Monday, May 1, 2023

Well, May has arrived.  And, today, planting is stopped.  The rainy period that began on Thursday night continues today.  No, it has not been a heavy rain, but enough to keep us out of the fields.  We are currently over halfway finished with planting.  So, that feels good to have a big chunk of the crops in the ground in April.  I’ll be out on the Gator this afternoon to search for a dry field where I could plant soybeans tomorrow or Wednesday.   Now that May has arrived, there becomes a bit more urgency to get the crops in the ground.  But it’s too soon to despair about it.  There will be a day.

None of the planted fields have plants that have emerged from the soil, but the upcoming weekend is predicted to be  in the 70s, so that should coax many of them out into the sunshine!

Brandon has used these damp days to track down a problem he was experiencing with the down-pressure system on row 17 of the corn planter.  He went as far as he could, chasing a broken wire… a tech came Saturday and replaced a small wiring harness… and voila!  Good as new.  We were so fortunate it was a small harness, not one that was long, complicated, and super-expensive.

Here is the wiring harness that was replaced.

John has the pre-emerge, burn-down herbicides completed.  In inspecting the wheat crop, it appears that the heads are beginning to emerge.  So, next week, he will be applying the final pass of fungicide and insecticide on the wheat crop.  Just think…6 or 7 weeks from now the combines will be running!

Have a good week.