2020 Harvest - Day 10 - Finishing Up!

Our final day of corn harvest, which brings the harvest season in general to a close.

[@donevens4357]

Well said, you don't have to be fancy to make money. I'm 63 and enjoy your channel!!

[@farmcentralohio]

I prefer to watch 70's style corn harvesting. Thanks for the videos

[@ravenviewfarm]

Thanks for coming along for the ride!

[@steveschweiger6569]

Red having to start green. Makes a Farmall fan feel good.

[@ravenviewfarm]

LOL! I figured that might be popular with the Farmall folks. I love our multi-colored equipment. For the most part they all do their respective jobs well.

[@danielhurrle7008]

Loved the series, great ending of a harvest. Looking forward to the next year's videos. Hope you have a great winter break and a Merry Christmas.

[@jimeburg4828]

Enjoyed your video. It reminded me of my farm days back in the 40s-50s. We used Intenational Farmal M and H. Putting the corn in the round cribs and shelling the corn when we needed it, or grinding it for the cattle, cows and hogs. Thus, "BIGGER IS NOT ALWAYS BETTER" It just depends on the person and need.........

[@ronwhites1432]

Enjoy your videos, it brings me back to a time when there were many small farms and many neighbors, unfortunately time has changed

[@microsoilenhancersinspirey5750]

Just found your channel... It’s awesome to see a humble farmer!!!... And one who stayed that way!!! That says a lot!!! Thank you for sharing!.. Shalom!..

[@ravenviewfarm]

Thank you! I sure do appreciate the compliment. We just try to approach each day with the mindset of balancing ecology, profitability, and personal values. Most days it works!

[@microsoilenhancersinspirey5750]

@@ravenviewfarm you’ve inspired me to go back to where it makes sense when it comes to equipment! It’s easy to get caught up in the latest and greatest!.. but I’ve had all that technology farming!.. it plants and harvests the exact same in a 15 or 20 year combine or planter as a new one!..just a little slower! Thank you again for showing people like me we don’t need the shiney peckers to still farm!.. Shalom!..

[@larryruemmele4375]

I remember picking corn for as many years as I have been on the farm, 64 years. We picked all of it, then shelled what was left over in the following fall that we didn't grind for feed. Later years we figured out what we needed for grinding then hired the neighbor to combine the rest and sell out of the field. Cousin sold the sheller so chioce was simple. When neighbor sold combine we bought a 4400 John Deere with grain and corn head which I still use today. Your picker is doing a nice job.

[@ravenviewfarm]

Thanks Larry! Sounds like you guys did things almost exactly like us (except we don't have the livestock to grind feed for at the moment). We just picked up a 4400 combine this past summer as well. I love it. It's a perfect size for our operation. We'll keep picking and shelling the corn for now though, since we don't have bin storage or drying equipment, but it's nice to have the option to combine some and sell it off if we have a good yield and good dry-down in the field.

[@jefflund8351]

That’s for the videos! I love your guys equipment. You and your dad rock! Keep up the good work, we really appreciate it!

[@ravenviewfarm]

Aww, thanks Jeff! I'm really glad you've enjoyed following along!

[@kopenhagenkid]

Great video good luck picking your corn 🌽

[@PremierYachtFLL]

Picking corn was always my favorite time of year

[@johnhall1614]

Enjoyed the series, thanks for putting it all together. If you like history I hand pick our 1.5 acre organic Rafi seed corn patch with a corn husking glove, and shell and bag it with an old hand crank corn sheller. I am looking at buying a mounted 2 row picker because my Rafi rep is pushing us to grow more next year. It takes me a few days to pick it. Then the hole family comes over for a cookout slash corn shelling party.

[@ravenviewfarm]

That's old school John! I've used a hand crank corn sheller on more than one occasion, but I can't say that I've ever put on a husking glove and hand picked ears in the field. In our old granary we have a bunch of nails sticking out of the wall at an angle, where grandpa (and probably great grandpa) used to hang their ears of corn that were designated to be next year's seed to dry. Dad said there were a couple of husking gloves hanging there for many years. We're not sure what ultimately happened to them. It's too bad. They would've been kind of a meaningful thing to have.

[@michaelschrowang9395]

I was raised on a 120 acre dairy farm in north central Illinois. My Dad farmed the same way. Your video brought back so many memories. Thank you for sharing. I look forward to all your experiences. He rotated three crops each year- corn, oats and hay. God Bless.

[@ravenviewfarm]

Hey Michael! Thanks so much for watching. Our place was also a dairy farm until 1993, and with our home acreage and some rented land, I believe we were running about 120 acres as well. That corn, oat, hay rotation was very typical before farmers started getting rid of livestock and switching to corn and beans. The University of Illinois has some of the oldest continuous test plots in the country, and some of the data they've collected has demonstrated an ability to increase fertility and organic matter using the traditional corn, oat, hay method. We'll be exploring some of those rotational changes on our place in the coming years. I don't have a crystal ball or anything, but I think a good number of farmers will be taking a hard look at more diversified operations moving forward.

[@michaelschrowang9395]

@@ravenviewfarm Dad used a John Deere Model A until he bought a John Deere Model 70 diesel. Our other tractor was a International H. We stored ear corn in the crib and the oats in a grainery. We milked about 30 cows. My brother and I baled hay and straw, walked beans and shelled corn for nearby farmers every year. Dad repaired his own equipment and that's where I learned how to hold a flashlight and curse, lol. We ground our own feed. Dad quit farming when I was 17 and started working in machine shop. I remember seeding his tax return from 1953 and he made $1875 for the whole year. I was born in 1952. We didn't have much but would do it all over again. If I can ask, where are you located?

[@benjohnson1082]

Man, those big ears(of corn) look great.

[@robertburt9071]

As you were saying old seventies equipment I have great memories The old saying in the early '80s interest rate were high The quickest way get into big debt buy new machinery I am Canada Love your video

[@ravenviewfarm]

Thanks Robert! My folks went through those tough times in the 80's, and there are plenty of family stories about it. I'm sure that experience influenced our current attitude of "keep the old stuff running."

[@Budd56]

Good job on the series, I enjoyed it very much 👍👍👍✌️

[@glenklein9215]

This is the era of farming that i enjoy most. This is type of equipment dad had when I started. I still dont have new equipment but procedures sure have changed. Not sure they are all for the better.

[@ravenviewfarm]

I hear you Glen! I often think there's real value in taking the best practices from the past, and combining them with the best practices from the present. It requires a guy to think pretty hard about the methodology and attempt to see through all of the marketing that gets mixed in with big, modern agronomy and vendors, and the results might look a little weird, but so far it's working for us.

[@glennmunk5707]

Thanks for the series of harvest videos, took me back to our Oliver 77 gas with Oliver mounted picker. Always enjoy your videos

[@ravenviewfarm]

Thanks Glenn! I'm sure glad you enjoyed the series.

[@tomhill4765]

Satisfaction is a crib full of corn.

[@GeigerFarm]

+1 on replacing a snapping roll! Been there, a major pia, especially when the harvest is waiting.

[@jimeburg4828]

Modern day is soo much faster but is it as much fun. We used the same picker but used the older wagons which we un loaded by hand and scoop shovel and flat wagon and wooden cribs until the later years. I also have to say we used Massey Harris Super 101 and Allis Chalmers WD and horses. I am dating myself (in my 80's). We only had 80 acres of tillable ground but we made a living and we survived the depression.

[@ravenviewfarm]

Hey Jim! It's great to have your perspective. I think the mentality for so many years has been to get bigger and bigger and more specialized in one or two things. We're finding that if we do a lot of different things on a small scale, and do them really well, the whole system helps support itself better. It can be more work, but less financial risk, and if we do it right the work is spread out more evenly throughout the year.

[@millardhayes1884]

It's amazing to see how you store in a crib and shell later.

[@raprock5000]

Those were some great ears of corn. I'd love to see a remake of this harvest next fall 2023 hopefully. It was great especially with that great yield..👌🏻🇺🇲

[@ravenviewfarm]

Thank you sir! I’ll tell ya, I’d love to relive that one myself. I’ll have videos of this year’s harvest up soon, but with two years of drought now, it will pale a bit in comparison. Yield isn’t everything, but it does make a guy feel good when mother nature decides to be a helper rather than an adversary. In 2020 she was a helper.

[@raprock5000]

@@ravenviewfarm I bet your wildlife feed market is up now with these snow storms. We've definitely got too much snow in central MN anyways. It's going to be a hard winter for deer, turkey and pheasants in our area.

[@frank64409]

May God bless the salt of the earth, the small farmers.

[@ravenviewfarm]

Many thanks Frank. It means a lot!

[@jameseidahl367]

Enjoyed the series! Good stuff!

[@internationalfarmer2153]

Nice video my grandfather use to pick with new idea fully mounted corn picker take me back to day when he use to ear pick

[@mbury8004]

Another interessting video with old stuff ! Regards from germany

[@bradjenkins932]

Old Farmall M pulling a JD...... LOL.

[@ArmpitStudios]

Glad to see you gettin’ to the old footage. 🙂 Man, so close to filling #4. If it was popcorn, you could pop some to expand it up to the top-have a real Jiffy Pop moment with it. 😃

[@ravenviewfarm]

Ha! Now THAT would be a show! Thank you sir. I hate being this far behind, but it's nice to finally be completing the story.

[@patloebertmann537]

I still pick some corn grampa had a NI got a JD 300 now use 4020 on picker you got nice equipment and oil chains your a good operator

[@heatherd212]

Great 4020 tractor . We just found your channel 🇨🇦

[@ravenviewfarm]

Hey Heather! Thanks for finding your way here! The 4020 has always been our big work horse on the farm, and it's rarely let us down over the years.

[@1995jug]

I used to pick ear corn to feed my cows i liked the shucks on my corn i even remover the husking bed it was giving trouble anyway shucks make feed i ground hay with it.

[@stephenrice4554]

Another fine video , I'm with you , I'd use the 70s equipment , user serviceable , and historic . When so many are trashing the past with ill educated , poorly researched nonsense , you're a breath of fresh air , along with some others . Big grins at the end . 👍🇬🇧

[@ravenviewfarm]

Thanks Stephen! That means a lot sir. I don't know if there's any one "right way" to farm, but I think there are appropriate possibilities for each unique farm. We seem to have found a pretty good groove these last couple of years, and it involves fixing and using what we have, managing our input costs and profits carefully, adding new enterprises in a slow and controlled fashion without taking on lots of risk, and direct-marketing as much as we can to maximize profit and cut out the middle man. Combine that with our regenerative cropping practices, and you have something that looks like a weird mix of the old equipment and new methods. I enjoy being a little weird though, so it's a perfect fit, LOL!

[@donnellykieranj]

Superb. I’d much rather the old stuff anyway. Old school is cool!

[@ravenviewfarm]

Hey Kieran! Old school IS cool. Especially when you have to be your own mechanic. Simplicity and manageable size machines mean you can get up and running again when things break down. It'd be nice if all the old parts were still being produced, but a guy can't have everything!

[@TheCoopdway]

Great to see you guys again!

[@dannyrasdon1302]

Most equipment is more advantage but it is work like you said it was history think you

[@hturbo1007]

I'm glad to hear that you like hauling with the M better. I'd prefer it to.

[@hershellinnenbringer4058]

Good to be done.

[@ravenviewfarm]

Man, lemme tell you, it is ALWAYS a good feeling to be done. :0)

[@keithrobinson1331]

Good to see the old footage thanks?

[@danielkrystosek4641]

Nice video!

[@jimcox6687]

I have enjoyed it I don't care for tall round gribs. I like the tall long ones. The tall long ones keep the corn off the ground. Less rot. I had NI 323 i like it but seems like it shelled so bad.

[@user-rd5cs5su3s]

We picked with super MT/A BACK in day I know ear corn

[@ravenviewfarm]

I'd love to run a Super M T/A sometime, just for the fun of it! Even today those Ms are handy on a smaller operation like ours. We use our M nearly every day.

[@markhoyt8643]

How much corn ground did you harvest. How big is your farm. Thank you

[@ravenviewfarm]

Hey Mark! 26 acres of corn for this particular series of videos. The whole farm is 100 acres, but our tillable acreage is 64 acres. Thanks for watching!

[@dennishayes65]

Is your dad wearing a University of Minnesota Crookston sweatshirt ?

[@ravenviewfarm]

He is! My nieces both went there, and being a proud Grandpa, he's gotta show his support.

[@brianzybura8633]

I enjoyed watching your corn harvest video. However, I dont ever want to tell you or anyone else their business. What I am coming to is that I see that you walked over your corn elevator. That is dangerous. Over the years, I heard of too many farmers doing stuff like that and wound up being injured for life. So exercise caution. Thanks for showing a good video.

[@ravenviewfarm]

Hey Brian. No worries sir. Sometimes I need those reminders, and you're absolutely right. It's a bad habit I've gotten into, simply because it takes less time.

[@brianzybura8633]

@@ravenviewfarm I am glad that you kept my comment in mind. Look forward to your future videos.

[@p.guyton4589]

Sweet How many tractors?

[@ravenviewfarm]

Thanks! We have four tractors on the farm. The John Deere 4020 is our big tractor. The IH 686 is our go-to for many, many tasks as it's the perfect in-between size. The Farmall M does all of the loader work and general chore tractor jobs. And the Allis D-14 does light duty stuff like moving empty wagons and equipment around, running the elevator and auger, etc.

[@levibridge9515]

How did you get started doing feed corn? Thinking of doing 5 acres or so soon for doing feed corn. Any tips or advice?

[@ravenviewfarm]

Hey Levi! Well, I was doing some brainstorming about ways I could take an income from the farm without impacting my Dad's farm income too greatly. I actually read an article in a farm publication about a young farmer named Quint Pottinger, who farms in Kentucky. He had been trying to find a way to join the family farm operation with his Dad, and got into wildlife corn as a way to increase profitability. There didn't seem to be any reason that I couldn't do something similar. Shoot me an email at [e-mail]. I'd be happy to chat with you over email or phone and give any advice that I can regarding the specifics.

[@levibridge9515]

@@ravenviewfarm I sent ya a email. Thanks

[@lesliekirkland4603]

How far are you behind

[@ravenviewfarm]

I’m a year behind on editing my videos. If you meant on farm work, we’re not behind at all. 😁

[@rustyrelicsfarm2406]

Did you pick up the cobs around the cribs?

[@ravenviewfarm]

Always!

[@rayseals8764]

Yield?

[@ravenviewfarm]

Our overall yield for 2020 was about 175 bu/ac. These days we look at our numbers pretty carefully and focus on profitability more than yield, so dollars per acre is our benchmark. We had cut our fertilizer and spray inputs back considerably, and the no-till practices save us quite a bit on fuel and wear parts. Between direct marketing some of the corn during the winter and good market prices in the spring, we had a pretty profitable season.

[@internationalfarmer2153]

How many acres u do

[@danielhurrle7008]

He has 64 tillable or should I say cropable acres as Ravenview is now a no-till farm.

[@ravenviewfarm]

Beat me to it Daniel! :0)

[@dennishayes65]

Is this video a year old ? You said 2020 !

[@ravenviewfarm]

It is indeed! I wasn't lying. I put a lot of effort into filming our 2020 harvest season. Then life got busy and all the editing had to wait. I'm finally getting it all put together. The last several videos have been harvest footage from 2020, as the titles indicate.

[@christian9125abd]

why have you studied history?

[@ravenviewfarm]

Why have I studied history? That is an interesting and unexpected question. I was a pretty bright student, so I went off to four years of college like a lot of kids in my generation. I had to pick a major at some point, and I'd always been interested in history, so it seemed like a good fit. And there you have it!

[@christian9125abd]

@@ravenviewfarm i just asked it as i am finishing "high school" this year and i still do not know if i am going to university or to work.