Foggy

It is foggy here this morning.  It reminds me of the Septembers of my earlier years, not necessarily August.  Usually it is hot and dry in August, but not this year.  It's been another crazy year in Ohio and I hear the same thing from many of you.

The crop is very green in my area and in my travels.  Most Augusts, the crop is not as green or is even dying down by now.  We are behind in heat units compared to most years and we are ahead in moisture totals like last year, 2011, 2009 and many other years.

What does this all mean?  We have had a great summer for humans and animals but the crop could use a little more heat.  I definitely expect more moisture in the grain at harvest times unless things change quickly.  We are not in a pattern for that to happen.

My friends in Iowa say the fields are full of "potholes" like I have seen all year here.  Those potholes will make the yield monitor turn to red.  Will the gypsum we applied make more green?

From my walks, I think so.  Gypsum moves down with each rain which means to me there is more atmospheric air and oxygen behind it.  It is a never ending process as long as I keep feeding my soil a little more calcium sulfate.

The crops sure are green where we have spread gypsum and I think they are a little ahead in maturity of the non spread fields.  Time will tell.

The fact is one ton of gypsum gives my 420 lbs of soluble calcium and 320 lbs of soluble sulfur my soil test says I need.  I see it, too.  At $6 per ton at the plant, it is the most inexpensive nutrients I can buy today to improve my crops.

Is that true on your farm?

Ed Winkle