End of Harvest

For us, Harvest 2015 ended on October 30.  It ended up being a great year with yields higher than expected.  Harvest weather was perfect, and we were able to harvest pretty much non-stop for 7 weeks.  During this time, we saw yields almost 10% less than our record which was set last year.  2015 corn field averages ranged from 185 bu/ac - 254 bu/ac, and soybean field averages were 58 bu/ac - 74 bu/ac.  The August and September hot, dry weather dried the grain to the point where we did not have to dry it ourselves for storage.

We were very pleased with how our equipment performed.  A couple of medium sized breakdowns did not stop us completely because we were able to switch out tractors in order to keep running.  However, as with everything, we continue to analyze our equipment needs.

Now that all of the field work has been completed we have been meeting with seed salesmen to make our 2016 seed variety decisions.  Although the price of grain has fallen drastically, we haven't seen much relief in seed corn prices.  Even though it is a relatively insignificant cost, we have enjoyed low fuel prices this year and have locked in fuel prices for 2016.  The first week of November provided us with cool temperatures and some moisture which allowed us to apply anhydrous ammonia to our 2016 corn fields.

During the remainder of 2015 and early 2016 we will continue planning and marketing for a great crop in 2016.  We have our eye on the long term weather forecast and have been paying particular attention to the El Nino conditions in the Pacific Ocean and how that has historically affected the Midwest.

We look forward to the holiday seasons ahead of us and giving thanks for the many blessings of 2015.

We also have a few vacations planned that we have been looking forward to.

We wish everyone a safe winter!