With the unprecedented situation our world faces, we are all experiencing something new. While life has changed in many ways, the need to keep our organizations as efficient as possible remains.More than anything, we’ve been given the gift of time. Time to look at our systems and procedures, time to reflect on what is making us more productive and what is doing just the opposite.
Fall harvest is on everyone’s mind, but it’s also time to think about ordering your 2021 seed. Ordering your seed early offers great advantages such as best variety selection, along with early order and CASH Discounts to offer you the best pricing of the year. Financing is also available to help you take advantage of the seed discounts at very manageable rates. Give your Premier Agronomist a call today for more details on any of the offers mentioned.
I hope you’ve been enjoying your summer. I spent almost 3 weeks training with the Army Reserve in late July and August. During our time at Ft. McCoy we were tasked with getting certified on the new Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) so that we can test others in our unit and we also went to the rifle range to qualify using the Army’s new Marksman Qualification Test. I’m 58 years old. The word ‘new’ to me doesn’t necessarily trip my trigger (no pun intended). I’ve been doing the same physical fitness and marksmanship tests since 1983 and they’ve been working just fine for me, so why change?
As I write this in late August, most of our trade area has missed out on any measurable rain the past couple of weeks and it is really showing up in the fields. I can’t remember seeing corn and beans go from lush green to golden brown quite so quickly. Despite this, and because of the excellent weather earlier, it looks like we will have a very good harvest this year. Our team is busy hauling out the last of about eight million bushels of grain we received at our facilities this year. September will be a big push as we empty out and get the bins ready for the 2020 crop. Last year at this time we had one very big grain project underway in Westby and a smaller, but much needed, addition in Mazomanie. Both finished up midway through harvest, so we are looking forward to having both up and running at full speed to start this fall. We are still hoping to get a couple smaller projects completed ahead of harvest in Richland Center and Mineral Point, but the recent Derecho storm in Iowa, Illinois and Indiana has thrown a wrench into the availability of millwrights, equipment, and materials needed. I’ve never seen destruction so widespread. One cooperative in Iowa had severe damage at 21 of its grain locations, toppling or damaging an estimated 30 million bushels or more of storage. Thank goodness there was only one minor injury at the company. With harvest already underway in our area, please watch out for farm equipment and grain trucks as you navigate our country roads. If you need help with handling or marketing your grain, please give us a call.
Many moving parts need to be in place to get the best quality silage at harvest. With harvest quickly approaching, consider these four tips to help inform your silage harvest strategy. 1. Prep your Equipment Don’t wait until the last minute to get your equipment ready for harvest. Ensure you have equipment adjusted correctly depending on the cut length you’re aiming for.
Often with our financial decisions the question isn’t so much about “Can I invest in/purchase X to improve my operation?”, the question is “If I invest in/purchase X to improve my operation, can I also invest in/purchase Y and Z?”X, Y, and Z could be different options based on your personal situation. For an expanding operation, it could be a new piece of equipment (or land) to increase your throughput or bring down your cost per acre...
Importance of Late Season Scouting The sprayers out in the field are slowly rolling to a halt, while harvest equipment is starting to be greased up and ready to go. In the midst of all this, our fields tend to get placed on the back burner, when they should really be the stars of the show. This time of year, the more time you invest in your fields the more knowledge and insight you can gain for this year’s harvest and future cropping seasons.
Alfalfa is a versatile crop with a wide range of recommended seeding dates, but if you have land available for alfalfa, you must finalize your plan soon. Follow these five steps to help make your next alfalfa seeding a success:1. Alfalfa request a neutral soilPerform a soil test to determine pH, potassium and phosphorus levels. Alfalfa requires a neutral soil pH of 6.8 to 7.2 to reach its yield potential, and incorrect soil fertility levels will lead to lost production.
I read through my last few newsletters. I feel I need to update you on the projects I’ve been doing on the farm. I’m happy to report that I won the Battle of the Bats. I installed a homemade bat extruder in early May and after watching the bat tornado outside my bedroom window the next morning it was obvious (that was creepy) the bats couldn’t figure out how to get back in. They won’t be missed. My barn roof project didn’t go quite so well. After replacing the majority of the nails with screws and sealing the crown, I went into the haymow yesterday during a thunderstorm to check my work. It’s still a huge improvement but I still have some leaks. Fortunately I have enough buckets to catch the drips. What did I learn from this? If you want a professional job done, hire a professional to do the work. Especially when it comes to propane. Today we were unable to install a propane system to a brand new house because the homeowner decided to do the gas piping himself. He used fittings that are not allowed to be used in a propane system, there were no drip legs on appliances and the shutoff valves were closed up inside of the drywall. We red tagged the system because we couldn’t safely hook it up. If the customer had hired a licensed plumber to install the gas piping, he wouldn’t have found himself in this predicament.
Want to catch up on the latest advancements and trends in crop production to position your operation for success? Then we invite you out for a visit to one of our four Premier Acre Plots in your area. With the growing season moving along and harvest on the horizon, now is a great time to meet with your Premier Agronomist amd receive a personal tour. Gain insights on the latest technology and practices that could help add yield and profit to your crop management programs. The plots are located in Fennimore, Bloomington, Mount Horeb and Mazomanie.