Maize and Rotational Crops

[kickstart]

Hi F J

I can see where you are going ,at least here in LOS we can direct drill ,20 ? years ago it became popular in the UK a good quick and cheap way of getting the autumn crop in ,almost hailed the revolution in farming ,but the slugs also loved the seed it was an ideal environment for them ,farmers were having to buy 3 wheeled motorbikes and small spreaders to spread slug pellets, to much hassle ,and it died a death . Now it is all one pass operation 300 HP tractors on rubber tracks with .4.5,6, meter width equipment .

Meanwhile back in LOS .time for you to raise your arms in horror .I think a one pass operation would work here ,especially on light land 2 rows of shallow cultivator tines , ,say 2 -3 rows of Dutch harrow tines ,a crumble bar then the drill, a 4 row like yours would do the job.( I will get my coat).

Sprayers round here are the blue 200 lt drum 5? meter booms, on the back of a little Hino ,dose the job it was what we used on our maize and mung beans ,use to charge us 120 Bart/rie .

Some of the bigger sugar boys use the big white 2000 lt tanks boom width would be about same as yours ,most of the 200 meter pipes sprayer's are used on the rice paddies ,like wise backpack sprayers used on sugarcane and cassava.

As for spraying most farmers ,use a pre emergent spray ,as for spraying prior to planting, as you said education ,and changing a habit of a lifetime, ploughing in the new year buries the weeds ,the roots are near the surface and dry out and die, is the way that it has been done .

Also and more importantly ,look at any old seed drill the front coulter is just a piece of 1/4 plate steel ,cut in to a coulter shape ,with two wings welded on on for the seed to drop between ,it could not cut butter hot ,let along cut through rubbish .,the disc type drill come along ,but with discs ,hubs and bearings ,they were more expensive ,at the time farmers could not see the advantage ,so which one did they chose ,the old type .

Round here we have two manufacturers of seed drills ,both make drills with disc coulters .

Looking in to my crystal ball I think ? after this year, a few more farmers may give the direct drilling a go ,if they realize they can cut their costs .

Junglbiker]s pdf 's made interesting reading ,but a 60% increase in yield seems a bit optimistic to me ,if it was a bad year ,when they did the conventional way ,then a better year /season when they did the direct drilling ,I could see a 60% I increase .or better management on the direct drill plot

@wayned . Did BIL put on some pre emergence herbicide on your bill? it looks clean and weed free, crop looks well to ,should do well to .

[wayned]

No herbicide on my bill but that was also stored in FIL's house and is missing. Normally we spray the day after planting so I assume that he did.

[farmerjo]

No need to get your coat KS,its a forum and everyones got an opinion and theories on the best way to utilise their land.

This is where i;m stubborn,when i started with the disc seeder i said to meself i will give it the test of time being a minimum of 5 years.

This is the 1st year of two crops/year.So a fair way to go,i cant see a plough on this land again and my 4 disc plough is for sale.

I may have to burn ocassionally to keep disease under control.

I totally understand what your saying with heavy soils and heavy rainfall here compaction can be a problem and needs to be addressed.

Where i've made ruts this year will be ripped and levelled with my box scraper.

The best crop i've grown was last year and that was 600/kilo's/rai,along way off what you guys are achieving.

My biggest challange is weed management and thats bloody frustrating at times here with different weeds setting seed at different times and the amount of vine varieties as well.

Another challenge is sourcing the right chemicals and liquid fertilizers as their avalibility seems scarce at the moment.

What i like about the no-till method most of all is driving the tractor on smooth land,its a lot better on my back compared to the old days of ploughing and it was rough as guts bouncing all over the cab and hard on the tractor.

Last year my cropping program was a 2 man show with the Fil helping bring the seed and fertilizer,now i'm trialing just seed down and going to feed the plant,not the soil its a one man show.Which brings the blood pressure levels down

Speaking of soil,must send an email and see where my results are.

Edited August 31, 2015 by farmerjo

[farmerjo]

Finished harvest today,price down to 8.2 baht/kilo minus 28 percent deduction in my case.

Happy with that as it was as wet as a shag and quite a few screenings.

Had to go to town this afternoon to get a new olive for the fuel line on the tractor that was leaking so got my chemicals for the corn i've just planted.

Out of 10 shops i went i could not find S-Metalachor anywhere,so come away alachlor instead.Also picked up some 30-20-10 powder fertilizer.

Have decided to heed KS's advice and slash down the old corn stubble and grass in preparation for some sunflowers at the end of the month and see how it goes.

Soil sample man has my results back but still working out his recommendations.(this should be entertaining)

[slapout]

Maize or corn whatever you want to call it was brought to Asia and Europe from countries that did not have monsoon rains or even what is considered plentiful rains. it as well as many small grain are dry weather crops as the navive americans existed on for centuries, Potatos are the same. Ok rice is the exception but it can even stand dry spells and produce a sorce of food for the following year.

The south Americans raised corn for feed for livestock. to serve them corn on cob at a meal would be an insult.I am not saying there is no market in corn but when you get 28 % dockage on farm gate prices and your paying retail price for chemicals, fertilizer labor to prepare and harvest i think i will pass up this opportunity to be self sufficient as is so often refered to , i call it existance and a poor one at that.

I am not condemining anyone who chooses this way of life, i lived it growing up, bit if i can not pay off investestmest in 7 years and live off of the profit from investment after return i will find another way to make enough to live comfortably in a style i can enjoy.

[kickstart]

Hi FJ

When I was at collage ,many years ago ,we where told that weeds can tell you a lot ,certain weeds like a low ph. soil ,a few a high ph. .dry land for certain weeds ,like wet land ,which is part my problem ,we have Yar-Con,in Thai ,or Para grass ,to us ,love 's water and heavy land I have a lot ,to day I cut some and feed it to our cattle, they eat 60% .I throw away 40% it takes some killing, Glyphosate will kill it at a very high rate ,but it might well come back again

We have Yar-Whan,and Yar- Kwai grass weeds ,do not know the English names ,but Glyphosate will kill it, but in your situation in a field of maize ,not easy to get rid of.

That is where that spring tine hoe might come in useful go down the rows and harrow out the weeds ,maybe once or twice ,I know it will be another cost ,but if it only kills ,say 60% of the weeds ,it will be 60% less completing for soil water and nutrients, could pay for, itself, something that use to be done in sugar beet crops ,as before some weed species were almost the same family as the beet ,and could not be sprayed out .

I put in the photos of my cultivator I made ,a few years ago ,when we rented some land ,very sandy and compact ,I made it ,then just after the owner sold the land ,so we had to give it up ,I use it now as a sub soiler ,just the single tine ,then add the other 2 ,as a cultivator ,my tractor can just pull it ,a bit steady but gets the job done .

I think it will be better then that box scraper ,something I do not like ,the scraper ,to me ,will level the field OK , but on heave land ,like yours leave a smear ,that water cannot penetrate .it might work in our home countries ,but here in LOS ,I have my doubts, it will not get down to brake up the pan ,and aerate the soil ,tines to short .

That cultivator on a bigger tractor might be a bit light ,the tins would need beefing up ,the points are a piece of an old pick -up leaf spring cut down , the hardest bit of steel I could think for the job.

[farmerjo]

Maize or corn whatever you want to call it was brought to Asia and Europe from countries that did not have monsoon rains or even what is considered plentiful rains. it as well as many small grain are dry weather crops as the navive americans existed on for centuries, Potatos are the same. Ok rice is the exception but it can even stand dry spells and produce a sorce of food for the following year.

The south Americans raised corn for feed for livestock. to serve them corn on cob at a meal would be an insult.I am not saying there is no market in corn but when you get 28 % dockage on farm gate prices and your paying retail price for chemicals, fertilizer labor to prepare and harvest i think i will pass up this opportunity to be self sufficient as is so often refered to , i call it existance and a poor one at that.

I am not condemining anyone who chooses this way of life, i lived it growing up, bit if i can not pay off investestmest in 7 years and live off of the profit from investment after return i will find another way to make enough to live comfortably in a style i can enjoy.

After dockage 6.6 baht still is not a bad price in todays climate.

If i had an area to dry it(which i will next year)then the full price is avalible.

As a mechanical fitter by trade i still go away and try to do a months work a year to keep the farming enjoyable here.

My wife does wonder why i do it sometimes but i actually enjoy it.

The land and machinery is the investment,i paid on average 15,500 baht/rai for 100 rai 11 years ago.

The money thats made off the land helps pay the monthly living expenses.

[farmerjo]

KS,

Nice solid bits of machinery there

That grass to the right hand side of the tractor i seem to have in abundance.

.

[slapout]

kickstart, would a pickaxe head welded to the shank last longer and rip thru the hard pan better? a single pickaxe head , if cut at the hole for hadle would give 2 tines. Guess it would depend on quality of steel / iron used. Chinese made may be too inconsistent in quality to consider.

Edited September 1, 2015 by slapout

[Allgeier]

Hello kickstart:

This machinery on this photo

In your opinion how to use? Or how deep you go with this inside the soil?

You still use this today?

[slapout]

I am not kickstart but we used this type culivator for several seasons, this is my experience.

the sweeps that are on this culivator are / were orginally designed to kill weeds/grass by cutting thru the shallow root system.

the bright spots seen on sweeps is about the max. depth they are run at, If deeper pentratation is wanted you change from sweep to a chisel

is deswigned to go deeper in your weed killing attempts.

It takes fewer sweeps to cover same area vs chisels for obvious reasons. Some sweeps are 4 foot wide

[slapout]

I am not kickstart but we used this type culivator for several seasons, this is my experience.

the sweeps that are on this culivator are / were orginally designed to kill weeds/grass by cutting thru the shallow root system.

the bright spots seen on sweeps is about the max. depth they are run at, If deeper pentratation is wanted you change from sweep to a chisel

is deswigned to go deeper in your weed killing attempts.

It takes fewer sweeps to cover same area vs chisels for obvious reasons. Some sweeps are 4 foot wide

[Allgeier]

.

the sweeps that are on this culivator are / were orginally designed to kill weeds/grass by cutting thru the shallow root system.

the bright spots seen on sweeps is about the max. depth they are run at, If deeper pentratation is wanted you change from sweep to a chisel

is deswigned to go deeper in your weed killing attempts.

It takes fewer sweeps to cover same area vs chisels for obvious reasons. Some sweeps are 4 foot wide

And its kill the gras after?

I read about 15 cm. Or how deep you go inside the soil to kill the gras.

This chisel.

In my opinion make the soil also softener, then the water can go faster inside the soil. The soil can keep more water.

Around our house we have only riceland, i never have seen a machinery like this here bevor.

I have seen this only in this youtube video in action.

Our farm is not so big, but i belive in this Permaculture and NON plough. But how to get rid of the gras without of chemie.?.

Normaly i need only this sweep "leg". The Mainframework i have from the cassava,

Allgeier

[farmerjo]

.

the sweeps that are on this culivator are / were orginally designed to kill weeds/grass by cutting thru the shallow root system.

the bright spots seen on sweeps is about the max. depth they are run at, If deeper pentratation is wanted you change from sweep to a chisel

is deswigned to go deeper in your weed killing attempts.

It takes fewer sweeps to cover same area vs chisels for obvious reasons. Some sweeps are 4 foot wide

And its kill the gras after?

I read about 15 cm. Or how deep you go inside the soil to kill the gras.

This chisel.

In my opinion make the soil also softener, then the water can go faster inside the soil. The soil can keep more water.

Around our house we have only riceland, i never have seen a machinery like this here bevor.

I have seen this only in this youtube video in action.

Our farm is not so big, but i belive in this Permaculture and NON plough. But how to get rid of the gras without of chemie.?.

Normaly i need only this sweep "leg". The Mainframework i have from the cassava,

Allgeier

Hi Allgeier,

As Slapout says you dont want to go deeper than 5-7 cm otherwise you may bring buried seeds to the surface which will then germinate.

I did get a price on the spring tyne and sweep a while ago,they were more pricey than i first thought.

Edited September 1, 2015 by farmerjo

[farmerjo]

Hi FJ

When I was at collage ,many years ago ,we where told that weeds can tell you a lot ,certain weeds like a low ph. soil ,a few a high ph. .dry land for certain weeds ,like wet land ,which is part my problem ,we have Yar-Con,in Thai ,or Para grass ,to us ,love 's water and heavy land I have a lot ,to day I cut some and feed it to our cattle, they eat 60% .I throw away 40% it takes some killing, Glyphosate will kill it at a very high rate ,but it might well come back again

We have Yar-Whan,and Yar- Kwai grass weeds ,do not know the English names ,but Glyphosate will kill it, but in your situation in a field of maize ,not easy to get rid of.

That is where that spring tine hoe might come in useful go down the rows and harrow out the weeds ,maybe once or twice ,I know it will be another cost ,but if it only kills ,say 60% of the weeds ,it will be 60% less completing for soil water and nutrients, could pay for, itself, something that use to be done in sugar beet crops ,as before some weed species were almost the same family as the beet ,and could not be sprayed out .

I put in the photos of my cultivator I made ,a few years ago ,when we rented some land ,very sandy and compact ,I made it ,then just after the owner sold the land ,so we had to give it up ,I use it now as a sub soiler ,just the single tine ,then add the other 2 ,as a cultivator ,my tractor can just pull it ,a bit steady but gets the job done .

I think it will be better then that box scraper ,something I do not like ,the scraper ,to me ,will level the field OK , but on heave land ,like yours leave a smear ,that water cannot penetrate .it might work in our home countries ,but here in LOS ,I have my doubts, it will not get down to brake up the pan ,and aerate the soil ,tines to short .

That cultivator on a bigger tractor might be a bit light ,the tins would need beefing up ,the points are a piece of an old pick -up leaf spring cut down , the hardest bit of steel I could think for the job.

Very true KS with what conditions they grow in.

What i need is pictures of all the weeds i have and a chemical aligned to them.(in english)

Thats why i thought about getting this agronomy company on hand to help me sort it.

Its helped a little but not to the big picture scheme of things so far.

On weeds the only way i see to eradicate them is to stop tilling the soil and kill the weed before it sets seed and eventually they will go,annuals anyway,not sure about perinials.Crop rotation with the use of different chemicals will also help.

Or the combination of cropping and livestock which isn't happening here.

Edited September 1, 2015 by farmerjo

[kickstart]

Hi All

This is a better photo ,I do not use it, this is at our local machinery dealer ,the price is 18 000 Bart ,last year it was 16 000 Bart ,when I asked the legs only, where 2 000 Bart each ,imported.

They where trying to sell them to the sugar Cain farmers for weed control did see one being used ,can not see them selling any more ,as most Cain farmers use the chisel type tines on the fertilizer applicators between the rows .

We use to use spring tine cultivators when doing spring cultivations ,but with a straight point, not the hoe type use to work well ,the spring tines use to shatter the over wintered clods and brake them down a treat .

@ Allgeier,the reason you have never seen them in Thailand ,is because Thai's do not like changes ,like keep doing the same ways all the time ,which is OK ,the thought of changing a system ,to one that might possibly fail ,and working on tight margins, to much of a gamble for them .

I re planted some Napier grass 2 year ago ,and in February I used the single tine on my cultivator, used it like a subsoil ,went down 18 inches ,with the forward slopping tine it lifted up the soil and a lot of the grass weeds ,and after a few day they started to wilt ,it did not kill them all ,but killed a lot

For you the problem is when the rain comes ,other dormant seed will germinate plus the grass the subsoil did not get ,that is where the spring tins would come in useful ,with the points on ,as the new seedling grow go in with the spring tines they will stir up the soil some will be buried ,others will be left on the surface where they should dry out .timing could be a pain in the butt ,to much rain seedlings will still grow ,to dry spring tine's will not penetrate the ground .

@ FJ You said that you have a lot of that grass in my photo ,that is the bank of our next doors neighbours water/fish pond, the grass is mainly Yar-Con, Para grass, he does spray it off every few months ,using growmoxin ,but within a few weeks it comes back again I have patches all over ,some I put on other dry grass and burned it out ,but I have found the best way is to chop it down to ground level , let it grow up to 6-8 inches and spry round up ,at max rate ,some patches I have had to re-spray . I have killed a few patches ,with the cultivator ,lifting them ,and the will dry out .

But you are cueing the symptoms ,not the problem as I said it likes water ,look at a road side ditch with water in near by ,look and see what grass is growing ,If you can "dry" out you land I think that will help to get rid of a lot of grass weed ,It is a problem I have ,my land being old rice paddy's ,a lot of rain ,water sits there ,away it goes .

[farmerjo]

Righto,soil sample results are in with recommendations and this applies to about 8 rai of my land.

Comments appreciated.

Farmer Corn_324.pdf

[Allgeier]

@ Allgeier,the reason you have never seen them in Thailand ,is because Thai's do not like changes ,like keep doing the same ways all the time ,which is OK ,the thought of changing a system ,to one that might possibly fail ,and working on tight margins, to much of a gamble for them .

But i think this is not only in Thailand like this. It is maybe not easy to change the way of farming or working. BUT, i can not see a future in this Chemie und Glyphosat Farming.

Farming should be with the nature, not against the nature.

I know here a organic Ricefarm, there harvest about 800 - 1000 kg Rice/rai. This is not so bad. But it takes a couple of years to upgrade the soil.

Farmerjo:

Or the combination of cropping and livestock which isn't happening here.

May the answer is how Joel Salatin is farming.

http://www.polyfacefarms.com/

There so many thinks, but i can not see a future to plough 30 cm deep inside the soil and bring up the death soil to the top und this little bit of topsoil goes deep inside. How its possible to increase the topsoil in this way of ploughing? Not in 50 years.

The soil life is in the first 10 - 15 cm. This area is to protect and to feed and after the soil life will increase.

But how to make this with a low budget? If i have a answer for this, sure somebody will follow. But ...... This is the question.

[farmerjo]

Hi Allgeier,

The missus wont let me go down the animal path again so have to make do with what we've got.

A lot of farming practises in other countries cant be compared to here,different seasons,weeds,temperatures,etc.

But in can give some good ideas to try if you have money and a bit of patience.

I have done a fair bit of light reading on where they use cover crops in america to suppress weeds and keep the soil moist and build organic matter.

I'm thinking i have a major grass problem that grows well over 2 metres in height,maybe that should be my april crop then roll/crimp it as cover for my maize planting in mid july.

KS has also got me thinking about drying the land out which would involve deep ripping and some contours to allow the surface water to get away.

I might have an each way bet next year.

For now i have nearly 25 rai of maize planted on the 28th of july.I sprayed paraquat after harvest then seeded,no fertilizer,realizing after 2 days the grass was starting to sprout new leaves so rushed out with the slasher and topped all the weeds,i may have done some compaction damage to the rows,time will tell.I have attrazine and alachor in the shed to spray on after one week.Its raining steady now so couldn't be happier

Still trying to get my head around the sample report,the ph and recommendations dont alighn to me.

[kickstart]

Well here goes, first it is a very comprehensive ,one of the first things I noticed was a high ph. ,and they recommend CaCo3,lime to us ,that did not sound right putting on 500 kg/ rie that is a lot and dolomite which has a lot of Ca , what would that do to other trace elements ,lock them up ,make them unavailable for the plant ?

I am far from an expert on soil science ,they are other TV members with a lot more knowledge than me ,how about starting a new thread with the results ,and see what comes up ,but one thing for certain ,they were right about the organic matter ,some form of manure would do a lot of good ,and solve a lot of problems .,

or a green manure like mung beans ?

One thought if the land is wet organic matter and trace elements would be low ,sort one problem out , it would help solve the other problems .

Your idea ,if I read it right, using grass as a cover crop I would have thought , the grass would use all the available nutrients in the soil if it grows up to 2 meters tall ,it must be living on something ,when we grow maize ,where we had grass in the field ,the maize plants did not grow well ,get rid of the grass ,in the dry season ,soon as any rain comes direct drill some mung beans ,crimp that as a cover for the maize planting ,some were on the internet they must be a paper on this subject or something like it .if it would be cost effective that is ,another farming headache.

[wayned]

If you have grass that grows to two meters tall, you might want to buy a sickle bar and a baler! The people around here who have cattle would come in and cut it for free and haul it away for you.

[farmerjo]

If you have grass that grows to two meters tall, you might want to buy a sickle bar and a baler! The people around here who have cattle would come in and cut it for free and haul it away for you.

Hi Wayned,

 

 Will get some pictures tomorrow,been putting a new radiator in the old ford today while its been raining.

 

I had a heap of people asked if they could cut the grass and i said no.

 

One it will become organic matter and two they only take the good stuff and leave me with the crap.

 

I had to kick two people of the land the other day,they said rhey were getting corn for there chickens,i said i haven't finished harvest yet but i can sell you some at 8 baht/kilo,haven't seen them again.

This was a couple of years ago.

[kickstart]

Hi

[kickstart]

Hi FJ (again).

That jungle you have is Rice grass ,or woman grass หญา้คอมินส in Thai not a lot of use for anything ,the misses said she use to cut it and sell to a company that makes paper ,30 years ago ,at this stage it will seed and drop they seeds ,and they will grow next year ,best thing is to burn it when dry ,and when you get some rain and starts to shoot spray it off

Found the below, translated from Thai .Time to find a cultivator ,get that land opened out .

Grass title

Rice grass, grass, woman, grass communism.

Remarkable feature

While a similar rice The boundaries between the leaf and the leaf is not waterproof membrane rain.

The species

Seed

Ideal conditions

Germinate in water depths of up to 6 cm. Stock up well in wet soil conditions.

[farmerjo]

Hi FJ (again).

That jungle you have is Rice grass ,or woman grass หญา้คอมินส in Thai not a lot of use for anything ,the misses said she use to cut it and sell to a company that makes paper ,30 years ago ,at this stage it will seed and drop they seeds ,and they will grow next year ,best thing is to burn it when dry ,and when you get some rain and starts to shoot spray it off

Found the below, translated from Thai .Time to find a cultivator ,get that land opened out .

Grass title

Rice grass, grass, woman, grass communism.

Remarkable feature

While a similar rice The boundaries between the leaf and the leaf is not waterproof membrane rain.

The species

Seed

Ideal conditions

Germinate in water depths of up to 6 cm. Stock up well in wet soil conditions.

Thanks KS,good imformation,

Yes that year it had already set seed,it made for an awesome hot fire when i burned it,maybe too hot.

I think your right,that is new land where nothing grew when i got it,i deep ploughed it 5 years in a row and now needs a ripper tyne thru it.

Have to be a little careful as there's a bit of rock under that country.

[farmerjo]

 

If you have grass that grows to two meters tall, you might want to buy a sickle bar and a baler! The people around here who have cattle would come in and cut it for free and haul it away for you.

Hi Wayned,

 

 Will get some pictures tomorrow,been putting a new radiator in the old ford today while its been raining.

 

I had a heap of people asked if they could cut the grass and i said no.

 

One it will become organic matter and two they only take the good stuff and leave me with the crap.

 

I had to kick two people of the land the other day,they said rhey were getting corn for there chickens,i said i haven't finished harvest yet but i can sell you some at 8 baht/kilo,haven't seen them again.

This was a couple of years ago.

DSCN4115.JPG

 

This is today,least i.ve got to it before setting seed this time.

The mother and father in law are making some cash picking up corn.

[kickstart]

This you could say is the new modal of seed drill ,this one is a 2 row ,he has 3 row and 4 row drills ,all capable of direct drilling ,I think it was one of these that direct drilled the crop in the photo I posted ,a few days ago the price when I last asked a few months ago was about 25 000 Bart ,a lot better than the old plain coulters .

Meet a farmer to day ,sold some maize last week ,a combine, combined the crop she got 100 Bart a "Tang", Similar to our old bushel weight ,still used a lot ,a Tang is 15 kg ,that works out at 6.66 Bart/kg ,not a lot considering they is bugger maize about ,I said what about moisture, what was the MC%, and how much the buyer take off for a high MC ,she said ,the moisture was a bit high ,and the buyer took off a little bit ,very sketchy ,I said to the misses what she said ,misses said ,did she even know about ,high moisture ,and getting docked ,something I did wonder .

I know to get the crop going ,they used a pump, a bid pump, coupled to a 6 cylinder lorry engine ,fuel cost would have taken away most of the profits .

Our neighbour is buying the white corn ,and selling it, boiled at our local markets ,they are buying corn at 12 Bart /kg from a farm ,a nice pice of niche marketing ,if you can get it ,they sell 4 cobs for 20 Bart ,4 cobs is about 1 kg ,take off they fuel cost for the pick up going to buy the corn ,then going to the market ,cost of there pitch ,they use they own made charcoal to fuel the boiling ,at the moment this is there only income ,can not see them making a lot .

We tried selling boiled sweet corn a few years ago ,it was our own crop ,the same way ,selling at local markets ,and boiling it at home and selling it locally ,from the back of a motor bike ,we made a bit ,but it was far to much hassle , just trying keep track of the money, a hundred Bart there ,2 hundred here ,some the family forgot to give me , selling corn from the back of a motorbike ,coming home with a bag of meat balls ,using corn money ,I remember one time coming home one evening ,the family had been selling boiled corn locally ,they we all quite happily sat around the charcoal stove boiling corn ,drinking beer Chang ,I called it drinking the days profits ,for me we made more making the rest of the crop in to silage to feed the cattle , did not have to buy in much feed for a good few weeks .

@ FJ,Looking at that photo you need at least a week's dry weather ,get that grass dried out before you can burn it ,can not see another crop of maize this year ,maybe middle of next month try some sun flowers ,one advantage of that land ,like mine ,it does hold water ,good when the rains stop ,should be enough moisture for some sun flowers.

[farmerjo]

You read my mind KS 

 

Picked up 30 kilo's of sunflower seeds the other day.

Finished slashing this morning,will put sprayer on tractor this afternoon and pending no rain today spray some post emergent and liquid fertilizer on the corn tomorrow.

 

[jmicaelk]

Hi Guys, OP thanks for starting this topic, has given me some answers but not enough.

I have access to some land in Ubon and thinking to do some corn there, about 80 rai. What are the most used seeds here, anyone using PAC559 or 339 ?? and what yields per rai are you all getting. Of course planting density plays a huge part in that, so how close do you all plant, 36", 30" or 20", seeds per rai ??

I have seen some about fertilizers before seeding, but what you guys use after seeding and at what times and what amounts ?? Any info you guys can give is appreciated

Again, thanks for a great topic, hope there is much more to come

[jmicaelk]

Hi Guys, OP thanks for starting this topic, has given me some answers but not enough.

I have access to some land in Ubon and thinking to do some corn there, about 80 rai. What are the most used seeds here, anyone using PAC559 or 339 ?? and what yields per rai are you all getting. Of course planting density plays a huge part in that, so how close do you all plant, 36", 30" or 20", seeds per rai ??

I have seen some about fertilizers before seeding, but what you guys use after seeding and at what times and what amounts ?? Any info you guys can give is appreciated

Again, thanks for a great topic, hope there is much more to come