ducksmuggler
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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Thu Oct 16, 2014 4:19 pm

Fish Felon wrote:
greatwhitehunter3! wrote:And?

Just another example of how a once great civic-minded people turned into the biggest Jews in modern history.

Back in the day a farmer would be like,

"You know, the snow drifts out there on that road awful bad. Me and my family use that road, my neighbors use that road...I'm going to leave a few rows left standing to make it safer for everyone."

Now they're like,

"Pay me motherf--ker...I only cleared $350K last year."

Hell, a lot of old time farmers would have gone a step further and put a shelter belt in there to help alleviate the problem. The modern farmer ripped that out long ago.

I think MNDOT should plant shelter belts in the ditches as close as they can to the property line. It makes a lot of sense. It'd be a long term solution, it'd probably be cheaper, it'd provide cover for wildlife, and what happens next year if that same farmer plants soy beans? Snow is going to drift in awful bad. But then the problem would be the farmers bitching...

"Goddamn MNDOT planting trees right next to my property! How the hell am I supposed to plant into the ditch now? I'm going to lose at least three rows due to those dirty bastards and when those trees get taller they're going to block some of the sunlight onto my crop and reduce my yield on an entire acre!"

The modern MN farmer: greedier and less civic-minded than a wall street banker.[/quotel


love the comment!
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h2ofwlr
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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Thu Oct 16, 2014 11:17 pm

Cornstalks and snow banks: MnDOT program effective, but unpopular

October 16, 2014
By Zac Farber
Links http://bringmethenews.com/2014/10/16/co ... unpopular/

Thick lines of cornstalks can help keep snow-blown rural roads open in the winter. But getting farmers on board with the program is proving difficult.

Here’s what MnDOT wants, and why it’s unappealing to farmers.

Normally, farmers cut down the entire field of corn during the fall harvest.

The agency, however, is asking farmers with corn crops to leave a section of unharvested, uncut corn along roadways susceptible to collecting blown snow.

Why? That leftover section – anywhere from six to 16 rows long – acts as a wind fence during the winter, collecting snow that would otherwise gust onto roadways, according to a Minnesota Department of Transportation release.

The reduced snow build-up also dramatically lowers the cost of highway maintenance, and the “fence” provides a yellow point of reference for drivers, increasing visibility against the all-white landscape. Research by MnDOT has shown the severity of injuries on curves protected by corn fences is decreased by 40 percent.

MnDOT even incentivizes leaving up the cornstalk fences by offering to pay above-market rates for the spring crop.

But over the last 15 years, MnDOT has struggled to get farmers participating in the Living Snow Fences program.

Last winter, just 20 farmers left their corn standing, protecting only 7 miles of state roads – despite MnDOT having identified 3,700 drift-prone areas, the Star Tribune reports.

The reason for such low participation appears to mainly be because it’s inconvenient.

The average corn row fence is just a quarter-mile long and 1.2 acres – a fraction of the total size of the cornfield on which it sits.

Most farmers have been unwilling to trot out their combines in the spring to take down the stalks; and the other option, picking them by hand, is equally as unappealing, Dan Gullickson, a MnDOT forester who coordinates the snow fence program, told the Star Tribune.

“Our No. 1 goal [was] to have farmers plant shrub rows and leave them in for 10 to 15 years,” Gary Wyatt, a University of Minnesota, Mankato professor told The Farmer Magazine. “But with high land values and corn and soybean prices, not a lot of farmers are interested in doing that.”
Pilot program poses potential solution

Last year, a pilot project by the University of Minnesota Extension program sought to solve the problem with volunteers handpicking corn.

The program, which is expanding statewide this winter, looks to supplement farmer stipends with volunteer labor from 4-H and Future Farmers of America groups to create a model where corn fences make financial sense for growers.

Farmers were paired with groups such as 4-H and FFA chapters in Nicollet, LeSueur and Renville counties, the Star Tribune reported, with volunteers then handpicking the corn in the spring. In exchange, the farmer can make a donation to the nonprofit. MnDOT said the average donation during the pilot was $523 per acre.

“This is a great example of the rural community coming together and making a difference during the winter driving season,” Gullickson said in a statement. “We get the benefit of snow control and FFA and 4-H members made a big difference in reducing our costs and ultimately helping people get safely to their destinations.”

Effective corn fences have the potential to save MnDOT a lot of money. Pushing back snowdrifts along one specific road without standing corn rows requires blowers and dozers, and can cost more than $3,700, MnDOT said.

Wisconsin, Iowa and the Dakotas are among the 17 states with living snow fence programs, according to a 2009 study by the State University of New York, Syracuse. The study found that funding is generally the major limiting factor on the effectiveness of programs.

“We’ve had a challenging winter with the cold, wind and accumulating snowfalls. There’s lots of corn in Minnesota and if we can work with more farmers, extension offices and FFA and 4-H groups, there could be more standing corn rows out there,” Gullickson said. “We appreciate the kids who gave of their time and the landowners who participate.”
Benefits of living snow fences

MnDOT and the University of Minnesota list a number of benefits for living snow fences:

Prevent big snow drifts that lead to stranded motorists
Improve driver visibility and reduce vehicle accidents
Reduce use of public money by reducing plow time
Lessen our impact on the environment with less salt use, fewer truck trips and less fuel consumption
Reduce shipping delays for goods and services
Increase crop yields by 10 percent or more
Control soil erosion and reduce spring flooding
Serve as visual clues to help drivers find their way
Less salt application
Shows farmer leadership and community service
.
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9manfan
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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Fri Oct 17, 2014 7:48 am

get the welfare people out there hand picking the corn, give them something to do...........
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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:41 am

I would rather see our tax dollars spent on something like this rather than subsidizing sports stadiums or bogus welfare systems.
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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:51 am

Haha farmers didn't want to do it bc they would have to turn the key on their machine and make a single pass through the field. What a bunch of lazy arseholes.
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h2ofwlr
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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:23 am

Years ago a farmer that had a drifting problem on his road to his farm and I had suggested perhaps planting 3 rows of shrubs/trees 150' from this driveway would be a good long term solution and that the that the Cty Extension office would help pay for the trees/shrubs. He said no because as the extra snow makes for an uneven field when it came time to work the field. Uneven in that the timing when it can be worked for planting is later where the snow drifts were. Remember often in the Fall it is dry when combining, not so in the spring when the surface can be soupy wet. then the weather allows they want to be working the fields and planting, not being diverted by trying to combine. So I understand that part.

I recall ND the early summer of '97 the snow behind the wind row of trees finally melted at the end of June. Reportedly the wind rows had 40' of snow behind them by late winter. I saw evidence of triple plantings that June when I was there. Meaning the main planting, then another planting as the snow receeded from the main drifts, and the final planting directly where the most snow was. So yes it can be inconvient. But MNDot is talking 6' tall corn stocks, not 40' high trees. And then how often does the 40' drifts happen? I think '40, '65 and '97 were the 3 times in the last century that it happened in MN/ND/SD.

Interestingly, I've seen private corn stalk snow fences along private farm roads much more so where it is small farm (especially under 320 acres) VS the big (1200+ acre) farms. Same pattern goes for leaving a couple of acres of corn for wildlife next to a swamp or woods. Likley there is a different mind set between the small (under 320) VS the big (1200+) farmers.
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greatwhitehunter3!
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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:35 am

h2ofwlr wrote:
Interestingly, I've seen private corn stalk snow fences along private farm roads much more so where it is small farm (especially under 320 acres) VS the big (1200+ acre) farms. Same pattern goes for leaving a couple of acres of corn for wildlife next to a swamp or woods. Likley there is a different mind set between the small (under 320) VS the big (1200+) farmers.



And that is exactly what it is. You guys bash farmers all day long but 90% of the b#%@^*! you guys do is and should be about the large farm corporations.

sd_man
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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Fri Oct 17, 2014 12:28 pm

Fish Felon wrote:
greatwhitehunter3! wrote:And?

Just another example of how a once great civic-minded people turned into the biggest Jews in modern history.

Back in the day a farmer would be like,

"You know, the snow drifts out there on that road awful bad. Me and my family use that road, my neighbors use that road...I'm going to leave a few rows left standing to make it safer for everyone."

Now they're like,

"Pay me motherf--ker...I only cleared $350K last year."

Hell, a lot of old time farmers would have gone a step further and put a shelter belt in there to help alleviate the problem. The modern farmer ripped that out long ago.

I think MNDOT should plant shelter belts in the ditches as close as they can to the property line. It makes a lot of sense. It'd be a long term solution, it'd probably be cheaper, it'd provide cover for wildlife, and what happens next year if that same farmer plants soy beans? Snow is going to drift in awful bad. But then the problem would be the farmers bitching...

"Goddamn MNDOT planting trees right next to my property! How the hell am I supposed to plant into the ditch now? I'm going to lose at least three rows due to those dirty bastards and when those trees get taller they're going to block some of the sunlight onto my crop and reduce my yield on an entire acre!"

The modern MN farmer: greedier and less civic-minded than a wall street banker.




If your theory holds true then you can remember a time that there were rows left in all these troubled spots? Because old time farmers would have done that? You're an idiot. Good at arguing and stirring the pot, but pretty uneducated. Also, sad that you have multiple accounts and agree with yourself on a thread.

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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Fri Oct 17, 2014 12:41 pm

Is Fowler an expert on everything?

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Fish Felon
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Re: MN to pay farmers for.....

Fri Oct 17, 2014 12:48 pm

sd_man wrote:You're an idiot. Good at arguing and stirring the pot, but pretty uneducated. Also, sad that you have multiple accounts and agree with yourself on a thread.
Says the guy who sits back and posts nothing except for when he calls someone an idiot.

Thanks for being so thought provoking and insightful...and for letting me live rent free in your head. Multiple accounts? Hahahahaha!
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