This Week In Ag #154
Old Man Winter has a wicked way of making time stand still during February. Bundled head-to-toe, watching gale-force winds blow snow mercilessly across the frozen prairies and plains, you wouldn’t expect much focus on farming. But the year’s shortest month is long on ag activity.
This is when market prices for Federal Crop Insurance are set. There are two key components for determining FCI revenue: Actual Production History (APH, which documents yields over time) and Projected Price per crop. During February, the average futures prices for December corn and November soybeans are calculated to determine the projected price. Last February, we saw market highs for corn in February. It was the only time corn reached above $5. That helped boost the FCI price to $4.70. It looks like we’ll fall short of that for 2026.
Now is tax time for farmers. Unlike other self-employed businesses, farmers are not required to make estimated quarterly tax payments. They pay it all on March 1. That’s due to the constant ebb and flows their business. Crop and livestock sales can occur any time throughout the year, based on market prices. Yet farmers still keep close watch on financial projections, especially in Q4, as December equipment purchases or pre-pays of the following year’s crop inputs can serve as tax write-offs.
Travel through the Central Valley of California, and you’ll see a different kind of white than what’s in the Midwest. It’s the beautiful blooms from almond trees. This is the ideal time to treat the trees with yield-enhancing products.
Spring calving season begins now. By calving earlier, producers can achieve heavier weaning weights, as calves have more time to put on weight.
Equipment maintenance and repair are going on in the machine sheds. This is the perfect time to inspect, replace worn parts and make improvements to planting equipment and change oil in tractors.
It’s the pinnacle of trade show season. This provides farmers with a great opportunity to kick tires and learn about new products and techniques, while they still have time to implement them for the upcoming production season. February is the time to attend popular shows such as CattleCon, Mid-South Farm & Gin Show, World Ag Expo, Farmer-to-Farmer and Commodity Classic – where I’m excited to be this week!
Related Posts
How Deep Should You Plant?
This time every year, hemming and hawing would rage on at the Nichols Farm. Dad and Uncle Gary would not only agonize over when to plant, but how deep to drop the seeds. From “It’s been awfully dry, we better wait for a rain” to “It still feels a little wet, maybe we should run the field cultivator over it again” (gulp) to my annual favorite: “But If we get a beatin’ rain, those tops will turn into a layer of concrete.” Prompting, “Then we’ll have to rotary hoe.” Ah yes, the rotary hoe. A toolbar affixed with several blades resembling weapons thrown by Ninjas: rotating steel wheels featuring curved teeth. It’s used to break up crusted soils (and in some cases to incorporate herbicide) formed by those beatin’ rains.
This Week in Ag #48
The popular TV series Yellowstone, along with the western lifestyle craze, has certainly romanticized ranching. It seems like everyone wants to be a rancher, until there’s real-world ranching stuff to do. This week’s bone-chilling Midwestern weather brings back memories. Notice I didn’t say fond memories. When you have livestock, they require care every day. Utility tractors
This Week in Ag #37
One of the greatest inventions in history is the combine. The concept of threshing and separating grain in one operation revolutionized our food system, as well as redefined our labor force. Consider that in the mid-1800s, 90% of the US workforce was involved in some aspect of farming. Now it’s under 2%. To think my grandfather harvested corn by hand and threw the ears in a wagon! He used the pull-behind model in the 1940s to harvest small grains (that’s him, Fred Nichols, combining oats on our family farm). My mother still talks about dad wearing a Jesse James style mask while operating their first self-propelled combine without a cab.
