Hi Folks! The beautiful weather continues, so long as you are not a duck or a farmer. We have a chance at some precipitation around mid-week, keep your fingers crossed! I will do my version of a rain dance – head out into the field with my little seeding tractor (Allis Chalmers G) to try to do some planting. If there is any moisture up there in the clouds, that is usually a sure-fired way to coax it down. In the meantime, the sprinklers are spinning, and the pumps are humming. (more…)

Hello Everyone! So, the drought conditions continue, with no relief in sight. We continue to deal with this challenge as best we can. We are in the process of planting winter cover crops on many acres where crops have been harvested, which creates additional complications. First, we must turn under the plant residue from the crop and any weeds that have grown, so that it can begin to rot and break down. Unfortunately, without moisture the decomposition process comes to a halt because the microbes that do the work need water. When the soil is mere powder on the surface, dragging the disc harrow across the fields raises clouds of dust, and we watch the best part of our soil (the fines) blow away. (more…)