Tuesday, November 3, 2015
If you recall some posts to this website this summer, (see the post White Flag, July 2015) you’ll remember that we replanted some soybeans on July 18. Well, those were harvested yesterday. They finally got ripe and dry enough to cut. We had finished up all our other harvesting on October 10th, but it took 3 more weeks for these last few replant acres to ripen and dry down. There was a small patch at the Huey farm, and an even smaller patch at Waldo. We knew the day we were planting them that the harvest date would likely be in November. It is a good feeling to finally be completely finished.
At the Waldo farm, here is the very last swath of soybeans for 2015. This is the pass for which we had been looking since September 14!
During the past two weeks, the guys from CPS have been applying granular fertilizers to next year’s corn fields. This consists of P & K and some ‘micronutrients’. Some fields have also received an application of lime, which improves soil pH. These applications are all in response to precise grid sampling and testing of the soil. With the lime applied at the Steimel farm today, all the fall fertility operations are now complete.
The final clean-up is occurring today with the S680 combine on the wash pad. It will be a happy thing to have all the machines washed and put away. We like for them to be shiny and looking like new. Dad always told us, “Take care of your machines, and they’ll take care of you.”
John has begun the task of washing the S680 combine. It’s the final piece of machinery to hit the wash pad. It’s a remarkably warm day for this work. Often we are shivering when we wash for the final time after harvest! Not today… it’s gonna be in the upper 70s!
Ross and I did our traditional end-of-harvest handshake last evening. We waited until it was fully and officially ‘over’. Yes, there were challenges, but we are grateful for our harvest. With Ross’ good marketing skills, it just may turn out okay after all!
1 Thessalonians 5:18 gives us good advice.
