Happy Friday! Well, Friday evening. Better late than never, right? Some visual differences in the fields this week, but still a ways off from harvest.
09/27/19 Update:
Cover Crop Soybeans (133 Days)
Last week, I explained why this field will probably be the first soybean field we harvest this year. There’s a huge difference between this week and last week with the yellowing of the leaves, which is a sign the field is reaching maturity.
See how this pod has turned yellowish brown? The outside will eventually turn a dusty-tan brown and the soybeans inside will be a very light brown and will be more of a sphere than an oblong bean like they are now.
See the shape? A soybean ready to harvest with the combine and put into storage will be a little smaller and will be more of a sphere.
And here’s the hilum. This is the scar on the seed (in this case, the soybean we’ll harvest) from where it was attached to the pod. The soybeans in this pod are no longer connected to the pod, which tells us that they’re pretty much mature in terms of development. Just lots of drying left to go before we can harvest.
My bet is that the leaves left in this field at this time next week will all be completely yellowed and we’ll be able to make out more soybean stems (stalks). A sign that the plants are dying and ready to be harvested soon. 🙂
Corn (115 Days)
There’s not many visual signs of the plants slowly drying down (dying) towards the top, but between the rows shows a different story.
The next thing we’ll look at as we evaluate where the crop is in terms of planning harvest are the ears. The leaves surrounding the ears (husk) will dry to a brown color and the ears will tip downward. As you can see, that hasn’t quite happened yet.
Most of the kernels on the ear have dented, but they still feel a little bit doughy when I press on the kernel with my fingernail. These kernels will be hard once they’re dry enough to harvest. Definitely a few more weeks of waiting.
No-Till Soybeans (111 Days)
Many more yellow leaves in this field than last week!
The two soybean fields featured in this series may appear visually about the same from the road (lots of yellowing leaves), but the pods tell a different story. I can tell this field is just a tad further behind the other one by the number of green pods left on the plants and lack of yellowing pods. See how green the beans are inside? They’re starting to detach from the pod, but haven’t started drying out at all. I ate a couple of these soybeans and they’re just slightly further along in maturity than what you would expect if you were eating edamame.
My dad claims that he can estimate the moisture content in a soybean by chewing on it (or his ability to chew it?) when we’re trying to determine if a soybean field is ready to harvest. I’m not saying I don’t believe him, but I haven’t quite mastered that skill yet. 😉 I’ll have to try it out in a few weeks when the field looks visually ready to harvest and we’re ready to make a few test cuts with the combine.
Keep an eye out for another update next Friday. Have a great first weekend of fall!
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