September 2012 | Section A
PHOTO BY JOE HARPRING
‘You have to plan for bad years’ Farmers trying to take the long view after this summer’s challenges BY BARNEY QUICK
A
ny conversation with an area farmer or grain elevator operator about this year’s harvest doesn’t proceed past a couple of sentences without the words “drought” and “heat wave” making at least one appearance. All other factors affecting decisions about storage, selling or how to use the various crops being grown rank a distant second to the weather conditions that have characterized this summer. The bitter irony is that the year started out favorably. Planting began about three weeks early. By mid-May, temperatures were a harbinger of what was to come. “I’ve never seen things deteriorate so rapidly,” says Bill Lentz, a northern Bartholomew County farmer. “We’ve had years when you expected to fi nd low yields, but this is the fi rst time I’ve seen absolutely nothing in a field. Not all my fields are like that, but if the soil has any kind of sandy base, there’s nothing in them.” Charlene and Larry Burbrink, who farm in Jennings and Bartholomew counties with their son, note that Jennings has had more rain through this drought, and therefore the corn has fared somewhat
better. Charlene says that on the Bartholomew side of their operation, many stalks have “no ears at all.” Joe Fiesbeck, another northern Bartholomew County farmer, says his corn is “already shot. It doesn’t matter if we get 20 inches of rain now. Irrigation didn’t even help much. In the kind of heat we’ve had, the corn can’t pollinate. We lost 30 percent of our potential.” He is looking at an estimated 20 bushels per acre. His normal yield ranges between 160 and 170. “A lot of guys are chopping corn for silage,” he says. “Hay is going to be in short supply.” He also points out that this year’s weather makes it difficult to hit the ground running for planting next spring. “Seed costs are going to be high,” he says. “Seed corn is more vulnerable to poor pollination than field corn.” Compounding the challenge is the current high cost of fertilizer. “It follows petroleum to a certain extent. Also, China and Russia are using fertilizer to boost their yields, which is causing a strain on the market.” Irrigation has been less and less of a saving grace for anyone as summer has ground on. The Bur-
brinks are not irrigating at all. “We didn’t think it would pay off,” says Larry. Lentz is irrigating some fields, but heat has decimated much of the crop even in those.
Produce faring better Produce farmers can cost-effectively irrigate due to the scale involved. That has helped keep local prices at stands relatively stable. John Hackman, whose family operation southeast of Columbus is primarily focused on produce, says he’s charging the same for sweet corn as he did last year. A system of plastic strip and drip tape connected to a 6-inch well is sufficient for irrigating the farm’s okra, zucchinis and tomatoes. He is storing what commercial grain he is growing in his own bins and intends to wait for a favorable market price to sell it. These farmers shared their observations in late July and early August. Although the long-range forecast was basically for more of what characterized the earlier portion of summer, they each had opinions on how soybeans would fare if rainfall SEE HARVEST ON PAGE A2
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