Wheat Pete's Word, Oct 14 — Big Potash, the Nut Behind the Tractor Wheel, and Getting the Stinkin' Corn out of the Field

Johnson starts off the podcast as he always does, with an update on crop conditions. Farmers are in the field seeding wheat, or have already finished it up (our winter wheat archives), while corn harvests are coming in far better than expected, even with high weed pressure. “Again, late-emerging weeds don’t hurt the yield much,” emphasizes Johnson. Soybeans are coming in below average, thanks to drought-conditions in August.

It seems every week, Johnson gets more calls. This week, he pushed the envelope, answering questions like:

1. 1. 1. If I, as an organic farmer, try to strip till in red clover, will you, Johnson, try moldboard plow in strips on your farm?
         Related: Tillage Options For Red Clover and Other Cover Crops
         
         “By the way, Johnson did, way back when, do all sorts of trials of the moldboard plow versus [the] no-till system…”
      2. Do I combine now or wait for corn to dry down more?
         “Think about this for just a minute. If it’s over 30%, the combine does not do a good job,” says Johnson, advising farmers to wait if moisture levels are above 30%.”If it’s 28% or less, get the stinking corn out of the field… If you can, pay the drying, get that stuff out of the field! Let’s get the job done when we don’t have to fight mud.”
      3. Will oat rust transfer to corn?
      4. I have an oat/pea crop. Should I harvest it for forage or leave it on the land?
      5. I have good double-cut red clover and I want to start strip-tilling. Do I kill the red clover this fall or next spring?
      6. What’s the best strip-till unit?
      7. Can I graze red clover after it has been sprayed with a dicamba/glyphosate tank-mix?
      8. I harvested my wheat, and applied biosolids, plus 0-0-60. Can I cut out Alpine next spring?
      9. I’ve applied fertilizer and Alpine to my winter wheat. What else can I do?
         Related: Getting Tough on Fleabane in the Fall is No Longer Optional
      10. How do I control common speedwell?
          “With perennial weeds, if we spray them in the fall, we get better control than if we spray them in the spring.”
      11. I have 8 bait stations, and found 1 wireworm and 10 millipedes. Do the millipedes count?
          Related: Monitor Populations & Soil Temp to Gauge Wireworm Risk[/tab]