Spring planting weather thread

[Cliff Neubauer 0]

For the newer members on here in the past (it's been 2-3 years) we kept weather threads going on here for almost a full year at a time and it was nice to be able to follow the weather in different parts of the country.

Here in southeast Iowa it's cold and wet. There has been no spring field work done here and I'd say we are at least a week away if it doesn't rain anymore. The last few nights we've been dropping to well below freezing with the daytime highs only in the lower 40s so it's not very good drying weather. We've still got 10 days before we reach our crop insurance planting date so I'm not worried about the weather but it would sure be nice if we could be done planting by the first week of May like we have the past few years. With the warm weather we had last week our grass, wheat and alfalfa really grew but with the cool weather this week it's pretty much stopped growing again. Next week is supposed to warm up again but that will bring a chance of rain again.

How is the weather in other parts of the country?

[756D-SW.ONT. 0]

Good idea Cliff, here in southwestern Ontario just outside of Detroit Mi. it is cold and damp. The hay really took of the last couple of weeks in the warm weather but like you said, it's just stopped. New seeding alfalfa did not weather the winter well and it could be a bust. It was just too wet going into the winter and we never did get any snow pack to help insulate it. A few of the guys have some fertilizer on their wheat but for the most part we are still 2 weeks away right now. The ground was just starting to grey off nicely before this cold spell moved in. High of 25 today and into the weekend but then again, it is Easter weekend and we do not generally get good weather for Easter around here. I cannot believe I was in shorts two days ago. Regards, Allen.

[MAGNUM 0]

was in the high 60's monday and tuesday it was 80 degrees here, then wednesday it dropped to 25 and this morning we have a 1/4" of snow on the ground, alot of wheat got sprayed the last few days, saw a bunch of guys hauling manure, and a few where moldboarding and chiseling. i was told that a few guys got some new hay seedings in before it got cold.

[Team G 0]

It is cold and damp in Greene County, Il. I wouldn't call it wet. There was some fert. and NH3 applied the last couple of weeks and a little ground worked, but not much else. We got all of our manure hauled last week. No corn planted aorund here that I know of. I am glad we sprayed our unworked bean and corn stubble. The unworked stubble that I have seen around is a carpet of green. We are ready to hit the field. We got the interior, planter monitor, 2-way radio, and are finishing painting the wheels the correct color on the 3688 we bought a couple of weeks ago. So it is pretty much ready to pull the planter. Does anybody know where to find a good digital tune shaft style radio? It looks like I am going to have to get one on E-bay.

[hinfarm 0]

Really cold up here, lows in the teens at night for the next week or so. I wanted to start planting corn around the 20th but I think it will be way to cold. With the rain we have been getting it is still to wet to do field work, barely. I did some disk ripping last night but it was touch and go, guess I'll just have to wait. I still have enought stuff to get ready for spring anyway.

[shermfarm 0]

Here in southern middle TN we had the dryest winter in 117 years and that is as long as TVA has been keeping records so that gives you an idea of just how dry it has been here. We have been just the opposite of you Midwesterners. It has been so dry that hardly any corn has been planted yet. We finally got about 1.5 inches of rain two nights ago. That definately helped the hay and pasture and I imagine that the planters will roll wide open when it dries off in a day or two. Have a good day, Clay

[H-D 0]

Cliff, the one I remember was "Its planting time, where's the rain" and it actually went over the first year some. Weather here is COLD!! Forcast is for same to stay around for the rest of the week. Monday was 80* and windy but still not a bad day on the Harley.This morning was below freezing at 31.3 and saw some frost on the grass while feeding the cattle. there has been some, not much, corn planted already and most likely the guys will continue on in a day or two of drying. Yard has been mowed a couple of times but with this cool spell it should slow down on the mowing.

shermfarm, understand the dry you are talking about as the last four out of five have been "drouthy" here too.

[77_1086 0]

Cold and snow here in Nothwest Ohio.....

Lovely spring weather........

[WHwny 0]

Here you go Cliff you can judge for yourself our weather here in NY the last week and a couple minutes ago. And the ten day forecast don't look good.

Wayne

[TP from Central PA 1]

Was a few nice days last week in the upper 70's, and had it continued we'd be in the fields now here. But it cooled down and rained a good amount since then. We got one set of plows ready to go to the field and changed out a few blades on the disk which is also ready and that is as far as we got. Still have a bunch of manure to truck when it drys out.

It was 29 here this morning with a stiff wind and snow. I took the morning load of manure to the field and didn't have heat until I was back at the farm The up coming week doesn't look much better at the moment.

[Cotton Farmer 0]

Cold, windy and dry. Corn is boot top high and the unirrigated really needs a rain. Was high 80s temps till yesterday. I've got a test plot of cotton up that may not make it if the weekend temps get in the 30s. Don't know how the rice boys will fare through this. Tom

[Red_Man 0]

It was 39 degrees a few minutes ago when I came back from eating lunch with mom, calling for below freezing temps each night through Sunday. One BTO or BFO (as boog likes to call them :ph34r ) planted 350 acres of corn last week, he always has to be first and usually has a mess of a stand with his first planting. We had 1.1" of rain Tuesday night and the temp dropped from the 80's to the upper 40's yesterday. I'd like to plant some next week if the soil dries back out enough...

[ChrisNY 0]

26 degrees, 25+mph winds, heavy lake effect snow. Have picked up 3-4" today. Lake effect warning thru Saturday with over a foot. Happy Easter!! Was drying out nice and figured on starting to plow this week before this mess. Have not seen anybody out yet, alot of equipment poised ready to roll once it drys off and warms up. Forecast looks cold and wet through mid April. Oh well, its still early. Got spoiled the last couple years with early dry springs.

[Loadstar 0]

I was thinking this morning as I drove past my air seeder still half buried in a snow bank that I should take a picture of it just to show you guys down south what its like here. We had some really warm weather a week or so ago which took the majority of the snow and gave us a lot of water but then it turned cold again and has barely hit up to the thawing point most days this past week. The snow in the fence rows and trees just sits there and the ground is frozen so I can drive on the frost in the fields. We are weeks away from field work but that is not too unusual for this area.

Maybe the price of anhydrous will drop by the time the ground thaws and dries out? Wishful thinking. Yesterdays price was 53 cents a pound. More than double last fall's when it was too wet to put mine on.

[Wart ECIL 0]

Sounds like we might be able to start putting on custom NH3 by Saturday. Still plenty wet here; glad the wheeltracks will be in someone else's fields. No corn in the ground in this area, yet.

[Mike Besse 0]

Southern Indiana is cold and wet, we went from low 80's on Monday to the 50's with a low in the 20's called for this weekend. Looked out the break-room window at 2:00 today to see snow flurries but the sun has came out and the clouds are dispersing.

No fieldwork of any kind here yet, wont be for a week or two if it doesnt stop raining every couple of days like it has been. Had allready started spreading fert by now last year, planted corn on April 19 last year, will be doing good to start in May this year.

[MNredfarmer 0]

Sounds like the weather is pretty consistant throughout the country, cooler than normal. It's colder than heck here too. Low's around 15 and highs at 30 with 20-30mph winds. We did have sun today so it wasn't dreary out. Had my first calf today, It was up and sucking in about 30 minutes. I hope the rest of them go this good.

[binderpower856 0]

It is super wet here, and cooooooold. Supposed to get down in the teens the next couple nights. We got a 3.5" toad strangler Tuesday morning (4-3-07). It really washed the heck out of things. Lots of flooding. They even had to close down Hwy 36 because of water over the road. A good portion of the bean trash from last year on one of the farms we rent is stuck in the culverts that cross the highway and the Rail Road tracks. One car got washed off the road and was also sucked into a box culvert, but the lady driver got out before the car was swept away. Good thing for her, because she would have been dead.

It is supposed to rain again here on Tuesday, with temps never getting above 50 until then. It sure isn't drying much with these cool temperatures.

We are at least a week away from being able to do anything here. I have everything ready for the field, with the exception of the 5500 drill. Got a little more to do to it yet, but bean planting is a long ways off.

Bill

[Detroit 0]

Got a good rain Saturday about noon and that was really the first rain of the year for us. The wheat was sure needing it too. It has been in the 80's all last week and almost hit 90 late in the week. But over the past few days its been down in the 50's and lows in the 30's. No rain in the 5 day forcast and it supposed to be warming up by the beginning of next week.

We don't have anything planted but some neighbors have rice and beans in the ground and all the corn that was planted is up and looking pretty good. We were looking to start planting rice and milo about now but the rain slowed us down. We've got a lot of fields ready to plant and got a heck of a lot of subsoiling done this spring. The rain sure helped those clods to melt down some too.

[664 CDN 0]

A couple of guys did a little cultivating last week end but mostly manure hauling.

It was -10c this morning with blowing lake effect snow squalls that continued off and on all day with a high of -1c

Some guys got spring wheat frost seeded but a lot of fields have wet spots in them.

Ray

[98mxz583 0]

Was up in the 70's a day last week. Got 15 acres disked up to make sure it would hold together. Than last night we got about 1' of snow thats been blowing around like crazy. Roads were a sheet of ice. Had to pull my sister in law out of the ditch last night and it was nasty. I almost face planted when i stepped out of the truck. Then today when i was plowing (SNOW PLOWING) i pulled a Dakota out of the ditch. No snow for a couple of weeks and everybody forgets how to drive. Gotta love northern MI summer one day winter the next.

[chadh 0]

cold, but able to put on NH3, got 120 acres this afternoon.

[IHboog 0]

Cold and wet here. However one of the BTO's around has been putting on AA. He has ran everyday this week even the day after we had 6/10ths" of rain. It was plenty wet, as you could see ruts from the road, but they kept going.

IHboog

[Aaron 0]

We missed the rain on Tues. don't know how I disked about 60 acres yesterday and you could have planted behind the 475 disk. Ground worked up nice. Just waay toooo cold Don't think I'd even chance some sweet corn until at least next week. Pending on the rain it may get warm enough by next Sat. to put a bit of corn in.

[jrb1086 0]

It looks like it is going to be a late spring up here! Ten days ago if you would of asked, we thought we were going to be seeding wheat and barley by April 15th, now after 8" of snow and a forecast of only highs in the 30's for the next 10 days we will be lucky to be in by May 1st. So much for seeding the grain before the corn, beets, and beans. Looks like it will be a shot gun start for all. Never fails....

Jeremy