Farmers the Choice Vision

FARMERS THE CHOICE VISION COOP KEOTA * RICHLAND * BRIGHTON * AINSWORTH * LIBERTYVILLE AG STOCKPORT*HEDRICK*SIGOURNEY*BATAVIA www.keotafarmerscoop.com

LOCAL EMPLOYEES SERVING LOCAL COMMUNITIES

November 2014

TOM EDWARDS, GENERAL MANAGER and CCA: Currently many things are happening during the harvest season. As we stated in the last two Choice articles the Coop is very limited on storage space. Soybean yields are above normal and corn yields appear to be 10 % or so above normal. We gave some yield predictions in our last article. We have rented some space which may help a little but our capacities will be full. There is not much selling going on but some may need to occur to move the grain on down the distribution channel. Small amounts of outside storage have been tried in the past but the spoilage is too great a risk to undertake. LP usage is again high so prepaying LP looks like a very good move again this year. Ammonia prices continue to be strong and I am anticipating wholesalers running out of products in late November if the weather stays good. Every season brings its challenges but great yields are always an added plus to the season. Stay safe.

FEED DEPARTMENT: DUANE SPROUSE MANAGER: Winter is just around the corner and harvest will be wrapping up this month. It looks like we have a lot of good forage in the corn fields that can really be useful to those cows. The need for additional protein and things that will improve digestion would be helpful. This is where the use of tubs or lick tanks will come into play. They help provide the needed protein to balance the forage out in the fields as well as provide better digestion of the forage available. We have our tub and liquid promotion running through the end of November. Take advantage of these outstanding offers soon and be prepared for the late fall-early winter feeding period. We have changed the discount on the Lick Tanks and will give you $50 off for either lick tank sheep or cattle that is purchased with a fill of liquid. New research being conducted at the Purina Research Farm on supplementing forages. We have had intake “modifiers” for grain diets for some time now and research is under way to see the effects of such modifiers on forage intake and how it will effect production. Forage will enhance production and we want them to eat more of it but as we have experienced in the recent past we had issues with drought conditions which of course limited the amount of forage. The study is looking for the best way to utilize forage for the animal by “modifying” the eating behavior to make the best use of available forage. We hope this type of research will provide products and procedures to maintain a consistent plane of nutrition for the cows to get maximum production. Look for more information down the road on this research.

PROPANE: MIKE GERST MANAGER: Our thoughts and best wishes are with Larry McArtor and family. Get well soon! Everyone here misses your smiling face. Corn dryer demand has put a strain on terminals in Iowa. Transports from northern Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota and Wisconsin have begun to come south as supply is unable to keep up with demand, making for long lines at local terminals. Thanks to Zane Snedigar for filling in during a busy time. Thanks for your business and continued support!

SEED: CHAD SIEREN MANAGER: As we enter November most beans are harvested with a fair amount of corn yet to go. As temperatures drop, fall ammonia will be here shortly if not happening by the time the Choice is out. The use of N- Serve is a great way to protect your nitrogen investment to keep your N where it should be during the next growing season. Seed Supply is good this year with the first early cash discount ending in November. As a reminder for those who used Farm Plan for 2014 seed inputs that it is due this month. Also if you are needing any rye seed for cover crops yet this fall please let me know. Have a safe rest of the season. Please contact me @ 319-461-0068 for anything you may need.

GRAIN: JONI SANDBURG MANAGER: Yields around our area seem to be exceptional, with that said, we are full of soybeans at Ainsworth and Libertyville and expect to be full of corn before it’s all said and done. We will continue to work hard to accommodate everyone but unfortunately we do not have bottomless bins. We have seen a nice rally so if you have a target price in mind please leave offers, I will be happy to watch it for you in this busy time. Thank you for your patience and your continued business. HEDRICK, DICK REED MANAGER/SALES JENNIFER MEIEROTTO: We would like to welcome to the Hedrick location Staci Jasper to take over as our bookkeeper/receptionist and Ron Kurtz as an outside salesperson. We would also like to thank Betty for her many years of service and wish her a happy retirement. With this harvest season in full swing, we have seen good results with Headline applications as well with Starter, Ascend, Zinc and Priaxor on soybeans. Jen will be out to speak with everyone about seed for next year and would like to give a special thank you to Danny Weber for hosting our soybean plot at the Hwy 78 and 149 junctions. As we move on with harvest don’t forget your grid sampling and anhydrous with stabilizer. Please keep up the communication with us on when your ground is fit for anhydrous and dry fertilizer application. Thank you for your business and have a safe harvest season!!

REFINED FUELS, JEFF BERMEL MANAGER: With all indications of another cold winter the Farmers Coop will be winterizing its diesel fuel soon. In Libertyville and Stockport areas Jason will have #1 diesel fuel on hand by November 10th. Let Jason know if you want blended 50/50 or Premium Diesel fuel for the cold weather. In Keota we are going to put a winter additive in the clear fuel around the 10th of November. Around the 15th of November it will be added to the red farm fuel. Close to the first of December we are going to blend the clear diesel at the office retail pump with 50/50 diesel fuel. The diesel fuel at County Line Mart will have the winterized additives in it all winter long. This is just a reminder DO NOT add a supplemental cold flow improver to any fuel when the temperature of the fuel is below 24 degrees. If the fuel temperature is below 24 degrees the additive will not blend with the fuel and will cause more problems. Please contact Jeff at 319-461-6170 or Jason at 641-455-4781.

STOCKPORT, RYAN NOLL MANAGER: Thanks to the wet weather in September and October, harvest is running a little behind what we’ve come to expect after the last few years. The outlook for November sounds better and we are still looking forward to a good fall application season. If you need any soil sampling done, let us know when you get the fields harvested so that we can get them sampled or turn in the grid sample order. Have a safe harvest and a Happy Thanksgiving!

KEOTA, SCOTT SWANSON MANAGER: 2014 has been an excellent year for corn and soybean yields now we have to think about the 2015 crop. It is really important to pay attention to your fertilizer program. Shorting yourself on fertilizer can cost you a lot of bushels in the end. This is why Grid Sampling and Variable rate spreading fertilizer and lime is so important. You will almost always save money on Fertilizer and Lime and still recoup the initial cost of the soil sampling and even further, you are putting the nutrients where they are actually needed the most. There are fertilizer discounts if paid by Nov. 20 for those that did not prepay early. We are putting anhydrous on as we speak and all is going well. This year as in the past N- Serve should be put on to stabilize the nitrogen. Prepaid NH3 tons need to be applied in the fall to avoid penalties. We have 3 custom NH3 tractors in Keota to help you get the job done. Who knows what Mother Nature will throw at us; fall weather can change in a heartbeat. Have a safe fall and thank you from all of us at Vision Ag for your continued business.

FROM ALL YOUR FRIENDS AT FARMERS COOPERATIVE AND VISION AG