Farm Friday (Monday Edition...)

My Farm Friday post is coming a little later this week, or should I say last week, because My Farmer and I were at the Iowa Farm Bureau's state Young Farmer Advisory Committee's meeting all weekend.  This was our last meeting on the state board; we finished our three-year term at the meeting.

IFBF State Board Member Carlton Kjos presenting My Farmer and I
a clock as a gift of appreciation for our  service

We had a great time serving on the state Young Farmer committee!  We made a lot of great friends, made memories traveling to different conferences, and learned a lot about Farm Bureau while on the committee.

"Retiring" committee members - the Hall's, My Farmer & I, and the Dreher's

Our time on the state committee may be over but My Farmer and I still have many more years as Young Farmers ahead of us!  We are excited to move onto different commitments within Farm Bureau and we wish the best to the new board members.

The new North Central Iowa representatives, the Muff's, with Us
They'll do a great job representing our district

Now that I explained why my Farm Friday post is late, I better post my crop report.  This week on the farm we have been keeping busy with hauling corn to an area ethanol plant and with spraying our soybeans with fungicide and Round-Up.  My "backyard" is in a big need for a drink of water!  I hope we get some rain and soon!

The corn is continuing to pollinate.

If you look closely, you can see the tassel pollen on the silks of the ear of corn

Here is a look at how the ear of corn currently looks.  It is beginning to show the kernels which is known as blistering or R2.

My "hog's backyard" of soybeans is now up to my chest!  (I'm only 5'2" though...)

The soybeans are now at R3, meaning they are beginning to set pods.  Temperature or moisture stress during this stage can affect yield through total pod numbers, bean number per pod, and/or seed size.  So this means our soybeans need a good rainfall and nice temperatures, which today is suppose to get in the high 90's with no rain - not what we want!

How is the weather in your area?  Are you too going through the current drought that is across 2/3 of the United States?

Farm Friday

This week on the farm we have been busy hauling corn to the ethanol plant.  We also have been busy making sure our hogs stay cool during these high temperatures and triple digit heat indexes.  The pigs in our building currently are around 100 pounds, this means we like to keep their houses at 68 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit.  When the outside temperature is higher than our ideal conditions we have misters or sprinklers automatically turn on to help keep the pigs comfortable.  When hogs are at market weight between 260 and 280 pounds, we like to keep their houses between 60 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit.

Wouldn't you like to be in 60 and 70 degree temperatures your entire life???

As for "my backyard" this week, at the beginning of the week the corn started tasseling, which is the last stage in the vegetative growth cycle known as VT.

Corn Tassel

And now by the end of the week, the corn has begun silking, which is the first stage in the reproductive growth cycle known as R1.  At this stage pollination begins when pollen grains from the tassels contact the new and moist silks.  When scouting this field I came out with pollen grains all over me.  I'm happy that temperatures are forecasted to be cooler and that we have a chance of rain next week, because the largest yield reduction due to stress happens at this stage.

Corn Ears Silking

Here is an ear of corn that I shucked.  You can see the kernels beginning to form and the silks. 

Now onto my "hog's backyard":

The soybeans started their reproductive stages last week by beginning to flower.  This week they are at R2, which means they are at full bloom and have flowers within the top two nodules of the plant.

Do you have any questions about corn or soybean development?  Be sure to leave comments and/or questions in the comment section below.