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And now into the middle part of June. The landmark date of June 21st is about two weeks away and the Fourth of July is a short four weeks from now. Those dates are important in that the old saying "Knee high by the Fourth of July" used to be a standard that has gone...
June is here and we are left wondering where the first part of May went. Lots of cold days and rainy weather eliminated many of those very pleasant and first warm days that typically mark the beautiful conditions we typically experience while everyone is intent on...
After another wet week, it is time to recognize the meteorologists who read their tea leaves and observed the galactic cycles to predict a cooler and wetter planting season. Kudos to them and their willingness to stick their necks out. To the brave shall belong the...
The 2017 planting season for the upper Midwest will enter its eighth week before long. After the monsoons across much of the region and the abnormally cool conditions, no one really knows what to expect for the state of both major crops, acres of each and replant...
Spring continues to drag on and the rate and pace of corn and bean planting varies widely across the state and the Midwest. In the last few days I have had the chance to view the crop and pace of planting in an area from extreme northwest Iowa down to St Louis. Much...
Already this growing season is looking like one that will have a multitude of challenges. Besides the economic issues, the weather, crop diseases and weeds are high on the list of things that will need lots of attention and thought. A week ago I mentioned that trying...
A few weather prognosticators correctly predicted the spring of 2017 was going to be on the cool and wet side. How we wish they were not so correct. We and our machinery are sitting on the sidelines looking at the fields that received a major drenching over the...
Now in the last week of April we all have to cross our fingers and hope that no major rain front crosses the Midwest's cropping area. Too much rests on each grower getting the chance to get their corn crop in the ground in the next two to three weeks. When each grower...
Another week later and in much of Iowa things are nearly at a standstill. After a late winter season where February weather was warm and dry the climate has changed to cooler and wetter. Around here a few fellows have been able to work some of the better tiled fields...
Here we are now two weeks into April and the checkered flag is about to drop on corn planting in the state. Of course they have corn over a foot tall in Texas where planting began over a month ago and acres have been in the ground over two weeks in Illinois, Missouri...