From the Fields: That’s a wrap

Harvest 2020 is in from the field at Meier Grain and Livestock Farms. What a great feeling that was Friday evening to get the last of the corn off and into the wet bins with the lids shut. We do have to finish running some of the corn through the dryer, but we are out of dry corn space until we get the soybeans delivered. I drove around a bit on Sunday, and it appears most others around here are finished with harvest or getting very close to wrapping things up.

Corn yields were very good in this area, and for us it was nice to have a more normal growing season after a few years of flooding wiping out some of our acres. This past week was filled with beautiful sunrises and sunsets. I think I may have seen more coyotes in the fields this fall than deer. Coyotes sure are growing in population in this area, and they don’t seem as intimidated by big equipment as they used to be. We took time Saturday to clean up under and around the dryer, as well as cleaning up the combine, head and wagons and put them away in the sheds. With an inch or so of snow forecast for this Monday night into Tuesday, it’s good to have that job done and everything in the sheds for the winter. I’d like to get some fall fieldwork done. We are mostly strip-till, and it would be a nice jump on next year to have part of our anhydrous ammonia applied yet this fall. We do have a few places that could use a little tillage to alleviate compaction and smooth out new tile line trenches that settled in.

2020, like every year before it, has had its own unique challenges. COVID-19 has caused so much uncertainty this year. Quarantines, cancellations and closures impacted our communities. We had a virtual Easter family chat with my sisters this spring. Now the return of stricter mandates, who knows what the holidays are going to look like for so many families this year? 2020 is going to be a year to remember, that’s for sure. May you and yours have a happy Thanksgiving and a merry Christmas, even if some of those family traditions are put on hold for this year. May you all be happy, healthy and safe. I look forward to sharing our 2021 growing season adventures with you.

Ridott, Ill.