Thursday afternoon I got out to the farm about 4:00 and worked over my pea field. The sun was beginning to set when I took this picture. It sure was peaceful out at the farm. Birds Eye Foods finished harvesting the peas about 8:30 Wednesday morning. They did not really mud the field very much even though we received 1.6 inches of rain Monday morning. Because of all the crop residue I used a disk instead of a field cultivator to work the field.

It is getting late in the season to plant beans but I am going to plant them anyway this afternoon. I normally plant around maturity group 2 beans but because it is so late I am going to plant a maturity group .8. If the weather cooperates I still might get 20 to 25 bushel an acre. The key with second crop beans is getting a rain soon after planting. The seed bed is always cloddy because the pea combines, carts and trucks pack the soil. This means for most of the beans to germinate you need a rain . Some years I have gotten lucky and other years not so much. I remember one time the beans laid in dry soil for about 3 weeks. Only got about 6 bushel an acre that year. The way I am looking at it I need something growing in the field anyway. It does cost more to plant beans rather than a cover crop but I will have a chance at getting a crop.

 

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