Kansas Wheat Planting

 October in Kansas means it is time to plant wheat.  Before winter?  You might ask.  A farmers response would be yes!  In Kansas, we plant what is called Hard Red Winter Wheat.  It will start to grow this fall and when it gets cold it will go “dormant.”  If it gets REALLY cold, we hope that there is snow on top of the wheat to protect it from extreme temperatures. 

If you follow me on Facebook, you know that I spent several days spreading fertilizer on the ground that was going to be planted to wheat.  Scientists know how much nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus is removed from a field for each bushel of grain we raise.  We apply fertilizer to replace those nutrients.  It looks quite a bit like the slow release granules you can buy for your flower beds at home.  We also take soil samples periodically to make sure we are not over or under applying the plant food to the crops.

Our local supplier delivered fertilizer to the field for me.

I used a fertilizer spreader pulled behind the tractor.  When you look at it, it looks a lot like the lawn and garden spreaders you might use in your yard; however, where you “eye ball” where you should walk next, I on the other hand have GPS that keeps me within 6 inches of where I need to be to apply accurately.  I was driving every 50 feet by the way. 

My GPS unit that helps me drive straight and the same distance from each and every pass.

The Farmer went out to plant the wheat after I was finished delivering the nutrients to the fields.  Each part of the country has a preferred planting date.  In our part of Kansas, the Hessian fly free date is October 15 (which happens to be very close to our average first frost date).  If your wheat is up and growing before that date and the Hessian flies are present they can cause problems next spring in the presence of disease.  We started a little early knowing that we were forecast to get a freeze the first weekend of October.  Since we are still in a drought, we also needed to plant while there was still moisture in the soil and possibly a chance of rain. 

It may look like there are a lot of weeds in the field, but after the freeze we had they are all dead.  We prefer to use mother nature to control weeds this time of year instead of chemicals.

As I have said before, we are no-till farmers.  We don’t till or “work” the ground before we plant.  It has greatly reduced how much fuel we use and leaving the residue from the previous crop provides a great mulch to the growing crop.  This was very well utilized this past summer with the extreme heat and lack of rainfall.

These corn plants died after the frost and will leave a nice layer of mulch to help hold in moisture this winter.

In a week or so, we will see the wheat growing in the rows, it will just look like grass from now until April.  The heads will start to develop and emerge closer to summer and it would look like the wheat you know and have seen in pictures.

One of our wheat fields last April after the heads had emerged.

We typically harvest our wheat in the middle of June; however, this year we were harvesting in May.  It has been such an unusual year.  Have you seen where my crop goes after harvest?

Curious when farmers plant and harvest the different crops?  Each part of the state is different and although this isn't perfectly our Southeast Kansas calendar it is a good post on In Between the Sunsets of Life.

What are you doing in your gardens and fields in preparation for winter?

Farmers are Busy Even When "Not" Farming

I was recently asked by CommonGround to do a post on what farmers do when they aren’t farming.   Here is the second of 2 posts (it was hard to answer in just one).  Since I am a farm wife, what I do on the farm when we aren’t farming is different than what my husband Farmer is doing. 

Part 2: What do farmers do when they aren’t farming?  Simple answer:  A LOT!

Crop Scouting takes up a lot of our family time in the summer.  The boys and I often ride along as The Farmer looks to see if the crops are growing, if weeds are growing and if bugs are eating our precious plants.  We do not apply pesticides unless we see a need for them in each individual field.  It is better for the environment and soil if we scout our fields and apply as necessary.

Maintenance and Repairs on equipment take up quite a bit of time.  Oil has to be changed, blades have to be sharpened or replaced, things need to be greased or oiled and let’s face it things wear out and need repaired.

Our planter has a lot of moving parts and bearings that can wear out at the wrong time without proper maintenance.

 Hunting is a favorite past time of many farmers.  It gives them time to themselves to enjoy nature.  In our area, deer can wipe out an entire field, so deer hunting is also a way to protect the investment in a crop.

My Father-in-law a few years back with one of his prize bucks.

Most farmers go to several Meetings each year.  These could be considered continuing education by most in the business world, but we are not required to go to them.  We simply know that we need to stay on top of what is new and changing in the world of agriculture or we fall behind.  Here is a post I wrote earlier about meetings.

Comparison Shopping for big ticket items like tractors, combines and planters takes persistence and time, but can be rewarded by saving $$$$.  You wouldn’t go buy the first house or car you look at and farmers are the same way (they can be very tight with their money).

Delivering Grain after harvest keeps farmers and those they hire busy in the off season.  Often lines at the local elevators can slow the harvest, so farmers use bins on their farms to store grain until it needs to be delivered.

Storing corn in a bin is more work than just hauling it to town, but the prices and time savings are often well worth the effort.

Honey Do Lists can become quite long during the busy times of the year.  Every good husband knows if he has a few free hours, he better start on the wish list.

My Honey Do this day included my brother and one of his friends.  Landscaping is hard work, but made me very happy this day.  :)

Record Keeping can pile up in a hurry.  Luckily, my Farmer has me to take care of most of it for him.  Some of the paperwork that has to be taken care of includes:  marketing contracts, crop insurance, Farm Service Agency reports, conservation contracts, and EPA compliance measures.

Volunteering in the community is often a part of a farmer and ranchers life as well.  Helping out at school, the local scholarship selection committee, the Township Board, and the Water District Board are just a few places my Farmer volunteers his time and talents.

Farmer Organization Boards have numerous volunteer positions that need to be filled each year, so they know what farmers really want and need.  Some we have served on are:

·         Kansas Sunflower Commission

·         Kansas Soybean Association

·         Kansas Grazing Lands Coalition

·         Kansas Prescribed Fire Council

·         CommonGround Kansas

Local Events always bring out the farmers.  If it is the right time of year you can always find farmers at Farm Shows, county fairs, state fairs and the local sporting events.  It is a great way for them to network and see what worked for someone else.

Ranchers that are farmers really don’t have a lot of free time.  When they aren’t in the tractor, they are:

·         Delivering mineral and vitamin supplements to their cattle at least weekly.

·         Fixing Fences

·         Checking water supplies and installing tanks in the middle of a drought.

·         Checking cows that are calving.

·         Weaning calves.

·         Pregnancy checking cows.

Just because you don’t see farmers in the field on a tractor doesn’t mean they aren't busy.  There is a considerable amount of work that goes into keeping things going well when the tractors do leave the barn.  Here is a follow up post on what we do on our farm in the winter when we aren't driving tractors.

 

-A Kansas Farm Mom

What A Kansas Farm Mom Does when She Isn't Farming

I was recently asked to do a post on what farmers do when they aren’t farming.  Well, I couldn’t answer that in just one post it was going to take at least two.  Since I am a farm wife, what I do on the farm when we aren’t "farming" is different than what my husband, The Farmer, is doing when we aren't "farming." 

First post, the Farm Wife:

Clean House-After long hours in the field, alongside my husband and with 2 boys living in the house, my house can look like a tornado ran through it.  Most of the time it is just dishes, laundry and sorting through a mountain of mail.  Which brings us to the next item…


Pay Bills and update the accounting software. I have found if I keep up on things all year it makes the tax season much less painful.

Volunteer for community activities

• I am co-chairman for the PTO Book Fair.  We have a great time raising funds to buy new books for the libraries at our school.

• I serve on the Imagination Library Board of Directors locally.  This is a great program for pre-school kids.  Check out the link and consider starting a fundraising drive in your area.  

• My fellow farm wives joined me last week in a fundraiser for our hospital foundation where we answered questions about ag.

 

I cook often when I am not in the field.  As you can tell on my recipe page, I love to have food in the freezer that is ready to be thawed out and eaten.  When I get home at 9 pm, the last thing I want to do is cook a meal.  At least if I have things in the freezer, even The Farmer can warm up supper for the boys if he beats me home.

Youth Program Leaders-  I am by no means an expert in Geology, but due to my son’s interest in rocks and fossils I am the county leader for Geology.  I have learned right alongside my son, but to the kids in our county I am a “Rock Star.”

Yard Maintenance-  I am always ashamed at how my yard, flower beds, and gardens look especially after wheat harvest.  I know several farm wives that have gorgeous flower beds that are maintained a little bit every day in between running for their husbands-maybe when I don’t have kids to keep me busy.  I know I will miss these days and my yard can look lovely when the boys are too busy for me.

The flower bed the boys and I planted this spring with plants I have found over the years at plant exchanges.

Youth Education-  I love to go to the school and talk about farming and ranching.  The kids love to see the a baby calf that is only a few hours old.  I just love to do the Kindergarten Farm Day.

Projects with the kids-  My boys are in 4-H, so we always have something going on: trying a new recipe, identifying fossils, preparing a new speech for competition, the list could go on and on.

It took me quite a while to come up with this list.  I never really thought about what I do when I am not farming. It is a fabulous life and I wouldn’t change one thing about it and I feel blessed to raise my kids with me at my job as A Kansas Farm Mom.

My youngest trying to avoid a nap by playing on his DS in the combine.

Have a great week everyone!  -A Kansas Farm Mom