The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1125841
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Evans & Son RV Sales donates to PAWS Nathan Evans (left), from Evans and Son RV Sales, presented a check to Ashlee Willis, of PAWS, at their Open House on Saturday. Delayed planting means tough decisions for Indiana farmers Persistent rain across In- diana continues to delay spring planting for Indiana's farmers. As the rain contin- ues, the possibility of fields left unplanted becomes a re- ality and Indiana's farmers and agribusiness profes- sionals are faced with ma- ny tough decisions. Indiana Farm Bureau, the largest general farm organization in the state, spoke with farm- ers across the state about the complications surround- ing this year's unprecedent- ed planting season. According to the U.S. De- partment of Agriculture's May 28 report, only 22 per- cent of Indiana's corn crop and 11 percent of its soybean crop has been planted. Typ- ically at this time, 85 per- cent of the corn crop and 63 percent of the soybean crop would be in the ground. This delay in planting is the result of consistent rain across the state. In most ar- eas, the soil has not had ad- equate time to dry, mean- ing farmers have not seen the conditions necessary to plant. While most of the Midwest is experiencing delayed planting, recent re- ports showed that Indiana is the furthest behind. Don Lamb, of Lamb Farms, Inc. in Lebanon, In- diana, who has approximate- ly 10 percent of his crops planted, said that this truly is an unprecedented spring for Indiana farmers. "My dad has been a farm- er for more than 50 years and he has never experi- enced this," said Lamb. Bob Bishop, of Bishop Farms in Leesburg, Indiana, who is more than halfway done with planting this year, echoes this statement. Bish- op has been farming since 1972 and says while he's ex- perienced some very wet springs, he's always seen conditions improve in May. With June comes many deadlines and tough deci- sions. If planting continues into June, the crops will have a shorter growing season than ideal, and farmers will be forced to deal with ma- ny potential complications. This is particularly true for corn. For some, that simply means switching their seeds out for a shorter season hy- brid. Bishop says he is al- ready in the process of mak- ing that adjustment. "I already sent back the 114-day corn to get some shorter season stuff," he explained. "The next hybrid we have is 111 day, but I'm thinking about getting 108 or 99 -day corn." June also brings dead- lines for filing for prevented planting crop insurance. In- sured farmers have the op- portunity to file an insur- ance claim if they're unable to plant some or all of their land due to weather. Alternately, in order to qualify for the current ad- ministration's trade aid, farmers will only receive financial assistance on the land that they attempt to plant this spring. However, farmers have very few de- tails about this aid package at this time, leaving them with much uncertainty as they weigh their options moving forward. For some—especially the farmers who have yet to begin planting—utilizing these services may be the most economical option, but for others, they're de- termined to finish planting the crop at all costs. John Carnahan, of Carna- han and Sons in Vincennes, says they have no intention of leaving any ground un- planted. They say even if their yields this fall are far below their average, they still expect a planted crop to bring in more money than reliance on insurance would. "We can make more on three quarters of the crop than we could through our insurance, so it's really not an option for us," he ex- plained. "We are going to get it in the ground. We won't let it go unplanted." Bishop explains that even if fields are left unplanted this year, they still require maintenance. "You've got to do some- thing with it in the summer or you'll have a heck of a weed problem later," he said. "There are a few options but they'll cost money to do." When the skies do break and farmers are able to con- tinue planting, they will be in a rush to complete the job. Lana Wallpe, who farms in Fowler, Indiana described a recent scenario where she and her husband, Steve, worked into the early morn- ing on a day that allowed them access to their fields. "There's a lot of talking with God and staying up un- til 1:30 in the morning to get your crop in." The effects of this plant- ing season could be det- rimental to an already strained agriculture indus- try. While not ideal, most farmers do have several op- tions awaiting them, but for many agribusiness profes- sionals, that is not the case. "There are a lot of ramifi- cations for the ag industry, as much or even more than for individual farmers," said Lamb. "I am thankful that there are insurance options for us but they're not avail- able for everyone." Lamb is referring to the many agribusiness profes- sionals who rely on a pro- ductive farming season as a core part of their business. Jeff Demerly is the own- er of Demerly Ag Plus, a seed dealership and agron- omy service in Wolcott, In- diana. For Demerly, and the many other seed dealers and small agribusinesses across the state, a spring with less seeds planted means a less profitable year. If a farmer is not able to plant a bag of seed that is purchased, it can be re- turned to the dealer. The dealer would then return that seed to the manufac- turer if there is no other de- mand for the product. "If I send back a bag of corn, I don't get credit for that from a sales perspec- tive," said Demerly. "Let's say worst case scenario no more than 30 percent of my seeds are planted, that means 70 percent of my busi- ness is in jeopardy." Seed dealers aren't the on- ly businesses in jeopardy. If farmers are not able to get the majority of their crop in the ground this year, other agribusinesses, from retail to processing, will feel the strain of an underproduc- tive farm economy. "It's the small mom and pop ag businesses that are supporting your communi- ty that are in jeopardy," said Demerly. "If things don't turn around, it's the self- employed ag entrepreneur that's not going to be able to invest back into the econ- omy." Beyond agriculture, ad- jacent businesses, such as steel and fuel, also are start- ing to feel the effects. "The concerns are real for Indiana's rural communi- ties," said Kron. "What our farmers feel now, the rest of our communities feel lat- er. But if we can get more of our crop in the ground over the next couple of weeks, we can minimize the nega- tive effects of this planting season." One glimmer of hope comes in the form of higher corn prices and many farm- ers are taking advantage of those prices by selling some of what they have remaining from last year's crop. Howev- er, if the price of corn con- tinues to increase, that could have negative effects on live- stock operations that use the corn for feed. "Farmers are in a tough place right now and are faced with many unknowns, but they're exceptional busi- ness men and women and they're optimistic by na- ture," said Kron. "You have to be the eter- nal optimist to be a farmer. Who knows what the rest of the year is going to bring," added Carnahan. "We could get plenty of rain once the crop is in and still have a de- cent year." Indiana FFA convention June 17-20 at Purdue Indiana FFA 90th Indi- ana FFA State Convention, theme Surge, will be June 17-20 at Purdue University in West Lafayette. Throughout the four days, student leaders from all across the state will be participating in communi- ty service projects, compe- titions, workshops and so much more. During the six general sessions, thousands will join together in Elliott Hall of Music for live per- formances, keynote speak- ers and award ceremonies. For more information about Indiana FFA or the FFA State Convention, contact Rob Hays or visit www.inffa.org. 'Spidey senses' could help autonomous machines see better By Kayla Wiles Purdue News Service wiles5@ purdue.edu What if drones and self-driving cars had the tin- gling "spidey sens- es" of Spider-Man? They might actu- ally detect and avoid objects better, says Andres Arrieta, an assistant professor of mechanical en- gineering at Pur- due University, be- cause they would process sensory in- formation faster. Better sensing capabilities would make it possible for drones to navigate in dangerous envi- ronments and for cars to prevent ac- cidents caused by human error. Cur- rent state-of-the-art sensor technology doesn't process da- ta fast enough – but nature does. And researchers wouldn't have to create a radioactive spider to give auton- omous machines su- perhero sensing abilities. Instead, Purdue re- searchers have built sen- sors inspired by spiders, bats, birds and other ani- mals, whose actual spidey senses are nerve endings linked to special neurons called mechanoreceptors. The nerve endings – mechanosensors – only detect and process infor- mation essential to an an- imal's survival. They come in the form of hair, cilia or feathers. "There is already an ex- plosion of data that intelli- gent systems can collect – and this rate is increasing faster than what conven- tional computing would be able to process," said Arrie- In nature, 'spidey-senses' are activated by a force as- sociated with an approaching object. Researchers are giving autonomous machines the same ability through sensors that change shape when prompted by a prede- termined level of force. ETH Zürich image. See SENSES on page 5