The Farming Thread

[cfuhrer]

You cannot alter the economics of farming by grabbing some of the wastage, or by taking one or two ears of corn

If thirty people each take two ears of corn at $1 each per ear, that is a tank of gas to get the truck back and forth to the farmers market.

I am glad you are doing well enough to not notice, others aren't so fortunate.

 

[trysail]

You can have all the after harvest beans in my fields that you can carry. Once the combine has left the field, anything remaining is bird food, have at it.

Any apples still hanging on the trees after the main picking, are yours for the taking; any apples on the ground, you can have.

High school kids take a few dozen apples from me every year - good for them, far better than stealing jewelry to buy dope or beer. I enjoy watching their antics: stop the car, sprint to the tree, check if it is clear, grab 4 apples, sprint to the car, zoom away. . . I should film it just for the laughs.

You cannot alter the economics of farming by grabbing some of the wastage, or by taking one or two ears of corn or a few bean pods prior to harvest. If my bottom line ever hinges on a single bean pod, I will start growing houses on the land instead of crops.

God knows, more than a few in your area have made that choice (i.e., to grow houses rather than crops).


P.S., I give you every assurance that I am not losing any sleep over thirty bean pods (I do think about these things).

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[kbate]

If thirty people each take two ears of corn at $1 each per ear, that is a tank of gas to get the truck back and forth to the farmers market.

I am glad you are doing well enough to not notice, others aren't so fortunate.

really?

 

[kbate]

Corn is in and hopefully sold, 100 acres harvested for a net profit of $15140. I expect that my soybeans will bring $23500 in net profits.

I could make $40,000 an acre if I sold to a developer and grew houses; in 200 years or so I will probably feel better about having kept the land in crop when my total crop profits passes the current sales value, except that by then the sales value will likely be somewhere around a $500k an acre.

 

[thør]

Killswitch, is that you?

 

[ishtat]

Wheat Production Oz.

2016 35 million tons.
2017 24 million tons forecast, possibly 20 mt.

Oz Government announced this week that production is forecast down 11 million tons and that shortfall could be 15 million tons if the current drought in NSW and Queensland doesn't break. OZ normally exports 90% of its crop because our domestic market is so tiny. Main beneficiaries will be Russia and Ukraine which have had a bumper harvest. They will capture a lot of the Chinese market which is very price rather than quality sensitive.

I was in Queensland for a couple of days this week and the wheat looks terrible. Today out west temperature was 40 Celsius + with hardly any rain for 2 months.

 

[SelfTawt]

2016 35 million tons.
2017 24 million tons forecast, possibly 20 mt.

Oz Government announced this week that production is forecast down 11 million tons and that shortfall could be 15 million tons if the current drought in NSW and Queensland doesn't break. OZ normally exports 90% of its crop because our domestic market is so tiny. Main beneficiaries will be Russia and Ukraine which have had a bumper harvest. They will capture a lot of the Chinese market which is very price rather than quality sensitive.

I was in Queensland for a couple of days this week and the wheat looks terrible. Today out west temperature was 40 Celsius + with hardly any rain for 2 months.

Yup, drier than a pharohs sock

 

[trysail]

Corn is in and hopefully sold, 100 acres harvested for a net profit of $15140. I expect that my soybeans will bring $23500 in net profits.

I could make $40,000 an acre if I sold to a developer and grew houses; in 200 years or so I will probably feel better about having kept the land in crop when my total crop profits passes the current sales value, except that by then the sales value will likely be somewhere around a $500k an acre.

"...The corn is as high as an elephant's eye..."

"Oklahoma!"
-Richard Rogers & Oscar Hammerstein II​

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[Saint Peter]

Killswitch, is that you?

!!!

 

[Shagly]

Corn is in and hopefully sold, 100 acres harvested for a net profit of $15140. I expect that my soybeans will bring $23500 in net profits.

I could make $40,000 an acre if I sold to a developer and grew houses; in 200 years or so I will probably feel better about having kept the land in crop when my total crop profits passes the current sales value, except that by then the sales value will likely be somewhere around a $500k an acre.

The reefer crop has finally been picked.

 

[trysail]

Repeat post— R.I.P. dirtwrench

Soybeans get harvested, as Riles said, when they are ready. Here in Iowa, I'm usually combining my soybeans end of September, beginning of October. The moisture content must be below 14% or the local elevator will put a charge on your load for drying cost.

The question about corn from much earlier is a similar answer. Around here, corn above 14.9% moisture gets a drying cost added on. However, my local elevator will let me unload into the "dry corn" pit at anything under 16.5%. They know at that moisture, it will blend and come out to the moisture content they need to safely store the grain. For me, corn harvest starts as soon as possible after soybeans. I am normally combining corn late October thru mid November.



It is nice to see people asking questions about farming, rather than just bitching about farmers. I thank you all for that.

R.I.P. dirtwrench

See: http://forum.literotica.com/showthread.php?t=1297408

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[trysail]

Once again, I've got to think about the appropriate time to get my soybeans in the ground.


Not much help here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soybean







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[Chancellor_Palpatine]

Farming crops with rocks to reduce CO2 and improve global food security

Farming crops with crushed rocks could help to improve global food security and reduce the amount of CO2 entering the atmosphere, a new study has found.

...

"This study has transformed how we think about managing our croplands for climate, food and soil security. It helps move the debate forward for an under-researched strategy of CO2 removal from the atmosphere - enhanced rock weathering - and highlights supplementary benefits for food and soils.

 

[CelticCookie]

Killswitch, is that you?

 

[CelticCookie]

For example— yesterday, I was traveling through some corn (maize) fields. By the end of September, I would expect those fields to have been harvested.


Much to my surprise (obviously), there were a fair number of fields where the corn was still standing. Mystified, I stopped to pull an ear to see what the corn looked like. When I shucked an ear, it was dessicated, shriveled and hard. It didn't look like it could be used for much of anything. It didn't look like it could be used as animal feed.

Why wasn't the corn harvested earlier?

Why would a farmer leave corn unharvested?​

I know it's been answered, but: it's seed or feed. More likely it will be chopped up and mixed with silage to feed dairy cows. That's what it would be in my area, anyway.

 

[sharingfantasies]

It's amazing to me how many people give no thought to the fact that taking produce from a farmers field is theft, plain and simple.

Would you just help yourself to the iphone at Best Buy, or the Hagen Daaz at the grocers? Would you load the ranchers cows up and haul them off? Milk the dairyman's cows?

Then keep your filthy mitts off the farmers crops!

/rant

To me, it is the same as the people that grab a handful of grapes or bulk candy to munch on as they walk around the grocery store. Drives me crazy that they don't see that it is stealing.

 

[trysail]

Thirty soybean pods stripped off two discarded plants lying in the dirt of a five-acre field does not constitute "theft."


It's the rural agrarian equivalent of dumpster diving. It's a well-known, ancient practice called gleaning.



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[trysail]

Day Of The Last Spring Freeze

...While the 50% probability of 32°F version of the “Freeze Normals” was used to create this map, these Normals come in a variety of levels to aid in evaluating different critical temperatures. Freeze Normals are available at 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 60%, 70%, 80%, and 90% probability levels for 16°F, 20°F, 24°F, 28°F, 32°F, and 36°F...

...Freeze Normals are especially useful to agriculture and gardeningFreeze Normals are especially useful to agriculture and gardening. For farmers, planting early can yield high rewards, but it also poses a significant risk to their plants. Freeze Normals can help them determine when they’re most likely to see their last spring freeze, allowing them to mitigate some of that risk. Additionally, these Normals can help determine when pests are likely to emerge in specific areas. And, plant nurseries use these Normals and the information they provide about planting and growing conditions to help determine where and when to advertise plants and seeds to customers in a specific area.

While this map shows the average timeframe of the last spring freeze across the United States, this year’s actual conditions may vary widely based on weather patterns...
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[trysail]

My soybeans just popped right out of the soil a mere three days after I planted them. I am surprised at how fast they germinated. Amazing.


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[trysail]

http://www.drroyspencer.com/wp-content/uploads/USDA-corn-yield-forecast-8-10-2018-550x413.jpg


http://www.drroyspencer.com/wp-content/uploads/USDA-soybean-yield-forecast-8-10-2018-550x413.jpg


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[trysail]

It's time for me to harvest my soybeans.


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