We Are Not Having A Normal Winter
Winter Rains & Flooding Following 60 Degrees in January
Trent Brandenburg believes the jumbled, abnormal weather patterns of 2019 “are not done yet.” He continued, “It’s supposed to get cold in December and stay cold until March. But here we are having 60-degree days in January and it’s still raining!!” Trent wants to move grain from his bins to the elevator now that it’s a new tax year, and it’s as muddy as it was when the crops were planted last spring. With record rainfall predicted over this weekend (January 10-12, 2020) it’s not likely to dry out soon.
Fortunately, Trent has his fall tillage 95% done, so he will not be behind going into spring. “If you can’t get started in the spring, that has a tail that lasts all year,” Trent observed. Trent plans to stay with his present crop rotations of corn and soybeans. Despite enduring the weather and market challenges of the past crop year, Trent “still has the desire to start the new year. I just want a good clean start,” he concluded.
More from The Field Report
Timely Rain Helps Corn And Beans
Trent Brandenburg is happy to have received more than an inch of rain on his dry fields in mid-July. After scouting his crops to determine drought damage, he concluded that the corn pollination hadn't gotten far enough along to be [...]
Corn Leaves Starting to Roll From Lack of Rain
"The corn leaves are rolling," Trent Brandenburg replied when asked about drought effects on his crops. Despite widespread central Illinois one-inch rains Saturday the 26th and Sunday the 27th, as reported by CoCoRaHS (Community Cooperative Rain, Hail and Snow Network), [...]
Wind And Sun Dried The Fields Fast
This morning (June 6, 2022) Trent Brandenburg was considering if he should start mowing roadsides. Watching the cloudy skies, he wondered if he would be caught in the rain. Trent finished his planting over a week ago. He has a [...]