Biologicals

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Partners & Friends,

We have finally reached the point in summer where we can take a breath. Last week, a company we work with took soil and tissue samples to set a baseline and determine what is happening in the fields as we experiment with a biological product called Holganix. With all the excitement surrounding carbon sequestration and paying the farmer, there is much research going into measuring and verifying how much can we actually store in our soil with no-till, cover crops, and other agronomic practices. Creating better root masses to put more carbon back into the soil and increase the plant’s ability to uptake more nutrients is one benefit. Another is using microbes to break down soil and increase its fertility naturally. The ability to break down residue and make organic matter more available as a nutrient to growing crops while reducing the need for tillage but still leaving the topsoil undisturbed to enhance soil conservation is an additional advantage as well.

The Hess Family Farm team has completed the second cutting of alfalfa in between rain events. Rain here has been spotty—we have received just enough and are now experiencing cooler temperatures during pollination. Mowing roadsides and weed control around field edges are in the queue. We are also doing some deep cleaning at the grain handling site. The drone reappeared and applied pass 2 of 3 of our fungicide/biological crop applied trial. The rare and small windows of “free” time are also being used to continue plugging away at summer construction projects.

The presidential debates are over but I do not believe agricultural policy was mentioned once.🤔 The weather extremes nationwide are gaining attention. The farm bill discussion is going back and forth in DC, and the Summit CO2 pipeline project got approval from the Iowa Utilities Board. 😕

Summer is already half over! Preparations for the Fulton County Fair in a couple of weeks are in effect. Everyone enjoyed celebrating the 4th of July. 🎆 In honor of what would have been Charles and Wilma’s 71st anniversary, there will be a day, July 19th, dedicated in their honor on WLUJ-96.7 FM.

Fall Prices:

Corn—3.99

Soybeans—11.02

Enjoy the summer!

Steve