All In All, Things Are Pretty Good
August 2015 Farm Report
Trent Brandenburg, just back from a family summer vacation, looked over his fields and said, “It’s been a strange year. All in all, things are pretty good.”
Trent sees good crops. He knows there will be some damage from ponding in mid-field that is only visible from the combine cab. The foliage diseases showing up on some corn fields are not serious so far for Trent. There is some on lower leaves, below the ears, but the sun doesn’t get that far down the plant so the net effect is small. Some varieties are more susceptible than others. Trent does not see enough crop damage, so far, to justify the cost of spraying.
“Beans are incredibly tall,” Trent observed,”they’re shoulder-high.” Trent sees a possibility of some harvest challenge if the plants start falling over from adverse weather conditions such as wind.
More from The Field Report
From Drought To Ponding And Replanting
In barely months, Trent's challenges have gone from extreme drought to repeated ponding and replanting. Trent has replanted some corn and soybeans twice, only to have the ponding return yet again. "I don't think I will try to replant corn [...]
Corn And Soybean Planting Done, Some Germinated, More To Come
Trent Brandenburg is happy to have completed his corn and soybean planting by the 15th of May. "It's slow," he said, commenting on the germination delay by the recent cool temperatures. Moderately heavy rains the last few days have caused [...]
Worked Some Fields, With A Sunny Day Could Begin Planting
Trent Brandenburg has "worked a couple of fields, they're barely ready" after several days of rain last week. "If we get a sunny day tomorrow I could plant some," Trent continued. The long-standing extreme drought in central Illinois has been [...]