Filed under: Corn, Farm, harvest, Ice, rain, spring, Trees, wind, wood heat | Tags: broken trees, cold, farm, harvest, nature, rain, shelter belts, spring, trees, weather, wind, winter, wood, wood heat, wood pile
This wet weather has been good for something, it has allowed us to continue cleanup of our broken trees.
Those of you who follow this blog will remember my pictures of the broken trees in our yard, but they are only a few of our broken trees. Our farmstead shelter belts took a heavy toll in the ice storm also. So far we have focused on getting trees near the buildings cleaned up. Because conditions have been so wet we have had little choice. Now we need to tackle the field wind breaks.
Our farm has several fence lines planted to trees to help slow the wind that could blow our soil around. These trees on the edge of fields drop their branches into plantable ground in heavy winds or if there is too much ice. Sometimes the branches are quite large. Since our fields are just about dry enough to start planting, we are going to tackle some of those fence lines now.
Since the ice storm I have harvested enough wood to keep my house warm for more than one winter. Since the work needs to be done any way, I may as well use the wood rather than waste it.
The wood pile looks ready for winter now, and I still have a lot of cutting yet to do. Cold weather will return again.
Michael
Filed under: cold, Corn, Farm, Minnesota, planting, rain, snow, spring, weather, weather sayings, weather wisdom | Tags: barn swallows, cold, cold germ., Corn, corn seeds, farm, germination percentage, Minnesota, nature, Planting, plants, rain, snow, soil temperature, spring, trees, weather, weather sayings
The weather here in southwestern Minnesota has been cold and miserable for the most part. It is raining again today, but I feel much better now that I finally got started with the planting.
This has got to be the latest start to corn planting in all of my 60 years. Snow and cold have left the perennial plants slow to get growing, and new seeding just will not start when the thermometer stays so low. Yes, we have had some really nice days, but all too often they are followed by more cold. So despite all the signs to the contrary, I started planting corn yesterday, and today it rains.
There are certain signs I have been taught in my farming career, passed down from generation to generation. They were all perfectly good back in my grandfather’s day, but are they any good today. Maybe, maybe not.
- “Don’t start to plant corn until the barn swallows return.” The return of the barn swallows tells you something about average soil and air temperatures. The insect activity that is needed to support barn swallows is roughly equivalent to the ground and air temperature needed to get corn seeds germinating. Newer corn varieties have a better germination percentage in colder soils (Cold Germ.) and can take cooler temperatures up to a point. We still need warm air to keep the corn plant growing.
- “Oak leaves, or green ash leaves, should be as big as a squirrels ear.” The growth of tree leaves may say a bit more about air temperatures than insect activity does, it is also more cumulative. Either way you still need a certain amount of warm air and warm soil to get these later leafing trees going. I’ve never stopped a squirrel to see how big their ears are, and I have wondered if it makes a difference what type of squirrel you have. Still, a good set of leaves on latter leafing trees does signify warm weather is here.
- “To see if the soil is warm enough to plant you need to go out and set your bare butt in the dirt.” I’ve never tried this one so I don’t know if it will work. I’ve always suspected that this was said for the humor of it, not the facts derived of the statement.
Well this year I did not wait for any of these signs. The calendar was screaming we need to start planting, so I did. Since University data say the best average time to plant here in our area is between April 23 and May 10, I knew I had to get started. Now, because of the rain, I am waiting again. 
Michael
Filed under: cold, Corn, Farm, garden, Minnesota, planting, rain, snow, spring, weather, weather sayings | Tags: cold, Corn, corn planter, farm, garden, machines, Minnesota, Planting, rain, snow, spring, weather, weather signs
The weather has been wild here in southwestern Minnesota so far this year, and it seems as if no one has a true handle on what will happen to our weather. Back in January our local onion prognosticator told us we would be having really dry weather all year and predicted a dry April. Even his Ember Day predictions did not see this snowy weather coming. Little did he know that we would have one of the snowiest Aprils I’ve seen.
May didn’t start out much better. I did get a few things planted in the garden, and a few area farmers got some oats and corn in the ground, but the May Day snow storm covered the area. We did not get as much snow as some east of us got, but it was more than enough. Weather signs have not been helping out this year. One weather saying is coming true however “All signs fail in drought and flood.”
No, that is not my planter and tractor, mine sat in the shed until last Tuesday, but it was in the yard for the last snowstorm.
So, what to do? We are well past the date of April 23 when area farmers like to get started planting corn here in southwestern Minnesota. Do we push the weather and start planting as soon as we can get equipment into the field? Here’s a planting saying for you, “Plant in mud your crops a dud, plant in dust your bins will bust.”
Modern planting machinery needs dry ground to get the seed planted properly. Mud is not your friend when planting corn. There are a lot of parts that need to work right when you plant with a modern corn planter, and they all work best when the topsoil is a bit on the dry side.
To make the best seedbed for a corn seed you start by opening a seed trench. That means either knives or disk openers, neither of which likes mud. Wet soil will smear on the sides of the trench and, when the soil dries, it will become hard, making it tough for the seed to get going.
Seed is dropped into the newly opened trench between gauge wheels that keep the trench at the proper depth. The gauge wheels also help to start pushing dirt over the seed. To operate smoothly the soil needs to be dry so it will not stick to the gauge wheels and change the planting depth.
Then come packer wheels that firm the soil over the seed. Mud can actually cause these wheels to toss the seed out of the trench. Also trying to pack in mud will make the soil hard.
So, we must have some dryer ground to plant into. The forecast is not for much drying weather later this week, but it should come. Even though he soil was dry at the end of 2012, this snow has really made it a muddy start of the 2013 planting season.
There is a bit of time yet, so I’ll not try to plant yet. University data says that we have until the 25th of May before we need to switch varieties, and even after that there are shorter season seeds if we can get them. This is going to be the latest starting date for me in all of my years farming. For now we wait for dry weather. Spring will come, I have to believe that.
Michael
Filed under: cold, Corn, Farm, garden, Minnesota, planting, rain, snow, weather | Tags: cold, Corn, farm, garden, Minnesota, nature, plant corn, Planting, rain, snow, snow in april, weather
The weather people keep telling us that snow in April and May here in Minnesota has happened before, but enough already.
Two days ago I dug up the garden and planted some potatoes, radishes, peas and carrots, as of noon today here is my garden. It’s under about 4 inches of snow. Yes, we need the water, but does it have to be snow?
Does this boot track help you to understand our snow?
We have had some really nice weather since the last snow, but not enough to get fields dry enough to plant corn. Last year was unusually warm and dry in the spring and I finished planting corn on April 30. This year has been unusually cool and snowy and I have not yet started planting.
It’s not panic time yet. We can plant the same varieties of corn for another 20 to 25 days, but every day we delay planting from the tenth of April on will result in less corn to be harvested. Oh well, I guess I’ll just have to keep cleaning up the downed tree branches from the ice storm. Dry weather will come.
Michael
Filed under: cold, Farm, Minnesota, planting, rain, snow, spring, Trees, weather | Tags: cold, Corn, farm, ice, melting snow, Minnesota, nature, Planting, pond, rain, signs of spring, snow, spring, trees, weather, winter
My wood pile has really taken a hit this winter as springtime temperatures seem to be on hold. When you wake every day to frozen ground it is hard to understand that we are nearing the end of April here in Southwestern Minnesota and could be planting corn, wheat or oats. There is none of that planted because it seems to be snowing every week. 
A month ago I posted this picture of geese on a pond and it seemed as if we would be seeing open water and no snow in just days as temperatures were allowing the snow to melt away every day. The water lilies were putting forth some hopeful leaves and the marsh marigolds were turning green, sure signs of spring!
Now every week seems to bring a new snow storm and winter holds our area of Minnesota in it’s grasp. Ice storms have left behind broken trees and electric poles and every storm contains snow.
But what’s this? A forecast with 70′s in it? Could it be we only have one more night of freezing weather and then summer like temperatures will arrive? Hurray!
Yes, winter does end here in Minnesota, eventually. With warmer temperatures, a farmers heart will turn toward planting and tillage. We only have to wait a bit for the fields to dry and then we can begin. The calendar is not quite to the dates where we are concerned about planting being too late, so we will hold out hope for only a few more days of delay. Warmer weather is in sight!
Michael
Filed under: cold, Farm, farm animals, food, Ice, Minnesota, rain, school, snow, spring, Trees, weather | Tags: cold, farm, fluffy snow, Food, Minnesota, nature, rain, snow, spring, travel, trees, weather
Wow, talk about some weather. We’ve been almost two years without a major storm in our area of Minnesota and now we get it all at once.
Monday we got a bit of rain, it was looking like our usual tenth of and inch and done storm.
Tuesday things started to ramp up with nearly an inch of rain, still not very interesting since it was only rain with a bit of thunder.
Wednesday things turned serious. Icy rain had fallen throughout the night. Area schools were called off because the road crews were having trouble keeping the ice and snow off of the road. Traffic was nearly at a standstill. Almost an inch of ice on trees was bringing down branches and power lines. Some areas have lost power but we were still in business. The days rainfall total was again nearly an inch.
Thursday dawned with nine inches of soft, fluffy snow on the ground. Most area schools were off for the day. It continued to snow for most of the day, but the temperatures stayed just above freezing so we also had quite a bit of melting going on. Tree branches that had held out for the ice were now breaking with the added weight of snow. Our area lost power about 11 a.m. Standby generators for the hog barns went into action.
We went into town to see if someone would feed us. All stores were dark and many were closed. Subway was feeding people until they ran out of bread. Runnings had employees with flash lights helping you find the things you needed. Hy-Vee was in full operation since they had enough backup power to run the registers and some lights. Food in need of being kept cold was being moved to refrigerated trucks. Power came back on for us about 3:30 p.m. but many are still in the dark.Today is friday and this April Fools joke still continues. School is finally in session, but area roads are not in good condition. We still have snow falling. Because the ground had started to thaw we have mud under our snow, if you break through the crust there is no traction, so it is easy to get your vehicle stuck. Much of the ice is now off of the trees, but the damage will take a long time to clean up. When the snow and rain have all been added up we are nearly a 3 inches of precipitation. If we can get it to stay this will start to get us on the way to a good crop.
Tomorrow the sun is supposed to come out and I would like to get started on branch pickup. By Sunday we are expecting more rain and temperatures are supposed to get more normal. That just might melt this latest snow fall. Spring may be here, but first we need to get rid of some snow.
It’s been wild, but we continue on.
Michael
Filed under: cold, Farm, Ice, Minnesota, planting, rain, seasons, weather | Tags: cold, farm, frost, frozen ground, ice, long term weather, Minnesota, Planting, rain, southwestern minnesota, spring, weather
The past months have been a challenge here in southwestern Minnesota. It seems that every bit of rain just skids by leaving us with little or no moisture. We have watched major storms move both north and south of us for almost a year now. The weatherman will say we have a 90% chance of rain, and we stay dry. I really am beginning to wonder if we will have enough water in the soil to do more than get our crops started. The next few days are giving me hope. It has been raining all morning and more is forecast for the next few days, a real spring soaker.
The yuck factor sets in as the temperatures drop and our soaking rain turns to ice again. I do not remember a year with so much ice in all of my 60 years here. We’ve had enough warm weather here to thaw the upper part of our soil, but I’m not sure if the frost is gone yet or not. A cold rain will not help to thaw our frozen ground. At least the forecast is for several days of moisture, then some warm weather, planting time is fast approaching and we need some warm.
Leo, our local weather prognosticator, has put out his long term weather for our area and it is cold and dry. Leo uses the first full days of spring to forecast the years weather. I have been amazed at how often he is right. His forecasts are a bit vague, but anytime you are forecasting for a full year in advance it is hard to be specific. I can only hope he is wrong about the dry part of the forecast.
No matter what the weather, we will do our best here to get a crop in the ground, after all, we have a world to feed.
Michael
Filed under: blizzard, cold, house, Ice, Minnesota, rain, snow, travel, weather, wind, winter | Tags: cold, Minnesota, rain, rivers and lakes, school bus, snow, south windows, southwestern minnesota, travel, weather, wind, winter
The weatherman was predicting blizzard-like conditions for Southwestern Minnesota this morning, but again the predicted moisture did not come. Our “snow” came mostly as rain, and fell not in the middle of the night, but just as the sun was starting to rise. Overnight winds waited until after the rain to change from south to north and we have ice all over again, including quite a bit of ice on our south windows. Morning temperatures were near freezing, but dropped quickly when the winds switched.
ice on the windows
Last week we had an unusual occurrence for us, it rained over an inch in one day! It has indeed been a long time since that much rain fell in a 24 hour period. Since the rains fell on frozen ground, we will not get much good out of it. The rain melted a lot of the snow we had left and quickly ran down into the low spots. This meant a quick rise to our rivers and lakes. Most bodies of water now have open water on the edges, or in the case of rivers, could be ice free. Now we are going to have a few days of cold and wind.
This mornings driving was also tricky with ice on most roads. I had to follow a snow plow/sander as I left town on my bus route which made me late for a few of my stops, but I was able to make it up on the gravel roads. Paved roads were ice covered despite the attempts of county and state to remove the ice.
Now as the wind howls, the sun has come out. If you can find a place out of the wind it isn’t too bad out. I however have a few inside chores to do and will stay in the warm until I have to go.
Michael
Filed under: blizzard, cold, Farm, Minnesota, snow, travel, weather, weather wisdom, wind, winter | Tags: clothing, cold, farm, Minnesota, nature, safety, travel, weather, wind, wind chills, winter, winter clothing
The winds are a howling in our grove and the little bit of snow they can find is making life difficult. With wind speeds of 30 to 40 mph and temperatures near zero, we now have wind chill ratings of 20 below with sunrise wind chills near 30 below. This is not a night to be stranded out in the open.
We live on U.S. highway 71, so usually we can count on some relatively easy driving conditions. The plows gets out and opens these main roads early. Tonight the highway patrol has closed 71 from Windom to Willmar. Local police have even stopped in at high school basketball games to tell folks about the danger of being out tonight. This is serious.
Unfortunately I am prone to thinking I am an exception. After all I’m a Minnesota farm boy, we’ve had to be out doing chores in stuff like this most of my life. Now I’ve seen people who will brave winter in shorts and a tee shirt, I’m here to tell you that I am not one of those people. I know how to dress for the weather. If the wind blows you need protection.
As I age the weather seems to affect me more and more. Oh yeah, a quick trip out to the mail box or the wood pile may see me with just shoes and a hooded coat but long pants are always part of the winter gear, when the winter wind blows you need layers! Insulated boots and heavy socks for the feet are mandatory, maybe even two pairs of socks. I have several pair of felt lined jeans that can go under insulated bib coveralls for the lower body. A cotton tee with a heavy flannel shirt goes under a heavy hooded coat to cover the upper body. I usually make do with a baseball cap, but when the wind really blows I have a head band I put over my ears to keep the cap on. If it’s really cold the cap is replaced by a stocking cap to keep the head warm, that’s all under that hood. Don’t forget the heavy gloves or mittens with a pair of cotton gloves underneath for the colder weather. If you want to survive a Minnesota blizzard even this may not be enough, but at least you will stay warm if you can find a place to get out of the wind once in a while.
So when the wind blows like today, I’d advise you not to be out in Minnesota. Some of us have to work here, and we’ll dress for the weather, but even we will not be far from shelter for long.
Michael
Filed under: cold, Ice, Minnesota, rain, School bus, snow, travel, weather, Wildlife, winter | Tags: cold, deer, Minnesota, nature, rain, school bus, snow, travel, weather, wildlife deer, winter
My early morning bus route yielded another close encounter of the deer kind, both deer and bus are OK.
My bus route follows the Des Moines river out of town and crosses the river twice, and several of it’s creek and marsh areas also. As I wend my way from house to house in the early morning darkness I’m always on the lookout for wildlife. Deer can be found anywhere along the route, but are most common in just a few areas. The warming weather has moved deer out of the protecting trees to forage in the fields. During the coldest weather I would see few if any deer, now it is not unusual to see 50 to 75 in a morning. Mostly they are back in the fields and grasslands, but sometimes they choose to cross the road right in front of the bus.
The rain of two weeks ago had left the roads covered in ice. The county and state maintained roads had been cleared after just a few hours, but the gravel township roads have been ice covered for too long. Coming to a stop at a stop sign has been hazardous, and sometimes starting again after stopping is difficult. Any kind of an incline can keep you from moving forward. Yesterdays warm temperatures and south wind finally removed most of the ice from the gravel and I’m hoping the forecast warm temperatures will finish the job this week.
We have more snow forecast for the weekend. It’s not that I want snow, but we are so short of moisture in the fields that I will take anything. The local weather people say we have had 12 inches of snow so far this winter, but that translates into very little water. Several of our snows this year have looked very promising, but when melted down they have yielded little or no water.
Despite several very cold days we’ve had a good Minnesota winter. Travel has mostly been easy and schools have only had a few late starts and no cancellations. Here’s hoping for a bit more moisture before planting, and could it please be in rain, not ice or snow.
Michael
