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Rain, cold soil, wet soil, lack of sun disrupt planting season.

Kyle Stackhouse 2

May 29, 2020

2 Min Read
Tractor with planter adorned with flag
Kyle Stackhouse

Every acre has been earned this week. Not a single one has come easy. It has been one of those stints in farming… Stress is high and 2019 is fresh in memories. In fact, I’m not sure which one has been harder for us locally. I think 2019 was easier as we had distractions such as youth sports to keep our minds off farming.

Pop-up rains have once again made a liar out of the weatherman. For the most part, we have been in the ‘missed’ category. After we finished a field Saturday evening, we received an inch in a few minutes. As soon as we had started a field Wednesday afternoon, we were grazed by rain. This forced us to move two miles to plant a field before moving back to finish. However, for the most part, fields have been drying just as fast as we can get to them to plant.

We completed corn Wednesday night. Quick checks reveal we may have up to 100 acres to replant. In some fields corn has struggled to emerge. First it was cold soils, then wet soils, then lack of sun to warm and dry soil. Flag tests certainly reveal a difference is hybrid emergence/vigor. Many early tests were not as good as we had hoped. However, the stuff we planted late last week has returned excellent results. We are excited about the prospect of pushing those fields for a little extra yield. Though weather has a big impact on flag tests, we look at it as a grade on the job we did planting the field. It also helps us determine the potential of that field.

Yesterday, as I had a little time to scout, I took a route I don’t travel often. There I came across the tractor pictured. Though a little late, I thought a fitting tribute for this Memorial Day week. Thank you to those who have and are serving.

The opinions of the author are not necessarily those of Farm Futures or Farm Progress. 

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