Harvest fun

Posted at 7:56 AM on October 22, 2011 by Bob Collins (4 Comments)
Filed under: Economy

Bob Larkin, of Redding California, comes to Minnesota twice a year -- planting time and harvest time -- to help his cousin, Ed Kaehler of Eyota, MN. "I get the best of both worlds," he says, returning to California during Minnesota's winter to enjoy retirement.

He's unloading corn that his cousin just picked with the combine, but before it goes to market, it has to be dried. Each truck holds about 1,000 bushels of corn -- worth close to $6,000 on the grain market this week.

The roads of rural Minnesota are full of grain trucks this week; the fields are being transformed by combines before the winter comes.

It's a good time to be a farmer in Minnesota, so long as you've got a cousin to help, and don't mind working weekends.

I'll have a post about NewsCut's visit to the farms next week.

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Comments (4)

Having spent the "MEA" weekend travelling in Southern Minnesota with my high school student, I can attest that the farmers have been mighty busy - taking advantage of the fine weather.

So many grain trucks and combines on the road moving between fields and the elevators. Nothing like the harvest to make me miss the out-state area.

Posted by Jack | October 23, 2011 8:10 PM

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I'm looking forward to your farm reports, Bob. As I've heard and read, corn is so dry this year (due to lack of rain) that most won't need to be dried before going into the bins. That's definitely a cost savings to farmers. But corn that is too dry is also more difficult to harvest.

It will be interesting to hear, also, what most farmers think of this year's yields in corn and beans. With the type of weather we've had--too wet initially making for late planting, then drowned out fields, then too dry--this was one challenging year for Minnesota farmers.

Of course, then almost every year has challenges in farming and farmers realize that's part of agriculture.

Posted by Minnesota Prairie Roots | October 24, 2011 7:50 AM

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The corn coming into the combine at 16-18 percent moisture content (a sample we took over to the elevator was 15%), so it'd need some drying if they wanted to take it to the river. Of course the drought giveth and the drought taketh away. Tilling the soil after harvest will be - or is -- a pain in the neck, I guess, because the ground is as hard as a rock.

Posted by Bob Collins | October 24, 2011 8:05 AM

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I had the chance to ride in a combine (and drive a tractor) this weekend with a family friend - I see the attraction! However, spending two months in a cab would get old very quick...but far more rewarding than sitting my office cube for the same amount of time.

Posted by Tyler | October 24, 2011 1:16 PM

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