Polar vortex descends on Corn Belt

XtremeAg Farmers push through extreme cold to keep farming operations moving.

Kelly Garrett - Arion, Iowa

Kelly Garrett is a fifth-generation farmer in western Iowa. Garrett farms 4,000 acres of corn, over 1,800 acres of soybeans, and 170 acres of winter wheat.

Last week, we received a forecast for good old-fashioned Iowa winter weather. I expected about 6 inches of snow and we received about 4 inches the first part of the week. Another 4 or 5 inches came in the second round. It has been bitterly cold, which is no fun, but when you live in the Midwest it is something you have to deal with. Unfortunately, I have been having to wear sleeves instead of my go-to cut off flannels because it has been so cold. The good news though, the ground is finally frozen enough that we were able to apply plant food to the river bottoms in the Mondamin, Iowa, area where we spray about 8,000 acres. We spray the land because of the base saturation magnesium problems that the farmers in that area face. Balancing base saturation should be a No. 1 priority for pushing soil to high yield levels.

These frigid temperatures are dangerous! Friday night, we had an unexpected guest. My dad called me when he noticed a stranded car next to my house in the middle of the night. We went out and the driver was very cold and lost. He didn't speak English, so I wasn't able to get his story, but Amber brought him in and gave him blankets on the couch to warm up. The next morning, we dug his car out and got him on his way.

We're chopping ice and feeding extra to get our cattle through these colder temperatures. We want to make sure they have more body fat to act as insulation. Over the weekend, we couldn't get to all the groups of cattle because the roads were so drifted. Thankfully, we were able to get them open with our own equipment. The county crews have been working hard to keep roads open, too.

We are also trying to work ahead on our trucking routes in case we have a winter weather shut down or any road closures. When it comes to trucks and livestock, the weather isn’t something that always cooperates, but it is out of our control, so we have to do what we can to work with it. Preemptive planning helps keep us organized.

We are almost done hauling corn. We had our corn in the grain bins hedged already and when we saw a basis opportunity, we chose to take it and move all of the corn about four months sooner than we would normally do. The reason we had to do that was because we feel the greatest return we could get this year is interest. Interest around us right now is about 8%, so the best thing we can do is stop the interest and turn the corn into dollars.

Lee Lubbers - Gregory, South Dakota

Lee Lubbers is a fourth-generation farmer in Gregory, South Dakota. Lubbers Farms includes more than 17,000 acres of dryland soybeans, corn, and wheat. Lubbers says he is always trying to learn and challenge himself.

Welcome to 2024... Ready or not, here we go. As we sprint into a new year, there are plenty of things to do, even on the cold and snowy days.

I'm working on getting moved into the offices. After being uptown for 14-plus years, it's time to go through each and every item when I'm not tied up with day-to-day duties. I still have a few things to finish inside, but it's close enough that I'm unpacking and getting things organized. I finally got my computer and printer set up a few days ago. "Big Bertha," the conference room table, got installed last week. It took all four of us to get it into the conference room and up onto the bases we made. This spring, we plan on doing some landscaping to complete the project.

I'm finishing up chemical programs. Other than products, we will be testing our batting lineup, which is finalized as of Jan. 11. Seed choices were wrapped up in December.

It seems like about every other day we get a little bit of snow, an inch or three at a time. Bitter cold is moving in for us and a large swath of the Midwest. Wind chills of -40°F to -50°F are hit this weekend. It was a good time to stay in the shop or office.

Currently, we are not moving any grain. Shop projects have started, and the first one of our corn planters is getting stripped down to the frame essentially. We will go through it, inspect, and replace anything we feel isn't 100%. The parts we knew we needed were ordered a couple of months ago and are in our inventory.

Stay safe and stay warm, everyone.

Kevin Matthews - East Bend, North Carolina

Kevin Matthews and his wife, Cindy, are fourth-generation farmers in East Bend and Yadkinville, North Carolina. Matthews Family Farms, Deep Creek Grain, and Precision Nutrient Management farm corn, soybeans, wheat, and barley.

This time of year, we inspect our ADS drain tile outlets. This is very important to ensure proper drainage. Last spring, corn drowned in areas mainly due to tile outlets unable to drain into the ditches and canals. So, this past week the excavator was hard at it cleaning those areas of sediment from previous floods.

Then, Mother Nature decided the new year should come with large amounts of rainfall. This past week, we had a rainfall of 3 to 4 inches in one day that resulted in the river and creeks flooding. This has created more field repairs to be completed, but we’d prefer a flood now rather than when a crop is growing.

To ensure we are ready for planting, I placed a rental order on a John Deere 550P LGP bulldozer to push the sand back out the fields, from the river and creeks pushing out of it banks. Generally, renting for a month from our John Deere construction dealer is a better choice for us than owning the bulldozer. They will be lots of debris to get out the fields. Hopefully by my next blog, it will be dry enough to have pictures of the field repair to complete.

We just finished our executive marketing class in Pawleys Island, South Carolina, with Dr. Scott Mickey, Dr. David Kohl, and others. This is always a great way to start our year. Danielle, Cindy, and myself try to learn new things and take these ideas back to the farm for a successful 2024.

We are working to finish our soil sampling. By taking soil samples, we can see exactly what nutrients we need to focus on for the next season. This year, we are looking closely at our fertility and excited to see how we can move the needle in yield more. For us, it’s about increasing our overall farm average.

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