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Post by code on Feb 7, 2022 17:03:16 GMT
Input prices have shot up for row crop farmers. Some chemicals we bought last year for in the $teens are now in the $50-60+ range (priced per gallon). Some chemicals I bought for in the $20s last year are now $100+. Not all chemicals have shot up yet. We will be looking to change up our regular plans to go forward with the most economical options (like we do every year), but economical as well as effective. I will not change to a different product that will cost me more issues on the back side than it is worth. There has to be a balance between saving the costs and making sure that a satisfactory job is done. Otherwise, I could be shooting myself in the foot down the road. Fertilizer will be a huge jump for everybody this year. That is the big reason for all the talk of crop planting decisions. My acreage split will be about normal except for swapping some milo ground to soybeans. I will not plant soybeans in my area unless they are over $11 per bushel. Our expected yields and volatility or our weather during harvest season makes soybeans fairly risky in our area, so the potential reward needs to be worth the risk. Overall, with the increased costs of chemicals, Fertilizer, fuel, parts, services, etc, I still feel I have potential for decent profits this year with a couple of big IF'S going forward....the crop prices remain elevated and weather cooperates to have at least an average crop and allows for good harvest. Our area is very risky at harvest with hurricanes and tropical storms. This past year most of the milo crop was a huge disaster due to a stretch of wet weather that sprouted the crop and made harvest difficult. So far...it's just another year....like every year. Successful farming is about timeliness and properly managing risk. And a whole lot of luck sometimes.
Would appreciate it if you posted more about what chemicals you use, why, and what fertilizers and why. I know my request may sound stupid but I want some basic info. Thanks. Oh, and you are in Texas? Right?
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Post by txfarmer on Feb 8, 2022 14:41:15 GMT
Input prices have shot up for row crop farmers. Some chemicals we bought last year for in the $teens are now in the $50-60+ range (priced per gallon). Some chemicals I bought for in the $20s last year are now $100+. Not all chemicals have shot up yet. We will be looking to change up our regular plans to go forward with the most economical options (like we do every year), but economical as well as effective. I will not change to a different product that will cost me more issues on the back side than it is worth. There has to be a balance between saving the costs and making sure that a satisfactory job is done. Otherwise, I could be shooting myself in the foot down the road. Fertilizer will be a huge jump for everybody this year. That is the big reason for all the talk of crop planting decisions. My acreage split will be about normal except for swapping some milo ground to soybeans. I will not plant soybeans in my area unless they are over $11 per bushel. Our expected yields and volatility or our weather during harvest season makes soybeans fairly risky in our area, so the potential reward needs to be worth the risk. Overall, with the increased costs of chemicals, Fertilizer, fuel, parts, services, etc, I still feel I have potential for decent profits this year with a couple of big IF'S going forward....the crop prices remain elevated and weather cooperates to have at least an average crop and allows for good harvest. Our area is very risky at harvest with hurricanes and tropical storms. This past year most of the milo crop was a huge disaster due to a stretch of wet weather that sprouted the crop and made harvest difficult. So far...it's just another year....like every year. Successful farming is about timeliness and properly managing risk. And a whole lot of luck sometimes.
Would appreciate it if you posted more about what chemicals you use, why, and what fertilizers and why. I know my request may sound stupid but I want some basic info. Thanks. Oh, and you are in Texas? Right?
We use many different kinds of chemicals and usually generics, so to list the product names would be way too many. In herbicides, we spray clethodim, glufosinate, glyphosate, mesotrione, atrazine, flumioxazin, 2,4-d, dicamba, and other forms. There are numerous brands of these herbicides. We also spray many insecticides like acetate, bifenthrin, pyrethroids, and other forms as well. There's different fungicides we spray on the crops. We will also spray some foliar fertilizers if we feel the crops need the extra boost. It's not a definite return on investment on the foliar fertilizers but we feel they can pay for themselves most time particularly in cotton as we believe it helps with fiber quality at times when the plants are more stressed. There is also growth regulators we spray on the crops depending if we want to encourage growth in the roots or the structure of the plant or if we want to slow the growth of the plant. Particularly in cotton, we don't want too much vegetative growth because that is taking energy and nutrients from the plant to grow more stalk than is needed. So we can retard the vegetative growth to encourage more fruiting on the plant. Also with cotton there are chemicals called defoliants we have to spray on the plants to have them prepped for harvest. Typically spraying is much more common in the southern farming regions. We do not get the cold weather that the more northern areas do that work to kill weeds and insects during the winter. Many winters our weeds can grow most, if not all, winter long. So more tillage and more spraying is required. Also, cotton requires a lot more care taking than either soybeans or corn. And I am located along the Texas coast. Living in Alvin but farm in Fort Bend and Wharton counties. We also run cows for market calves and bale hay. |
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Post by txfarmer on Feb 8, 2022 14:47:52 GMT
As far as fertilizers, it depends which crops we are fertilizing and what our goals are. Also it depends on prices.
We put out dry blends some years, and depending what our dry fertilize program is, we put out different liquid fertilizers and different volumes of each. Again, depending on crop prices and fertilize prices. Also, it depends on our weather and crop conditions and how much
we have applied in previous years and how much we figure we have pulled out the ground from the previous harvest.
Every year is different, and because of that, every year is the same. We like to rotate different crops in different fields every year if we can to help to keep fungus and nematode pressures down. It also helps to rotate our modes of action in our herbicide program and different amount of tillage we run through the different crops. This reduces the chance of herbicide resistance building in our fields. It's just good agronomic practice in my opinion.
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Post by blustnmtn on Feb 8, 2022 17:19:58 GMT
Would appreciate it if you posted more about what chemicals you use, why, and what fertilizers and why. I know my request may sound stupid but I want some basic info. Thanks. Oh, and you are in Texas? Right?
We use many different kinds of chemicals and usually generics, so to list the product names would be way too many. In herbicides, we spray clethodim, glufosinate, glyphosate, mesotrione, atropine, flumioxazin, 2,4-d, dicamba, and other forms. There are numerous brands of these herbicides. We also spray many insecticides like acetate, bifenthrin, pyrethroids, and other forms as well. There's different fungicides we spray on the crops. We will also spray some foliar fertilizers if we feel the crops need the extra boost. It's not a definite return on investment on the foliar fertilizers but we feel they can pay for themselves most time particularly in cotton as we believe it helps with fiber quality at times when the plants are more stressed. There is also growth regulators we spray on the crops depending if we want to encourage growth in the roots or the structure of the plant or if we want to slow the growth of the plant. Particularly in cotton, we don't want too much vegetative growth because that is taking energy and nutrients from the plant to grow more stalk than is needed. So we can retard the vegetative growth to encourage more fruiting on the plant. Also with cotton there are chemicals called defoliants we have to spray on the plants to have them prepped for harvest. Typically spraying is much more common in the southern farming regions. We do not get the cold weather that the more northern areas do that work to kill weeds and insects during the winter. Many winters our weeds can grow most, if not all, winter long. So more tillage and more spraying is required. Also, cotton requires a lot more care taking than either soybeans or corn. And I am located along the Texas coast. Living in Alvin but farm in Fort Bend and Wharton counties. We also run cows for market calves and bale hay. I'm certain Mike Bloomberg is current with all of these strategies! |
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Post by txfarmer on Feb 8, 2022 20:26:41 GMT
We use many different kinds of chemicals and usually generics, so to list the product names would be way too many. In herbicides, we spray clethodim, glufosinate, glyphosate, mesotrione, atropine, flumioxazin, 2,4-d, dicamba, and other forms. There are numerous brands of these herbicides. We also spray many insecticides like acetate, bifenthrin, pyrethroids, and other forms as well. There's different fungicides we spray on the crops. We will also spray some foliar fertilizers if we feel the crops need the extra boost. It's not a definite return on investment on the foliar fertilizers but we feel they can pay for themselves most time particularly in cotton as we believe it helps with fiber quality at times when the plants are more stressed. There is also growth regulators we spray on the crops depending if we want to encourage growth in the roots or the structure of the plant or if we want to slow the growth of the plant. Particularly in cotton, we don't want too much vegetative growth because that is taking energy and nutrients from the plant to grow more stalk than is needed. So we can retard the vegetative growth to encourage more fruiting on the plant. Also with cotton there are chemicals called defoliants we have to spray on the plants to have them prepped for harvest. Typically spraying is much more common in the southern farming regions. We do not get the cold weather that the more northern areas do that work to kill weeds and insects during the winter. Many winters our weeds can grow most, if not all, winter long. So more tillage and more spraying is required. Also, cotton requires a lot more care taking than either soybeans or corn. And I am located along the Texas coast. Living in Alvin but farm in Fort Bend and Wharton counties. We also run cows for market calves and bale hay. I'm certain Mike Bloomberg is current with all of these strategies! 😂 yep its so easy...just put a seed in the ground and up comes the corn. Our job isn't near as back-breaking labor intensive as the early 1900s but the hours are the same if not more. There are still plenty of jobs that require a strong back yet, but thank God for the technology that has been developed. There would be a lot less people but a lot more hungry people in the world if it weren't for modern agriculture |
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Post by Sigurdur on Feb 8, 2022 21:24:50 GMT
Yep.
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Post by missouriboy on Feb 9, 2022 2:59:56 GMT
US Ag Secretary visits Missouri and talks money. Don't know if he's giving or taking
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Post by ratty on Feb 9, 2022 5:51:54 GMT
Well, this thread has certainly opened my eyes! Until now, I thought all farmers did was toss a few seeds around then sit on the veranda spitting chewing tobacco until the crop grew. Gotta go, my Caffè latte is getting cold.  |
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Post by missouriboy on Feb 9, 2022 15:28:38 GMT
Well, this thread has certainly opened my eyes! Until now, I thought all farmers did was toss a few seeds around then sit on the veranda spitting chewing tobacco until the crop grew. Gotta go, my Caffè latte is getting cold.  Naw Ratty. That only happened once upon a time in the old South.   |
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steve
Level 2 Rank
Posts: 77
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Post by steve on Feb 9, 2022 18:18:30 GMT
The rig that I use to toss seed into the ground is controlled by computers. I don't know how many. I tell them how much to put in the soil and it does the rest. It will also change rates based on a map if I want it to. I also put one type of fertilizer in the furrow with the seed and a second 3 inches on both sides of the row. One pass seeding and fertilizing.
Tried to attach a photo but the file size is too large. Need to figure out how to reduce it tonight.
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Post by flearider on Feb 9, 2022 21:16:50 GMT
The rig that I use to toss seed into the ground is controlled by computers. I don't know how many. I tell them how much to put in the soil and it does the rest. It will also change rates based on a map if I want it to. I also put one type of fertilizer in the furrow with the seed and a second 3 inches on both sides of the row. One pass seeding and fertilizing. Tried to attach a photo but the file size is too large. Need to figure out how to reduce it tonight. you guy's not use cow shit over there ? in the uk you know when spring is coming .. the country side reeks ..lol  |
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Post by farmerted on Feb 9, 2022 22:46:21 GMT
Yes we do! We try to put it in the ground with application. Helps with the smell some! But now with the high price of fertilizer it's some good shit!!
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Post by missouriboy on Feb 9, 2022 22:50:38 GMT
Hackett Financial Ag Forecasts
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Post by txfarmer on Feb 9, 2022 23:24:46 GMT
The rig that I use to toss seed into the ground is controlled by computers. I don't know how many. I tell them how much to put in the soil and it does the rest. It will also change rates based on a map if I want it to. I also put one type of fertilizer in the furrow with the seed and a second 3 inches on both sides of the row. One pass seeding and fertilizing. Tried to attach a photo but the file size is too large. Need to figure out how to reduce it tonight. you guy's not use cow shit over there ? in the uk you know when spring is coming .. the country side reeks ..lol Excluding politicians...there's not enough shit in this world to fertilize for the world's needs. That's why 100% organic food production is a fairy tale unless there is a huge reduction in world population. Manure is rarely used in this area. There are some chicken farms in the area that some people will use from time to time, but the chicken farms in no way could dream of having chicken litter output high enough to make a dent in area fertilize needs. There are no major cattle feedlots or hog operations in the area either. Even if there was, I would still likely to stick our fertilize program. It hasn't done us wrong yet. |
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steve
Level 2 Rank
Posts: 77
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Post by steve on Feb 10, 2022 1:44:56 GMT
Animal manure is great stuff. If it is not worked in shortly after application, some of the nitrogen will volatize. I think the organic matter in the manure is more valuable than most recognize. Locally laying hen litter is highly sought after as it has higher levels of Calcium, but it is expensive and booked out a year or two in advance. Not much hog manure any more. Some cattle feed yard manure of varying quality.
My program is all commercial fertilizers annually and some lime and gypsum applied every few years.
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