ready for the cold?

The forecast looks like some cold weather for us here in cen. Il for at least part of this week. They are saying a couple days of highs in the single digits, one of those days with 20mph winds. Odd enough it isnt going to be terrible cold at night, lows around -5 is all. I know alot of you guys get alot colder than this but these are going to be the coldest days we have had this winter.
I think we have everything squared away.


We have plenty of feed ground.


Got all the bales rings full.


Bedded the heck out of the two sheds we keep calves in and put a round bale of wheat straw in one of the sheds for the cows.
Weather is supposed to stay somewhat warm tomorrow with measureable snowfall. When the weather turns cold after that hopefully we dont have any problems and have things ready enough I can spend some time in the nice warm shop finishing up some work on the 4520. Its good to have dream right?
bill

'hopefully we dont have any problems'. I thought it was an unwritten rule that something big always goes wrong on the coldest day of the year. The coldest we've had it this year is -17 C (1.5 F) without wind chill so dress warm.

On another note how much corn is still standing down there. Looks like a big field behind the bin anad crib there.

It's coming. It started snowing here (Minot, N.D.) about half hour ago and we have about an inch on the ground already. By noon tomorrow it is supposed to end . Total snow from 4 to 6 inches AND LOTS OF WIND> It is heading southeast according to the weather channel. So look out!! Len

Nice pictures. I have a JD 400 grinder that looks about like the grinder you have there. I too will be using it tomorrow to get stocked up on ground feed in preporation for the same coldfront heading our way in Mid-Michigan. Looks like you got alittle corn to pick yet. Good luck and stay warm.

I was going to be smart & take an extra round bale out this evening.

My cattle are grazing a corn field, but the snow/ice is deep already here in southern MN. And they should get a little hay along with the stalks by now.

Supposed to be 20-40 mph winds Monday, with an inch or 3 of snow - blizzard watch. The wind will bring in 10 to 20 below F temps for lows through Friday.

So, put one bale in the cove where the wind doesn't hit, and was going to put one out in the open on the stalks, the cattle will get to that after the wind stops in a few days.

Well. Snow is very crusted & a lot deeper in the cornstalks than I realized. Was driving over the top with a Ford 7700, all 4 tires loaded, and a 5x6 round bale on the back.

When the wheels did drop through, there I was, the bale fork lift dragging now, tractor high centered, end of that. So had to walk to the buildings, get the little loader, and dig my way to the tractor, then shovel out the wheels & a bit under, could rock myself out & follow the trench back to better ground.

That is some hard snow to (almost) carry that much wieght!

Got my exersize this evening anyhow. At least it was around 10 degrees, not so bitter cold.

--->Paul

well its been below normal for about the last 6 weeks now were going to get some real cold weather, highs below 0 ,where is the january thaw? northwest wisconsin

Basically there is no corn left to harvest now. We had a very wet year and delayed everything. There was a little corn around till just after christmas when it froze up and we didnt have any snow and that allowed everyone to finish. This is the latest harvest in memory. Now, that corn field behind the crib is corn we planted in 40in rows so we could pick it with the ear pickers. Its about 15 acres. It didnt get planted untill late june with all the wet weather this spring, got froze just as it was getting to black layer and the last time I checked it was still 28% mositure. I would like to top off that crib but I dont want to do it with corn that wet. The drying bins are all full and I hate to put this corn which could be light into a bin of good corn. I have thought about picking some into wagons and grinding out of the wagons but how good will that work with wet corn.
bill

Your doing the right thing,waiting to pick that feild. I never had very good luck storing eared corn for any length of time in a gravity wagon either. Although I do it every year, then grind it and feed it as soon as possible.