Logistics.
The most impressive thing about harvest that rarely gets any coverage. Have you ever considered the quantity of grain coming out of all those fields? It’s a big deal for us because we’re always concerned about where we can store it all. While we have some on-farm storage, its nowhere near enough for all the corn and soybeans we bring in each fall.
Let’s consider corn. We measure the amount of corn by the bushel. That’s a bushel basket sitting next to (my adorable little model) Mischa. Remember we’re referring to just the kernels of corn, not the cob. Those bushels start to add up rather quickly though.
So we farm over 2,000 acres. In Michigan the average acre of corn yields 159 bushels. The combine can hold 300 bushels of corn. We unload the combine into the semi-truck, which can hold 975 bushels. And our biggest grain bin holds 55,000 bushels.
Can you even picture 55,000 bushel baskets?
It’s hard to wrap your mind around–that’s a LOT of bushels! We’re moving thousands of bushels of corn from the field to the farm to the granary every single day. And farmers around the country are doing the exact same thing. We’re constantly moving that grain: from the field to the farm for drying and then out to the granary. We try to keep that process going so the combine never has to stop running. Because when the combine is sitting, we run the risk of losing a good chunk of the crop to bad weather.
We’re all part of the (mostly) seamless dance of bringing in millions of bushels of grain. For the most part, the average person doesn’t see any of it. But it’s such an important–and mind boggling–part of our amazing agriculture story!
