# Spring is here, almost go-time



## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

77 degrees today, alfalfa greened up nice, some 2 inches tall already. Seen 1st guy knifing in anhydrous today on some lighter soil. Clay dirt will be close by the weekend if weather holds.


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## hay hauler (Feb 6, 2010)

Snowed two days ago. 40 something degrees today... More of the same in our future, water is comes on the 15th....


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## dixietank (Jan 26, 2011)

Yes sir, I have spots of clover about a foot tall in my hayfield...it won't be long.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Seen first robin today.They say robins get snowed on 3 times after they get here.And it does hold pretty true.Possible snow tonight and again on Sat.Lows down to 20 end of this week.brrr


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## Dolphin (May 21, 2010)

I know you guys in Texas are in the 80's, but we had a blizzard watch that got cancelled yesterday.

It was upgraded to a blizzard warning. Heavy snow, high winds, blowing and drifting, whiteout conditions, power outages due to downed trees and power lines all possible. No travel advised.

National Weather Service Watch Warning Advisory Summary

‎* SNOW ACCUMULATION: 12 TO 16 INCHES OF SNOWFALL IS EXPECTED BY
LATE WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON.


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## Hayking (Jan 17, 2010)

Alfalfa is growing if we can get a inch of rain within the next week or so we will be cutting the last week of April we are 82 degrees today suppose to rain but looks like it has missed us


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## dixietank (Jan 26, 2011)

Thats my goal...first cutting on my field last week in April


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

Same goal in S. IN. Started cutting last year on April 29th. Finished first cutting about 4th of July. May usually sucks in Indiana as far as too much rain.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

You guys seem to have about a three week advantage on us Haybaler. I like to have made a helluva dent in planting soybeans and corn by the end of April, but that early around here I could cut our hay with our ZTR. I've started first cutting around the 17th of May before to get ahead of some wild oats, second cutting out yielded the first until I started making hay that was cut the first time in June. Which is fine as long as I get enough good first cutting to supply a couple large horse customers.


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## Cozyacres (Jul 16, 2009)

Its snowing / sleet / ice here now. calling for 5" to 10" by tomorrow (Wednesday). Spring seems a long way off for me!



Dolphin said:


> I know you guys in Texas are in the 80's, but we had a blizzard watch that got cancelled yesterday.
> 
> It was upgraded to a blizzard warning. Heavy snow, high winds, blowing and drifting, whiteout conditions, power outages due to downed trees and power lines all possible. No travel advised.
> 
> ...


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## Dolphin (May 21, 2010)

Well cozyacres look at it this way. While we have to wait and just look out the window while these guys get busy, we can follow along with what's going on and be well advised thanks to members here on haytalk when it is finally time for us to get busy. Might get some new ideas for crops, machinery, methods and fertilizer along the way so that when it is time to fire up the equipment we have a well formulated plan shaped with the current 2011 season info.

WE REALLY NEED YOU GUYS WITH THE GOOD WEATHER POSTING UP NORTH! or it will be HEEEEEEEREE'S JOHNNY! time LOL


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## NDVA HAYMAN (Nov 24, 2009)

Blizzard in North Dakota. Heavy, heavy snow. I think spring will miss us. Mike


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

Don't worry guys, sounds like spring is over here too. I've seen forecast lows down to 23 for the next couple of nights. Should do wonders for alfalfa that is already 3 inches tall. Highs in the low 40's for the next week. Hope those sand farmers planting sweet corn this week put heaters in the row with seed.


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

Wow what a change! 75 degrees yesterday, 35 degrees today with stiff north wind. Back to carharts and long johns for a few days.


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## Cozyacres (Jul 16, 2009)

I guess I don't feel too bad then.
High in the mid 20's, low around 5 above. Had about 12" of snow / ice Tues and Weds.



haybaler101 said:


> Wow what a change! 75 degrees yesterday, 35 degrees today with stiff north wind. Back to carharts and long johns for a few days.


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## Mike120 (May 4, 2009)

We've got a cold front on it's way down! First part of next week, the high is forecast at 79 degrees. Y'all keep your cold up there.....but, I'll sure take some rain if you can send some.


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

Living in the land of the confused weather. Got 3 inches of snow last night. Highs barely breaking 40 now after a week of 75 degree weather. Guys wanting to start planting big time here in about a week. Ground is dry enough, temps just way too cold.


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## Toyes Hill Angus (Dec 21, 2010)

The ground is still froze here, at least the snow is all gone except for where it was piled


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

haybaler101 said:


> Living in the land of the confused weather. Got 3 inches of snow last night. Highs barely breaking 40 now after a week of 75 degree weather. Guys wanting to start planting big time here in about a week. Ground is dry enough, temps just way too cold.


I can remember one spring when we still had the 8 row planter and was pulling it with an open station Oliver 2255, Dad had his Carharts on for the first 500 acres of corn. Cool and with a cold wind, bad enough on the farm but much worse out in the middle of a 80 acre field.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Hauled manure until noon on frozen ground this morning.Last load got pretty slimy.


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

mlappin said:


> I can remember one spring when we still had the 8 row planter and was pulling it with an open station Oliver 2255, Dad had his Carharts on for the first 500 acres of corn. Cool and with a cold wind, bad enough on the farm but much worse out in the middle of a 80 acre field.


Spring 2001, started planting corn on April 10th. Had to wait on snow to melt that morning and ground to dry off on top before we could start. Uncle was running 4 row then on Farmall Super MTA, so we ended up putting a heat houser on to keep him from freezing to death that day.


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## scrapiron (Mar 10, 2010)

Have some sweet corn a foot tall, bermuda grass 12-18in tall about 2wks from cutting, bahia is still a month from cutting. Going to plant a small field of tropical corn sat. Yesterday we had a nice little rain, 16hrs just over 4in,we will have good soil moisture for 2wks. Worked on repacking the rake bearings yesterday, should be making HAY in 2wks. This will be the earliest we have baled in many years.

scrapiron


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## dbergh (Jun 3, 2010)

Spring is very reluctant to make an appearance here in Idaho. Still cool and very wet for the desert. Almost no work being done on spring planting anywhere in the southern half of the state. Winter wheat does look fabulous in most areas though with all the cool wet weather! Alfalfa has broken dormancy but that is it- no real growth on any fields yet. Hay supplies are nonexistent and prices are very strong (for what little is being moved).


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## NCSteveH (Jun 30, 2009)

Brought up the camera on the back of my barn and thought someone was playing an April fools trick on me till i checked the weather report, the yardstick the camera points at was showing 14in of snow on the ground.

I guess fertilizer just got pushed back a little bit now, need to let things dry out again before I tell them I'm ready.


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## OneManShow (Mar 17, 2009)

We probably won't see spring here until about the time summer starts. On the bright side, I still have plenty of time fix all the stuff i didn't get around to fixing this past winter


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## RCF (Sep 14, 2009)

We started cutting rye grass for silage on the 27th of march just across the Red River in Oklahoma and just finished another job south of Canton, TX. So spring is here in North East Texas and tractors are rolling.


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## NDVA HAYMAN (Nov 24, 2009)

Started planting corn here in Va today. Alfalfa has 6" growth. Grass hay is rolling now. All spraying, fertilizing, liming has been done weeks ago. New blades and routine maintenance on the discbine is next. Mike


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## Blue Duck (Jun 4, 2009)

There is a lot of corn around here being planted in the last few days. We had 2 inch hail tonight with 3.5 inch reported a few miles away and tornado warning to the south. Spring is definitely here!!


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

Corn was going in fast and furious on lighter dirt and sand on Friday. 1.5" rain Sat. morning. Another storm coming tonight and extended forcast looks wet. Here we go again.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Still too cold to do much of anything here. Spreading fertilizer, spraying burn down, and last minute fence row/ditch cleaning is all I've seen going on.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Now it's getting too wet. Rain today, tomorrow, Wednesday, clear Thursday then rain off and on over the weekend. If Accuweather's forecast is to be believed, rain everyday of the week after Easter. &To add insult to injury, Climate Prediction Center claims below average rainfall for our area in May, June, July, and August.


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## Lazy J (Jul 18, 2008)

Too wet in NE Indiana too with rain forecast for the rest of the week. We won't be doing any field work for quite some time around here. I know I should have spread that dry fertilizer in March.


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## dixietank (Jan 26, 2011)

All I'm waiting on is my Qwicktie to arrive for me to fit to the baler and I'm dropping a cutter in the field!


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

Time to build the ark again. Heavy rain last night. Big storms predicted today and tonite. Another big system by the weekend. So much for our dry spell, April is shot and starting to eat up May.


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## Lazy J (Jul 18, 2008)

I had thoughts of switching to some corn on corn on a small portion of our acres this year as an after thought. That isn't going to happen now, we might be lucky to plant the corn we planned too. It might be a goot thing we are 75:25 Soybeans to corn this year.

Jim


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

I didn't get near that much rain..._yet_. Another 4 tenths last night, which isn't a lot, but when it's too wet to do anything already any is too much.

One of the reasons we quit getting in a big hurry to get the fertilizer on too early. Can't remember the year but one time we did have 700 acres of ground with the 6-15-40 applied and the urea as well, then it started raining, by time it was done we planted the last of the only two hundred acres of corn we managed to plant that year the 4th of June then it rained for another week after that, finished planting beans that year in the middle of July.

Scary part is the long term calls for rain the whole week after Easter up here.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Was debating wether to go to more corn acres instead of beans also.Typicaly 50-50 on row crop acres.Was debating on goin 75-25.I can sell it all to feedlot as high moisture corn so it may still happen if weather cooperates.


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## dairyguyinSEMN (Apr 9, 2011)

swmnhay: Keep in mind it IS STILL early. Yes last year lots and lots of corn was planted....but last year was a aberrition(sp?). Early Easter=Early Spring, Late Easter=Late Spring.


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

dairyguyinSEMN said:


> swmnhay: Keep in mind it IS STILL early. Yes last year lots and lots of corn was planted....but last year was a aberrition(sp?). Early Easter=Early Spring, Late Easter=Late Spring.


Might be early for you snowbirds, but we are rapidly eating up our "prime" corn planting window for maximum yield of April 10-22. Start to lose bushels after May 1! Plus longer term after this wet spell, is dry, dry, dry.


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## Lazy J (Jul 18, 2008)

We won't be in the fields around here until May 1. Just too much rain. At least I have time to finish preparing hte planter and the Oliver 1800 rebuild.


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## barnrope (Mar 22, 2010)

Its hard to think about planting corn with 3" of snow on the ground today.


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## GeneRector (Jun 4, 2008)

Howdy! Usually by now fertilizer is on the hay meadow and waiting for the first cutting of coastal bermuda hay. However, where I live, there has been no appreciable rainfall in a long time. This is the driest Spring in my part of Texas so far that I can recall. Sure hope we get some rain soon to get things going. Always, Gene


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

GeneRector said:


> Howdy! Usually by now fertilizer is on the hay meadow and waiting for the first cutting of coastal bermuda hay. However, where I live, there has been no appreciable rainfall in a long time. This is the driest Spring in my part of Texas so far that I can recall. Sure hope we get some rain soon to get things going. Always, Gene


Trade yah....


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## Blue Duck (Jun 4, 2009)

I think the guys in Texas would be happy with the idea of trying to put up hay between rains. Livestock likes rained on hay much better then no hay. I have already gotten a call from a Tx hay buyer desperately wanting to buy 2011 hay crop. Unfortunately every rain that goes through my area this spring somehow misses me. So I might not have much hay either.

A lot of the wheat in this area is heading out and is only a foot tall, thin and starting to turn yellow. I am afraid we might be farming the insurance company this wheat harvest.


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## Lazy J (Jul 18, 2008)

More rain overnight, wet spots are now full of water, don't know when it will dry out, more rain in forecast.


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