Monday, June 19, 2023
It’s a cloudy and damp morning here at the farm. We only received 0.1″ (3mm) rain so far today, and not much more is expected. Right now it is 69ºF (21C). So the day is cool and drizzly. The corn and soybeans are liking this moisture!
Looking across this corn field, you can almost see it growing!
John and Brandon and continuing their preparations for wheat harvest. Brandon is working on the trucks again today, correcting the tire pressures and blowing out the radiators.
Making sure the pressure in the tires is just right
Blowing the dust out of the radiators makes them operate more efficiently….especially in the hot weather of wheat harvest!
John is making sure the belts and motors on the dryer are clean and lubricated and ready.
We were expecting to begin the wheat harvest early this week, but with today’s drizzle and rain in the forecast for tomorrow, this will push that back to Wednesday or Thursday. The heads on the stalks of wheat are curling down, looking more like they should when the wheat is ready. We would prefer to cut dry wheat (13% moisture in the grain) this year; the current lower prices make us hope that we do not have to run it through the dryer– and eliminate spending the $ it would take to dry the grain down. That will make us wait 3-5 days extra this summer to begin the harvest.
Wheat week is usually a hot one here in southern Indiana. I can recall the days before air conditioning in the combines… yes, we had a cab on that old Massey Ferguson combine, and there was a little fan inside to blow the hot air right into your face! That might be a part of the ‘good old days’ that wasn’t so good! As soon as possible after the wheat is cut, we will plant double-crop soybeans (DCB) into the wheat stubble. If we had more helpers here, we would have the bean planter in the field with the combines as the wheat is cut– but for us, we have to plant the soybeans after the wheat crop is done.
Coming soon to Carnahan & Sons… some very busy days!
Yesterday at church, we held a celebration for the 20th anniversary in our new building. 20 years already! The congregation moved into this facility on June 15, 2003, walking across Wheatland from the built-in-1888 building to the new one! That was a very happy day, and it was so sweet to recall it and celebrate it yesterday. Wheatland Christian Church began in May of 1875, so in just two years, we will celebrate the 150th anniversary!
Have a great week.
