Making new land everyday

[ajl]

Now the award for optimism in the face of disaster goes to: the western canuckistanian farmer. I am amazed at the amount of hay and pasture that has been worked up around the hood last fall and this spring so far. You would think wheat was $12 and canola $20. Most of this land is marginal in that it is solonetzic. I farm the same type of land and have gotten some of my best crops these past two years. It will yield if the weather cooperates a bit. Much of this land was likely in grain production in the 70's and seeded back to grass in the 80's with the permanent cover program? Is that still a thing as we will need it in a couple years for same. Anyways like in the 80's this land produces marginal price depressing production and create marginal price increasing demand for inputs helping keep pressure on margins for years to come. Prices bouncing up a bit today at least.

[checking]

Speaking about bouncing, where the hell else could you glance out the window while tapping on the keys, and see a moose pair in running stride a hundred yards out in the field? My day has already paid for itself.

[jamesb]

We have some grain land formerly pasture pre bse. Its not far from a creek and has gravel on it. For sure the ability to produce like good soil but I found that I can earn more with a marginal crop than trying to rent it out to a cattle guy. We do have some pasture still rented out and haven't broke it up. We didn't crank the rent up very far when grain prices went up, maybe we should have? The important thing with marginal land is management is no different from good land really but having reasonable expectations. For us what has really helped the production on poorer land is zone soil testing, and vari rating fert and seed. We have been able to make the better spots produce better and not waste fert on poor areas. Multiple years of imagery and yield maps make it a lot easier to do a better job with more challenging land.

[wrongway]

you can thnak todays $70/t basis for $8.50 wheat...look at new crop basis of 23 or so and do the math...not pretty. cost control will be the modus operandi on my acres this year

[makar]

Reminds me, fix the breaking plow.

[seldomseen]

And here I thought we’d be talking about making new land by piling up the weeds.

[furrowtickler]

Incorporating snow so it don’t blow away , the 5th R … lol