Harnessing Nature's Science™
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
We all do it. We track time by referencing memorable items that we or our family once possessed. “Back when he drove that blue Silverado”, or “when she had that yellow Labrador” are examples of how we recall events that shaped our lives. For farmers, those points in time are often defined by a tractor. [Read more…]
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
The recent fertilizer market may be best described by two catch phrases: “wait-and-see” and “just in time.” In the fall of 2021, sky-rocketing energy prices pointed toward looming inflation and an inevitable rise in fertilizer prices. Many savvy growers, including those aligned with the regen ag movement, hedged their bets by purchasing crop nutrients that fall for the 2022 growing season. Fertilizer prices spiked to record levels in the spring of 2022, due to inflation, supply chain issues, labor issues and the war in Ukraine. [Read more…]
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
Just as the seasons inevitably turn, so does the farming landscape within a tight-knit rural community. That reality hit close to home for me last Thursday with the passing of my uncle, Gary Nichols. He and my father farmed together for decades, and like most farming families, Uncle Gary was a solid fixture in my life, not to mention a pillar of the farming community. For the past several years, he was the elder statesman of Rural Route 3, the wily veteran who had seen it all and done it all. That included becoming, along with my father, the first back-to-back corn yield champions of Knox County, Illinois. [Read more…]
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
This summer we’ve entertained a visitor from Japan, my son’s girlfriend, Riko. So what do you suppose one of her favorite things to do in America is? Go to the grocery store. A trivial, if not mundane task for most of us is a full-on experience for her. Now keep in mind, Japan is among the most technologically advanced countries in the world. Overall, Japanese citizens enjoy a comfortable standard of living. And Riko’s family owns a successful business in Osaka. Yet she’s the first one in the car when an impending trip to Kroger is announced. She marvels at the abundance and incredible selection of food items cascading throughout the aisles. We’ve had other visitors from other parts of the world share similar feelings. Those of us in the USA enjoy the most abundant and safest food supply in the world. As a country with over 330 million inhabitants, America is self-sufficient in food production more than 6 times over and ranks as the world’s leading food exporter. Sometimes it takes a visitor to make us pause and appreciate what we have. God certainly has Blessed America.
My corn has entered the dent phase. This is identified by a depression in the crown of the kernel. It is a natural process caused by starches in the center of the kernel shrinking, thus forming the dent. This is a key event in the plant’s life and signals maturity is near. However, the kernels can still absorb moisture and nutrients during this phase and add more weight. Kernel content is about 50% moisture right now, so there’s plenty of room to accumulate dry matter. That’s why last week’s Huma foliar application and 1″ of rain was important to influencing yield. Based on the extreme heat we continue to experience – we’re accumulating over 30 Growing Degree Units per day based on hot nights – I’m guessing the corn may reach physiological maturity within 2-3 weeks.
Farmers love finding 20s – an ear with 20 kernel rows – in their cornfield. I pulled this 20 out of the field after church on Sunday. At high populations – my stand count was 40,650 plants per acre when I took it at the V4 stage – you rarely see ears this big. There are several 18s and 20s throughout the field. This ear feels like a brick. Also, note the beautiful bright yellow color.
As the calendar turns to August, we move into the most critical point in a soybean plant’s life. Soybeans are approaching the end of flowering across much of the fruited plain. Getting plants to produce more flowers and pods is just one part of the yield equation. Holding and filling them is another deal. Soybeans typically abort 70% of their flowers and pods. So even getting them to hold 10% more can significantly boost yields. Just as it’s imperative to mitigate crop stress in corn during pollination, the same is true now for soybeans. Yet early August often brings miserable heat levels which leads to crop stress. It’s beneficial to apply fungicide, foliar fertilizers and growth managers around this time. And rains throughout the month of August are welcomed sights as pods are filling and seeds are growing.
On Saturday night I attended “Feast on the Farm” for Agricenter International. This annual fundraiser brings together the mid-South’s agricultural community and its friends. I proudly serve on the Board of Directors for this non-profit, the world’s largest urban farm: a 1,000-acre campus nestled inside the city of Memphis. Our main charter is agricultural education, which takes on a unique perspective given we are based in a highly urban area. Agricenter conducts over 20,000 research plots for over 200 clients (including Huma), administers the Tennessee cooperative extension service, offers over 100 educational programs to people of all ages and educates over 10,000 students in person annually. Given all that, I am both honored and humbled to announce that I have been asked to serve as Chairman for Agricenter International’s Educational Committee.
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
36 years ago, a wide-eyed intern walked into the office of Indiana Prairie Farmer magazine. It was a baptism by fire. Paul Queck, the seasoned editor, told him, “We’d like to have you take a shot at writing what we hope to be the cover story for July. Since you’re only here for a few months, we don’t have time to train you, so we need to see what you got. Either you’ll produce a great story we can run, or we won’t use it and you can spend the rest of the summer editing news releases.” Sounds harsh, huh? Then he continued, “Oh, and this is the last story idea we’ll ever give you. From this point forward, you need to come up with your own story ideas and find sources.” Well, that intern must have come through, evidenced by the story below. Dozens of other stories penned by that intern appeared throughout that year, too. All written on a typewriter, no less. [Read more…]
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
Yellow airplanes were buzzing over Iowa cornfields like bumblebees over zinnias during my drive to Iowa last week. There was a time when Midwest farmers would grind their teeth at the sight of these crop dusters. It usually meant a neighbor was treating a pest problem with a costly, unplanned aerial application. And that pest problem was heading their way. My how times have changed. [Read more…]
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
Move over carbon credits, and make room for carbon intensity scores. That’s the sentiment of many in the ag industry. Launched with plenty of fanfare, and hailed by celebrities and politicians alike, carbon credits seemed to represent a modern-day gold rush. Yet we’re multiple years in, and adoption sits at about 1-3% of farmers. Why is that? For starters, farmers already employing the cultural practices required to qualify for carbon capture payments – no-till, cover crops, NUE, etc. – are ineligible to participate. Among those who are, lengthy contracts, significant investments in time and resources, and a lack of clarity serve as deterrents. Enter carbon intensity scores. [Read more…]
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
Twenty years ago, I found myself in the position of operating a farm all by myself. My father, who I was farming with, passed away suddenly that January. So in addition to my full-time ag marketing job, I was flying solo across my family farm in western Illinois. [Read more…]
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
You’ve all heard the saying “knee-high by the fourth of July” to describe the progress of a corn crop. It’s a phrase many folks still refer to today. But as the photo below shows, that saying is now laughable. In fact, if you’re a Midwest farmer and your corn is now knee high, it’s probably in big trouble. So where did the adage come from? It likely started before hybrid seed corn was invented, when planting dates occurred in late May/early June and when mature corn plants were much shorter. With the advent of hybrid seed corn, and adoption of synthetic nitrogen, there was a meteoric rise in yields and corn growth. My corn was planted on May 4th, and on July 4th it was tasseled and twice as high as my son’s girlfriend!
By Fred Nichols
Chief Marketing Officer,
Huma®, Inc.
Wheat harvest is well underway throughout the country. Each morning, the harvest process begins with equipment maintenance. Most farmers and custom cutters will park their fleet in a row, or in close proximity, so they can readily perform daily service. This involves the grease gun. Combines have hundreds of moving parts. Some of the most key bearings need to be greased daily, others weekly. You also want to check fluids, such as engine oil, inspect tires and belts, and clean windshields. Pickup fingers on the reel and sickle bar components on the header also need to be checked and frequently replaced. Morning is often when you refuel machines. Many farmers have portable fuel tanks to transport red diesel fuel to the field. Today’s largest combines can hold over 300 gallons of fuel. [Read more…]