Combines Planting Progress

Illinois_Gleaner

Guest
I am not disagreeing with you. I am glad it works that way for you where you are from. But I know it doesnt work that way around here. I know alot of guys that use to notill for years ,but have given it up. It just doesnt work here. They just kept loosing yeild,year after year. Besides I dont think I could wait 5-7 years for something to work,even if it did,I would be broke before then. I will see if it works though,because I have some notilled beans on that ground that hasnt been touched for 10 years,maybe they will make it and the others wont. It will be a good test ,its had 6 inches in the 10 days since they were planted,plus cold temps. It is river bottom ground. IG
 

PETE

Guest
This year is shaping up like 1983 here in eastern Ia. Cold and wet early then around late June temps skyrocketed and moisture quit falling. Hope I'm wrong. Pete
 

R_O_M

Guest
Interesting in what you say about No Till in you're area Illinois Gleaner. Quite a number of farmers are into NoTill around here in the south east of Oz. Some seem to be doing it quite well but some others aren't doing any better than the more convential guys who do a cultivation or Reduced Till before planting. At a farmer's get together some time ago, where there were some top operators, it was asked how many were doing No Till. Something like well over half put up their hands. Then one of the top guys said, yes, they were into No Till for many years but had found out that after around 7 or 8 years they had to go back to a more convential cultivation for a couple of years before going back to No Till. Their yields just started to drop away on the No till if they did not do this. A local farmer operated research organisation has set up a large trial site where 4 different systems of farming have been running for around 9 years now. This was as a result of the ongoing debate as to which farming system was the most profitable. The farming systems are listed as; 1_ "Standard Practice" for the area. 2 _ "Hungry Sheep" which uses a lot of sheep in the rotations. 3_ "Fuel Burners" rotation. 4 _ "No Till". 5_ "Reduced Till" with some minimal cultivation. Each farming system trial site has champion, one of the best local operators using that particular system who calls the shots for what should be done on the plots and when. Each system has a total of around 13 to 15 acres which is divided into 5 plots of about 2.5 to 3 acres each which are used to rotate crops within that particular system. The NoTill champion was claiming great success in his area but when he got into the area with a lower rainfall [ 13 inches _ year instead of 18 inches _ year ] and harsher soils compared to his own farming area, he came badly unstuck and had to completely modify his system. Economically because of the years needed to recognise the problems in the new environment and the time needed to change his crops, rotations and practises, he finished up a long way behind the other local farming systems and is only just starting to catch up to the economics of the other systems after some 9 years of No Till on his plots. Over the period of the trial he is a long way behind economically. So IG, I believe you are right. There are places where No Till works but there are also a lot of places where it does not work or only works with no advantage over more convential systems. A further problem in Australian No till areas is the selective pressures of the chemical regime on weeds leading to a whole bunch of weeds that are now resistant to nearly All chemicals. In some areas, mostly in the Western Australian grain belt, this resistance now means that around every 5 to 7 years an oat crop is sown and baled to try and reduce the resistant weed numbers down to a level where a grain crop can again be sown and harvested.
 

Illinois_Gleaner

Guest
ROM, Thanks for the read, very interesting. I agree,different things work in different areas.We have solved alot of problems with notill and created some. Always advantages and disadvantages with everything. You kind of figure that out after time. IG
 

Illinois_Gleaner

Guest
Pete, I thought the very same thing last week. I remember in 83 we had to replant corn,cold and wet. Then the switch fliped on,no rain and hot. Had corn make 8 that year. We cant stand one of those in todays farming. I think you could put the whole crop out then for what I have in seed per acre. IG
 

PETE

Guest
IG, One of things that will help is that we have much better genetics and croping practices than in 83'. I checked my May 10th planted corn today and it is just now sprouting. I always put ~5 gpa of starter on the seed and this year it will pay off with the cold wet soil, most years I am not sure that it does. Pete Hinrichsen
 

Illinois_Gleaner

Guest
Pete, I tore up my first field today. I have all of my corn to replant. 690 acres and 150 acres of beans. I had starter with capture on all of my corn acres,but when its been in the ground for 3 weeks, in the wet cold weather we have had,its done. IG
 

PETE

Guest
IG, Sorry to hear of your having to replant. I got a 1_2" rain that softened the crust enough for the corn to emerge just fine...... along with 3" the next night that caused severe erosion in some spots. North of me they got 3-5" the other night while I only got .6". I checked my stand yesterday and it looks very good and the beans are just now starting to pop out. Once again, I am sorry to hear of you misfortune and hope the weather cooperates from now untill fall to get you at least a decent crop. Pete