Every different color of tractor and every kind of farm implement you can imagine, were on display at the Farm Progress Show this week in Decatur. Seed and chemical suppliers had elaborate displays to explain their latest developments.
Trent went. “It’s great that they have it,” he said. Trent sees the show as more to educate the general public than farmers. “We live it every day. If our suppliers and sales reps are doing their job, we will already know about the latest developments.” Trent liked seeing new things and the technology changes on display.
Trent took a day away from his corn harvest to visit the show. His corn is too wet to harvest, running from 18 to 25% moisture in the field. Although he has started harvesting, he is now waiting for more field drying until after Labor Day. “It’s a cheaper dry than the elevator,” Trent observed. The severely dry July has impacted corn yields but the test weights are are better than expected. Even though the corn yield is down from last year, the number is still at the average level, due to the greatly-improved corn genetics.
Trent will not begin harvesting soybeans for about a month. The earliest-planted beans are also hurt by the dry season. “They’ve done all they will,” Trent said, noting that timely rains the next two weeks could still help pod fill on the later-planted stands of soybeans.