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Spring '09 Planting

Cretebaby

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2009
Messages
284
Location
E. Iowa
Theres been a little corn go in the ground here, but its raining right now. Its frustrating for sure but there's still quite a bit of time left.

We like to be done by the end of April but with the 3" we had over the weekend that isn't going to happen
 

Turbo21835

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2007
Messages
1,135
Location
Road Dog
We just had guys get the sugar beets in the ground last week. About 2 weeks behind the norm. Things were just starting to get cranked up, until the 3 and a half inches of rain saturday and sunday. Looking like another toad drowner heading our way tonight into tomorrow
 

Gadgetman

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 29, 2009
Messages
63
Location
KS
Occupation
project manager and operator
Wow, that was a big system that just rolled thru, 3+" around here too.

Hard to "Spring '09 Planting" when in the last month you've had 14" of snow and 6" of rain. Maybe we should join Deere9670 and head to the casino. lol
 

Cretebaby

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2009
Messages
284
Location
E. Iowa
Wow, that was a big system that just rolled thru, 3+" around here too.

Hard to "Spring '09 Planting" when in the last month you've had 14" of snow and 6" of rain. Maybe we should join Deere9670 and head to the casino. lol

We havn't had any snow to speak of since January, a couple of 1.5" shots in Feb is all, a wet March but very dry April up until this weekend.

Raining just a little as we speak, it is all good though we needed it and none of it run or washed anything
 

Deere9670

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 23, 2008
Messages
387
Location
Illinois
Occupation
Farm equipment operator
Flooded out here in northern IL, looks like it will take a good 7 days of no rain,sun, and wind, just to dry up. Weather forecast doesnt look good though anyway. I want a rig like this guy, so that I can just sit back a chill a beer, while my tractor does all the work!! If you look close, you can see that there is no driver!!!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zU4liQvrcm4
 

Gadgetman

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 29, 2009
Messages
63
Location
KS
Occupation
project manager and operator
Lol, cheers buddy! :drinkup
 

hvy 1ton

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2006
Messages
1,943
Location
Lawrence, KS
Gadgetman, I went to Hutch with one of my friends before that storm. I made the mistake of riding with him in his Altima coupe, i figured we would beat the snow.:Banghead
Woke up the next morning and there were bulldozers plowing downtown.:eek: After some skillful driving in a truck we made it to his friend house on the edge of town where there was a snowdrift to the bottom of the windows on a f350 on 35's.:bash The truck was white so all you could see was the tinted windows floating the mid air at first. 28" in short period of time will sure make a mess of things. Never seen so much snow in my life.
 

Gadgetman

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 29, 2009
Messages
63
Location
KS
Occupation
project manager and operator
I hear ya. I say 14" as the low side of the reports,also heard 18". How the heck could you measure it? It was all in big piles. I had to crawl out a window of the house in the morning,and dig both the front and backdoor out. Have a fenced in backyard for the dogs that had 3'-4' in it. Poor dogs couldn't even do their morning squat. lol

I was out in that storm at it's worst,rescuing people getting off a second shift at 2am. Cars were stuck everywhere blocking roads,streets and driveways,some in the parking lots where completely buried. I'll never forget it,a complete white out at times. 50 mph winds would cover your tracks in just a few minutes. I remember thinking to myself,now I know how people die in that weather.
 

thejdman04

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 6, 2006
Messages
582
Location
Illinois
Nice pics, was hoping to get some ground planted first part of april with corn, way too wet around here though
 

Cretebaby

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2009
Messages
284
Location
E. Iowa
Starting to green up

Plenty of moisture now we just need heat
 

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RocksnRoses

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 14, 2008
Messages
770
Location
South Australia
Occupation
Owner operater crushing & contracting business
I hope you fellers keep this thread going, because I am interested in following your cropping cycle, as compared to the cropping cycle here in South Australia and it seems there is not a lot of difference. While we dont have the pressure of working around the snow, planting has started here and will continue until the middle of June. We have had a good opening rain, varying from 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 inches in different areas, which makes it one of the best starts to the season, that we have had for years. The main crops grown here are wheat, barley, canola, beans, chick peas, field peas, oats and lentils. More and more farmers are going to direct drill and a lot are moving from tined planters to disc planters. GPS and auto steer is being used more, as well.
I would be interested to know what sort of rainfall you have through the growing season and what would the melting snow equate to, in rainfall?

Rn'R.
 

Gadgetman

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 29, 2009
Messages
63
Location
KS
Occupation
project manager and operator
Hmmm, the wheat,barley,beans (I assume soybeans?),and oats I'm familiar with,but not the peas or lentils. In central KS (mid US) we're in the wheat belt.Secondary crops consist of milo,soybeans,corn,alfalfa,and brome. A few dabble in oats,cotton,and sunflowers.

Average rainfall for us + or - 30". Our snow is usually fairly dry here,maybe 4"-6" to one inch of rain. However,this winter we've had wetter snowfall that would melt down 3"-4" of snow to an inch of rain. This season is unusually wet for us. Normally don't fight the mud this long,and our unplanted corn is 6" tall by now.
 

RocksnRoses

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 14, 2008
Messages
770
Location
South Australia
Occupation
Owner operater crushing & contracting business
Hmmm, the wheat,barley,beans (I assume soybeans?),and oats I'm familiar with,but not the peas or lentils. In central KS (mid US) we're in the wheat belt.Secondary crops consist of milo,soybeans,corn,alfalfa,and brome. A few dabble in oats,cotton,and sunflowers.

Average rainfall for us + or - 30". Our snow is usually fairly dry here,maybe 4"-6" to one inch of rain. However,this winter we've had wetter snowfall that would melt down 3"-4" of snow to an inch of rain. This season is unusually wet for us. Normally don't fight the mud this long,and our unplanted corn is 6" tall by now.

Now I can understand why everyone over there seems to be working in mud, farmers and earthmovers. Our average rainfall here is 16", but last year we only received 9" through the growing season and about 11" for the year. The beans planted here are Faba Beans, more of a broad bean. The peas are a field pea grown for the split pea market, but are virtually identical to the garden pea. Lentils are also a legume with a slightly smaller seed than a pea and are a major food source in countries like India and the Middle East.

Rn'R.
 

Cretebaby

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2009
Messages
284
Location
E. Iowa
Fixed a ravine today
 

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Gadgetman

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 29, 2009
Messages
63
Location
KS
Occupation
project manager and operator
Conditions look good for the dirt work. How deep is your topsoil,Crete?

Well,the rest of our corn planting is probably going to be written off. The wheat is headed out,and we're gearing up for bean and milo planting. Whenever it dries up that is.:rolleyes:

Wheat in our area is really looking good. Hope we can stay ahead of any fungus,with all this wet weather.
 

Cretebaby

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2009
Messages
284
Location
E. Iowa
Conditions look good for the dirt work. How deep is your topsoil,Crete?

Well,the rest of our corn planting is probably going to be written off. The wheat is headed out,and we're gearing up for bean and milo planting. Whenever it dries up that is.:rolleyes:

Wheat in our area is really looking good. Hope we can stay ahead of any fungus,with all this wet weather.

Topsoil averages about 2' but right where that 963 is it had silted in and he cut about 5' down and still wasn't to the bottom of it.

Even dryer here today, we finished our corn tonight and will do beans tommorow if it doesn't rain tonight.
 

Gadgetman

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 29, 2009
Messages
63
Location
KS
Occupation
project manager and operator
Thought that looked deep. That's why we have so many fields with waterways and terraces. Most of our's is less than 12".Can't afford to have it running down the creeks.

Milo and beans going in here now,and we're getting our spray rigs back in selective fields (still bugs and roundup work). Also have 2 planes dropping fungicide on wheat.
 

Turbo21835

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2007
Messages
1,135
Location
Road Dog
Well, looks like everyone has gotten back in the fields, and are trying to beat the possibility of rain this weekend. Been pretty dry since the last big rain. This guy was cooking along, paced him out on the road while he was working the field, anywhere from 10-15 mph in the dirt.
 

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Cretebaby

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2009
Messages
284
Location
E. Iowa
Well, looks like everyone has gotten back in the fields, and are trying to beat the possibility of rain this weekend. Been pretty dry since the last big rain. This guy was cooking along, paced him out on the road while he was working the field, anywhere from 10-15 mph in the dirt.

15 mph is flying pulling tillage tools. :eek:
 
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