Caught up… kind of

Posted on May 15, 2026 by casifarm

Friday, May 15, 2026

There is a light rain falling late this morning, and it is welcome.  It was getting dry again, but this will help.

John finished late yesterday with the application of herbicide/fungicide on the corn fields.  He had been working in between windy days to get that completed.  Yesterday was a good “spraying day” with low winds and sunny skies.  Now he will clean up/clean out his sprayer to get ready to apply the first pass of herbicide on the soybean crop.  He thinks he can start that sometime next week.   So, for the moment, he is ‘caught up’.

John loads his sprayer. He mixes each batch as he loads. This treatment for corn has 7 different ingredients.

I was able to get the replant soybeans done at Dunn, Steen, Steimel, VanVleet, and Freddie using the nice sunny days of Wednesday and Thursday.   It wasn’t a lot of acres, but a few more than I had thought early in the week.  There were lots of road miles, too.  The replants went into the soil very nicely.   This replant was made necessary by the 5″ rain we received back on April 28 and 29. So, for the moment, I’m ‘caught up’.

Working at the Freddie farm

I still have soybeans to replant in 3 more fields near White River.  The recent flood event drowned the soybeans in the ‘sloughs’ or ‘bayous’ through these fields, and there were spots where the ponding rainwater did the same.  I would estimate there will be <50 acres left to replant in these 3 fields.   I checked on them this morning and found river flooding still occurring.  After the White River’s crest on Tuesday at Edwardsport, it was predicted to fall very slowly over the next 10 days.   The river water will have to recede, and then it will take 4-8 days of dry weather for those areas to be dry enough to plant.

Brandon shared that he has a few fields where he must replant corn.  It is not a significant number in any field.  He thinks there will be no field with >20 acres, so there will not be any replant claim on crop insurance.  He is still waiting for those areas to be dry enough for him to return there to drop in some replant corn.

Today, you can begin to see the faintest hint that the wheat is ‘turning’ or ripening toward harvest.  The deep green will eventually turn to a beautiful gold!  The 3rd week of June is typically the start time, but this year it may be ready earlier.   We will make every effort to be ready for harvest.  The combines are serviced; the internal adjustments and additions have been made.  They are fueled and DEF’d and greased.   Ready.   The headers will get prepared soon.

Today, we are grateful for this rain.  It has not brought much just yet, but there are additional chances each day through Tuesday.  Let’s hope we get gentle rains, unlike the last rainy spell.  An inch or so, scattered over a couple days, would be ideal.

All in all, the crop year of 2026 has been okay.  Yes, we’ve had some extremes in dry weather and rainy weather, but overall, the crops (especially the corn crop) look pretty good.   We don’t expect a record wheat crop, but it does look very good right now.  So, we are content and keep looking ahead in hope.

Next week, I plan to get started with the JD 6145R and R15 rotary cutter.   The guys sharpened the blades yesterday.  I fully intend to reduce the number of mowings I do on the roadsides this summer in order to save on fuel, but there are 3 places in particular that I like to keep looking nicely manicured.

Have a beautiful weekend.

 

 

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Sunny morning

Posted on May 11, 2026 by casifarm

Monday, May 11, 2026

First thing today, I took the packet of bills to the courthouse in Vincennes to drop off payment for the Spring Installment of the 2026 property taxes, which are due today.  There is a special box outside the building to drop them off.  Years ago, I used to go into the Treasurer’s Office and wait in line and watch them go through each item and stamp them ‘paid’.  Then, for several years, I would mail them in.  Nowadays, I use the new drop-off box to pay the property taxes.  Included in the packet is self-addressed, stamped envelope for them to return the ‘paid’ slips.  It is important that these are paid “on time” — there is a minimum 10% penalty for any late payment.

We had a nice weather weekend, even if the temps were a tiny bit cool in the evenings and mornings.  At least it was sunny with warm days in the 70s.  More of that is predicted for this week.  John will likely get the post spraying in the corn crop started today, unless the winds kick up too high again.   I still need a few days drying in order to get back to the soybean fields that have drowned-out spots from recent heavy rains.   Brandon will be checking the corn fields to determine where and how much corn requires replanting.   The flat fields at the Huey farm will certainly need some replant, for there was standing water there for many days.

White River is still above flood stage.  The flooding is minor at our near-US 50 locations.  But farther down river, near Petersburg, the river is a little higher and the flood damage is a little greater.   Those river levels are predicted to crest today and begin their slow retreat.   Hope we are done with that until at least next winter!

Little by little, we will get back to where we need to be.   You know, after the prolonged dry spell in March and April, we were concerned with drought… but the rainfall has been plentiful (too plentiful in spots) and even with some flood damage, it is better to have too much rain than too little.   Dad always said, “You can raise more crop in a wet year than a dry one.”   And he’s right.

I plan to go to the Dunn and Steen Hill farms today to burn corn stalks that floated up in piles during the recent rains.  When those pile up during flooding, they make a type of mulch that does not dry out underneath.  Plus, it smothers the little soybeans.  There will be replant in each of these areas…it’s just not dry enough yet.

The older S780 combine is in the shop getting prepared for wheat harvest.  We discovered some worn parts on the belt tensioner that runs the feed accelerator.  John ordered the parts, I picked them up on Saturday, and those are getting installed today.

The tensioner parts were worn out and no longer kept proper tension on the feed accelerator belt. John assembles the new parts and it will work as it should!

I picked up on Friday some soybean seed for replanting.  I hope to get that moved into the air cart today or tomorrow, and I may be able to begin doing some of that replant by Wednesday.  Time will tell.

Some good news…the soybeans I replanted 2+weeks ago, are finally beginning to pop through the soil.  The cold weather caused them to be extra-slow in emerging, but they are finally coming up and that is a relief to see!

Have a great week everyone!

 

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Still wet

Posted on May 6, 2026 by casifarm

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

Another 1.42″ (36mm) rain fell overnight.

And it has been rather cold for several days.

This pushes back the time of replanting until at least next week.  And the forecast has another .3″ predicted for both Friday and Sunday!  After a very dry March and April, May is bringing us rain!   I’ve identified about 150 more acres of soybeans that need replanted.  That will take care of it unless we have more downpours and/or the river crests are higher than we expect now.   That number of acres won’t take long to get done, but it is scattered across 7 farms in 3 different townships!   Lots of driving.  Good news is… the 500-or-so acres of soybeans I’ve already replanted are now finally popping through the soil and should be okay.  The chilly days we’ve had are slowing that emergence.

We don’t despair over the additional replant, at least not yet.   Before this rainy spell set in, we were getting concerned about a repeat of the drought of 2012.   For now, at least, a drought is not on our radar.  Perhaps the weather will allow us to get to our replant next week.   That would be great to get it done before May 15.  But we can only do what the conditions allow.  And worrying about it does not make it better.  So, we choose to trust our Maker that we will once again be able to complete our planting needs.

During the wet spell, the two Brandons have one of the S780 combines in the shop, preparing it for wheat harvest, maybe 6 weeks away.  They found a big belt that drives the chopper that had a big chunk missing.  So, they decided to replace it.   They had to dismantle many things on the left rear of the machine, but they did so, and now it is all back together again, good as new!  I’m so proud of them and their mechanic skills.

Here is the view with the belt removed and all the associated parts and assemblies removed or re-positioned in order to get that old belt off

Here is the ‘after’ picture, all back in place with a new belt.

Oil change, lubrication, replacing filters, adjusting elevator chains (including taking out a link to shorten the clean grain elevator), inspecting, installing wheat-related internal threshing parts and correcting tire pressures…the combines require good attention to perform preventive maintenance.

All done and prepared and ready to cut wheat

Seems like there is almost nothing those guys can’t do!

 

 

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Anticipating a wet week

Posted on May 4, 2026 by casifarm

Monday afternoon, May 4, 2026

Happy “Star Wars Day”!  (May the 4th be with you…)

It was pretty chilly over the weekend, and we received a tiny rain in the wee hours of this morning.  Now, in the late afternoon, the skies are again overcast and there is a stiff breeze blowing.  The temp has reached 74ºF (23C) but it doesn’t ‘feel’ warm.  More rain is predicted for tomorrow, as much as 1.4″ (36mm).   We have been inspecting most of the planted fields over the past few days.  I’m making another list of fields where areas of replanting will need to be done in the soybeans.  So far, that list shows about another 110 acres.  Brandon is doing the same for the corn fields.  This replant need has been created by the heavy (as much as 5+ inches) weekend before last.  White River West Fork has also had some minor flooding which added to the replanting list.  It will be a few days before those areas dry enough to perform the replanting.

Until then, other tasks occupy our days.  The guys have one of the combines in the shop and they are making the changes necessary to prepare it to cut wheat next month.  In addition, a full servicing will be given, with engine oil change, filter changes, and lubrication.

The newer S780 (2024 model) is in our shop to prepare for next month’s wheat harvest. The older S780 (2019 model) will come into the shop soon after this one is prepared. The headers will need attention also.

We were anticipating an unusually early start to wheat harvest, but the chilly recent days have slowed that down noticeably.   If we start wheat harvest about the typical time (June 20), it will not be surprising.   It feels good to get the combines and headers ready.  It’s never fun to feel ‘under the gun’ but that is sometimes unavoidable.

John has also been reviewing the planted fields to determine the weed pressure and to organize his priorities for when to begin post-emerge spraying herbicides.   He says, “Oh, it’ll all be ready at the same time!”    He feels the pressure of that timing, and how the load of work can compress into a smaller window of opportunity.   It certainly is a challenge, made even more so by his compulsion to get it “exactly right”.   We know from all the previous years that it will somehow all work out.

Have a great week.

 

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Could have been worse…

Posted on April 30, 2026 by casifarm

Thursday, April 30, 2026

We escaped the big, big rain with marginal damage.  We received 4.5 inches (and in some field locations an inch more) of rain starting Saturday, and we had flooding in many of our creek-bottom flat fields.   But that has quickly drained away, and the resulting damage to the corn and soybeans seems (at this moment) to be minimal.  The situation for the fields near White River is not yet determined.  Flood crest levels at Edwardsport are predicted to crest at 17.1 feet on Saturday.  The crest will occur at our fields along US 50 about 1 day after that.  Those numbers will bring little damage.   Downstream at Petersburg, the numbers are a bit higher, showing 19.8 feet on Friday.  The Petersburg gauge is nearer our Freddie farm location, and a 20+ foot river will bring some flooding there.

Here’s this morning’s White River forecast at Edwardsport. The graph is helpful to know what to expect.

This big rain is a mixed bag of blessings and problems, but the blessings outweigh the problems.  We were getting extraordinarily dry, and the rain surely helped.  The damage, at least so far as we can know now, is limited compared to what could have been.  The pre-rain river levels were very, very low and that gave them some capacity to carry away the heavy rain with less flood damage to nearby fields.

Today, we are counting our blessings for this rain event.

…

We are sending our sympathy to the family of Knox County farmer Marlin Dreiman, who passed away in a traffic accident on Tuesday.   His absence will be felt throughout this community.

 

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BIG rain!

Posted on April 28, 2026 by casifarm

Tuesday, April 28, 2026

Well, I’d say the stress of the drought is over.

We had 3 major waves of storms come through from Monday morning through midnight.  The second wave was the biggest one, but the total for the day brought 4.3″ in most locations.  4.14″ here at the farm office.  Other farmers in the area have reported over 5″!   Now, we have a different type of stress.   There will be more acres of corn and soybeans to replant due to localized flooding.    We can take heart in that it’s still relatively early.

A bit of Climate’s Fieldview rainfall report this morning

Terre Haute Channel 10’s Everett Laue shows the red radar running across SWIN yesterday evening

Many WASCoBs are still draining out this morning.  The ones higher on the slope are always the first ones to drain, but those down the hill take longer.  If they are clear in 24 hours, there should be little crop damage contained in them, and it is certain there is less erosion to the soil!

One thought helps me today as I recall one of dad’s sayings…”You can raise more crop in a wet year than you can a dry one.”

I’m also recalling the promise of Romans 8:28…   “God works for the good” in that passage does not mean for our comfort or success or pleasure or happiness, but for our good.   It sometimes takes a while to understand, but we believe this promise.

Have a great week.

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Hopefully, a rainy day…

Posted on April 27, 2026 by casifarm

Monday, April 27, 2026

The skies to the west this morning look dark and I hear a little bit of thunder.  We have been praying for many days now to get a good rain.  It has become very dry in our part of SWIN, and a rainy day will be quite welcome!  You hear farmers talk of this spring in comparison to 2012… the year of the drought.   That experience is one we don’t want to repeat!

Dark skies in the west usually indicate approaching rain

The weather app we use most often, besides Weather Channel, is called Weather Underground.  It is predicting this morning 1.94″ (49mm) today and 0.45″ (12mm) tomorrow.  We are hoping that is accurate.

I was busy 3+ days last week replanting soybeans.  As of Saturday night, I had replanted 480 acres.   I did this upon the advice of our consultant and went ahead and replanted in anticipation of a rain.  There may be more to replant, but I will not do more until we get a decent rain.  We will evaluate the stand in the other fields after a good rain (hopefully today) and decide if further replants are needed.  In most cases, where I’ve replanted, the original seeds did sprout, but the soil dried out around the seedlings, and they died from dehydration.   We are not the only farmers facing this situation in our area, and that is making it a bit more difficult to locate the replant seed.  But I have not been delayed yet with what needed to be re-done because of seed shortage.  Thankful for that.

Replanting soybeans along US 50 near Wheatland.

One of the costs of replanting is the fuel it takes…about 17 gallons per hour when drilling soybeans.

Filling up at the fuel tank at the home farm. The tractor holds 400 gallons.

 

Well, at 2 pm, we have received .09″  (3mm).   Not a lot, but they say more is on the way.  Maybe even 2″!   It is rather spotty too… it appears that more rain came to the Freddie farm southeast of here about 10 miles.  Just so grateful to get some rain.

PTL!

This rain will also be good for the flowers at the office.  The peonies are at their peak of blooming.  Pat has cut a few to take home to decorate and to give to friends.  I think they look great.  It’s the official ‘state flower’ of Indiana.  And they smell pretty good, too.

Peonies near the office front door. Great color!

Tomorrow, we will take some time to visit the fields after this rain (and what’s supposed to be coming tonight) and continue to evaluate.   It will take into late next week to determine accurately if more replant is needed.  Days in the 70s instead of the 80s will slow down the emergence of newly-replanted soybeans.   But this rain will certainly improve their chances!  There may be some more soybeans to replant, and Brandon tells me he expects to do some corn replant at the Pond farm…after this rain.

Have a great week.  It’s starting off really nice here!

 

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Inspecting wheat in SWIN

Posted on April 17, 2026 by casifarm

Friday, April 17, 2026

John has been out this morning checking on the wheat crop in the various fields.   Although the stand is a little thinner in some places than we would prefer, he is finding some nice size heads that are just now pushing out.  We survived a scare a few weeks ago, when we had two nights with low temps in the mid-20s F.  Thankfully, the wheat was still in a development stage in which it was undamaged by the cold.  Now, with recent days in the 80s F, the development seems to have sped up a bit… heads coming out in mid-April is not common.  As of today, the appearance of this wheat crop is encouraging!

Heads are beginning to emerge

Here is a sample from 3 different farm locations.

One of the longest heads I can ever remember seeing… and it is only April 17!

The final application of nitrogen was made about 2 weeks ago, and the fields now have a very deep and dark and rich green color… bordering on a blueish-green.  Next week, John will be taking the sprayer through the wheat fields one last time to apply the final application of fungicide, along with an insecticide, and root stimulant.   By intensifying our wheat management practices, we are investing more heavily into our wheat crop these days, but our yield expectations have risen dramatically since we began to do so.  Instead of 50-60 bpa, we are disappointed when it only makes 100 bpa nowadays!  One neighbor last year had a wheat field that made 155!  Our best in 2025 was 139 bpa, and hoping for some fields to top that this year!  But just as dad would say, “Don’t start writing checks on it just yet.”   It is a long way from the finish line!

Wheat at the Waldo farm, such a rich green color

Brandon D is delivering the last of the 2025 corn crop to GPC near Washington.  They swept out the #10A bin yesterday, and now our bins are officially MT (empty).  It was our best-yielding corn crop ever.   But it is good to see the bins empty before we harvest wheat.

The last load being put on the truck…

Have a great weekend.

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#plant26 is done!

Posted on April 15, 2026 by casifarm

Wednesday, April 15, 2025

As I drove up onto US 50 out of the Commer field yesterday evening to head towards home with the JD 9R540 tractor, the 1910 air cart, and N550 NT drill, the planting of 2026 soybeans was complete.  And because Brandon had finished the corn planting the previous Saturday night (the 11th), all spring planting is now complete.  This is not the earliest finish in the history of Carnahan & Sons.  That distinction rests on 2012, when all planting was complete on April 13.   This spring has some similarities to that year, but we certainly do not desire a repeat of that particular year… known across the Midwest at the Great Drought year.    The weather is the topic of conversation here and always a comparison to 2012.   Let’s pray that the weather pattern changes.  A little rain is predicted for Saturday, but only about .3″ (8mm).   As always, we will take what He sends us and we will be grateful.

Brandon planting corn. He worked diligently to get it done in a very timely way.

I make my way towards home on Tuesday evening. This is westbound US 5o, west of Wheatland, near Marchino Road

Our soybeans that were planted on April 1 are now emerging from the soil.   Yes, that seems early.  No corn has emerged yet from our earliest-planted fields.   We wait patiently for that to happen.  It is always a relief to see the tiny plants come springing out of the soil.  You don’t really consider your planting to be successful until that happens.

Baby beans are coming up! PTL!

John has removed the 9R540 from the drill today, and it will get washed and stored away in the new building (built in 2024, it still seems new).  The drill will remain outdoors until time to plant DCB after wheat harvest in late June.  It could also be called back into service sooner, if we determine that some soybean fields or portions of fields need to be re-planted.  But for now, the tractor will go back into the new building to be kept out of the baking sun.  We prefer our machines to be indoors out of the rain, and especially out of the sun which over time can fade the paint.

Unhooked from the 9R540 tractor, this drill and air cart will stay here until DCB or possible replant time.

The 9R540 in the shop on this windy day, waiting to be made #Andyclean.

In many ways, it feels good to have #plant26 behind us.  By finishing this early in the season, there is greater potential for good yields and earlier harvest, especially for soybeans.  There is a lot of the story of the 2026 crop yet to be written, and we will have to wait patiently to see how it all unfolds.

I received a report from Greg, our wheat consultant at Nutrien, that one variety of our wheat crop is beginning to develop heads… this is called the “boot stage”.   It will soon require another over-the-top application of a fungicide!    That should finish the wheat crop off until harvest begins in mid-to-late June, typically starting on the 20th, (my mom’s birthday… she would be 111 this year).   Let’s hope the winds die down a bit… this has been a severely limiting factor this spring… strong winds stop the use of the sprayer.

We have started to receive the property tax bills in the mail.   I catalog each one into a special proprietary spreadsheet and make a comparison to previous years.  Looks like for bare farmland, the assessed value has decreased this year, the tax rate is up a little bit, and resulting the tax bill decreased a 3-4%.

Farm office work today.  It’s a good thing I don’t mind to do it, for there seems to be a never-ending need for it to be done!

Have a beautiful week.

 

 

 

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#plant26 corn is done

Posted on April 11, 2026 by casifarm

Saturday afternoon, April 11, 2026

Well… almost done.

 

Barring any breakdown, Brandon should plant the last rows of 2026 corn this evening.  Yes, that is probably the earliest we have completed corn planting at Carnahan & Sons.  The fields are pretty dry, but there is moisture at planting depth.  So, the seeds are going into the soil in about as fine a manner as they ever have!

Brandon plants corn on the hill behind his house

Soybean planting is now about 2/3 done, a pretty brisk pace.  I stopped planting Friday afternoon when the last of the ‘hill fields’ were done.  I am waiting until Monday to return to soybean planting to allow the river-bottom fields near White River to dry a bit more.   Unless there is an unpredicted significant rain over the weekend, those remaining 4 fields (about 500 acres) will begin to be planted on Monday.   Unless rained out, I should get done by Wednesday night.  As dry as it is now, I won’t be upset if we would get a good inch of rain!

Got this picture as I was stopped for lunch on Wednesday. Pat usually brings me a great meal to the field most workdays at noon.

It’s a little concerning to have these dry conditions this early.   The last time we completed all spring planting this early was on April 13, 2012… the year of the major drought!   At the time, we thought we had hit a home run with early planting, but the drought took over and the harvest was dismal.  Even with the benefit of crop insurance, we took a significant hit that took about 3 years to recover.   So, we are praying for the summer of ’26 not to repeat the summer of ’12!  View a 3-minute Youtube video from the spring planting of 2012.

John has had difficulty finding suitable days to run the sprayer this spring.  Wind!   Today, the breezes are low-single-digits and that allowed him to finish up the spring burndown herbicide applications for soybeans and corn earlier today.  He tries very, very hard to get it ‘just right’, and make certain those expensive chemistries hit the target– not blown into the next county!

John sprays soybean burndown herbicide at the Harvey/Wanda farm.

 

We had a wonderful supper here with John’s family on Easter Sunday.  It was a lovely time together.

A group selfie after supper.

Have a great weekend!

 

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