Weather
Picture of the Week
News & Happenings
1/9/2012 - Winter Again (or is it?)
Winter is here again. This year it has been very mild. We are currently cleaning and servicing some of our equipment. We have been able to get a lot done with 50 degree temperatures through at the beginning of January. We are getting our end of the year accounting and office work done as well. All in all it looks like it might be an early spring for us! We intend to check in a little more in 2012. This means more activity on our site. New photos, more frequent updates, and new features.
12/13/2010 - Winter Update
We apologize for the lack of updates. With winter here, we intend to do updates on our progress monthly.
This fall we had perfect weather. Our harvest started September 1st and ended on the third week of October. Corn yields were below average due to the extreme heat wave that we had during pollination. Bean yields were very good with yields in the upper 70’s (bushels/Acre).
We managed to get all ground chisel plowed before the weather got bad. We mowed over corn stalks with a Batwing mower to help the ground dry out faster and assist the stalks in decomposing more completely. This fall, we did not apply anhydrous ammonia. We feel it is more efficient to do this in the spring. The crops in our area seemed to benefit from springtime applications versus fall applications.
This winter we will be hauling corn and beans until the end of January. All of our equipment has had a nice washing. We will continue to service it all through the end of January. We will be putting better drainage ditches into the fields with persistent water issues. We are set to begin looking for alternative nitrogen and fertilizer sources for spring applications. Aside from these things, we don’t have any major projects planned. We had a good year and this is shaping up to be a pretty laid back winter.
Also check out our Equipment page. This is a list of all of the equipment that we no longer need for our operations. There are some good deals in there! Check it out! If you have any questions about the equipment please call Dane Killam at (217) 556-5181.
5/20/2010 - So, Whats up?
We apologize for the lack of updates the last few weeks. Things have been busy! We have had a lot going on at the farm as we have been getting the planting season underway. We are also making some changes to how we are running the farming operation this year.
We are about 80% done planting and it looks like next week we will be able to finish up if the weather is good. Last year at this time we were just getting started, due to weather. Given that, we are hoping to have a much better crop this year than last. It is already shaping up to be a better year already between the mild planting season so far, and the way we have changed our operations.
Under the new operations, we will still update the web page throughout the year but will no longer promise weekly Friday updates. We just don’t have as much going on as we did before. When we finish up in the fields, we will have plenty more pictures of field work but right now the cameras are still in the machines, ready to snap more pictures.
Also check out our Equipment page. This is a list of all of the equipment that we no longer need for our operations. There are some good deals in there! Check it out! If you have any questions about the equipment please call Dane Killam at (217) 556-5181.
Here you can find a video we shot while doing work in the field!
4/16/2010 - Spring Has Sprung!
We're sorry for the recent lack of our Friday updates. We have been busy in the field! Spring has sprung and we are swinging at full steam here at RJD Farm! We have alot of new pictures of our field progress coming. We also have several new features coming soon the website! We are going to improve our photo galleries to make it easier to obtain quality photos of our machines and work. We also have alot more up our sleeves that we don't want to let out of the bag right at this moment. Keep checking in for updates!
3/26/2010 - Short Update
This Week, we didnt get the tractor completely finished. Hopefully, it will be complete by the middle of next week. We did however get some field tile put in and our equipment all setup and ready to roll when the rain finally decides to stop teasing us. We got about an inch of rain on Thursday that set us back a little bit, but we are definitely ready for the sunny forecast this coming week.
Next Week, we are looking to have the ground dry up. Up to now, the sunshine and warmth keep teasing us with a weekly, all-day rain shower. The forecast for next week is looking good and we will be out in the field doing what it is we do best. We will also finish painting the John Deere 6030 pulling tractor. We will be sure to put up plenty of photos of the result! Stay tuned.
3/19/2010 - Tryin' to Ditch the Rain
This week, we have been doing some ditch work in the field to drain off some of the really wet spots. We haven't been hauling grain and have cleaned all the trucks and trailers out nicely. We continued to work on painting the John Deere 6030 pulling tractor.
Next week, we intend to continue painting the tractor with the hopes of finishing her up. When the ground dries up from this weekend's precipitation we want to try to put some more field tile in and continue doing some more ditch work with a dozer.
3/5/2010 - New Paint On An Old Horse
This week, We finished cleaning up everything at the bin site. We got around to hooking up and testing some of the harder equipment and intend to finish the easier stuff next week. We finished gluing the doors for Rich's house and started a new painting project. We are painting a John Deere 6030 pulling tractor. She will be quite the looker when we get her done! Keep checking back for photos and updates on when we are going to have her finished.
Next week, We will have all of our grain contracts full. This means we will be done hauling it for now. We are going to continue work on the JD6030. With any luck, it will be completed in two weeks. We will also pre-hang all of the doors to Rich's house before we start staining them.
Check out the new photos in the photo gallery!
3/5/2010 - At the bin
This Week, we were not able to get in the fields and check tile or thin brush like we had planned. The frost is coming out of the ground and making it far too muddy. We did however get all of prescriptions made and all of the equipment calibrated. We are ready to go! We started cleaning up the bin site and are ready to pressure wash the pit and the dryer. We continued to haul grain out for sale and wrapped up some more smaller projects in the shop.
Next week, if the weather permits, we will wash everything at the bin site (dryer, pits, airlock system, etc). We will also hook up all of the disks, planters, and cultivators to the tractors. This is to make sure that everything is tested and working properly. If we have time, we will probably finish gluing all of Rich's doors.
C'mon Spring!
2/26/2010 - New Equipment
This week, we received our new Planter and
a new Front Wheel Assist Tractor for side dressing when spring rolls
around. You can view photos of these in the Current Activity gallery. These arrivals mean
that we have all of our shiny new equipment in except a new mowing
tractor (which we expect in April).
With our position being a waiting game between us and the weather, we
have been doing some woodworking in the shop. Pictures of this are
also in the Current Activity gallery. Our
office is starting to wrap up all of our chemical and seed purchases
for this years crop. We continued to haul grain to the various
St. Louis grain markets.
Next week, we are going to go out and make sure all field tile
is running and take note of what needs to be fixed. We are going to
make sure all the inlets and standpipes are not plugged up. While we
are doing this we are going to trim the brush and cleanup downed trees
around the field edges. In the shop, we will continue doing a bit of
woodwork on the doors for Rich's house. Prescriptions are being made
for seed an anhydrous for spring. Also, calibration on the StarFire
Tractor Guidance System, the GS2 Monitors and other equipment is being
done. With the weather warming up at the end of next week, we are
going to be cleaning up our bin site.
We are getting excited, how about you?
2/19/2010 - Tiled a New Field, Added Some New Features
This week, we continued hauling grain to ADM and began hauling to Cargill in St. Louis. We reorganized and prepared for seed deliveries that we hope will start rolling in the first week of March. All of our smaller equipment, (ATV's, Pick-Ups, etc), are washed up and serviced. We put some modifications on some of the new tractors. The larger stuff is all fine tuned and ready to roll at the first sign of a break in the cold. Our major project this week was helping one of our landowners tile a new field. This was a new experience for us. You can view pictures of this on our new Current Activity gallery. Also, we are introducing a new feature: Picture of the Week. Every week we will select a picture from our Current Activity gallery to represent our progress that week.
Next week, we will be doing one of two things, depending on the weather. Either we will be in the shop painting the John Deere 512 Disk Ripper or we will be cleaning the pits and dryer at our bin site.
We are now updating the site every friday! So check often for more!
2/12/2010 - Rain, Rain, Go away.
This week, we have finished up cleaning and servicing all equipment! We updated the gallery page to allow for faster page load times and to allow us to update it easily. Check often to see visual progress of the work we do!
Next week, We are going to be hauling grain to ADM in Sauget. Also, we are going to get all of our equipment fueled up and stocked to start spring work. We are getting caught up in the shop. We starting to relax and work on some smaller projects like pick-ups, lawn mowers, and four wheelers. If the weather improves, we are going to start cleaning up the bin site. Monday, we are going to be helping a tile company put field tile in one of our new farms.
2/5/2010 - Progress Update
In the shop,Next week we have two tractors left to polish and service in order to have all equipment completely finished and ready for spring. Also, next week we are returning our old planter to Sloan Implement and picking up a brand new 24-Row Planter!
In the field, the weather has been snowyish and rainy with mild temperatures. This makes it really difficult to get much done in the field. Around the beginning of March we are hoping to start disking and putting Anhydrous on.
1/31/2010 - Progress
We are currently cleaning, servicing, and drying the last bit of corn at the bin sites. We intend to haul corn for sale around the middle of February.
In the field, we are down to chisel plowing when the weather permits us to.
In the shop, we are wrapping up the fall washing and servicing of the equipment. In a few weeks, we will begin gearing up for our spring season field work. Keep checking www.RJDFarm.com/news for updates on our progress!
1/27/2010 - We have alot happening down on RJD Farm!
We have a brand new website that will be frequently updated. We also have a newsletter in the works, and a ton more we can't talk about yet!
Stay tuned.
Watch a video made in the memory of Jerry A. Killam
Click Here To View Video
