Corn Flakes

[usedto]

For cows, that is. The 160 acre field just north of my place was planted in corn this year, and the chopper showed up this afternoon to do it's thing. Some times corn is grown for corn - the actual kernels. In that case, a harvester cuts the stalk, strips the ear(s) off, then removes the kernels from the cob and spits it out. In this case, the corn is going for silage. The whole thing, stalk and all, is chopped up, then stockpiled at (usually) dairies for feed. If you ever drive through farm country by a dairy and huge piles on the ground covered with white plastic topped with old tires, it's usually silage corn.

Here's what it looks like standing ;

Here's a shot of the trucks. The chopper is hid by the corn. The truck in front is loaded, and the one in back is pulling up along side the chopper.

]

Here's a shot of a truck catching the silage. The left side is open, with a "backstop" the full length of the bed for the corn to hit and fall into the bin.

Here's the chopper coming to the end:

And a shot of it going away. It's just filled the one truck, and is waiting for the next to get in position.

And the business end of the machine:

When he powers it up, those "blades" start spinning quite fast. You can imagine how destructive they are. This particular machine does 10 rows at a time, chopping the corn into small pieces. The grower told me the machine has two Mercedes engines - one to propel the machine, and the other to run the chopper - about 900 HP total. The stalks are cut and drawn into the machine where they're chopped further, then blown through that discharge chute into the trucks.

I didn't time him, but I think he was filling a truck every 5 minutes or so. Depending on how far the trucks have to go to offload, some chopping companies will have 20-30 trucks so the chopper never stops. The trucks drive to a designated area at the dairy, dump, and then a huge tractor with a special pushing apparatus will build a mountain of silage - sometimes 20-30 feet high. Enough to last over the winter.

Some cow will be happy!!!!

 

[c.coyle]

Ee Eye Ee Eye Oh!

 

[ekmanning5]

A grinding/asphalt paving job runs with the same efficiency. Its not unusual for the two crews to remove and replace the road for hours nonstop. Its a thing of beauty to be part of.

 

[blhagstrom]

I'm an old farm boy.
Went off to college 25 years ago and been away working.

It's amazing the machinery they use now.

It used to be, we'd move to a field and spend a few days taking it off.
Now, they swing in the field after lunch and get home by dinner with the crop in the hopper.

And the cost of the machines is amazing too!

 

[jhtstone]

Thank you for another interesting and excellent thread. I appreciate the time and care you put into detailing a side of life that many of us never see.

How many trucks do you think it will take to do the entire 160 acres? In the 5 minutes it takes to fill a truck, how much of the field does the chopper actually take down?

 

[usedto]

Thank you for another interesting and excellent thread. I appreciate the time and care you put into detailing a side of life that many of us never see.

How many trucks do you think it will take to do the entire 160 acres? In the 5 minutes it takes to fill a truck, how much of the field does the chopper actually take down?

I'll get the tonnage from the grower when it's all done and let you know.

 

[qpagoda]

Here's the chopper coming to the end:

I'm glad you posted a picture of the "chopper." I was trying to figure out how they would harvest corn with a helicopter. I've seen helicopter logging but never helicopter corn harvesting.

 

[Hyperion]

You just have to learn how to fly upside down

 

[usedto]

And the end product. I picked it up off the ground during my morning walk so it may have a little dirt, but this is what the cows get. I believe they mix it with other feed, and sometimes it gets a light spray of molasses to flavor it up.

 

[Jeffery]

Looks like the still green stalks would start to ferment/mold if stored in big covered piles.

 

[usedto]

They just finished chopping the field. It was hard to time the trucks, because they were at the lower end of the field, and it was tough to tell when they switched trucks. Best I can figure, the filled one every 2 1/2 - 3 minutes. A friend said most of those silage trucks hold between 8 and 12 ton, depending on the size and how wet the corn is.