[AT] Combing soybeans in Iowa

[Bill Brueck]

I still have trouble comprehending the magnitude of farming and the rate of harvest.  I left the farm for college in 1967 and was gone for about 45 years when I started helping Linda’s brothers with the harvest.  My job was to run the grain cart.  Wasn’t sure how I would handle the big equipment but instincts were still intact and I knew where the load was behind me, knew how far to swing out to pull up to the semi or to catch the combine.

One thing I never got used to was estimating how much of a field was left.  I would look over at the remaining rows of corn and think about doing them with a mounted 2 row picker.  A couple passes with the 8 row head travelling at 5 mph and it was gone.  And 8 rows is modest equipment these days.

I miss the harvest this year but one thing I don’t miss is moving between the 2 farm sites, about 13 miles apart and some of that on heavily traveled paving as we had a river to cross.  Folks would pass when they shouldn’t, and making a left hand turn was especially harrowing as once in a while someone would pass just as you were turning…

Here’s a video of us in action, compliments of my grandson.  I would have chosen different music, LOL.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vfx_d8NTd0k


B²
Confusion is a higher state of knowledge than ignorance.

From: AT <at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com> On Behalf Of kgwaugh0943 at gmail.com
Sent: Monday, October 11, 2021 10:34 AM
To: Antique Tractor Email Discussion Group <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
Subject: Re: [AT] Combing soybeans in Iowa

I simply cannot get my head around the magnitude of farming today. I spent a great deal of time on relatives’ general farms in NE Indiana until I graduated HS in 61, and then I was gone! The only wagons we had for hauling grain when I was still around were the old (still had wood spoke car wheels on them) flat wagons (same ones we used for hay baling, without the sideboards) with about 1 foot sideboards---IIRC, we could haul 100 – 110 bushels of grain. As I and the cousins left, I think my grandfather and uncle (who farmed together) did buy a gravity feed wagon, that was modern back then!

Gene
Kenneth Gene Waugh

From: Bill Brueck<mailto:bill at apluscomputer.com>
Sent: Monday, October 11, 2021 10:24 AM
To: Antique Tractor Email Discussion Group<mailto:at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
Subject: Re: [AT] Combing soybeans in Iowa

Thanks for sharing, good videos.

The guy knows how to load a grain cart.  Made me cringe, we can’t run ‘em that full, too many slopes and rough ground, we’d spill over the edge getting it back to the semi or the grain bin.  Or maybe he drives a semi under the cart so never has to move it loaded…

This is my first year for a while not engaged in harvest.  Family members have retired, land rented out now.

B²
Bill Brueck
   Pine Island, MN USA

From: AT <at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com<mailto:at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com>> On Behalf Of Jim Thomson
Sent: Monday, October 11, 2021 8:32 AM
To: Antique <at at lists.antique-tractor.com<mailto:at at lists.antique-tractor.com>>
Subject: [AT] Combing soybeans in Iowa

My neighbor called yesterday and asked if I would like to see how soybeans are harvested. It is a lot of work especially when done alone. I took a couple of short videos to share. According to my neighbor, this is a good year for soybeans even with the dry conditions.

https://youtu.be/hSjSamX-DAo

https://youtu.be/hSjSamX-DAo


Jim Thomson
Blairsburg, Iowa

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