Corn Cam Season 3: Harvest Yield Mapping

This corn harvest I spent my time starting at a guidance monitor screen and operating the combine. 

We installed a 90 foot wiring harness, a moisture sensor and a mass flow sensor (which is a fancy way of saying yield sensor) in our combine.  These sensors combined with our guidance system allow us to map the yields of each of our corn fields. 

After we finished harvest I was able to pull all the yield data off our guidance system and load it on a computer application.  The application allows me to view the yield maps on all of our harvested acres.  I can use it to calibrate the yield data with actual truck load weights from the elevator.  This allows for a higher level of accuracy in our maps.  Another useful feature is that I can pull the US geological survey data about soil types on our fields

The benefit of having all this data is that we can look at how our farming practices, soil types and fertilizer rates affected our yields.  We ran several tests this year varying fertilizer rates and chemical applications.  At harvest time we were able to view the results of these tests when it matters the most - harvest.  

In the future we plan to update our corn planter and we will be able to change the amount of corn plants per acre (farmers call it the plant population) from the cab of the tractor.  We will also be able to create population prescriptions that will automatically change the populations rate automatically according to our predetermined values.  The prescription values will be based on previous years harvest data, soil types, and elevation changes.  The prescriptions can also designate the amount of fertilizer being applied before and during planting.

When we get our yield data from the subsequent years we will be able to optimize fertility and population to each field.  The end goal being that we will be able to reduce our input costs while maximizing our yield potential. 

-Yield Map Nerd Ryan

WINTER IS COMING

Before the cold weather hits there is a lot to do on the farm.  Everything that holds or handles liquid could possibly freeze and break with the cold temperatures of winter.  Some examples of these are pressure washers, fertilizer pumps, tanks, and chemical sprayers.  In order to prepare these things for the winter we drain any remaining liquid in the tanks and run an antifreeze solution through the pumps. 

We also check all of our 4 wheelers, pickups, trucks, loaders, tractors, and combines to make sure that there is sufficient antifreeze in the radiators so that the engine blocks won't freeze and crack.  This job alone usually takes one person about a week.

Another important winterizing step is treating our diesel fuel with a cetane booster.  You've probably noticed when you go to the pump that there is a few different types of gasoline to buy.  The types that you select from in Kansas are usually 87, 89 and 91.  These numbers refer to the gasoline's octane rating.  The higher the level of octane in the gasoline the higher the temperature the fuel will reach before combustion. 

Diesel fuel has something similar to octane; it is called cetane.  The higher the cetane number on the diesel fuel the quicker it ignites when under pressure.  The reason this is important on the farm is that when the temperature goes down the cetane number needs to increase in order for the fuel to ignite and the engine start and run.  The cetane number is also important because it relates to the viscosity of the fuel.  When the temperature goes below freezing the untreated diesel fuel will turn into a gel.  This means the fuel stops flowing to the engine and it kills the engine, or wont start in the first place.

Last winter we treated all of our diesel fuel, but we had a few weeks that the temperature was below double digits below zero Fahrenheit.  Even with the fuel treated  and the engine heater plugged in the diesel still gelled on us and didn't allow us to start the tractor we were using to feed our cows.  After that wonderful experience, we are going to give that tractor an double dose of cetane this time around.

-Ryan of the House Stark

October Blues

There is rarely anything that makes me miss Kansas City more than family, friends, and BBQ.  However, not being able to be in Kansas City when the Royals were in the World Series was one of them.  It has been great being able to listen to the Royals when I was harvesting corn and I hope that Blue October can happen every year.

Go Royals! 

-Royally Blue Ryan

Wheat Watch: Season 4 - Planting and The Trigo Tango

This season we were able to plant our wheat into moisture!  Which is a welcome change from the last few years.  After planting about half of our acres we actually had too much rain.  I know, I know, make up your mind you grumpy farmer.

The rain that did the most damage came very hard and fast and it washed out a lot of our wheat and created standing water lagoons that drowned our wheat seed in some places.  On a positive note, my dog Brisket was happy to help me set my drill and test plant with me. 

Another thing that affected our wheat planting season was it rained right after we planted and then it got really hot for a couple of days.  This caused the top couple of inches of soil to form a hard crust.  The crust stops the coleoptile from breaking through the soil and kills the plant before it can reach the surface.  The coleoptile is a spear like growth that comes out of the wheat seed that allows the wheat to break through the soil.  When seed companies develop new types of wheat a long coleoptile length is a trait that is sought after.

You can see below where we had a hard rain after planting.  It caused a crust to form and it affected the amount of plants that came through the soil.  Farmers call this plant population and look "the stand" of a field.  You can see that below is a poor stand... (Sad trombone sound).  A better stand would be the bottom picture.

After having these rains we had to replant some wheat.  I started to call this little dance the Trigo Tango. We plant, it rains, we replant, it rains.  1, 2, 3... 1, 2, 3... 

 
-Trigo Tangoer Ryan

The Fable of Fireball

The farmer's old pickup was rusted and used
  Many years on the farm had left it abused

The farmer had put it off for long enough he knew
  His pickup was too old it and was time to buy new

The farmer's wife was so happy and so full of glee
  The farmer hadn't bought a brand new pickup since 1983

The new pickup he bought was red as a maple in fall
  But what should they call it? How about fireball!

The Farmer was happy, the pickup was great
  Who would have though it had such a terrible fate

It was late spring and the wheat was ready to reap
  The farmer's time was anything but cheap

So he ventured out on a field of wheat stubble so tall
  And turned his pickup into - you guessed it - A REAL FIREBALL

Something that should be done to keep you out of trouble
  Learn from the farmer - don't drive your vehicle in dry wheat stubble

This unfortunately really happened to my Father-In-Law.  It was only the second new pickup he ever bought for the farm.  He owned it for about a year then it went out in a blaze of glory.  

-Fabulist Ryan

Wheat Watch: Season 3 - Harvest Edition

This year's wheat harvest seemed like it took forever.  The best time to harvest wheat is when the humidity is low and the temperature is high.  Typically this isn't a problem in Western Kansas in July.  However, this year we had a little more than a week of cool wet weather right in the middle of harvest.  So what would have taken 12 days ended up taking about three weeks.

The farmers here will tell you that "wheat has 9 lives".  If that's true most of our wheat used about 8.5 of them.  Drought, erratic temperatures, and hail were the reason for most of the wheat attrition.  The funny thing is that there is always one field that stands out and does surprisingly well. 

This was the first year that I wasn't on the combine during harvest.  My new job was to manage the harvest and harvest crew.  So instead of being responsible for one combine, I was responsible for three combines, two grain carts, two semi trucks, and several third party trucking companies.

My first harvest on the farm I told my father-in-law that I had a new job title for him: Manager of Chaos.  I didn't realize how appropriate of a job title that was until this year. 

When harvesting with three combines there is always something that is broke.  So basically my day consisted of running from one combine to the next and fixing things.  It was a lot like juggling; fix a problem throw the combine back into the field and wait for the next one to come back.

When there wasn't a combine to fix there were wheat load tickets and truckers to manage. 

My favorite harvest quote was from a trucker that had just gotten several big loads of wheat and it was the end of the cutting day.  He was from Tennessee so think thick southern accent - "Man.  I'm getting me a shower TONIGHT!"

-Combine Squadron Commander/Assistant Manager of Chaos Ryan
      P.S. - No Dwight. Not Assistant to the manager of Chaos...

Combine Combined

Getting three combines ready for harvest is an interesting kind of chaos.  It is like when you start to clean your basement and you just keep finding more stuff you need to clean.  Only instead of cleaning it's replacing parts and instead of cleaning supplies it's $100 ball bearings other expensive stuff.  So by the time we were done we completely rebuilt the front end of two of our combines. 

When "cleaning" this combine we found a crack in one of the wheels.  So we had to take it off so we could weld it up, and put it back on.

After ordering a ton of parts, then I made it my job to become the parts librarian.  So after some dewy decimation, I had them organized and ready to install.

All in all I think we replaced over 50 ball bearings, 10 chains, 5 belts and a bunch of other things with green paint on them. 

-Combine Part Librarian Ryan

Rain Gauge

It's hard for me to put into words how happy this makes me:
 

-Rain Man Ryan

Godzilla the Strip Tilla

This year before we started planting corn we prepared our fields in a different way.  Instead of using a disc and tilling our entire field we used a strip tiller.  A strip tiller is an implement that only tills "strips" about 8 inches wide through the field.  The strip tiller also has metal bars called ripper shanks that go deep into the ground and break up any compaction in the subsoil.

The benefits of strip tilling are huge.  When tilling up the ground the old way the the disc had to till the entire field three times and then fertilizer had to be applied with a four operation.  With Strip tilling all those operations are competed in one step.  This equates to substantial savings on diesel fuel, time and wear on equipment.

There are other benefits to strip tilling that we are looking forward to realizing.  Only tilling the soil one time means less moisture is lost during the tillage process.  There is also moisture savings throughout the growing season.  By leaving crop residue from the previous season on top of the non tilled ground, less moisture evaporates from the soil.

So what's the downside?  In order to be able to strip till you must have an extremely accurate GPS guidance system.  After all the strip tilling has been completed then the corn seeds have to be planted directly in the center of the 8 inch strip that was tilled.  This requires accuracy, which is expensive.  The other requirement of strip tilling is HORSEPOWER.  A good rule to follow is that it takes 25 horsepower per strip tiller row.   So for an 8 row strip tiller you need a tractor with at least 200 horsepower.  Like accuracy, horsepower is also expensive.

Below is an example of one of our strip tilled fields.  You can see the crop residue on the top of the non tilled strips and you can see where the corn is planted right down the middle of the tilled strip.

-Farmer Ryan

P.S. - You might have guessed from the title, I named our strip tiller Godzilla. 

Full Service

Every winter we service all of vehicles, trucks, and tractors.  That might not sound like that big of a task, but I present the below picture.  It is a pallet of filters.

We have checklists that we go through on all our vehicles and tractors.  Depending on what we find wrong, it can take anywhere from 4 hours to a couple days to completely service each vehicle, truck, or tractor.  Every filter we replace on a tractor we write the date and the hours on the tractor.  I serviced the below tractor on 3/14/14.  I marked the filter accordingly...

Below is a picture of all the stuff that I replaced on my farm pickup.  I replaced the spark plugs, air filter, oil filter, fuel filter, front, and back brakes.

When I went to change the transmission filter I hit a snag.  The GM engineer that designed the transmission failed.  In order to drop the transmission oil pan you have to take off the front drive shaft for the 4 wheel drive and a bracket that holds the shifting cable.

The bracket is pretty much impossible to take off.  So we decided to have our local dealership change the filter for us.  Apparently, I'm not the only one who dislikes this design.  When the dealership went to take off the oil pan they broke a relay inside the transmission...

-Grease Monkey Ryan

Gone With The Wind

You might have noticed all the wind turbines that are along I-70 when you were driving through Kansas.  Let me just say this: they are there for a reason.  Sometimes the wind will be strong enough that it actually starts to blow the topsoil off of our fields.  When this happens we have to rough up the surface of the ground in order to stop the wind erosion.  We had a failed wheat crop on a dry land field. Hooray for drought... So I used the below implement to rough up the ground.  

You can see below where a ridge was formed and some dirt clods were created.  We ran about 20 feet between passes and this was enough to stop the dirt from blowing.

When a big wind storm hits our area it can actually make visibility as bad as blizzard.  Below is a picture I took after the worst of the wind had passed.  It looks like there is a cloud blocking the sunset, but it is actually dust. 

I feel fortunate to be able to start farming when I did.  It's hard to explain how nice it is to not have to be sandblasted dustblasted on a tractor without a cab when we were trying to stop the topsoil from blowing.  This storm also made me feel sorry for all the folks that were farming during the "Dirty Thirties".  They didn't have cabs on their tractors, or modern farming practices that eliminate most of the dust storms. 

-The Dusty Farmer Ryan

My Grain Headaches Suggested Viewing:

• The Dust Bowl by Ken Burns - Click the link if you have Netflix and want to add it to your queue:  If you are a fan of historical documentaries or just want to know more I would suggest checking this one out.