Stuck Between Rock and Hard Place

[WIP]

I'm starting to feel as though I'm running out of options. I am retired from my career but I still operate a hobby farm. For me, our income does not rely on my farming. With that said, I have no idea what it must be like for my neighbors that are full-time farmers.

I live in central MN. This spring has been very unusual. It started in January when the average monthly temperature was 5° F. That's 10 degrees below the average January for the previous seven years. February too was below average at 7° F. March was close to normal but April and May have been consistently below normal. Our average high temperatures right now should be in the mid 70's F. but we've been lucky to get into the 60's. Yesterday, for example, we had a high temp of 56° F. and today's predicted high is 62° F.

We've also been wetter than normal. In April we received about double our average precipitation in this area. In May, we've seen some improvement on that front. With this much moisture and cold temperatures, the ground is saturated.

In a normal year, I expect (hope) to have my wheat sown in mid April. Wheat does not do as well in hot, dry weather so it is important to seed it early in the spring so it can fill out before the heat of July and August. According to the University of MN Extension website, the optimum time to sew wheat in my area is the 2nd week of April. For every day that planting is delayed past that time, we can expect a decreased yield of about 1% per day. We can also expect a low test weight and low protein as well. I am now 5 weeks beyond the 2nd week in April. This means that if I plant my wheat now, I can expect a decreased yield of about 35% or more and the quality will be lower than desired so that too will cut into my sell price. If quality gets too poor I may have trouble selling it at all.

Wheat is a highly scrutinized crop. It is checked for low test weight, high moisture, low protein, funguses, molds, various toxins, and for sprouted kernels. I have learned that fertilizer can be very helpful toward mitigating these kinds of problems.

This year when I pre-ordered my fertilizer I was hit with the realization that the price was 4x higher than it was for the same fertilizer last year. I couldn't see spending that much on fertilizer and hoping the price would remain high enough to cover that cost so I ordered 1/2 as much, which is still very expensive, hoping it will give my wheat a boost and maintain some of my product quality.

Fuel prices are more than double what they were last year so that too is adding to the challenge.

Today, finally, I am thinking of trying to cultivate my ground in preparation for drilling the seed later this afternoon. It's supposed to be mostly sunny today so I want to give my ground as much drying time as possible. The forecast calls for rain on Wednesday so my hope is to get my seed drilled tomorrow. I know it is still a bit wet and that means that some of the ground will get chunky (one of the problems with wet heavy clay) and that will result in a lower than desired seed germination. I will probably have to work around some of the wetter areas to avoid getting stuck so it could be a challenge.

My real question/concern is, is it to the point where I should just cut my losses and not plant the wheat? I know many farmers are starting to make that choice too. To do that, I'd have to invest in some materials to build a container to store my seed until next year, keeping it dry and protected from mice and that adds cost especially with the increased cost of materials now. Storing the seed will decrease its germination rate next year too (it'll be older) so I'll probably have to seed it more dense to make up for it, and that adds to my cost as well.

Hard to believe eight months ago we were in a serious drought situation. Of course, in that situation my heavy clay worked to my advantage for it holds moisture very well and although my soybeans were about a week from total loss, the Lord did provide timely rain in late August and my soybeans rebounded nicely. I guess, if I do plant my wheat now one hope is that our summer will remain a little on the cooler side and my wheat will be okay. The down side is that soybeans need summer heat so if it remains too cool, my soybeans could be hurt.

Ah, the joys of farming! I guess the adage is accurate. We farmers can always find something to complain about. Too cold, too hot, too wet, too dry, and let's not forget about the risk from hail and wind, equipment breakdowns, and with today's economic climate, price increases.

 

[WIP]

To give some idea of what the future looks like for me this year I'll share what my wheat looks like.

I farm a total of about 60 acres. I have 10 acres of hay ground and I rotate wheat and soybeans on the remaining 50 acres. This year, I'm planting 30 acres of wheat and 20 acres of soybeans.

If I purchased the same amount of fertilizer per acre for my wheat as I did last year, it would have cost me over $6,000.00 but I chose to purchase 1/2 the amount. Here's my anticipated input costs for 2022 so far for wheat.

Seed: $950.95. It would have been more but I had about 9 bags of seed (about 4 acres coverage) left over from last year.

Fertilizer: $3,109.07. This is misleading because that amount was for about 212 lbs. per acre but because it got so late and I expect additional yield losses I decided to reduce it to 150 lbs per acre. So the actual cost per acre applied was $2,198.11. Since I prepaid for the fertilizer, I still have the remainder on my account and will be able to apply it to herbicide later on.

Herbicide: $1,680.00 (est.) Not purchased yet but I have heard that glyphosate has increased about 300% since last year. I don't use glyphosate on my wheat. I use 2,4-D and another chemical to help control foxtail grasses. Last year it cost me about $28.00 per acre and assuming the cost will be double this year I'm preparing for $56.00 per acre for the herbicide. I am going to have to purchase that soon and hopefully I can get what I need.

Harvest: $750.00 (est.) I hire my neighbor to swath and combine my wheat. We help each other quite a bit with things both related to farming and not related to farming so he gives me a pretty good deal at about $25.00 per acre. If I hired anyone else I'm sure it would cost a bit more.

Fuel: $460.00 I use about 175 gallons of diesel fuel per year in my farming. Haying doesn't use very much so I estimate only about 8% used for haying. I just checked the price for farm diesel and was told it is $4.75 per gallon. Thirty acres is 60% of my crop ground so I used that to calculate my estimated fuel cost for wheat.

Gasoline: $41.00 My grain truck runs on gasoline and gets about 6 miles per gallon loaded (about 400 bushel) so I used 8mpg average. I sell my wheat to a place 20 miles away so with only 65% yield I will probably need two trips (80 miles) or about 10 gallons of gasoline. The price of gasoline at the pump today is $4.10 so that's where I came up to $41.00.

Maintenance: This cost varies quite a bit from year to year depending on what I run into. My equipment is old so things do break down. I didn't put a figure on this because the amount is too volatile to make a reasonable estimate.

$950.95 + $2198.11 + $1680.00 + $750.00 + $460.00 + $41.00 = $6,080.06.

Estimating a 35% drop in yield and assuming I get no deductions for quality (yeah, right!) I'm looking at a yield of about 780 bushels before discounts. I just checked the cash price for wheat at my buyer's and it is about double what it was last year at $12.25 per bushel. 780 X $12.25 = $9,555.00.

With the late planting I can expect my protein will be low. That happens when wheat is rushed to maturity due to higher temperatures in late July and August. I have experienced as much as $3.50 dockage for protein as little as 2% below premium. If I get docked that much this year we can subtract 780 X $3.50 = $2,730.00 leaving me with a gross income of $6,825.00.

Three years ago I had a really bad year. It was a wet year and the protein was down 3% below premium, test weight was low, had some mold, and a vomitoxin. By the time it was done, I was paid $650.00 for all my wheat. The seed alone that year cost me more than that. I lost money that year and was lucky to be able to sell the wheat at all.

If my estimate is even close I can look forward to making about $750.00 from my wheat. Of course my estimate doesn't include maintenance, repairs, misc. supplies, grain truck insurance and licensing, etc. I do not buy crop insurance because I do not rely on farming for my source of income. In any normal year, prices will drop at harvest so I can look forward to lower prices. That can depend a lot on world supplies so remains to be seen. Hopefully, the actual results won't be too bad. Let's not forget that I will have to buy seed for next year from this.

Because I participate in the federal farm program, I might get some help from the USDA. That can vary depending on market, economic, and environmental situations. With the Covid impacts the last couple years, I've been able to get up to about $25.00 per acre. Haven't heard what's on the horizon in that regard. Incidentally, that's not totally free help as most people think. As a farm program participant, I have to make annual crop acreage reports before deadlines, fill out application forms before deadlines, environmental compliance reports, and fill in farm and farm related activities reports that are a royal pain in the neck. The government wants to know what we are doing, what our results are, and assure that we are meeting environmental guidelines.

 

[for_his_glory]

That is certainly between a rock and a hard place. No one can count on the weather conditions anymore as it changes everyday. I would look into other crops to plant that can fair the changing weather, especially if you are facing a loss with the wheat. All I can do is pray for you brother that everything will work out for you.

 

[eddif]

To give some idea of what the future looks like for me this year I'll share what my wheat looks like.

I farm a total of about 60 acres. I have 10 acres of hay ground and I rotate wheat and soybeans on the remaining 50 acres. This year, I'm planting 30 acres of wheat and 20 acres of soybeans.

If I purchased the same amount of fertilizer per acre for my wheat as I did last year, it would have cost me over $6,000.00 but I chose to purchase 1/2 the amount. Here's my anticipated input costs for 2022 so far for wheat.

Seed: $950.95. It would have been more but I had about 9 bags of seed (about 4 acres coverage) left over from last year.

Fertilizer: $3,109.07. This is misleading because that amount was for about 212 lbs. per acre but because it got so late and I expect additional yield losses I decided to reduce it to 150 lbs per acre. So the actual cost per acre applied was $2,198.11. Since I prepaid for the fertilizer, I still have the remainder on my account and will be able to apply it to herbicide later on.

Herbicide: $1,680.00 (est.) Not purchased yet but I have heard that glyphosate has increased about 300% since last year. I don't use glyphosate on my wheat. I use 2,4-D and another chemical to help control foxtail grasses. Last year it cost me about $28.00 per acre and assuming the cost will be double this year I'm preparing for $56.00 per acre for the herbicide. I am going to have to purchase that soon and hopefully I can get what I need.

Harvest: $750.00 (est.) I hire my neighbor to swath and combine my wheat. We help each other quite a bit with things both related to farming and not related to farming so he gives me a pretty good deal at about $25.00 per acre. If I hired anyone else I'm sure it would cost a bit more.

Fuel: $460.00 I use about 175 gallons of diesel fuel per year in my farming. Haying doesn't use very much so I estimate only about 8% used for haying. I just checked the price for farm diesel and was told it is $4.75 per gallon. Thirty acres is 60% of my crop ground so I used that to calculate my estimated fuel cost for wheat.

Gasoline: $41.00 My grain truck runs on gasoline and gets about 6 miles per gallon loaded (about 400 bushel) so I used 8mpg average. I sell my wheat to a place 20 miles away so with only 65% yield I will probably need two trips (80 miles) or about 10 gallons of gasoline. The price of gasoline at the pump today is $4.10 so that's where I came up to $41.00.

Maintenance: This cost varies quite a bit from year to year depending on what I run into. My equipment is old so things do break down. I didn't put a figure on this because the amount is too volatile to make a reasonable estimate.

$950.95 + $2198.11 + $1680.00 + $750.00 + $460.00 + $41.00 = $6,080.06.

Estimating a 35% drop in yield and assuming I get no deductions for quality (yeah, right!) I'm looking at a yield of about 780 bushels before discounts. I just checked the cash price for wheat at my buyer's and it is about double what it was last year at $12.25 per bushel. 780 X $12.25 = $9,555.00.

With the late planting I can expect my protein will be low. That happens when wheat is rushed to maturity due to higher temperatures in late July and August. I have experienced as much as $3.50 dockage for protein as little as 2% below premium. If I get docked that much this year we can subtract 780 X $3.50 = $2,730.00 leaving me with a gross income of $6,825.00.

Three years ago I had a really bad year. It was a wet year and the protein was down 3% below premium, test weight was low, had some mold, and a vomitoxin. By the time it was done, I was paid $650.00 for all my wheat. The seed alone that year cost me more than that. I lost money that year and was lucky to be able to sell the wheat at all.

If my estimate is even close I can look forward to making about $750.00 from my wheat. Of course my estimate doesn't include maintenance, repairs, misc. supplies, grain truck insurance and licensing, etc. I do not buy crop insurance because I do not rely on farming for my source of income. In any normal year, prices will drop at harvest so I can look forward to lower prices. That can depend a lot on world supplies so remains to be seen. Hopefully, the actual results won't be too bad. Let's not forget that I will have to buy seed for next year from this.

Because I participate in the federal farm program, I might get some help from the USDA. That can vary depending on market, economic, and environmental situations. With the Covid impacts the last couple years, I've been able to get up to about $25.00 per acre. Haven't heard what's on the horizon in that regard. Incidentally, that's not totally free help as most people think. As a farm program participant, I have to make annual crop acreage reports before deadlines, fill out application forms before deadlines, environmental compliance reports, and fill in farm and farm related activities reports that are a royal pain in the neck. The government wants to know what we are doing, what our results are, and assure that we are meeting environmental guidelines.

Little Ice Age |

www.eh-resources.org

Read this and see if it gives you any ideas.

eddif

 

[WIP]

That is certainly between a rock and a hard place. No one can count on the weather conditions anymore as it changes everyday. I would look into other crops to plant that can fair the changing weather, especially if you are facing a loss with the wheat. All I can do is pray for you brother that everything will work out for you.

It can be difficult to change directions. For one thing, I, as most farmers do, pre-order my seed for a couple reasons. First, the seed dealers offer discounts up to 10% if we place our orders in January or earlier. Second, we want to be sure that we can get the seed we need and by now other farmers, much bigger than me, are also thinking the same so supply is likely an issue. Then I'd have to figure out a way to store the 60 50-lb. bags wheat seed I purchased and protect it from moisture and mice until next year.

 

[WIP]

I was able to work up most of the wheat ground and am planning to sow seed today. Almost got stuck once. The ground was somewhat moist so it worked up a little chunkier than preferred and I can expect poor germination unless we get timely rain after I'm done planting. It's supposed to rain tomorrow so we'll see.

I'm not really complaining. It's more sharing what it's like. Being a hobby farmer I don't feel the pressure like those who do it full time. If I end up with enough money left to finance next year's operation, I'm good with that. And if I end up making a little money, I'm good with that too.

 

[WIP]

I got my wheat seed in the ground this week. Finished up on Thursday. Now it's hurry up an wait for soybeans. Thank God I don't grow corn! Soybeans require a shorter growing season and prefers warmer weather so they are usually the last crop planted. My goal every year is mid-May but this year it will be much later.

The ground I plan on seeding is much wetter than the wheat ground. It was moldboard plowed last fall so I will have to work it twice with my cultivator to get it level and seedbed ready. Yesterday I thought I would try to work up what I could to get a jump start but I found it was way too wet and I had to go around too much. It would have been a waste of my time. So....now I wait and of course, last night we picked up about 1/2" of rain with more rain in the forecast for the next three days. I'm guessing that it'll be a couple weeks before I can get them seeded, which will put them about a month behind as well. Not expecting it to be a good year for growing crops this year.

But, who knows? God can do amazing things. Last year we were in a serious drought. However, my heavy clay ground holds moisture and despite having 3" wide cracks in the soil, my wheat still did about my average yield. Here's what is really amazing. We went for almost 6 weeks without any rain at all and not much before that. On August 25, we finally got about 1-1/2" of rain. At the time, my soybeans looked pretty much done. All shriveled up and stopped flowering. I firmly believe that if we went for another week without rain, my soybeans would have been toast. Yet, 2 hours after that rain came, my soybeans were as lush and green as ever! The plants responded by putting on flowers and making seed and when it was all done, I actually ended up with a better than average yield by about 2 bushels per acre. Do you think these plants have this ability by accident? I don't. It is by God's design.

 

[for_his_glory]

WIP sometimes ya just gotta go fishing in the rain

 

[WIP]

WIP sometimes ya just gotta go fishing in the rain

Went fishing this morning. Got about 1/2" of rain overnight so I figured I might as well spend the day at the lake. We're finally getting some warm weather yesterday and today. It was 77 yesterday and 79 today and sunny so far. The forecast, however, is saying we'll be back into the 60's after this weekend of near 80s and rain. Can't do anything about it so make lemonade I guess.

 

[WIP]

Continuing the saga...

The weather has taken a turn for the better over the last couple weeks. We've gone almost a week now without rain although the daytime high temperatures are still a little, maybe about 5°, below average and without the high winds. It's actually been very pleasant for us humans. What wheat I planted is coming up nicely.

Monday, I was finally able to get out and work over what will be my soybeans. Still had to work around some wet areas but it's getting very late for soybeans too, about a month behind, so I have to do what I can and leave the rest. Fortunately, my seed supplier was able to exchange my seed for a shorter maturity bean so that can help a little.

Because I moldboard plowed that ground last fall, I needed to work it over twice with the cultivator to get it leveled out and ready for seed and now today I'm hoping to get my soybeans planted. Yesterday, after finishing the cultivating, I picked rock. I do that by hand with my ATV and a little trailer.

The forecast is calling for rain over the weekend so if that comes to pass, the timing would be good. Next on the agenda is cutting and baling our first crop of hay. Here at home, I grow a mixed blend of meadow brome, timothy, and alfalfa for our horses. Need to wait for the alfalfa to mature enough before cutting, otherwise, it can take too long to dry down for baling.

I also cut a couple acres of grass hay for one of my neighbors to help control undesirable weeds and that is getting ready for cutting so maybe I'll do that in the next day or two, depending on the weather forecast. Ideally, it would be best to cut, dry, and bale the hay without getting any rain on it but getting that 3-4 day window of dry, sunny weather can be a challenge. When it rains on cut hay, it bleaches the hay and it loses food value and volume.

Another neighbor is asking if I could cut some grass hay on their property for their two goats, about 4 acres. We would share the crop. I don't really need the extra hay unless we have a poor growing year like last year but I'm the only one around here that I know of that still makes small square bales.

Maybe I should have named this thread, "The Life and Times of a Hobby Farmer."

 

[WIP]

Thought I'd post a photo of my chariot for today. Comes with cushioned spring loaded seat and full air conditioning. Can and most likely will catch a tan while I'm working.

 

[hawkman]

Thought I'd post a photo of my chariot for today. Comes with cushioned spring loaded seat and full air conditioning. Can and most likely will catch a tan while I'm working.

View attachment 14289

My granddad had an Allis-Chalmers gas burner with a tricycle front end , that one I never did plow with . But I did turn some land with a Ford diesel tractor he had later . My other granddad had a Farmall Cub , he grew more livestock than crops . Working the land seems to be a soothing thing to do .

 

[WIP]

The drill is a Van Brunt 10' double disk dating back to the mid 1930's. My Farmall M is a 1947 model. I use it for drilling seed, pulling an IH 430 square baler, pulling hay racks, pulling an Erskine pull behind v-plow snowblower.

For my heavy work I use an Allis-Chalmers 190XT Series III diesel. About 105HP. I use that to pull my New Holland 479 9' haybine, pull a 24' field cultivator/multi-weeder, 4-16 moldboard plow, and a 10' chisel plow.

It's obvious I do not farm with modern equipment. I would love to try getting into no-till practices or other minimum till practices or even organic but the cost to go that way far exceeds my budget on my 60 acres of farmland. One thing I can and have been experimenting with is reducing the depth of my tillage. From what I've been reading, the less I disturb the ground the better it is for the micro-organisms, water filtration, organic matter, nutrient holding, and other things that happen in the soil so soil health should improve somewhat.

I've even been experimenting in my garden. Last year and this year, I waited until very late in the fall before tilling my garden and then in the spring I did not till the garden but rather just used a rake to level the soil and plant my seed. Again, the idea is to disturb the soil as little as possible and tilling late, after the soil cools off is supposed to be better as well. I actually see a little improvement in weed control in my garden so far but it's only been two years.

 

[daninthelionsden]

The drill is a Van Brunt 10' double disk dating back to the mid 1930's. My Farmall M is a 1947 model. I use it for drilling seed, pulling an IH 430 square baler, pulling hay racks, pulling an Erskine pull behind v-plow snowblower.

For my heavy work I use an Allis-Chalmers 190XT Series III diesel. About 105HP. I use that to pull my New Holland 479 9' haybine, pull a 24' field cultivator/multi-weeder, 4-16 moldboard plow, and a 10' chisel plow.

It's obvious I do not farm with modern equipment. I would love to try getting into no-till practices or other minimum till practices or even organic but the cost to go that way far exceeds my budget on my 60 acres of farmland. One thing I can and have been experimenting with is reducing the depth of my tillage. From what I've been reading, the less I disturb the ground the better it is for the micro-organisms, water filtration, organic matter, nutrient holding, and other things that happen in the soil so soil health should improve somewhat.

I've even been experimenting in my garden. Last year and this year, I waited until very late in the fall before tilling my garden and then in the spring I did not till the garden but rather just used a rake to level the soil and plant my seed. Again, the idea is to disturb the soil as little as possible and tilling late, after the soil cools off is supposed to be better as well. I actually see a little improvement in weed control in my garden so far but it's only been two years.

Someday you may have to farm just to survive. Hope it doesn't ever come to that, but I plan to get some acreage someday....just in case.

 

[GodsGrace]

I'm starting to feel as though I'm running out of options. I am retired from my career but I still operate a hobby farm. For me, our income does not rely on my farming. With that said, I have no idea what it must be like for my neighbors that are full-time farmers.

I live in central MN. This spring has been very unusual. It started in January when the average monthly temperature was 5° F. That's 10 degrees below the average January for the previous seven years. February too was below average at 7° F. March was close to normal but April and May have been consistently below normal. Our average high temperatures right now should be in the mid 70's F. but we've been lucky to get into the 60's. Yesterday, for example, we had a high temp of 56° F. and today's predicted high is 62° F.

We've also been wetter than normal. In April we received about double our average precipitation in this area. In May, we've seen some improvement on that front. With this much moisture and cold temperatures, the ground is saturated.

In a normal year, I expect (hope) to have my wheat sown in mid April. Wheat does not do as well in hot, dry weather so it is important to seed it early in the spring so it can fill out before the heat of July and August. According to the University of MN Extension website, the optimum time to sew wheat in my area is the 2nd week of April. For every day that planting is delayed past that time, we can expect a decreased yield of about 1% per day. We can also expect a low test weight and low protein as well. I am now 5 weeks beyond the 2nd week in April. This means that if I plant my wheat now, I can expect a decreased yield of about 35% or more and the quality will be lower than desired so that too will cut into my sell price. If quality gets too poor I may have trouble selling it at all.

Wheat is a highly scrutinized crop. It is checked for low test weight, high moisture, low protein, funguses, molds, various toxins, and for sprouted kernels. I have learned that fertilizer can be very helpful toward mitigating these kinds of problems.

This year when I pre-ordered my fertilizer I was hit with the realization that the price was 4x higher than it was for the same fertilizer last year. I couldn't see spending that much on fertilizer and hoping the price would remain high enough to cover that cost so I ordered 1/2 as much, which is still very expensive, hoping it will give my wheat a boost and maintain some of my product quality.

Fuel prices are more than double what they were last year so that too is adding to the challenge.

Today, finally, I am thinking of trying to cultivate my ground in preparation for drilling the seed later this afternoon. It's supposed to be mostly sunny today so I want to give my ground as much drying time as possible. The forecast calls for rain on Wednesday so my hope is to get my seed drilled tomorrow. I know it is still a bit wet and that means that some of the ground will get chunky (one of the problems with wet heavy clay) and that will result in a lower than desired seed germination. I will probably have to work around some of the wetter areas to avoid getting stuck so it could be a challenge.

My real question/concern is, is it to the point where I should just cut my losses and not plant the wheat? I know many farmers are starting to make that choice too. To do that, I'd have to invest in some materials to build a container to store my seed until next year, keeping it dry and protected from mice and that adds cost especially with the increased cost of materials now. Storing the seed will decrease its germination rate next year too (it'll be older) so I'll probably have to seed it more dense to make up for it, and that adds to my cost as well.

Hard to believe eight months ago we were in a serious drought situation. Of course, in that situation my heavy clay worked to my advantage for it holds moisture very well and although my soybeans were about a week from total loss, the Lord did provide timely rain in late August and my soybeans rebounded nicely. I guess, if I do plant my wheat now one hope is that our summer will remain a little on the cooler side and my wheat will be okay. The down side is that soybeans need summer heat so if it remains too cool, my soybeans could be hurt.

Ah, the joys of farming! I guess the adage is accurate. We farmers can always find something to complain about. Too cold, too hot, too wet, too dry, and let's not forget about the risk from hail and wind, equipment breakdowns, and with today's economic climate, price increases.

Hey WIP
You sure do have an expensive hobby with lotsa headaches!

 

[WIP]

Hey WIP
You sure do have an expensive hobby with lotsa headaches!

Not always. Each year has its own challenges but most of the time they aren't too bad, particularly for a hobby farmer like me.

This year has been a challenge with the cold and wet spring. Our weather pattern since January has been below average temperatures....below average by as much as 20 degrees. With our type of heavy clay ground on average, we get more moisture than we truly need and when we get an unusually wet period, that can be challenging. Only this past week we saw more average temperatures and at this time of year humidity is usually low so it has been very comfortable for us humans with temps in the upper 70's.

Last year we were very dry and considered to be experiencing severe to extreme drought. It got so dry there were cracks in my ground up to 3" wide and over 4' deep (I stuck a 4' round rod into them and couldn't touch bottom). I think I mowed my lawn maybe 4 times all summer and that was only because I watered a little in early August so it wouldn't die completely.

Despite the dry conditions, my wheat crop yielded near average with very good quality. My soybeans, on the other hand, were nearly lost to the dry conditions. In late August, after nearly 6 weeks with no rain and hot, dry conditions, we finally got over 1" of rain. My soybeans went from looking dead to lush and green within two hours of that rain. The rest of the year continued more on the wet side and when we harvested my soybeans in early October, I was surprised to find that the yield was about 2 bushels per acre above my average! I truly believe if that rain had waited another week, my soybeans would have been toast.

 

[GodsGrace]

Not always. Each year has its own challenges but most of the time they aren't too bad, particularly for a hobby farmer like me.

This year has been a challenge with the cold and wet spring. Our weather pattern since January has been below average temperatures....below average by as much as 20 degrees. With our type of heavy clay ground on average, we get more moisture than we truly need and when we get an unusually wet period, that can be challenging. Only this past week we saw more average temperatures and at this time of year humidity is usually low so it has been very comfortable for us humans with temps in the upper 70's.

Last year we were very dry and considered to be experiencing severe to extreme drought. It got so dry there were cracks in my ground up to 3" wide and over 4' deep (I stuck a 4' round rod into them and couldn't touch bottom). I think I mowed my lawn maybe 4 times all summer and that was only because I watered a little in early August so it wouldn't die completely.

Despite the dry conditions, my wheat crop yielded near average with very good quality. My soybeans, on the other hand, were nearly lost to the dry conditions. In late August, after nearly 6 weeks with no rain and hot, dry conditions, we finally got over 1" of rain. My soybeans went from looking dead to lush and green within two hours of that rain. The rest of the year continued more on the wet side and when we harvested my soybeans in early October, I was surprised to find that the yield was about 2 bushels per acre above my average! I truly believe if that rain had waited another week, my soybeans would have been toast.

You call it a hobby, but to me it sounds like a "real" farm.

Sometimes on my way up to Milan (to pick up someone from the airport or drop them off - only when necessary, it's 3.5 hours!) I see these big farms, I have no idea of the acreage. But they have these sprinklers that spread the water very far.
Is this not practical for you?

 

[WalterandDebbie]

I'm starting to feel as though I'm running out of options. I am retired from my career but I still operate a hobby farm. For me, our income does not rely on my farming. With that said, I have no idea what it must be like for my neighbors that are full-time farmers.

I live in central MN. This spring has been very unusual. It started in January when the average monthly temperature was 5° F. That's 10 degrees below the average January for the previous seven years. February too was below average at 7° F. March was close to normal but April and May have been consistently below normal. Our average high temperatures right now should be in the mid 70's F. but we've been lucky to get into the 60's. Yesterday, for example, we had a high temp of 56° F. and today's predicted high is 62° F.

We've also been wetter than normal. In April we received about double our average precipitation in this area. In May, we've seen some improvement on that front. With this much moisture and cold temperatures, the ground is saturated.

In a normal year, I expect (hope) to have my wheat sown in mid April. Wheat does not do as well in hot, dry weather so it is important to seed it early in the spring so it can fill out before the heat of July and August. According to the University of MN Extension website, the optimum time to sew wheat in my area is the 2nd week of April. For every day that planting is delayed past that time, we can expect a decreased yield of about 1% per day. We can also expect a low test weight and low protein as well. I am now 5 weeks beyond the 2nd week in April. This means that if I plant my wheat now, I can expect a decreased yield of about 35% or more and the quality will be lower than desired so that too will cut into my sell price. If quality gets too poor I may have trouble selling it at all.

Wheat is a highly scrutinized crop. It is checked for low test weight, high moisture, low protein, funguses, molds, various toxins, and for sprouted kernels. I have learned that fertilizer can be very helpful toward mitigating these kinds of problems.

This year when I pre-ordered my fertilizer I was hit with the realization that the price was 4x higher than it was for the same fertilizer last year. I couldn't see spending that much on fertilizer and hoping the price would remain high enough to cover that cost so I ordered 1/2 as much, which is still very expensive, hoping it will give my wheat a boost and maintain some of my product quality.

Fuel prices are more than double what they were last year so that too is adding to the challenge.

Today, finally, I am thinking of trying to cultivate my ground in preparation for drilling the seed later this afternoon. It's supposed to be mostly sunny today so I want to give my ground as much drying time as possible. The forecast calls for rain on Wednesday so my hope is to get my seed drilled tomorrow. I know it is still a bit wet and that means that some of the ground will get chunky (one of the problems with wet heavy clay) and that will result in a lower than desired seed germination. I will probably have to work around some of the wetter areas to avoid getting stuck so it could be a challenge.

My real question/concern is, is it to the point where I should just cut my losses and not plant the wheat? I know many farmers are starting to make that choice too. To do that, I'd have to invest in some materials to build a container to store my seed until next year, keeping it dry and protected from mice and that adds cost especially with the increased cost of materials now. Storing the seed will decrease its germination rate next year too (it'll be older) so I'll probably have to seed it more dense to make up for it, and that adds to my cost as well.

Hard to believe eight months ago we were in a serious drought situation. Of course, in that situation my heavy clay worked to my advantage for it holds moisture very well and although my soybeans were about a week from total loss, the Lord did provide timely rain in late August and my soybeans rebounded nicely. I guess, if I do plant my wheat now one hope is that our summer will remain a little on the cooler side and my wheat will be okay. The down side is that soybeans need summer heat so if it remains too cool, my soybeans could be hurt.

Ah, the joys of farming! I guess the adage is accurate. We farmers can always find something to complain about. Too cold, too hot, too wet, too dry, and let's not forget about the risk from hail and wind, equipment breakdowns, and with today's economic climate, price increases.

We are praying that the LORD bring forth a great harvest.

Love, Walter and Debbie

 

[WIP]

You call it a hobby, but to me it sounds like a "real" farm.

Sometimes on my way up to Milan (to pick up someone from the airport or drop them off - only when necessary, it's 3.5 hours!) I see these big farms, I have no idea of the acreage. But they have these sprinklers that spread the water very far.
Is this not practical for you?

Technically, to be classified as a "real farm" requires that I operate a full-time farm and not just a part-time (hobby) farm. To be qualified as a full-time farm requires that more than 50% of my annual income comes from my farming operation and I'm nowhere near that.

Irrigation systems are very expensive. A single rotary system like what I think you're describing would cost over $40,000.00 to cover a 40 acre area. My ground is broken up into four 5-acre pieces, one 8-acre piece, one 27-acre piece, and one 3-acre piece. To irrigate those would require a separate system for each. Fortunately for me our average year is more likely too wet rather than too dry so irrigation is not required on my soil.

The opposite option would be to put in drain tile on some of the wetter pieces of ground to help the soil dry out in the spring. I would never use a drain tile to drain a wetland for farming or to pattern tile an entire field because I don't agree with doing those things but those places that I had to work around this year would be a good place for a few single drain tiles so that I could more consistently farm those pieces. But, installed drain tile too can be very expensive. I've heard as much as $2-$3 per foot of tile. All I would gain with that is that I'd not have to skip around those 4-5 acres in 2 out of 5 years when things are a little too wet. Again, it would take many years to pay for the tile.

 

[WIP]

We are praying that the LORD bring forth a great harvest.

Love, Walter and Debbie

I'm okay if I only break even so I can be able to plant again next year. It's a hobby so if I make a few dollars, that's great, but it isn't life and death if I don't.