A 2017 Corn Report: Mother Nature Won

Mother Nature won. In the epic battle of Farmer vs. Mother Nature, she denied access to timely rain. She opted for 100-degree temperatures during critical growing times. She would tease us with rain clouds we could see on the horizon but kept the raindrops from falling on our parched fields.

So, it's a bit anticlimactic to report on Corn Harvest 2017. On second thought, let's just keep it lower case ... corn harvest 2017 doesn't deserve the capital letters. It was not a bumper crop. In fact, it was the worst corn crop we've had in the five years since adding it to the crop rotation on the County Line.

 

 Our 320 acres planted to corn yielded an average of 43.6 bushels per acre.

 

Since we are a totally dryland farming operation, we are dependent upon Mother Nature's rains and her heat index during critical times like pollination. She seems to be like the playground bully when it comes to County Line corn.

To compare with previous years, 2016's overall average was 71 bushels per acre. Our first year of corn production was 2013, and we had an average yield of 57 bushels per acre. In 2014, we had our best year to date, with an average of 108 bushels per acre. Overall yield average for 2015 was 43.88 bushels per acre.

The journey toward Corn Harvest 2017 began in April, when Randy planted the crop. (For a look back along the way, click on this link.)

April 2017:  The corn seed in the middle of the photo was at the end of the row, where Randy turned. Most of the seeds end up underground, where they are supposed to be, but I still liked the photo.

May 2017

We finished corn harvest September 25, but it would have been sooner had we not had some combine problems.

Our 320 acres of corn likely sounds like small potatoes - or small sprouts - to anybody who has circles of corn.

But we are primarily wheat farmers, and we were thankful for our second-best wheat crop ever here on the County Line.

After a nice, gentle 3.40" rain the week before, we started planting wheat on October 2. However, we've gotten 0.50" in the past couple of days, so we are at a standstill in that process. No complaining about moisture is allowed! We'd like to keep on Mother Nature's good side for this crop.

More on wheat planting to come ...

Pop, Pop, Pop Goes the (Pop) Corn in the Pan!

Does it confound anyone else that I can remember a poem from grade school, yet I sometimes can't remember a name that's right on the tip of my tongue? Or, when I'm watching Jeopardy!, and I know the answer. Really, I do! But I just can't transfer the answer from the depths of my mind to my mouth quite fast enough.

The yield may not be good, but Randy loves to be on the combine.

We started cutting corn yesterday afternoon, and as I rode with Randy in the combine, I kept thinking about a popcorn poem I learned at Byers Grade School. We are cutting field corn, not popcorn, but the corn coming into the bin behind Randy still reminded me of the poem.

Pop - pop - pop!
Goes the popcorn in the pan.
Pop - pop - pop!
You may catch me if you can.
Pop - pop - pop!
Says each kernel hard and yellow.
Pop - pop - pop!
I 'm a dancing little fellow.
Pop - pop - pop!
I can whirl and skip and hop.
Pop - pop - pop - pop - pop - pop - pop!

Maybe I can't remember that other stuff because my brain is cluttered with nonsensical trivia like that! (My sister, Lisa, also remembers the poem, too, so it has stood the test of time.)

Our dryland corn will not be a bumper crop. It won't even be an average crop because of dry and hot weather during pollination and grain filling stages. But it's still a job that has to be done. The first field we're cutting is at 16 percent moisture, which is dry enough to haul to the elevator.

You can find "gold" in every situation.  So I did.

I didn't like taking photos of the field we were cutting from the combine cab because it looked weedy and sparse. But I liked the Corn Palace-like mosaic that Randy's shadow cast against the backdrop of a filling grain bin.

Because Shawn was swathing sudan on a custom job for a neighbor, Randy was both combine driver and semi driver. I went along for the first trip to the Zenith elevator for Corn Harvest 2017.

Once we arrived a Zenith, Randy untarped the load ....

 

 ... then pulled onto the scales to be weighed. 

 A sample is taken to test for quality and moisture, using the probe at the office.

Then it was time to go to the dump pit. This time, they sent our truck to the outside dump site.

 

The grain is dumped via gravity from the bottom of the semi.

And then it's "See ya later!" to the guys at the elevator pit.

Back to the office we go to weigh on empty.

Ask the truck driver to pause so you can get creative with the rearview mirror shot.

Do a quick check of the prices (pretty much all down - sigh).

Attach the scale ticket to the magnet clip and head back to the field.

And repeat!