This is a L26 Kubota,  a second hand import in to Thailand, modified for crop row work ,I think it was done in Thailand ,to many dogs about to ask about it .

Ps Like the ladder .

Somewhere in Isan, between Roi Et and Buries. Don't remember the town. Have never seen this before. 

Tractor, which was on a low trailer and pulled behind a small lorry, pulling a baler. 

 

 

On 5/27/2021 at 12:26 PM, djayz said:

Somewhere in Isan, between Roi Et and Buries. Don't remember the town. Have never seen this before. 

Tractor, which was on a low trailer and pulled behind a small lorry, pulling a baler. 

 

 

I suppose the bailer was connected with the three point hitch? Interesting cornering abilities..... LOL

The truck and trailer used to transport finished bales on site. They are learning.

Boredom induced thought, stick a diff in the baler axle, add the pto shaft and start the tractor. Imagine the blinding take offs possible at the lights. Pass me another cold snack missus!

 

Two new photos from next door. 

The neighbour's rice paddy (same paddy I posted a year or two ago) and the neighbour's pond. 

 

The same paddy I posted a few weeks ago. Harvester was used on this one. Very few people involved in this work nowadays. 

 

 

First calf from my full blood Beefmaster bull. The Dam is 75% Hereford. It’s a heifer calf which is always nice to see from a new bull  ????

On 9/11/2022 at 6:25 AM, Slugs11 said:

First calf from my full blood Beefmaster bull. The Dam is 75% Hereford. It’s a heifer calf which is always nice to see from a new bull  ????

Nice calf ,I see it still has the white face from the Hereford.

Combining a crop of maize ............or ploughing a field ,this is near me taken a few days ago after about 40 mm of rain.

Look at some of the leaves ,still green ,the owner said it has been 105 days since drilling ,to combining,normale it is 120 day to combining ,as I wrote before the farm I worked on in the UK our old fitter use to say, You think a crop is fit to combine,go on holiday for a week ,when you come back it will be fit to go ,I think this would be a good idea here.

But this year the buyers are buying any crop,with a shortage of imported wheat, barley, and maize, it is what Thais cal "Mao",which translate as take all ,they will take all crops not bothered about moisture ,this crop must be 30% plus ,how it is being trashed out I would not know.

The price is not bad last month it was 9.50baht/kg ,last week 8.80baht/kg,this evening talking to a group of farmers while a crop was being combined they said 8.50 baht/kg .

A couple of weeks ago talking to a big buyer of maize ,he said they were paying 9.50baht/kg,then they were selling the crop to Betagro for 11.50baht/kg ,when dried down to 15% moisture , he is lucky the Betagro mill is only 15 km up the road ,so low transport costs he said a crop comes in at 30 % moisture he dries it down to 15%,he will lose 40gk /ton.

Looking at my crystal ball,cassava prices are still good ,maize is well up on last year ,with the high fuel price sugar cane should be a good price ,I think rice prices will be good ,and from AN last week the governments is subbing farmers to the tune of a good few billion baht .

Mrs took a nice picture this morning.

The rain keeps coming with 342mm so far this month.

Our place is well situated so get waterlogging but no flooding.

 

 

Our land yesterday afternoon ,we have been here 14 years now,we got flooded first time 10 years ago,and again last year ,and now this year ,but not as bad as before,but still bad ,global warming.

The fence post are 4 feet tall,this evening most of the water has gone , our cattle still has some water in it ,but the cattle can still lie down in the only dry bit ,it will be at least a week before the cattle can go out grazing. the family have been out they're netting some fish 

About in the middle of the photo is some Nappier grass well grown ,we cut it for silage, but now a big ....when.

Yesterday afternoon ,our local Or -Bor-Tor arrived with a bag of rice ,some Ma Ma  noodles, cooking oil,and fish sauce ,must have been 8-9 of them ,we had our photos took during the handover ,a only in Thailand job.

What is he doing ?,here in Lopburi province we have had our shear of the floods ,we were out cutting "Gratin",a tree legume,the stuff in the back ground of the photo , that is very prolific where we are and good cattle feed ,

We have the Passak dam near us ,with a canal system that pumps water from the dam in to the canal system for irrigation ,now 90% of it is not used ,all overgrown ,this guy said he is milking about 20 cows with a total of 70 head of cattle ,most of his land is underwater of waterlogged ,and he can not get this tractor and grass chopper on the land .

So he's cutting grass from beside the canal to feed to his cattle,not the best of feed by far ,as the wife said full of Kee- Mar, dog poo,plasic bags etc .

Normal he would also be feeding rice straw ,but that is very expensive,now about 80 baht/bale , normaly  about 28-30 baht /bale and almost impossible to find , most being last year's crop ,this year's rice crop yet to be harvested ,and with the flood it will be in short supply this year.

One of our local rice buyer ,first off farmer weighs his load in ,then tipped ,a big pay loader loads it on to a truck and trailer and away to the rice mill ,which is about 30 km away.a quick almost same day turn around .

The rice is Hom Marli,he is paying 11000baht/ton,mosture is not checked he says he sells it  at 12-13000baht/ton,but some loads he only gets 9500baht/ton,the rice not being Hom Marli,the rice mill knows .the farmers selling ordinary rice saying  it is Hom Marli.

Looking at the heap of rice, a lot of trash in it, some combines need setting up .

He also buys in maize and cassava ,maize in the shed in the background.

We have had 22 mm of rain this week ,not a lot ,but I come across this yesterday ,rain?wind ?has flattened this sugar cane,first time I have seen it ,it was a very good crop as well .

Will, have to be cut by hand ,no way a machine can do it.

So I have been told our local cane factory will open 6 December ,I said that is late ,wife's granddaughters other half works they ,he said they are still boiling the juice from last year's crop ,and they have some more maintenance to do .

Local cane grower spending some of his money from this year's crop.

You can see the bore hole on the right and the cane in the background, and the old set up at the back, a po-pop engine mounted on a frame with the pump .

He is using drip tape system, working well considering how hot it is.

 

Our first full blood Beefmaster calf born on the farm. One of the 6 traits of Beefmaster cattle is suppose to be easy calving. Maybe because she was a heifer and her first time calving she was struggling, had to help her in the end and pull the calf. Excellent mother with plenty of milk, another of the 6 traits what they were breed for, so hopefully the calf will grow good. Happy as it’s heifer calf so will most likely keep her for future breeding. 

Winter break November 2022 till February 2023.

Bought 17 rai rice fields and changed it to a Permaculture forest.

 

Little retirement project when I stop here at work by 2024.

Avoiding me hanging off at the stone table in front of 7eleven... 

Before:

 

After:

380 Trees (Food Forest) from all around the world, 5500 sqm lake and 420 meter river...

Saw this yesterday our local farming company, pulling this box scrapper around, about as much use as a chocolate teapot ,walked across the field ,2 inch underground a pan, land very  hard ,did not leave a good finish .

They would be better off waiting for some rain, going in with a one pass cultivator, and then drilling job done.

But they days are numbered, all they land is rented, all they equipment is big, imported secondhand from the USA most of the land in our area they only get one crop a year, hardly enough to pay for everything., so I have been told they farm about 2000 rie.

23 hours ago, kickstart said:

Saw this yesterday our local farming company, pulling this box scrapper around, about as much use as a chocolate teapot ,walked across the field ,2 inch underground a pan, land very  hard ,did not leave a good finish .

They would be better off waiting for some rain, going in with a one pass cultivator, and then drilling job done.

But they days are numbered, all they land is rented, all they equipment is big, imported secondhand from the USA most of the land in our area they only get one crop a year, hardly enough to pay for everything., so I have been told they farm about 2000 rie.

Just one question: WHY? 

Did it come for free with the last shipment of second hand AG machines?

On 4/20/2023 at 8:44 PM, CLW said:

Just one question: WHY? 

Did it come for free with the last shipment of second hand AG machines?

A good question, we come from Europe where box scrapers   are not used, but across the Atlantic they are used, also our Farmerjo  has made/used one.

I know Thai like the American way of farming, a lot of our dairy cattle breeds come from America. 

So, I presume, if they use one so will we, or they got it so let's use it, most certainly not to a good use.

But that just about sums up they management, the photo is the same field about 50ria taken 6-8 weeks ago, this crop of corn has now been ploughed in just did not grow had lots of water, FJ said it was a cool spell true, but other crops or corn in the area grew, most were cut for corn silage.

Just a big company farm thinking they have all the big tackle like they American cousins they can make lots of money, except the Americans have some idea about big farm management, this lot do not. 

On 4/19/2023 at 9:11 PM, kickstart said:

Saw this yesterday our local farming company, pulling this box scrapper around, about as much use as a chocolate teapot ,walked across the field ,2 inch underground a pan, land very  hard ,did not leave a good finish .

They would be better off waiting for some rain, going in with a one pass cultivator, and then drilling job done.

But they days are numbered, all they land is rented, all they equipment is big, imported secondhand from the USA most of the land in our area they only get one crop a year, hardly enough to pay for everything., so I have been told they farm about 2000 rie.

The same field same place photo taken this evening, weeds are growing well, as of yet no other work done on this field. 

A green manure.?

Last year, my wife started the cucumber farm. It did all right the first run. About 2rai she yield 30Kb/rai. Then she planted again for the 2nd run ,... then the floods came.

 

If there is no flood a farm like this can get her 3 runs yielding more then 100k a year. And that's for just 2 rai.

 

 

Two firsts here, first time I have seen baled silage in Thailand.

The farm is a large by Thai standards, the owner was not they when I asked about them, just the guys who milk the cows I said what grass did you use, they said it is not grass but corn/maize, that is the second first, never seen baled raped maize silage before

They said a company did the job, they did not know who, the baler, rapper and plastic wrap would all be imported, these bales must weigh 500kg each.

I have often thought rapped baled silage is the way to go, you can get mini bales would work well for your small farms. 

 

On 8/7/2023 at 8:05 PM, kickstart said:

Two firsts here, first time I have seen baled silage in Thailand.

The farm is a large by Thai standards, the owner was not they when I asked about them, just the guys who milk the cows I said what grass did you use, they said it is not grass but corn/maize, that is the second first, never seen baled raped maize silage before

They said a company did the job, they did not know who, the baler, rapper and plastic wrap would all be imported, these bales must weigh 500kg each.

I have often thought rapped baled silage is the way to go, you can get mini bales would work well for your small farms. 

 

Following on, I come across the contractors making the baled silage, this is a crop of Napier grass, the machine is a first for me it cuts and bales the grass, the back lifts up and the bale pops out, the rapper picks the bale up itself the bale rotates on a turn table as the rapping arms go round.

To pick the bales up the loader tractor has a squeeze grab.

Each bale weighs about 500 kg, this field was 15 rie the said they got 100 bales, the grass was old passed its best for feed value, but better than rice straw, the owner was they I said how much per bale, he said as of, yet he did not know the cost, same guy as the baled maize silage.

The contractor sad to bale 100 bales the machine used 100 liters of fuel.

The company are based in Bangkok.

 

Drone applying fertilizer to a crop of sugar cane.

Our new drip irrigation system with solar pump ....

 

 That looks like Cassava ,let's hope you get a better price than this year, got down to 1.50 baht/kg ,that was because last year it got to 3 baht plus /kg, so this year everyone grew cassava, so the price drops, not so much about this year so it should be a good price.

Putting in drip irrigation now as the rains are coming .............., harvest will be next late spring, let's hope they will be someone to harvest it ,in this area it is mainly the Cambodians that do the job ,as a lot of them have gone home now , good timing as most of the Cassava in our area has been harvested, I would say they will be back ,when all the dust settles

^^^^^^^^^   Ha Ha  that looks really safe !!!!

9 hours ago, johng said:

^^^^^^^^^   Ha Ha  that looks really safe !!!!

The idea is that Thai farm trailers do not tip, the tractors have no spool vales, that is a hydraulic connection on the tractor that enables the trailer to tip ,so they engineered this device, the trailer is backed up on to the lift ,and up it goes, looks a bit Heath Robinson, but it works,.

The idea comes from sugar cane mills where all trailers are tipped this way.