The Field Report

August 6, 2025|

Summertime Mowing And Spraying

Trent Brandenburg has been busy mowing his lawn and his roadsides due to the sunshine and frequent rains making his grass grow as well as his corn and soybeans. He has been hiring aerial spraying of fungicides to suppress disease in his corn and soybeans. Trent invests in the spraying in order to improve his crop test weights at harvest and thus get a higher price at the elevator.

Trent has noticed a new trend in aerial spraying this year: the use of drones. These are big drones, in order to carry the tank and nozzles. They are more maneuverable near towns and better able to avoid power lines. The airplane needs more climbing distance to clear the power lines or other obstructions near its flight path. The drones can deliver a more accurate spray pattern near the obstructions by being more maneuverable. Trent notes that technology is wonderful but more expensive.

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Not Quite Harvest Time Just Yet

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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 [...]

Replanting Done, Corn and Beans Look Good

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Trent Brandenburg has replanted his few ponded field "wet spots" as many as three times. The replanted areas are "thin," Trent observed, because "It has been too wet. But at least [replanting] will keep the weeds down." Trent is now mowing and scouting his fields [...]

First Round Of Planting Done, Ponds Need Replanting

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Trent Brandenburg is done with his "first round" of planting, as he puts it. The corn and soybeans he planted in April are up and growing in excellent condition. Trent's later-planted crops are germinating but not as far along as his April plantings. The frequent [...]

Not Much Field Work This Week

April 29, 2024|

Trent Brandenburg does not plan on much fieldwork for this week, starting April 29, 2024. The huge squall line that extended from Texas to Green Bay, Wisconsin, over this past weekend, was far enough west to spare central Illinois from tornadoes but dropped unwanted rain [...]

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