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Mike and Sheilah Reskovac look back at a stressful 2018 and look forward to a better 2019.

Mike and Sheilah Reskovac, Bloggers

January 25, 2019

3 Min Read
Heavy rain falls on corn crops with tractor parked adjacent to field
GO AWAY RAIN: More than 80 inches of rain fell on Mike and Sheilah Reskovac’s farm in 2018. A dryer 2019 with “normal” precipitation would be welcome news.

We have to admit, while 2018 added some amazing blessings and left us with great memories in our personal lives, we are glad to see it go from the farming perspective.

As we bring in 2019, we remain optimistic that this growing and harvesting season will be better than last, and, if nothing else, we’re praying that it won’t be worse.

Our hopes for 2019: less rain (we averaged over 80 inches this year); less mud; fewer breakdowns (or at least cheaper ones!); a better answer to the trade tariffs; no more moldy soybeans; and lastly, less stress (maybe we’re asking too much?).

Back in the spring, between rain showers and cold days, we worked extra hard to get all our crops in the ground in a timely manner. It seemed that our reward for that was sprouted corn and moldy soybeans that were falling out of the pod. At one time this summer, Mike believed this would be one of the best years for yield. Mother Nature had other plans.

With the wet fall and only having a nice day here or there, it made getting soybeans off extra tricky. We’re sure a lot of you were in the same position. As the harvest season got later and later, we decided we couldn’t wait on the weather to dry the beans, so we made the decision to start drying them. This led to several issues as our soybean bin and dryer are on two different farms. Our corn bins were already full, and we needed another auger, extra trucks and manpower to make drying soybeans work. That, of course, was easier said than done.

People are always asking what they can do to help or offer to lend us a hand. This year, Sheilah made me cash in on those offers. I called an out-of-town friend (thinking he might be around for Thanksgiving) and asked if he could help me out. As it turns out, he wasn’t home for Thanksgiving, but offered to come help anyhow.

Sure enough, he beat me to the farm the next morning. He filled everything up with fuel, fixed flat tires, fixed the feeder house chain (of course, when you have extra help, everything breaks!), drove the grain cart and alternated driving the truck to the farm. At the end of the day, he didn’t even want to go home.

Another friend, who is a cop, offered to help get the equipment moved from place to place. This was an extremely big help since we were able to move late at night instead of having to stop. No one has problems stopping or moving over for the combine when they see blue and red flashing lights coming their way.

Other friends would show up with food, coffee or just drive by to make sure everything was OK. Those little gestures go a long way, especially on those nights when I would be working late by myself.

So, with one of the most stressful harvesting years in the book, we are left with less income than expected, but we have no choice but to remain positive that 2019 will be a better year.

No two years have been the same in our farming career. So, here is to high yields, better prices and, maybe, just a little bit less stress!

Sheilah and Mike Reskovac and their sons farm near Uniontown, Pa. Check out all of their "Two Hearts, One Harvest" blogs

About the Author(s)

Mike and Sheilah Reskovac

Bloggers

Mike and Sheilah Reskovac are a young farming couple just starting their second year of marriage and farming together, near Uniontown, Pa. He's a first-gen farmer who met his fourth-gen farmer-bride online, and married in November 2012.

Mike grew up next to and working on his neighbor's Fayette County dairy farm through high school and college. After graduating from Penn State University in 2002 with a B.S. in Ag Systems Management, he worked as a manager at Tractor Supply stores for three years.

In 2005, he began farming his neighbor's land. Today, he and Sheilah farm 900 acres of corn and soybeans, plus do custom planting and harvesting.

Mike is president of the Pennsylvania Corn Growers Association. He also serves on the local Penn State Extension Board and is a Farm Service Agency county committee member.

Sheilah grew up on her family's Indiana County dairy farm. She graduated from DuBois Business College in 2008 with an associate's degree in Specialized Business and Medical Assistance, then worked for DuBois Regional Medical Center for four years. She also volunteered as a firefighter and EMT for the local fire company.

Since moving to Fayette County, Sheilah has been chief bookkeeper and farm assistant, along with taking classes at Penn State Fayette for Nursing. She enjoys “taking care of” groundhog problems, raking hay and mowing cornstalks.

While she enjoys cooking and baking, Mike enjoys eating the goods. Both enjoy hunting, attending concerts and county fairs, and spending time with family.

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