There’s Always A Positive To Every Negative

Published On: September 7, 2012

Trent Brandenburg finds a bright side to the awful drought of 2102. He sees some improvement in soybean yields resulting from the heavy rains of last weekend, 5.5 inches followed by another three-quarters-inch. The rain came too late to help the corn yield and didn’t even delay the corn harvest much, because the soil is so dry and hard that, despite the wet surface, machinery can move through the fields easily. Trent’s corn yield is averaging 140 bushels per acre, but spots range from zero to two hundred. Trent observes that 140 bushel crops would have been bumpers 20 years ago, before the amazing genetic improvements of recent years.

The rain did not damage Tent’s standing corn. He is concerned about wind until he completes his harvest. The corn plants are so weak they could be downed easily by winds a stronger plant could resist. The rain will help soybean plants, that are still green, fill out their later-set pods. However, the beans that have started turning (yellow ripening) will not be helped. Although there have been reports of fungus infections in harvested corn, Trent has not seen any.

Trent estimates that several more inches of rain, falling gently in rain events spread over several days, will be needed to recharge the badly-depleted soil moisture.

More from The Field Report

Not Quite Harvest Time Just Yet

September 18, 2024|

Trent Brandenburg's earliest-planted corn is "about a week away" from drying below 25% moisture. At that level, he could lower his drying expense at the grain elevator. "Now, if there's an incentive..., " Trent indicated that an elevator offering a [...]

Replanting Done, Corn and Beans Look Good

July 8, 2024|

Trent Brandenburg has replanted his few ponded field "wet spots" as many as three times. The replanted areas are "thin," Trent observed, because "It has been too wet. But at least [replanting] will keep the weeds down." Trent is now [...]

First Round Of Planting Done, Ponds Need Replanting

June 6, 2024|

Trent Brandenburg is done with his "first round" of planting, as he puts it. The corn and soybeans he planted in April are up and growing in excellent condition. Trent's later-planted crops are germinating but not as far along as [...]