Not Quite Harvest Time Just Yet
Trent Brandenburg’s earliest-planted corn is “about a week away” from drying below 25% moisture. At that level, he could lower his drying expense at the grain elevator. “Now, if there’s an incentive…, ” Trent indicated that an elevator offering a special on drying could get some of his early corn if the incentive was big enough. The Illinois August rainfall was 4.43 inches, 0.87 inches above normal, not good for field dry-down nearing harvest. So Trent has to decide to dry or not, and when to start harvest.
Experienced farm operators like Trent are always balancing variables such as whether (or how much) drying expense to incur in order to maximize crop return. The timing of harvest operations enters into the value judgement. Will there be a weather delay to the harvest? Might there be a dalay in getting parts for a harvest machinery repair? There are many decisions like this between the act of faith in planting seeds in the spring to taking the elevator check to the bank in the fall.
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 [...]