Wisconsin farmer waits for planting opportunity

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Wisconsin farmer waits for planting opportunity

A northcentral Wisconsin farmer says it will be a while before he can get in the fields.  Ryan Klussendorf tells Brownfield, “The seed is tucked away in the shed. The equipment is still getting worked on because you can’t get in the field. It’s too cold, too wet.”

Klussendorf operates a 120-cow dairy farm near Medford in Taylor County, and he says their heavy clay soils are still cold and saturated. “Usually, we like to get corn in around Mother’s Day but I’m guessing it’s going to be a couple of weeks after that just to let soil temperatures warm up a little bit and make sure the crop gets off to a good start this year.”

And, Klussendorf says his forage crops are also off to a slow start. “Hay is looking good. Stuff is starting to green up but it’s still too cold for anything. We’re still down in the low 30s at night for low temperatures and highs in the 40s so it’s there, but nothing is taking off yet.”

Most farmers in Wisconsin are held up by the weather, and in Klussendorf’s area, there’s still a good chance of rain on several days this week.

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