Normally I would be making money from other sources right now. We did chop silage today. The rest of the week is supposed to give us 2 inches of rain. The neighbor swathed his clover Saturday. It was not ready to chop but we did anyway.
I got in a bit of a hurry and over fed the silage chopper. This makes the fan blades slip and start hitting the blower band. It kept getting louder so I stopped and worked on it. That took two hours to readjust them. Then the bolt came out of the flipper on the spout so it started blowing silage everywhere. Then the truck almost got stuck. We got another dumpbox on the 2-135 but that slows things down a lot. Then is started raining. We gave up. The dairy didn't want it and the farmer asked me to just turn the spout and blow it on the ground. We had seven rows left in the long 20 acre field. Perhaps 3 12 ton loads. It took me an hour or so to finish chopping the field (onto the ground) and to clean up the field.
I can hear it raining outside right now.
This is going to be a bad year. It is not just the weather, prices are crap. Row crops are worth nothing, wheat is worth nothing, forage is worth nothing, grass seed is not moving, clover is kind of sad, hay is not moving. Fertilizer is expensive, diesel is expensive. Of course the morons running this country have screwed things up so bad with the gulf oil spill and oil in general, not to mention destroying the economy, that there is just no hope. Grass seed will not come back. Lush lawns and golf course are not the wave of the future!
Here are some nice cheerful photos!
Our sad soybeans and our "wrong shade of green" barley.
It is painful to blow the clover on the ground. I wish I had it on our fields. Good fertilizer and it conserves moisture. I need a new rear window but I'm broke. I think that White GMC might be overloaded. He was texting and didn't get in behind the chopper, so he got another dumpbox full. I think that truck is probably too small for two full dump boxes..
But at least my wheel didn't break off like what happened to Mr. James.
Posts
Some years, it just doesn't pay to get out of bed, but if you don't, they bury you.
ReplyDeleteGorges, the worst thing about it is that you have to get out of bed and spend money just like things are going to be fine. You would be better off staying in bed... Of course there is always some one who has it worse than you. In theory we can break even. There are others who know they are going to lose money and they have to keep going.
ReplyDeleteI had a bit of an epiphany (sp?) this morning after reading your above post. Helper 1 was working on upgrading steering on a combine. Helper 2 was replacing guards and hold-downs on a windrower. I was rebuilding a pressure washer pump. As I thought about what we were doing as the rain poured down outside, I came to the realization that it did in fact make sense...we can use the pressure washer to clean our well maintained harvest equipment for the auction! I hope that was a joke.
ReplyDeleteMy late mother-in-law was a "catbird" and always had a comeback or a saying for every occasion. Whenever someone said something a little TOO hopeful, her reply was always, "Live in hope if you DIE in despair!"
ReplyDeleteOf course there's always Paul Harvey's advice, There ain't no need worryin' 'bout nothin', 'cause nothin's gonna come out alright!" (If that's not verbatim, it's close enough.)
Well Mr. O, my helper asked for the day off. I thought about all I had to do vs the cost of his wages and said he could have the day off. This is not because I have nothing to do...
ReplyDeleteI think you are being optimistic! I thought of getting ready for the auction, but then I realized that the scrapper would not really care if the equipment was clean or not...
I figured you would be putting duals on your swather. I'd like to see a photo of that!
Yeah, swather duals...hotly debated 'round here right now. I'm going on a trip on the 9th, be back the 17th. I'll make a decision then I guess. I've got a few acres of wet ground near Inavale that I fear will simply not be dry enough to harvest this year. It is touch and go in a good year. Kind of a shame because it grows some really nice annual ryegrass.
ReplyDeleteBoy, has everybody got too much rain? Its all I hear around here. I can't complain too much as I just finished seeding my last field and got it harrowed this morning (in the light rain). Theres always an upside though. Grass is growing like crazy and the cattle have plenty to eat. Crops that are in the ground and not under water should do well. Grain prices... well anything can happen but right now they are not great.
ReplyDeleteBudde I hope things turn around for you and you get paid so you can pay your bills. As long as we own ground I guess we have to keep working it, but that costs money.
Hmmm...guess this isn't the place to complain about the wind, rain and lightning that's supposed to continue while we're playing fiddle and banjo at the Des Moines farmers' market Saturday. Farmers around here got too much rain, we musicianers entertaining them got too much rain, even the ducks are starting to gripe.
ReplyDeleteRalph, I just like to complain. It adds drama, like the fights in reality TV shows.
ReplyDeleteCollieguy, I guess this would be a really good place to complain... Have you ever provided back up music to a silent Woodie Woodpecker film? I'm really thinking of bringing back the Daily Strumpet Appreciation banquet and Birthday Bash sometime around September. I just never get around to inviting people... Oh well, I've found imaginary parties to be the most fun anyway.
You are never alone if you are a schizophrenic!
ReplyDeleteRumor is Flying Pig Fiddle & Banjo will swing through Orygun mid-late September. Woody Woodpecker, Farmer Alfalfa, Daffy Duck, bring 'em on.
ReplyDelete