This airplane flying low next to our grain bins is seeding cover crop into our corn field.
I picked up a few pallets of wheat seed that will be planted early next week.
My son likes to help drive the combine!
Combine waiting for soybeans to dry out before it goes to work. Soybeans can be tough to cut early in the morning and after the sun sets.
A full load of corn on the grain cart.
Three drain tiles come together in this box. We had to dig out some dirt that had washed into the tiles.
This praying mantis spent at least 12 hours in the back of my truck.
In one field we have a oats and radishes growing as a cover crop.
This is the seed that airplane flew on. It’s ryegrass we got from Oregon.
Remember that 4630 we bought at auction a while ago? It’s been mowing roadsides and fence rows during harvest.
Me and the kid!
Finally got the corn dryer up and running. We’ve been having some problems getting it to work properly.
Dump trucks have been busy delivering lime this week. I figured they were sending a lot of fertlizer out for a co-op or farmer. Turns out this lime was going just down the road to make a stable base for a neighbor’s new cattle feedlot.
Corn dust or “bee’s wings” gathering around the corn dryer.
These soybeans are producing some very good yield considering how significant the drought was. Still is actually.
Hey Brian, What do you do with the bee’s wings?
Let them blow away. Now you’ve got me thinking I should be making money off them!
What is the purpose of the radishes as part of your cover crop? Just curious I guess.
Radishes can scavenge and store nutrients and improve soil structure. http://plantcovercrops.com/how-deep-can-radish-roots-go/
Great, thank you for linking me to that. So how big should these get before they freeze and how deep do you think they will go? Next spring I assume you just till all the dead material up before planting corn or will you no-till right into this? Is the whole idea to improve yields to cover the costs of planting these cover crops?
I’ve seen some dug up that are a couple feet deep and 3″ or more around. This is our first round of cover. We also have a field of ryegrass and cereal rye. Those will have to be sprayed in spring. No till would be best in my opinion. The basic goal would be better yields with less fertilizer because the cover captures nutrients and improves the soil. They can suppress weeds too.
We also use radishes in our cover crop mix in ND. Love your farm pictures Brian! Your son is adorable.
Thanks, Katie! I won’t lie. My kid is pretty great.