Kaia and I motored to the OFH this morning. We're here for a birthday party and will stay a few days. Time to catch up with family, friends and mail. The Easter Card waiting for me was nice, even if delayed by my absence.
Many corn planters were busy in the fields, all of the planters larger that mine.(See mine below.) It's ideal planting conditions and future precipitation is hoped. Nice to have a comfortable apartment to occupy while city-ing.
Takk for alt,
Al
The less modern corn planter.
Perhaps you've all experienced the joy? of waiting for service technicians. It seems they don't always arrive in a timely manner. Last week the message was that a service person would arrive between 8:00 and 12:00 Tuesday (today). He arrived at 10:30 and finished the job at noon. There was even a GPS feature that allowed me to track his progress as he drove from Sioux Falls.
The windshield on the truck was in bad shape. Pervious operators had run the windshield wipers without blades. The result was half-moon scratches on both sides of the window. The glass was also badly pitted from road debris. It was dirty, too, 😊but insurance wouldn't replace it for that. Oh, the view is so much better now!
Was I impatient waiting for service? Not a bit. It was a good time to launder the bed linen. Watching others work is one of my finely honed skills. However, Kaia was quite impatient. She was missing her typical morning foray into the fields. Pacing back and forth she made it clear that she wanted to run. Eventually she had her opportunity.
Takk for alt,
Al
The corn and sorghum planted last spring stood through the winter providing food for wildlife; primarily deer and pheasants. In preparation for tillage, plowing and discing, I chop the stalks with a mechanical stalk chopper. Due to operator error the power shaft of the chopper was bent. It's a very old machine consequently repair parts are not available. A welding shop in Volga was able to true up the power shaft making the chopper functional. Today was warm enough to operate an open station tractor, i.e., one without a cab. Now all three fields are ready for plowing.
Entering the food plot with sorghum seven hen pheasants flew out. As mentioned in a previous blog pheasants prefer sorghum to corn. That field will be replanted to sorghum and brood mix. That will provide food for chicks and winter feed for pheasants.
Takk for alt,
Al
At the weekly Wednesday meals at the bank, to which I have a perpetual invitation, I'm by far the oldest. Not only are most of the others younger their tenure in Sinai is relatively brief. That confers on me the role of historian. The owner of the bank, who resides one town over (Arlington), occasionally joins us for the meal. He is particularly interested in local history so often asks questions about various aspects of that history. Because I'm 'older than dirt'...it should be 'older than soil'...I do know much of the lore. One farmer, perhaps 60?. who grew up locally is often at dinner (noon meal). His wife is an employee of the bank and, while his memory does not reach back as far as mine, he is also a source of information.
Given that my grandparents settled in the community in 1885, and there have been family members in residence ever since, I do carry a significant amount of history. No, I'm not going to write a book!
Takk for alt,
Al
This is one of those days without an original thought! Did I mention that Dekalb Seed Corn is owned by Bayer?
All's well, just waiting for warmer weather!
Takk for alt,
Al
Two 56lb bags of seed corn each hold 80,000 kernels, counting took me awhile. 😉 Germination was tested November 2021. This confirms my suspicion that the seeds are surplus because the seeds are past their prime. Precision planters determine the optimum seeds to plant per acre. The four row John Deere planter, from the 60s, which I use is not so precise. Labels on the bags indicate that they are for wildlife planting only. To receive the bags I had to sign a statement that they'd be used for wildlife and not commercial use. The label would normally indicate the dates to maturity, e.g., 101 days. These tags didn't offer that. It's only a matter of curiosity for me becasue the corn isn't harvested but left for the pheasants and deer.
Both I, and the soil, are waiting for warmer weather before planting. "Corn is a warm-season crop that germinates and emerges best when soil temperatures are between 85–90°F. However, many corn varieties will sprout at temperatures in the 50s. For best germination, the soil should be 60–65°F at a depth of 2–4 inches." Google
Takk for alt,
Al
Now that bring back memories, my dad planted Dekalb Seed Corn. 1957 was the last year he planted. I planted in 1968 because he'd had a heart attack. Every year the State gets surplus seed corn from commercial seed corn companies. Likely it's leftover inventory. Then they give it to those of us who plant wildlife food plots. This year it is Dekalb. Certainly the current Dekalb Company is mixture of companies that have merged or been bought out. I didn't look at the labeling, don't look a gift horse in the mouth, to see maturity date or when the germination was tested.
Along with the bags of corn came bags of sorghum, pheasants like sorghum even better than corn, and brood mix. "The brood mix is an annual mixture of cover crop species designed to flower from spring through fall and then produce seed for wildlife forage during the winter months. By flowering, the brood mix provides pollinator habitat that traditional corn/sorghum food plots lack. Pollinating insects, such as bees, leaf hoppers, butterflies, moths and ants thrive in areas with flowering, broadleaf plants. Insects comprise nearly 100 percent of a pheasant chick’s diet, making habitats for pheasant chicks to forage a key component of pheasant production." SD Game Fish and Parks
Purchased commercially these bags would have cost hundreds. They are given to encourage wildlife conservation. Likely the corn was commercial surplus given to the state by the seed corn company. "Landowners receive free brood plot mix, corn or sorghum seed to plant, plus receive a payment to help offset planting costs." GFP
Takk for alt,
Al
