Contrary to folklore that seven Sundays of rain would follow rain on Easter Sunday, we finished planting corn and beans this weekend after an abrupt but welcome shift in the weather.    

In North Iowa, an early dry spring generally portends a great crop, thus the saying, "Plant in the dust, bins will bust." Those of us who have been around long enough remember '93 as one of the most catastrophic growing seasons in recent history due to cold, wet weather. April and early May were acting similarly however, the pattern started to change around May 4th. Tillage started the 6th and seed was going in the ground on the 7th. Between the 7th and 21st, there were only three days not suitable for field work.

Whereas harvest is like an ultra-marathon, lasting up to ten weeks, spring planting is an all-out sprint. Over the course of two weeks every field is covered at least three times (herbicide application, tillage, planting) and often up to five times. (Add rock picking and fertilizer application) timeliness is critical to yield especially after mid-May. We utilize every asset at our disposal to expedite the completion of planting.

Due to the non-arrival of a handful of H2A workers, we had to make some last-minute reassignments and preemptive promotions. For the most part, we were rewarded for taking these risks. One of the most difficult shifts are the 16-hour tillage Team assignments beginning at 4:00 PM and Midnight. Dirk, Brad, Matt, and Nathan handled this challenge without incidents or complaints. Great job Men!

Ben and Alan stayed ahead of tillage operations on select fields needing preplant herbicide. As always, Ben's crew required little support other than fuel and food delivery daily.

Jimmy K's rock crew had new additions, Ivan and Storm, operating skid loaders. Despite one chronically unreliable skid steer, (we have multiple backups) this Team stayed on task, maintained, and operated their machines responsibly, and met quality standards.

As important as every operation is to achieving high yields, operating a planter requires the most expertise. No single trip across the field has potential to impact the final outcome as much as planting. Our planter squadron of Bert, Donavan, and Deon with Calvin and Travis tending are the best of the best.

At the risk of sounding like a TV awards program acceptance speech, I need to mention the dedicated staff sweeping the floor, licking the stamps, stocking the fridge with scotcheroos, and fixing epic boo boos (see below) Danni, Morgen, Elisha, Dan and Chris.

As manic, stressful, and sleep depriving as this planting season was at times, I enjoyed (almost) every minute. 😎

Jim