Corn crop for cash and cleansing soil

Golden grain yields rewards for farmers

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Capitalizing on the good corn market, but also recognizing that it may improve the water quality, Jason Fletcher and Sheldon Shrader have been planting corn in fields formerly full of fescue.

“This was all fescue,” Shrader said, standing next to seven foot tall brown corn stalks each with a golden-yellow ear of corn waiting to be picked.

Fletcher sits high atop the ground guiding the combine through the straight rows of brown corn stalks. Corn stalks spiral underneath the enormous piece of machniery, and the repitition can be almost hypnotic, as Fletcher spent the late summer day making pass after pass through the field of southern sun dried corn stalks.

This year, harvesting came early due to a lack of water. Explaining that there are different varieties of corn, Shrader said that while height matters with corn grown for silage be cause it provides greater yield per acre, the height of the stalk is irrelevant for their use be cause they need the ear of corn.

His farming philosophy must work, Fletcher won fourth in the state in the National Corn Growers Yield contest with 185 bushels per acre, only two bushels behind the third place winner. Fletcher and his wife were treated to a weekend in Branson by Pioneer Seed for winning the contest.

“This field will get 165 to 175 bushels per acre,” Fletcher said, speaking of a field of Shrader Road and East Pickens Road.

The grain the two harvest is sold to a broker in Kansas who then sells it to Georges, Cargill or Tysons in Springdale for chicken feed. When in the middle of harvesting, they can fill a truck every 10 to 15 minutes and alternate between filling one and sending it to Springdale, then filling the other.

“We’re the only ones in Benton County,” Fletcher said, “although there are other corn fields, they’re growing silage which is cut while still green and the stalks, husks, cobs are all cut into small pieces and put in a silo to feed to livestock.”

“The corn market has been really good for the past few years,” Robert Seay, Benton County farm extension agent, said. “They can actually get more cash for the corn than by renting the pastures.”

Seay said the national yield average is 180 bushels per acre, but that Fletcher has had a field yield even more than that.

“It’s kind of unique. There’s as much tillable ground in Pea Ridge as anywhere in Benton County.”

After the corn is harvested in this field, the two men rent the field to a neighboring cattle farmer who turns his cattle in to eat the left-over stalks.

They have been planting this field with a new non-tillable method.

“We come in with Round-Up twice and plant the corn as the Fescue is drying and the roots are dying. That makes nitrogen,” Shrader said. “We plant 30-inch rows. The corn is Round-Up ready.”

“No-till - it’s a new deal. We can grow corn for three or four years continuously,” Shrader said. They plant the corn six inches apart putting 30,000 to 31,000 plants per acre and hoping for one ear per stalk. Theysaid if there are more ears, there are less grains per cob and it’s not as healthy.

“The old guys think I’m stupid because they tried it (planting corn) 30 years ago,” Fletcher said, but explaining that today’s corn has been genetically engineered and improved. They plant Pioneer 35F40 and DeKalb corn seed.

The two young men rent pastures around Pea Ridge as well as in Powell and Longview, Mo.

They also have several hundred acres planted in soybeans.

“We fertilize every year and put back in several pounds of nitrogen and potash. Corn takes a lot of nitrogen. It helps around here taking the phosphorous out of the soil that was put in by spreading chicken litter on the fields,” Fletcher said.

“A friend of mine in Missouri was doing it (planting non-tillable corn) and I’d read about the phosphorous from the poultry littler. Corn pulls more phosphorous from the ground than anything else.”

“Everyone has the same weather. The harvest hits us all at the same time,” Fletcher said.

“I like to plant corn April 1, assoon as I can to get the spring rains. The beans are planted mid-May.”

It was real wet in the spring, and then really dry. This year, because of the dry weather, Fletcher and Shrader lost five to 10 bushels per acre of beans.

The combine has a big drum that takes an ear of corn and shells the corn off the cob, runs it through a sieve and cleans it.

Then the corn is put in a truck to take to market.

“I usually can get out and beat the rush,” Fletcher said, of going to market.

During the winter, there is still work for the two young farmers.

They said they feed the cows and work on the equipment, fertilize the land and put out lime and get ready for the coming year.

Fletcher, the son of Neil and Annie Fletcher, said his father’s machinist skills help him withrepairing his machinery. He said he worked at Baekart for eight years before beginning to farm full time.

Business, Pages 8 on 10/06/2010