but last year every thing was over 200 bu./acre. it has been wet here also i haul with the 1086 and two wagons which hold about 450 bu. and two wagons with the 856 which hold about 400 bu.this year i had to put the 3394 on the big pair and the 1086 on the little pair.last year the local elevator closed so i have to haul to another town 3 miles away which doesnt seem far but now i spend 4-5 hours on the road and 3-4 hours a day combining instead of 2 hours on the road and 6-8 hours of combining. i have to go out on a 2 lane federal highway to scale so i dont haul after dark as that road is a death trap i wont turn left on it because some idiot will try to pass.i can go down a gravel road that runs beside it last year the elevator shut down only one day this year they had 2 dryer fires and the local bto is hauling corn into dry because his dryer cant keep up so they have limited hours.i only have 2 days left i hope.
i did do some moldboard plowing last sunday and monday but it got to wet to finish. i did do some chisel plowing on the flat ground but its to wet to go on the hilly ground and i need the 3394 to pull wagons. i did get the hay up and oats combined with out being rained on though
my cousin had 200 acres of beans that didnt come up so he had to replant 180 and leave 20 because it was to wet. my beans went 56 bu./ acre which is normal for me. next year i am going to try some peas and maybe cut back a few more acres on corn if these prices dont rebound soon
 
Stopped raining here last of April got 1st rain middle of Sept. Guys at the Coop saying Corn averaging 150, beans only 60. Surprised at how well they did. Small seed still in the bag, rain was too late to fall seed it. Maybe next spring.
 
Hi paul, I am one of those you here about with beans left. Small field right next to Zeigler Cat North Mankato. That is a field of reclaimed ground (clay) they spread out when building their building. Tile all destroyed years ago. They owned that land for several years before they built so I must be farming it for 12 years or so. Never can get a bumper crop out of there but this is the worst ever. Rains came small and often enough that crop was standing in water most of the season but never enough to actually drown out the crop. I think I could get it today but forcast sounds good so will wait until Tues.
 
I can think of nothing more dangerous than pulling wagons on a highway. You need to get a truck.
 
Below average for me in central lower Michigan. We're short on rain over the summer. Corn overall average is usually in the 160bpa area, went 145. Soys are normally 50, went 38. Wheat was good. 100bpa which is normal for that field. Hay was not good. I always get 4 cuttings of alfalfa, only got 3 and 3rd was about 1/2 what it should of been. Overall I paid my bills, but no extra cash.
 
Tough tough year all over it sounds like. I took 100 acres out of hay and went to beans, simply no place to store due to carry over. Beans did 39 in one county, 49 in the other. Hay yields were normal though it was a challenge to get up. Over a thousand rolls sitting outside because they got wet. So far hay is moving, moderate volume. Beans came off at 17.. between that and the basis since not great... but they sold.

Lost my mom and last aunt and uncle this spring. That makes me the eldest now. I'm cutting back, letting my leases go, taking another third of my hay ground out next year to beans, may sell most of the cattle too and part of the home farm. Buyers are worrying me to death and I'm tired.
 
i made money again this year as i have cash rented out all my land,and rest is in crp. best thing i did 5 years ago. shop work stays busy and i can set my prices, not what i used to get for my grain. yea i know it does not sound right but i got tired of long hours all livestock and acres farming 2000acres and nothing to show for it on positive side very often. now its been profitable every year and i can sleep better at night and enjoy life lots better
 
Great season here on the Mason-Dixon. Wet for most of the planting season, but a few nice showers through the summer. End result was 199.8 bpa for corn, corrected to 15.5%. Dang. Missed myy goal by .2 bushels.....
 

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