Fertilizer

Today we have to figure out how much we have sold in grain this year so far to what we have spent. I've sold the most grain I ever sold in my life but I spent most of it trying to get here.

I hope to need to put off some grain sales to 2011 and deal with the taxation in 2012 but it looks like tax rates will be up and it becomes pay me now vs. pay me later for Uncle Sam. It's a nice place to be where some farmers don't even have enough grain to fill their forward contracts. The more you farm the more you have to pay attention to what you sold versus what you spent. When you don't have enough grain it seems you are robbing Peter to pay Paul as the old saying goes.

Everything I buy has went up about 1/3 along with the grain prices this fall. I could spend all the profits on land improvements but I would like some left for us! The fields are all in better condition than when I started with them and we have enjoyed good yields for seven years.

I woke up early wondering what I need to spend on the wheat ground to keep it perking. 500 lbs of fertilizer could come up to $200 per acre quite easily so I have to figure how to just put on enough to raise a good crop. Even in good prices like we have you can spend all your profits building soil and then some.

The fella's who have invested in their own fertilizer storage can buy it by the truckload and do it cheaper than I am. I wish the manure piles were a little closer than 100 miles so I could use that cheaper fertilizer and gain the valuable humus in those piles.

My tissue test came up low in copper where the wheat is going and I have never had to put copper sulfate on that farm but I think I will spread a little with the dry to make sure the wheat isn't short on copper. A tiny bit of copper makes for strong stems which wheat needs to hold up a good yield.

I have taken a lot of grain off that farm and need to make sure I keep enough nutrients out there to take off more.

I found out yesterday that one driver took 3 loads of beans to the wrong terminal. It turned out OK but I have had this happen before. Communication and maps are essential to make sure the grain is going to the right place. I am dealing with eight different destinations now and some of the drivers get confused, they are used to hauling to one or two places and like them because they understand how they unload them.

I am getting behind again on my to do list but I have worked hard to get done what I did. Some days you just fall farther behind!

The weather is beautiful so we sure can't complain about that.

Ed