Tuesday, June 10, 2014

The shop is occupied today with clean-up activity.  The corn planter was emptied of seed, lubricated, and then washed on our outdoor wash pad adjacent to the shop.  It was then placed into storage.  We plan to replace this planter over the winter with a new, more-advanced CIH 1255 24-row planter.

Next, the MX290 came inside the shop for a thorough wash and cleaning.

Brandon scrubs the MX 290 to make it look like new!

We received .4″ (10 mm) of rain overnight, and it appears that it will rain again this evening.  That small rain was a great benefit to the newly-planted corn.

The temperature is lower than we would like right now, in the low 70sF, (21ºC).  The corn and soybeans would prefer mid-80s temperatures, and the wheat needs higher heat to fully ripen more rapidly.  Although the wheat has a yellow appearance as you drive by, once you walk into it, you see green stems and leaves.  We were hopeful that wheat harvest would arrive soon, but it may be more toward the 20th until it’s fully ripe and ready.

Nicolas, our French visitor, examines the wheat and helps us estimate the harvest date.

It’s a good feeling that the planting is finally finished.  We had to wait several extra days in order to get the conservation work done on the Lett and Watjen farm locations.  We felt compelled to wait because of the importance of getting those locations improved.  The soils there are quite fragile, for they are reclaimed strip-mine fields… the mines went through in the early to mid-1970s to remove the underlying coal.  In the many years since the reclamation, we have been working to improve the soil tilth, and structure.  It is a long and ongoing process.  This spring’s work was one of the latest steps we will take to protect the soil.  We are also combining these new structures with our initial experience with cover crops.  We are hopeful that these latest efforts will improve and protect this precious, irreplaceable resource.