Dayne Richards pulls an ear of corn from the field he farms with his father, Kent Richards. This year has seen a very dry season for grain farming.

Text and Photos
By Lilli Dwyer
InkFreeNews

PIERCETON — Kent Richards has been farming grain for nearly 50 years on the land owned by his father and grandfather before him. He now shares the operation with his son, Dayne. All told, they have about 900 acres, consisting of both corn and soybeans. Most of their crops go either to ethanol production or animal feed.

Richards stated this year has seen a dry growing season with above average temperatures. Conditions were such that a burn ban was put in place in Kosciusko County from Thursday, Sept. 19 to Tuesday, Sept. 24. The hot, dry weather led Richards and many other area farmers to irrigate their fields over the summer.

Kent Richards is pictured in the cab of his combine harvester. He has been farming grain for nearly 50 years.

At the time of this writing, there had been a few rainy days following a period of weeks with “no measurable rain,” said Richards.

“We had not gotten very much the last three weeks whatsoever. … It’s impacted the soybeans more than the corn. Soybeans are more dependent on moisture late in the summer,” he explained. “The corn, it might not have any effect on it, but it’ll at least help them to finish.”

At the Richards’ family farm, irrigation is used primarily on the corn, rather than the soybeans.

“We like to have a nice season and not have rain set in and interrupt us until everybody gets done, but that’s probably what’s gonna take place. It seems like it happens some falls,” Richards said on the arrival of rain.

He emphasized the unpredictability of farming and the dependence on weather.

“You never know what you’re going to produce. We had predicted we might have an above-average season for soybeans, but now it looks like it might be average or even below average,” he said.

Richards noted he has seen some farmers in the northern parts of the county, such as Syracuse and Leesburg, beginning to harvest already.

“I’m hearing some guys who are combining, (in) some areas, are disappointed their beans aren’t better,” he reported.

While they have not yet begun their harvest, Richards said the lead up to harvest time involves plenty of activity, including maintenance and repairs on farm equipment in order to avoid breakdowns during the crucial work period.

Farmers also prepare for harvest by marketing their crops, though he noted marketing can also be a year-round activity.

“You can only sell each bushel one time,” he mentioned.

In addition, advance planning and budgeting are key to running a farm. Meetings with financial managers and chemical dealers are important tasks that have to be carried out each season.

“There’s a lot more to agriculture than what meets the eye,” Richards said. “There’s a lot of details; it’s more than just equipment out in the field.”