The soybean harvest is complete. We hit some snags with our machinery this year, but we got it done. A major positive is that we had underestimated our yields so we did have to dump some on the cash market. Initially I was concerned about the soybean market but in retrospect, $15/bushel is still a very good price. It will be interesting to see what the overall estimated U.S. soybean harvest will be.
We wasted no time getting into corn. So far so good. Fingers crossed!
Every harvest year, every farmer around the world has some frustration, whether it be from lack of yields, uncooperative weather, not enough help to get everything done, unexpected life happenings, etc., etc. For us at Center View Farms, it is commonly mechanical problems.
Every year the combine that we give a thorough check up pre-harvest, has an issue. This year it is an unload auger problem and quite a serious one. Last year we had a similar issue but was fixed in a few days. This year, it has taken us out of the field for 4 and it is still not fixed. We are concerned that our soybeans are now overly dry and will start shattering, losing thousands of bushels on the ground. As of today, we don’t have a serious problem of shattering, but we will need to keep checking our fields daily for any signs that it is getting worse.
We hope the combine will get fixed up today…what a debacle! On top of this, the weather has been so beautiful and more than cooperative, that to waste days just looking at the ready soybean fields is heart wrenching.
The corn is drying nicely in the field and will be ready when we finish soybeans if all goes well today and this week. Wish us luck!