Every now and then I find something that gets me excited about farming. Perhaps a bit too excited at times. My current romance is with corn/sunflower pans.
For those of you not in the know, these pans work a lot like corn heads in that they channel the stalk into the combine, keeping it upright so that the ear is cut off and sent into the machine's threshing apparatus. In the case of the pan, the stalk is cut by the sickle and stalk and all is sent into the machine. Corn heads, on the other hand, channel the stalk into roller knives, that grip the stalk and pull it through stripper plates that then snap the ear off the stalk, sending just the ear into the threshing apparatus. This method produces much less trash material for the combine to sort out and has long been thought superior. Sunflowers, another tall stalk, crop are dealt with similarly.
In this age of rampant corn production and good prices for the crop, many growers are wanting to get in on the corn growing bandwagon but are not interested in the cost of a corn head for their machines. Good used heads can run between $100,000 to $180,000. This is just for a corn head. Not the combine. Obviously if you are running multiple machines, this is a serious capital investment. Pans, whether you build them yourself or buy them, cost considerably less at $250 per pan or about $8000 to outfit a 16 row machine. Flexxfinger, a manufacture of crop lifters and pans did field tests that showed a 15% increase in harvested corn over corn heads due to less ear loss from ears tumbling out of the head. The pans retain the paddle wheel which catches errant ears and propels them into the machine. Row attenuation apparently, is meaningless as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7RIWGlxYaE
I have seen these pans used on All Crop Combines for use in sunflowers. I am told results were satisfactory. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7siG3waypMU Small acreage farmers have to be creative in order to survive.
The drawbacks...
(1) Corn stalks, especially Bt tend to be hard on the sickle. This probably means you will spend time sharpening or replacing sickle parts.
(2) An Aussie farmer explained to me that though these pans work well, you need to run the cylinder about twice as fast as recommended to deal with the extra trash. In the case of All Crop combines, on which corn is hard on the rubber on rubber concave and cylinder bars this will be even a bit more rough. I am considering replacing the rubber with Teflon bar stock on my combine. We will see if it works.
I do not raise very much corn, so I am very reluctant to look into corn head or yet another harvesting machine in my already crowded barn. Also, the varieties I raise are heirlooms, the most modern of which is Reid's Yellow Dent.
Pans are worth considering. For now, I am sold on them.
Saturday, August 17, 2013
Friday, July 26, 2013
Small Farm Grain Storage
I have been looking into grain storage solutions for small to medium sized farms. The day is long gone from our area where we had public storage for grains. The closest public elevator is in Navasota, Texas 102 miles away. Obviously, transportation costs would destroy any profit we might realize. If one wishes to take advantage of off season pricing, the best solution is some kind of on farm storage.
A 10,000 bushel grain bin will cost upwards of $32,000 to install. As look at larger bin capacities, the economy of scale becomes apparent, dropping costs to around 30 cents a bushel from $2 plus for smaller bins. A fixed grain bin will be exposed to property taxes as well.
This brings us to farmers like me who must lease land, often far from my base. Erecting storage bins on these properties is not an option. Grain Bagging, a concept that found its way to these shores about 10 years ago and now beginning to gain acceptance on a large scale, is an attractive option.
Grain Bagging is the storage of grain on well drained slightly sloping ground inside a giant plastic bag. The bags are 3 layer polyethylene tube 9 to 12 feet in diameter depending on the system, and up to 500 feet long. They are air tight and moisture proof. It is an excellent short term storage solution. They require fewer machines and personnel and eliminates trips to the elevator. With a bagger and un-loader a farmer can store his grain in the field where he harvested, sell the grain in the off season when commodity prices are stronger, and load the buyers trucks from his field saving transport and storage costs. He would not have to postpone harvest for available storage space or trucking availability. The grain bags are not fixed structures, so he would not be taxed.
Most of these machines include a bag pickup system that rolls the used bag up for easy disposal or recycling. The bags are not, however, reusable as the un-loader cuts the bag open as it unloads the grain. Tractor requirements for the larger systems are high, 100 horsepower. Renn markets a unit that uses a 10 foot diameter bag and requires 50 horsepower which makes it ideal for a small to medium sized operation. The bags cost from $1100 for smaller 250 foot bag to $2500 for a large 500 foot bag. The savings, in most cases, work out well. You would have to pencil it out for your particular operation. There is a danger of the bags getting ripped open by wildlife or vandals and what I hear there is no fool proof method to keep them out once they discover what is in them. All you can do is harden the target.
If you can harvest and store the grain on site, buying time to sell the crop, having transportation then paid by the buyer, you most likely will come out ahead. If we go with this type of system, that would be our plan.
Plenty to think about over the next month or two. I suspect we will continue to operate on a smaller scale for the time being. We may never become that kind of farm. I am not sure that I want to at this point.
A 10,000 bushel grain bin will cost upwards of $32,000 to install. As look at larger bin capacities, the economy of scale becomes apparent, dropping costs to around 30 cents a bushel from $2 plus for smaller bins. A fixed grain bin will be exposed to property taxes as well.
This brings us to farmers like me who must lease land, often far from my base. Erecting storage bins on these properties is not an option. Grain Bagging, a concept that found its way to these shores about 10 years ago and now beginning to gain acceptance on a large scale, is an attractive option.
Grain Bagging is the storage of grain on well drained slightly sloping ground inside a giant plastic bag. The bags are 3 layer polyethylene tube 9 to 12 feet in diameter depending on the system, and up to 500 feet long. They are air tight and moisture proof. It is an excellent short term storage solution. They require fewer machines and personnel and eliminates trips to the elevator. With a bagger and un-loader a farmer can store his grain in the field where he harvested, sell the grain in the off season when commodity prices are stronger, and load the buyers trucks from his field saving transport and storage costs. He would not have to postpone harvest for available storage space or trucking availability. The grain bags are not fixed structures, so he would not be taxed.
Most of these machines include a bag pickup system that rolls the used bag up for easy disposal or recycling. The bags are not, however, reusable as the un-loader cuts the bag open as it unloads the grain. Tractor requirements for the larger systems are high, 100 horsepower. Renn markets a unit that uses a 10 foot diameter bag and requires 50 horsepower which makes it ideal for a small to medium sized operation. The bags cost from $1100 for smaller 250 foot bag to $2500 for a large 500 foot bag. The savings, in most cases, work out well. You would have to pencil it out for your particular operation. There is a danger of the bags getting ripped open by wildlife or vandals and what I hear there is no fool proof method to keep them out once they discover what is in them. All you can do is harden the target.
If you can harvest and store the grain on site, buying time to sell the crop, having transportation then paid by the buyer, you most likely will come out ahead. If we go with this type of system, that would be our plan.
Plenty to think about over the next month or two. I suspect we will continue to operate on a smaller scale for the time being. We may never become that kind of farm. I am not sure that I want to at this point.
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Climate, Farm Bill (or lack of) and Decisions
It looks like we may well receive enough rain to save my corn and peas. Not sure whether we are turning the corner or not on the ENSO cycle and this is simply the fulfillment of NOAA's climate predictions for the summer and fall of 2013. http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/enso_advisory/ensodisc.pdf
So what this does for farming decisions in the coming months is indicate some moisture rather than the La Niña pattern that caused the Drought of 2010 -2013 and counting. Though conditions are better in parts of the Midwest, that does not hold true for all locations or the southwest. Last winter was so dry 6% of the winter wheat crop either did not germinate or was of such poor condition it could not be harvested.
Our planting decisions have to be based both in economics and climate concerns. Both are constantly in flux. With no Farm Bill and the 1949 permanent law looming, our operations will still be rooted outside the system. I spoke with a crop insurance agent a couple days ago who is working up a small grains quote for what we hope to do this fall and winter. If the 1949 law returns, I might have cotton acreage, but most likely not small grains under the allotment system. We also had some peanut allotment as well but I doubt we would qualify under the old system. I will still be able to insure the crop but most likely would not qualify for marketing guarantees for winter small grains. Not that that concerns me over much. So long as I can insure the crop I am happy if the loan rate is high enough to cover costs and make a profit.
Then comes the old standby. Southern peas. Dry weather has prevented us from making a crop for a couple of years, coupled with expansion costs on an expansion that didn't happen beyond equipment, and continuing mechanical issues with some of the equipment, the costs are eating us up. None of the money is borrowed, but it will still take years to dig out of the deficit. I miss the reliability of my old Pixall BH-100.
I am still looking for land to plant small grains on. You would think that in a time when drought has devastated the cattle business, land owners would be flocking to any chance at making some return from their land especially if it included grazing winter wheat or Elbon Rye for free in the winter time. No takers yet.
So what this does for farming decisions in the coming months is indicate some moisture rather than the La Niña pattern that caused the Drought of 2010 -2013 and counting. Though conditions are better in parts of the Midwest, that does not hold true for all locations or the southwest. Last winter was so dry 6% of the winter wheat crop either did not germinate or was of such poor condition it could not be harvested.
Our planting decisions have to be based both in economics and climate concerns. Both are constantly in flux. With no Farm Bill and the 1949 permanent law looming, our operations will still be rooted outside the system. I spoke with a crop insurance agent a couple days ago who is working up a small grains quote for what we hope to do this fall and winter. If the 1949 law returns, I might have cotton acreage, but most likely not small grains under the allotment system. We also had some peanut allotment as well but I doubt we would qualify under the old system. I will still be able to insure the crop but most likely would not qualify for marketing guarantees for winter small grains. Not that that concerns me over much. So long as I can insure the crop I am happy if the loan rate is high enough to cover costs and make a profit.
Then comes the old standby. Southern peas. Dry weather has prevented us from making a crop for a couple of years, coupled with expansion costs on an expansion that didn't happen beyond equipment, and continuing mechanical issues with some of the equipment, the costs are eating us up. None of the money is borrowed, but it will still take years to dig out of the deficit. I miss the reliability of my old Pixall BH-100.
I am still looking for land to plant small grains on. You would think that in a time when drought has devastated the cattle business, land owners would be flocking to any chance at making some return from their land especially if it included grazing winter wheat or Elbon Rye for free in the winter time. No takers yet.
Monday, July 15, 2013
Making Flour
The Drought of 2010 -2013 is responsible for the change in our business plan. That and a self-propelled bean picker that has seen better days. The dry weather actually started four years ago in a summer that was dry but not excessively so. We received enough rainfall at just the right time to make one of the best purplehull pea crops we ever had. We averaged 60-100 bushels per acre. We harvested with a Pixall BH-100 bean harvester. Loved that machine. We wanted to plant more acreage and that meant expansion. We traded the one row for a Chisholm Ryder MDH and a continuous pea sheller, boosting our thru put to 100 bushels per hour. We added a winter crop of sweet peas to the mix (Spring was the variety and they did very well). That is when our troubles started. The winter was a bit dry, but the peas made. Then the MDH blew a head gasket. We still had the BH-100 at the time so we harvested the crop with it instead. We spent about $1200 repairing the head gasket, when we discovered the gasket was blown because of a bad oil cooler leaking water into the oil. The oil cooler set us back another $600. The next season, the crop was almost nonexistent and we had no irrigation. Mechanical problems continued with the MDH. The next summer was worse, far worse. We planted mustard and rye last fall hoping to get some plant coverage over the soil so it didn't blow away. Some rain did come late in the winter and the cover crops made.
The rye did really well, and it cause us to think about raising grain. Margins on small grain are small, to say the least, and the only way ton profit from it is to make some value added product. Since there was no large industrial quantity of it, we decided to buy a table top flour mill, use our seed cleaning apparatus from our pea and bean operation to clean it up, then grind and market rye flour. The results were much better than we expected with regard to the product. We use it in our own cooking. Since I am a diabetic, rye fit nicely into my diet plan. Carbs are carbs, from a counting perspective, but replacing wheat bread with rye has had a positive effect on my health. The flour is just plain good.
On a whim we decided to attempt raising a little Native American corn for cornmeal and irrigating it. We researched this extensively and found two acceptable cultivars which we have planted in our fields.
We still have a few peas.
Along the way, we decided to raise dry edible beans, which is how we came across our combine. Unfortunately, the farm is thousands in the red because of all this. I shiver to think about it. we are far from insolvent, but it would be nice to see some income again. All this has been pushing us to more conventional farming, planting the usual commodity crops and utilizing Federal Crop Insurance and the like. It is a safer way to do business. Had I had not had enough personal capital and income aside from the farm we would have been out of it by now.
I spend a lot of time marketing rye flour now. It is available on eBay http://www.ebay.com/itm/Elliott-Family-Farms-Heirloom-Whole-Grain-Rye-Flour-2-pounds-/281119557919?pt=Small_Kitchen_Appliances_US&hash=item417408091f
Give it a try! We appreciate your business!
The rye did really well, and it cause us to think about raising grain. Margins on small grain are small, to say the least, and the only way ton profit from it is to make some value added product. Since there was no large industrial quantity of it, we decided to buy a table top flour mill, use our seed cleaning apparatus from our pea and bean operation to clean it up, then grind and market rye flour. The results were much better than we expected with regard to the product. We use it in our own cooking. Since I am a diabetic, rye fit nicely into my diet plan. Carbs are carbs, from a counting perspective, but replacing wheat bread with rye has had a positive effect on my health. The flour is just plain good.
On a whim we decided to attempt raising a little Native American corn for cornmeal and irrigating it. We researched this extensively and found two acceptable cultivars which we have planted in our fields.
We still have a few peas.
Along the way, we decided to raise dry edible beans, which is how we came across our combine. Unfortunately, the farm is thousands in the red because of all this. I shiver to think about it. we are far from insolvent, but it would be nice to see some income again. All this has been pushing us to more conventional farming, planting the usual commodity crops and utilizing Federal Crop Insurance and the like. It is a safer way to do business. Had I had not had enough personal capital and income aside from the farm we would have been out of it by now.
I spend a lot of time marketing rye flour now. It is available on eBay http://www.ebay.com/itm/Elliott-Family-Farms-Heirloom-Whole-Grain-Rye-Flour-2-pounds-/281119557919?pt=Small_Kitchen_Appliances_US&hash=item417408091f
Give it a try! We appreciate your business!
Friday, July 12, 2013
It is hot. It is dry. Work continues.
Corn was really stressed due to lack of rainfall. The last ten days were rough. In the interim, we received a little rain, and every bit helps. SO we installed surface drip irrigation. Hands are blistered from shoving the valve barbs into the main line. Back hurts from all the stooping and crawling.
In the middle of it, I had to take a break and run up to Missouri and fetch an Allis Chalmers All Crop Drill. A 15x7 for planting winter small grains. Got tired of renting junk for $259 a day. I think I made a good trade.
Corn was really stressed due to lack of rainfall. The last ten days were rough. In the interim, we received a little rain, and every bit helps. SO we installed surface drip irrigation. Hands are blistered from shoving the valve barbs into the main line. Back hurts from all the stooping and crawling.
In the middle of it, I had to take a break and run up to Missouri and fetch an Allis Chalmers All Crop Drill. A 15x7 for planting winter small grains. Got tired of renting junk for $259 a day. I think I made a good trade.
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Rye
Now how did we end up doing rye? Initially it was a cover crop, to be destroyed and used as a smother crop. The variety we chose was Elbon Rye released by the Oklahoma State Agricultural Experiment Station in 1956. It is long stemmed and produces a lot of organic matter which makes it perfect for smother crops.
It seemed a waste to destroy a crop what we could grow in the winter, as it is our wet season. We decided harvesting the grain would be a good idea especially since we had purchased a combine for dry beans. We also stumbled up on a sturdy table top flour mill to grind it into flour. Couple that with some inspiration we got from Pungo Creek Mills Indian Cornmeal on the east coast, we decided to found our own flour and meal business. The wisdom of this venture has yet to be realized. We have rye and our packaging and sales effort is just ramping up.
In the middle of this we have corn and peas growing and a limited amount of water available for both. The corn requires more so when we deploy drip irrigation next week, the corn will receive the water. If there is time we will re-deploy and water peas. Hopefully rain will come and help out.
We have been blessed with adequate soil moisture up to now.
As for the rye, we did harvest the grain, and we still had plenty of dead mulch. We no-tilled peas into the mowed down stubble. These peas are growing with very little weed pressure.
As for the future of small grains on our farm, I am unsure. I am looking for a suitable drill for planting them and more acreage on which to plant. Returns for small grains, if you do not mill them yourself, are small.
We sell our flour for the very reasonable price of $3.75 per 2 pound bag. Yes, it is more expensive than store brands. What you get for that price, is zero percent chance of cross contamination. Elliott Family Farms only mills low gluten grains below 12%. We are not marketing this to folks with celiac disease. We are, however, marketing to folks with concerns about where their food comes from and how it is processed. Rye is purported to have other beneficial aspects. I am a diabetic and I eat it. Within reason. To me, a carb is a carb and that is how I count them. If you are going to eat a carb, I suggest something made with our flour.
You may buy the flour directly off the farm or through eBay. The price is $4 on eBay because of handling.
It seemed a waste to destroy a crop what we could grow in the winter, as it is our wet season. We decided harvesting the grain would be a good idea especially since we had purchased a combine for dry beans. We also stumbled up on a sturdy table top flour mill to grind it into flour. Couple that with some inspiration we got from Pungo Creek Mills Indian Cornmeal on the east coast, we decided to found our own flour and meal business. The wisdom of this venture has yet to be realized. We have rye and our packaging and sales effort is just ramping up.
In the middle of this we have corn and peas growing and a limited amount of water available for both. The corn requires more so when we deploy drip irrigation next week, the corn will receive the water. If there is time we will re-deploy and water peas. Hopefully rain will come and help out.
We have been blessed with adequate soil moisture up to now.
As for the rye, we did harvest the grain, and we still had plenty of dead mulch. We no-tilled peas into the mowed down stubble. These peas are growing with very little weed pressure.
As for the future of small grains on our farm, I am unsure. I am looking for a suitable drill for planting them and more acreage on which to plant. Returns for small grains, if you do not mill them yourself, are small.
We sell our flour for the very reasonable price of $3.75 per 2 pound bag. Yes, it is more expensive than store brands. What you get for that price, is zero percent chance of cross contamination. Elliott Family Farms only mills low gluten grains below 12%. We are not marketing this to folks with celiac disease. We are, however, marketing to folks with concerns about where their food comes from and how it is processed. Rye is purported to have other beneficial aspects. I am a diabetic and I eat it. Within reason. To me, a carb is a carb and that is how I count them. If you are going to eat a carb, I suggest something made with our flour.
You may buy the flour directly off the farm or through eBay. The price is $4 on eBay because of handling.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Corn
We took a hiatus from corn of about 10 years? Not entirely sure. Sweet corn is a good local seller if you have adequate moisture, good fertility and low insect pressure. Two Primary Pests... the European Corn Borer and the Corn Ear Worm. Control of these pests is easy with low level chemicals like carbyl, or an uptake material like Lorsban. But, they are chemicals. Sweet corn, especially the new hybrid sweet corns are insect magnets.
Organically, you need to approach these pests from the deterrent side.You might try small squirt bottles of canola or olive oil in ear tips, just a drop or two as soon as the silks show signs of drying. A solution of Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) or spinosad. Vulnerable species of insects exposed to spinosad become over stimulated, become exhausted, cease to eat, and die usually within two days.
There are a variety of horticultural oils that are effective controlling ear worms. Fortunately, I do not have any examples to show you at the moment. Most infestations occur at mid season and we are mostly past that at this point. Variety selection is helpful in deterring these pests as well. Stowell's Evergreen, an old heirloom sweet corn with long shelf life, has a really heavy thick husk that resists attack. It is not as sweet modern hybrid sweet corn cultivars but it doesn't contain unhealthy amounts of sugar either. It tastes more like corn.
Our native American varieties are not immune to disease and pests, but seem to be more hearty in some respects. They do not have the yield potential of modern hybrids but they grind well into cornmeal. I am told, the blue varieties, when made into spirits, have a blue tint.
Corn requires fertility. The story of using fish to fertilize corn plants goes back to colonial times. Fish are good. That is why we use a fish emulsion fertilizer to feed our corn. We also rotate legumes on corn land and sometimes inter-seed southern peas with corn. The whole nitrogen fixation thing. We did that on part of our place this year.
We do not do sweet corn as we do not have a corn head for the Chisholm Ryder and have no plans to buy one. Large quantities of sweet corn really need to be hydro cooled rapidly and the ears graded and stored in refrigerated storage immediately. We have none of these capabilities and we are not going to expand that direction.
Corn meets one of my grandfather's most strict criteria. Farm for yourself first. Cash crops come later. Once harvested and dry, we make cornmeal from it. Hominy can be made from it. Combine that with beans and peas and you can make it through the toughest of times. Dry, these food items will feed a family for a long time. Keep enough to replant and sell the excess as cash crops.
Organically, you need to approach these pests from the deterrent side.You might try small squirt bottles of canola or olive oil in ear tips, just a drop or two as soon as the silks show signs of drying. A solution of Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) or spinosad. Vulnerable species of insects exposed to spinosad become over stimulated, become exhausted, cease to eat, and die usually within two days.
There are a variety of horticultural oils that are effective controlling ear worms. Fortunately, I do not have any examples to show you at the moment. Most infestations occur at mid season and we are mostly past that at this point. Variety selection is helpful in deterring these pests as well. Stowell's Evergreen, an old heirloom sweet corn with long shelf life, has a really heavy thick husk that resists attack. It is not as sweet modern hybrid sweet corn cultivars but it doesn't contain unhealthy amounts of sugar either. It tastes more like corn.
Our native American varieties are not immune to disease and pests, but seem to be more hearty in some respects. They do not have the yield potential of modern hybrids but they grind well into cornmeal. I am told, the blue varieties, when made into spirits, have a blue tint.
Corn requires fertility. The story of using fish to fertilize corn plants goes back to colonial times. Fish are good. That is why we use a fish emulsion fertilizer to feed our corn. We also rotate legumes on corn land and sometimes inter-seed southern peas with corn. The whole nitrogen fixation thing. We did that on part of our place this year.
We do not do sweet corn as we do not have a corn head for the Chisholm Ryder and have no plans to buy one. Large quantities of sweet corn really need to be hydro cooled rapidly and the ears graded and stored in refrigerated storage immediately. We have none of these capabilities and we are not going to expand that direction.
Corn meets one of my grandfather's most strict criteria. Farm for yourself first. Cash crops come later. Once harvested and dry, we make cornmeal from it. Hominy can be made from it. Combine that with beans and peas and you can make it through the toughest of times. Dry, these food items will feed a family for a long time. Keep enough to replant and sell the excess as cash crops.
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