Once More Around

I'm not sure if the image here is sunrise or sunset. If I got curious enough, I could look at the metadata, the information saved along with the image by the camera when the photo was taken. But it's not important. Because this image is just a fraction of a second caught by the sensor in my camera when I pushed the shutter release and let the light in. The earth kept spinning, the sun appeared to keep moving, and life went on.

I'm writing this on New Year's Eve, a holiday celebrating the end of one year and the beginning of another. Except, you know what? Nothing is actually ending, and nothing is actually beginning! This is just a point in time that we have selected to celebrate time passing. And as is with many things, we all don't agree that this is the correct time to celebrate. See here to find out about Chinese or Lunar New Year.

Humankind has felt the need to mark off time since...well, since time began. We hear of the Mayan calendar, the Julian calendar, and the Gregorian calendar, but actually all are just ways to delineate the cycles of the earth, the passing of the seasons. In days of yore, when the majority of people lived on farms and grew their own food, these cycles were critical knowledge to correctly time planting, livestock breeding, and other tasks to  ensure that harvest and food supply was successfully completed with timing to aid in storage, safeguard the survival of livestock offspring, and so on. The Old Farmer's Almanac is an example of marking time with these purposes in mind.

The year 2019 has been an exceptionally challenging year for many people involved in agriculture, and I have seen many social media posts saying, basically, "good riddance!" But tomorrow won't be better just because we start writing 2020 in the date box on our checks (gah! even that reference doesn't apply any more!) The sun will set tonight in the west, rise again tomorrow in the east, and life will go on as it has for however many millennia. The most that we can hope for is to make it better and easier for those around us. Love will always win.

So no matter if 2020 is good or bad, easy or challenging, it will be what it will be, it's in our Maker's hands, and we'll be along for the ride. Let's make it the best ride we can.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Those of you familiar with me know that I'm not a small man. Never have been. I often refer to myself as the "Wide Body" model. (A dated reference that hearkens back to days of yore when certain airline companies touted their newer model of jets as wide bodied; meaning they could carry more payload...people.)

For years I have read advertisements for clothing that used the phrase "One Size Fits All" with a very healthy dose of skepticism. I knew that in all likelihood said apparel would not fit me. No how, no way. More recently, I have seen ads that have toned down that language. More common these days is, "One Size Fits Most." Still not convinced. I have attempted to try on too many stretch clothes and struggled to get them off of my multi-XL body to be taken in by these universal clothing terms again.

Recently I attended a meeting for Certified Crop Advisors (CCAs) in Springfield, IL. To maintain certification, CCAs are required to accumulate continuing education credits in several categories. This time of the year is (usually) a good chance to pickup CEUs, and this meeting was the Illinois CCA Board's annual conference. One of the sessions was a presentation on Nutrient Management for Water Quality. A worthwhile topic, even if I wasn't needing the hour of  Soil & Water credit.

The presenter did a fine job of outlining various tactics to prevent nutrient loss from agricultural land (non-point source pollution,) and detailing how effective each of these tactics is in the grand scheme of improving water quality. Soon, however, he went from giving us data and facts, to preaching to us about his favorites.

This was where I parted ways with him. He talked about no-till, then he said this: There is never any reason to till our soil. We are operating under mistaken beliefs that tillage is necessary. It isn't. He used no qualifiers, no room for any discussion. I didn't hear any dissent from the other 150 or more CCAs, but we're not a rabble rousing crowd.

I think that no-till can be a positive tool in many farmers' arsenal. But this presenter's One Size Fits All agronomy isn't a thing.

A fellow agronomist says that all agronomy is painfully local. I say that every field has its own story. We have spent too many years trying to use generalized tactics and practices to address specific challenges and problems in crop production. Each farmer's operation, each crop, each field, and to a large extent each season has its own needs, issues and challenges that have to be addressed specifically.

For hundreds (thousands?) of years, farmers didn't have the tools necessary to analyze and enumerate the variability between and within fields. In the 21st Century, we are being deluged with technology,  algorithms, and solutions to these issues. Even Watson, IBM's supercomputer wants to advise farmers.

The point of this rambling missive comes down to this: One Size Fits All in agronomy doesn't work any better than it does in hat size. If someone tells you that you absolutely can't or shouldn't do something, be sure to take pictures to show them when you do it.

Thankful...even in 2019

Thursday is Thanksgiving. The fourth Thursday in November, as decreed by Congress in 1941. There's more to the story, but suffice it to say that we have been standardized on this timing for the past 78 years.

As usual, I have been blessed beyond measure this year, and will celebrate this holiday with close family and friends. Not everyone has been so fortunate in 2019, though. For farmers and ranchers across the country, this year has presented challenges every step of the way. From cataclysmic blizzards dubbed bomb cyclone by the weather folks, to floods that continue to plague the Missouri river valley, to planting delays across the corn belt, to harvests that have been pushed back and slowed due to weather and propane issues.

And it's not over just because we flip the calendar to a new year at the end of next month! Many of the issues I speak of will continue to haunt producers and their families as well as the folks who supply their inputs well into the foreseeable future. Physical, financial, and emotional difficulties will be present long after this season is over.

The hashtag #thanks2019 has been used to sarcastically respond to some of the repeated difficulties of this year.

So, as we approach this day that has been set aside to give thanks, it becomes crucial in this year, every year, really, to count those positive things in our lives that have been provided for us. A beautiful sunrise or sunset. Children or grandchildren in our lives. Regular meals. A safe and secure place to live. Friends.

Each of us as individuals have these positive things that we need to concentrate on even as the harvest drags on, or preparations for 2020 weigh us down. Take a few moments, not just Thursday, but every day, to look around and see even the tiniest of blessings and lift them up in thanks.

And if you're having trouble finding the blessings in your life, give me a call and we'll see if we can't find them together.

It's Starting Off Just Like...

I'm starting to see articles with titles like, "Lessons learned from 2019" in ag press and social media. In fact, I posted one today on Prairie Agronomics' Facebook page from Prairie Farmer that outlines six lessons for weed control that we can use. Good info there.

A challenging year like 2019 tempts one to treat the following growing season the way we feel would have worked out better if we could have perfect hindsight. Temptations such as rushing to plant early, even if conditions aren't perfect. Temptations such as switching entire weed control strategies to whatever seems to be perfect in our neighborhood this season. The list of management tactics that could be tempting us to change because they appear to have been "the thing" that made all the difference in 2019 is exhaustive.

The thing that needs to be foremost in our minds as we consider these changes is this: 2020 in all likelihood will not be "the same" as 2019. So those things that tempt us to make sweeping management changes in our crop production tactics could well backfire in a different growing season scenario. 

I have experienced several milestone seasons over the course of my 40 years of involvement  in agronomy. Standouts include 1988, 1993, 1996, 2005, and 2012. In each of these years, I have talked to growers who are convinced they need to significantly change something they have done successfully long term but failed them in that one extreme season. Something that worked for the past 15 or more years, but because it wasn't successful in one, it's going to be scrapped in favor of something that is perceived to have performed better under the extreme conditions.

Human tendency is to have a short memory, and to think that what happened to us most recently is going to be our new "normal." This is rarely the case. Extremes are just that, outliers in our long term database of conditions and results. Successful managers use trends to make decisions, not one time results or single data points. It's difficult to remove emotions from decisions following challenging years like 2019, but as much as possible, we need to be rational and analytical in making any major changes to our cropping systems.

So after 2019 is in our rear view mirror, and we are looking forward to 2020, let's try to decide if the corn and beans were actually greener on the other side of the fence, or are we being tempted into believing they were?? 

W Kevin Nelson, CCA 4R NMS
Senior Agronomist
Prairie Agronomics, LLC

August Report Week

Earlier this week, the USDA's National Ag Statistics Service released the August Crop Production Report. 

Corn production numbers, in particular, have caused an uproar on social media and elsewhere. The gist of the discussion sounds something like this: "Where are they coming up with these numbers? That can't be close to right!" 

Here's the reason for this post: In both 2017 and 2018, the August report elicited similar responses. Maybe not to the extent that this report has caused turmoil, but similar nonetheless. And then when harvest got underway and then completed, we harvested near record overall yields.

This growing season has not been like those two, but we need to remember that USDA was closer to the correct numbers in August than most anyone would like to believe in both of the past two years. Maybe instead of raising quite so big a stink about how wrong the report is, we should wait and see exactly how close they are.

Kevin Nelson, CCA 4R NMS

Zombie Weed Apocalypse

The growing season of 2019 just keeps on giving. Without going over all the morbid details, let’s just say that it’s been challenging from the very beginning, and looks like the challenges will continue on through to harvest and beyond.

As we get into the latter part of summer we are still contending with weeds that have refused to die. For lack of a better term, zombie weeds. These weeds have had burndown herbicide treatments, pre-emergent residual treatments, one or more post treatments, and still refuse to die. Some are newly emerged, some have just not succumbed to the programs we had planned before the spring weather went off the tracks. And now they have gone to seed, or soon will. 

At this point, another spray trip becomes little more than an attempt at revenge. The plants are way above label size restrictions, and have hardened off with the dry conditions of the last few weeks. The chances are they won’t die, and the seed on them is probably already viable to bring on the next generation.

Am I going to give you the solution to the zombie weed apocalypse? Probably not. But I’ll point out that this weed control disaster isn’t a failure in any one program or system. We can find fields under all types of management that is experiencing problems, owing mainly to the conditions of the growing season. What I will say is this: start right now addressing the weed problems that will probably be coming our way in 2020. Here’s a list of things to consider:

• Since many, though not all, weed control systems now combine seed traits with herbicide products, now is the time to start putting those combinations together. These systems must start with variety and hybrid selection, and seed companies will be on your doorstep early this fall. Choose a system that fits your needs from a production standpoint as well as weed control ability.

• Consider cover crops to suppress weeds this fall. Some cover crop mixtures are better than others at keeping weeds down, and the consideration on how to terminate these crops needs to be factored in. Seed supplies may be an issue, as well.

• Talk to your retailer about a fall burndown treatment. This can make a tremendous difference in weed pressure in the spring. With what looks like an extended harvest, it is crucial that you make your plans and let your retailer know with plenty of time what you intend to do.

• Remember that applying a second or third application of the same mode of action or site of action is a great way to select for herbicide resistant weeds, and not a great way to control them.

So as you look out over your fields, frustrated with the zombie weeds poking through your crops or covering your Prevented Planting acres, remember that they aren’t coming after your brains, but you will need to put your brain to work now to prepare to hold them in check in the coming seasons. 

PrairieAgr19@gmail.com

Zombie Giant Ragweed

Zombie Waterhemp

Prairie Agronomics: A Re-Imagined Blog

Earlier this year, I began the formal process of starting a consulting firm. The result has been Prairie Agronomics. I consult with farmers on their crop production system, helping them with planning and problem solving. 

As part of this process, I am taking this Blogger site that I formed over ten years ago, which has sat basically idle for much of that time, and putting it to use as a platform for providing content for customers, prospects, friends, family and acquaintances. If you are reading this, you probably fall into one or more of these categories.

Much of this content will be agriculturally focused, more specifically agronomic in nature. Agronomy is the study of crops and soils and their interactions, including pests, nutrients, and management. But occasionally I will delve into topics that touch me or inspire me. Time will tell. 

My goal is to be much more intentional with the use of this platform, though probably not adhering to a "regular" schedule. I also have several colleagues who may show up as Guest Bloggers from time to time.

If you have questions that you feel could be addressed by a post, feel free to contact me and I'll see what I can do.

So come along for the ride, see where we wind up. Glad to be back and writing again.