At Massey Planting Co., Rudyard, Miss., a tillered cover crop resulted in March wheat burning for Ellington and Turner Massey. The father-and-son team planted a wheat cover crop in late September 2012 in preparation for corn, but following an unusual warm spell and possibly too much nitrogen in the ground, the wheat tillered early with an explosion of shoot growth. On March 8-9, the Masseys turned on the pivots (fire protection for the irrigation system) and began burning the tillered wheat.

(See related: Corn harvest advances — Massey Planting Co. photos)