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I made the first tine weeding pass 1 day after planting. This is the second pass, 3 days after that.

Yep! 225k on the end rows.

@@INOrganicFarmer a-maize-ing! That's common in organic soybeans?

@@DaKomedian Yes. 25k more is only $11.25/acre in seed cost. Weeds will destroy yield potential. Better to plant thick and thin out the stand with weed control than try to save seed cost.

Wife and kids and running a farm. CZcams doesn’t pay the bills. I do what I can to help people understand organic production. This is just a hobby.

@@INOrganicFarmer u wore a fire dept shirt in one of ur vids. U on a department?

Yes.

@@INOrganicFarmer right on! I'm on one Michigan city.

Not in organic production. I will be pushing 200k this year. Keep in mind the “in row” weeds are the toughest to deal with. Once the beans are up, I have to be aggressive enough to tear the weeds out. That also means tearing the beans out as well. I usually see a 10-20% reduction in stand depending on how aggressive I need to be to kill the weeds.

@@INOrganicFarmer 👍

Thank you!

Good question! I am actually taking that second field out of row crop production for a year. I am trying to choke it out with sorghum sudangrass. I have heard some success with it so I thought I’d try it. I will just be flail mowing it back on to the field so there won’t be any income from that field this year. Hopefully it works! I will find out soon enough.

Weed seed bank is lower. That’s my observation.

@@INOrganicFarmer 👍

Some people aren’t as comfortable talking in front of a camera as others. I will do my best to work on that.

@@INOrganicFarmer 👍 I do enjoy learning about organic farming, so, thank u

Yeah I’m learning that. I was always told to plant soybeans a max of 1.5” deep or they run out of energy. After what I saw last year 2-2.5” might be my normal for organic.

I didn’t at all last year. I felt like I could do a better job keeping the sway blocks in tight and using the backup camera. Sunco had a good idea but the system really lacks in computing power to make instant decisions.

Thank you. Keeping weeds out of the row is definitely challenging! Thanks for watching!

Thank you!

@@INOrganicFarmer Keep them coming! Let’s get your channel out there. I subscribed so I will watch them all and help to drive up the algorithm for you! Here’s to a successful and profitable 2024 growing season! Cheers 🍻!

I appreciate that! Thank you again!

Redroot Pigweed is also one of my problem weeds. So far I have been able to control it. A Weed Zapper works great at killing it in soybeans if they are over the canopy. In corn, a flamer works great too.

Thank you for watching!

Yes! I was very disappointed in the spread pattern from a spinner type spreader. I can also calibrate this sitting it the shop. No more guessing if I am getting on enough seed or too much!

Sure thing! I am always interested in doing a better job. Let me know what you think.

Unfortunately I didn’t film any videos with the double rotary hoe last year. I do one clip in my Shorts videos. Stay tuned though! I will definitely try to get some footage for this year! Thanks for watching!

I use the row cleaners to move the top couple inches of soil and plant in a little trench. It helps with weed control. I explain that in my most recent video. They also help nudge rocks out of the way of the row units.

That’s for sure!!

The field average was 71. The Pioneer 26A10 made 76. The Great Harvest 281 made 78. Both varieties were checked twice with grain cart scales.

As far as the paperwork goes, my certifier has never requested any documentation from the conventional side. If you are being truthful and documenting everything you do on the organic acres it really isn’t any more hassle running a split operation. On the equipment side of things, clean outs are not fun, but as we upgrade equipment, I am trying to keep the older equipment (like the 1760 in the video) if it’s financially feasible to do so. Have a good pressure washer on hand!! Also if you are seriously considering transitioning, I would suggest attending at least one organic conference this winter. (Maybe you already have?) The OGRAIN conference in Madison, WI is a good one. There is another good one in Ohio put on by OSU. The Land Connection has one in IL sometime in February too I believe. Good luck!

@@INOrganicFarmer Thanks for the speedy response. I have attended a couple conferences here in Illinois put on by Joel Gruver at WIU. He's a wealth of knowledge. I think I've watched every OGRAIN video they've put out on CZcams too. I love their stuff. Thanks again

Thank you!

Thank you! I’ve got a couple tine weeder videos coming out soon!

Equipment and labor is expensive and would not be financially sustainable to have two of everything. All equipment that is used on conventional fields is thoroughly cleaned before entering organic fields. I have several pieces of equipment that are only used in organic fields and adding more when I can. The organic market would not last long if there was a rule that said all or nothing. Actually, you would probably have more fraudulent “organic” imports because of less domestic US organic grain. The USDA is very strict on the NOP rules and most US farmers stick to them. It takes twice the dedication and skills to be an organic farmer as a conventional farmer. No farmer is going to jump all in without trying some acres for a few years first. Some farmers get into organic and realize it’s not for them.

@@INOrganicFarmer thank you for your explaination. It make more sense to me now

30” rows.

30” rows

I will consider that! Haha. Thanks!

Thanks! I definitely have to watch how I set it. It can become very aggressive if not set properly. Once the beans had their first true leaves I could start getting more aggressive with it.

this looks like one pass for the width of the implement instead of splitting the pass of a single rotary hoe. do you mean greater compaction on the headlands when lifted, or the heavier tractor needed to operate this hoe or both? good to see you here 👍

@@jonpeterson9733 Rotary hoe is compacting if run too wet…as is any tillage pass. 🤷‍♂️. Temptation is to run too soon/wet. The approach we were forced into this year (hoeing too wet, in order to stop weeds/dry the soil) would not have worked with this much total weight 🤔🤔

Our soil types must be different enough for our different methods. Here, I can’t throw enough dirt with the single rotary hoe. Every year is different with different weed pressures, but I saw many more “white thread” weeds on top of the ground this year behind the doubles. I feel like it is a very effective tool moving forward. You might like it if you tried it 😉.

​@@GeigerFarm thank you for clearing that up, so your concern was in a sense tilling when it's too wet, Fehrs Farm didn't use a rotary hoe on much of their acreage this year due to wet conditions.

​@@INOrganicFarmer so, you have tested your new hoe and it works, awesome!

This was from three weeks ago. Yes, I do have very good weed control. We were blessed with enough moisture to get things up and going.

It’s a loaner from The Andersons. They custom fabricated the arm specifically for those aqua wagons.

Thank you! Thanks for watching!

Yes, it takes 2 passes. I usually make one pass at a 5 degree angle, then come back a few days to a week later and make another pass at the opposing 5 degree angle to make an “X”.

Thank you!!

Lol if I only had a dime for every time I’ve heard that!

Thanks for watching! It is difficult to find the time to get videos edited, especially with young kids. I’m glad enjoy them. Thanks for the info on the soil finisher!

Thank you!