Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Good Morning!


It still looks like rain this morning and it's almost the middle of May. We have had 11-12 inches in this area since April first and there has been no drying weather.

Farmers have got to be antsy by now. They are even looking at crop insurance options in case they can't plant on time. Our May first planting completion date washed down the river in April. It will be at least two more weeks before much happens if this pattern does shift and it shows no signs of shifting.

I always said you can pick your date but you can't pick the weather that day. That was never truer than this year.

I see another farmer posted whether he should inoculate his soybeans this year. It's been 16 years since that all changed but some never got the message. In 1995 the first new strains of rhizobia bacteria were introduced that don't carry over in the soil but compete for a place to live on the soybean root with whatever rhizobia is already in that soil.

It's made me an extra bushel of soybeans every year since and often 3-4 and sometimes 8-10 bushels. Inoculation is one of the best investments out there but some farmers never got the message.

I admit it's a small piece of the puzzle this year with the problem of just planting period without worrying about the little things but the little things do add up. As wet and cold as this soil is I sure would want every advantage for the new crop I can give it.

The Internet has lost it's zest for me since I have been off it the last month and my computer is acting up again. I will probably have to have cousin Brian out again to look at it. Something has changed in the settings. I couldn't open a power point this week and I am locked out of Facebook. No loss there but I do like to see my families pictures on it.

Arthritis has been really kicking it's heels this week too, must be great weather for it. Spring allergies haven't been too bad so I am thankful for that.

Now if we could just get the yard mowed...

Ed

2 comments:

  1. Antsy here too and getting later every day. We have had no significant rain all spring but suffering from last years saturation plus the spring snow melt. Many acres here are under water and won't be seeded. Crop ins. unseeded acreage option is going to be paying out quite a bit this year I think.

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  2. Still nothing moving here Ralph. At least the scab predictor is low this morning will the cool air temperatures. Won't be long until Memorial Day!

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