A Strong Start
We started the 2026 corn harvest on September 14 at the home farm (REK), with mid-April-planted, 110-day corn. From there we moved to HLW, the field with most of the crop damage from wind farm construction. In all, 24 acres of our corn were out of production because of the construction, and about half of that was on HLW.
The HLW corn was beginning to fall over by the time we got to it.
Rain Delays and Field Notes
Next we opened Angie’s, which was 113-day corn, but moisture was pushing 27%. We decided to pull out and give the grain a few days to dry down. Several days of rain and overcast weather then kept us out of the field until September 24.
Every year is different, but this season was a good reminder of the value of drainage. Our pattern-tiled fields really shined.
The last field was Matt’s, which was very dry compared to the others. It had a lot of tar spot, which was surprising, since this was the field we luckily chose to spray with fungicide twice. The stalks were breaking down and turning to dust going through the combine.
A Great Crew
We were lucky to have plenty of help again this fall.
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Brian, David, and Tom handled harvest for several days while I was traveling on business, and Tom became proficient with the grain cart.
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David was our solo driver with the tandem trucks.
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John Manley hauled for us for three days, and Brian Janssen had a friend haul the last three and a half.
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Lisa kept us all fed, and her homemade meatloaf and mashed potatoes were a hit. She fit us in between feeding the bishops at St. Mary’s for the official renaming of the St. Mary/St. John parishes.
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Carolyn treated us to lunch from Avanti’s on changeover day, a much-needed break
Equipment and Field Updates
We discovered in August that our 2006 tandem truck had computer issues, and the service company is still working on a fix.
With the corn out, Tom and I started the ripper in HLW, leveling out tile lines, makeshift driveways, and ground disturbed by wind farm construction.
David, Tom, and I spent a morning cleaning equipment, servicing, and switching over to soybeans. The bean combine had a couple of small issues, mostly electrical, which is typical when switching over.
Looking Ahead
The soybeans were dry, but the stems and leaves were still green. After a few acres, we decided to wait for the rain in the forecast to help the fields mature, and to take a well-needed break. Only about half of our fields are close to being ready to cut.
Overall, I’m pleased with how corn harvest went this season. I’ll write again when beans are done, which could be several days depending on the weather.
—Joe
