If you are not a subscriber, I would suggest you sign up for the C.O.R.N Newsletter (https://agcrops.osu.edu). During the winter months, the newsletter is compiled every few weeks, but it becomes weekly as we move into planting season. It always is filled with several valuable articles. One such article is usually a weather forecast provided by Jim Noel from the National Weather Service center in Wilmington, OH. Last week Jim provided a weather outlook for this spring’s planting season.
Jim forecasts that we should expect a “normal” spring. Much of Ohio has caught back up on moisture from last summer’s drought. Conditions in southern Ohio have improved greatly, but there are still some dry areas in the Northwest part of the state. He anticipates that we will have a “normal” spring with the traditional alternating strings of warm and cold days. He doesn’t see conditions lining up to where we will be getting in the fields too early, or planting being delayed until later in the season.
This means that there is a good chance everyone will be hitting the fields by the end of April to get their 2025 crops in the ground. This also means that there are still a few weeks left to make sure everything is ready to go. This is as good a time as any to make another check of your equipment to ensure everything is in proper condition for safe and efficient field operations.
An equipment inspection checklist
As you inspect your equipment, make sure:
- Marker lights are functional on all equipment
- All safety guards are in place
- Check your fire extinguishers
- Calibrate your sprayers and check that nozzles are working properly
- Match the seed grade with the planter plate
- Check planters with finger pickups for wear on the back plate and brush
- Check for wear on double-disc openers and seed tubes
- Make sure seed drop tubes are clean and clear of any obstructions
- Make sure sprocket settings on the planter transmission are correct.
- Check for worn chains, stiff chain links, and improper tire pressure.
- Clean seed tube sensors if a planter monitor is being used
- Make sure coulters and disc openers are aligned.
Sign up for Wayne County Ag newsletter
If you are not aware, Frank Becker and I just sent out the first edition of the OSU Extension – Wayne County Ag Quarterly newsletter. The newsletter contained a couple of (what we hope were) timely articles, as well as a listing of upcoming programs and new OSU factsheets. The newsletter went out electronically to our email list. If you did not receive a copy, or would like to have one mailed to you, you can contact the Extension office to get added to the list. As the name implies, we plan to produce a new newsletter each quarter. We hope you find it valuable.
Our winter programming season has come to an end as we transition into spring planting. We will have a variety of programs offered throughout the spring and summer months. Our next formal program will be a small ruminant parasite management workshop and FAMACHA certification program on May 16th. We will also be hosting a couple of pasture walk programs, a small grains field day, a feed mixer clinic, and a small ruminant field day later this summer. If you are interested in any of these programs, you can check out the events calendar on our website at wayne.osu.edu. As always, I wish you a safe and prosperous planting season. If you have any questions, or would like more information about one of our programs, you can contact me at the OSU Extension office – Wayne County at 330-264-8722.
John Yost is an extension educator IV, Agriculture and Natural Resources, at OSU Extension-Wayne County.
This article was previously published in The Daily Record.