2013 LOGAN COUNTY FARM OUTLOOK MAGAZINE LINCOLN DAILY NEWS.com October 25, 2013 Page 7
Few vocations offer the diversity and interest of
farming.
Yes, to some degree it can be said that the farm
location narrows the scope of production options,
be it crops or livestock. But all considered -- the
ever-changing tools of the trade; advancements in
information, technology and resources; topped by
the demand for solid planning, close crop and market
supervision; combined with past and future phases
often overlapping -- the farmer must be ever-vigilant
and on top of the agriculture game at all times.
A bit like algebra, the chosen variables -- crop,
inputs, storage, marketing -- in the production
formula may be interchangeable and still come out
with the same desired answer: a product with a
profit.
In Logan County, most of production is in crops,
primarily corn and soybeans. In crop production,
several variables are not chosen by the farmer but
carry a big impact: weather and pests. However,
today, both influences require responses that are
more under the control of the farmer.
What about
the weather?
Story by
Jan Youngquist
For now, let’s talk weather. To the farmer, weather is
everything.
A well-timed rain offers something at every stage of
the crop. Rain increases soil surface moisture, aiding
germination; provides a refreshing wash with a little
beneficial nitrogen, foliar fertilizing plant leaves;
washes away dust and some insect populations;
increases humidity, reducing insects such as mites;
and droplets aid in pollination.
For soybeans in particular, a little moisture will
plump up seeds just before harvest. For soybeans
this year, a few fields saw some timely rain near
harvest, but overall, the late dry season left seeds that
were smaller, suggesting that it will be a lighter bean
harvest.
This year’s early heavy rains forestalled planting
dates but made up for some of the groundwater and
soil moisture losses created in 2011 and 2012.
Periods of extreme heat and lack of rain in 2011
and 2012 led to a reduced crop outcome in both
corn and soybeans. Both of those years, the above-
70-degree nighttime temperatures did not allow for
a normal 24-hour transpiration cycle. Ears of corn
cannibalized the end kernels as needed for moisture
for plant survival. The harvested amount of corn was
further reduced when loads with aflatoxin mold were
turned away at the elevators.
The lack of rain for the later part of the 2013 season
once again brought concern for how much corn
might be lost to aflatoxin.
