Althouse: Farmscape.

October 13, 2014

Farmscape.

2 days ago, in Wisconsin.

27 comments:

Meade said...: I have to admit — there are no prettier farms than those in Wisconsin.; 10/13/14, 8:01 PM
The Crack Emcee said...: How pretty is it in light of this?

I really don't get how whites think sometimes,...; 10/13/14, 8:18 PM
madAsHell said...: Brad Pitt: I was given my first gun when I was in kindergarten

That's gonna leave a mark.; 10/13/14, 8:32 PM
sojerofgod said...: How much is the annual snowfall?
What is the length of your growing season?

It is pretty land.; 10/13/14, 8:46 PM
Ann Althouse said...: Gotta hand it to Crack. He's the connoisseur of pretty.; 10/13/14, 8:47 PM
Jaq said...: "I really don't get how whites think"

That is probably more on you than us, Crack.; 10/13/14, 8:51 PM
madAsHell said...: He's the connoisseur of pretty.

There is no 'r' in petty.; 10/13/14, 8:58 PM
traditionalguy said...: I spy two blue AO Smith Harvestor silos. They are where ever cows are kept, especially dairy cows.

They are built of steel plates covered by baked on blue fiberglass and put together like ship is built A O Smith manufactured the machinery that blew the silage to the top, and designed the famous blue silo to go with it.

Working on them is working all day in the sun in front of a mirror. Sunburn gets strong, even going up under the eyes too.; 10/13/14, 9:01 PM
Anonymous said...: At least when Crack jumps the shark he jumps a Great White shark.; 10/13/14, 9:06 PM
sojerofgod said...: I really don't want to talk about the Crack Emcee.
Especially when he is plugging his blog.

Now this farm... Are those beans in the field? the pic is a little blurry- Or my eyesight is a little going...; 10/13/14, 9:17 PM
sojerofgod said...: That looks like corn in the middle distance. Probably silage for a cow operation?; 10/13/14, 9:18 PM
Bart Hall (Kansas, USA) said...: Most folks haven't used Harvestores in decades. They cost about 100-grand each back in the 1970s, but in the end were proven to be more costly and less efficient than simple bunker silos.

Those are fine strips of alfalfa, though if that picture was taken this week the farmer probably cut them about ten days too late for good winter survivability. Can't tell if it's corn or beans in the other strips, but probably corn on a dairy farm.

The strips are essential -- and have been used in Wisconsin since the mid-1930s -- to stop erosion on even slightly slopey ground. The steeper the ground the narrower the strips, to prevent a long run across the open (corn) ground.; 10/13/14, 9:23 PM
Hagar said...: Subgrade failure under that pavement.

All that green stuff makes my eyes hurt.; 10/13/14, 9:24 PM
sojerofgod said...: Beans.

I should have guessed alfalfa for that kind of operation.
I guess my southern is showing.
We gots cotton, we gots beans. Now that we gots ethanol subsidy we gots corn.
see a little wheat, and a helluva lot of pine trees desperately trying to keep what little topsoil remains from ending up in the Gulf of Mexico.; 10/13/14, 9:32 PM
Ann Althouse said...: "Now this farm... Are those beans in the field? the pic is a little blurry- Or my eyesight is a little going..."

Blurry because done from the side window of a mooving car.

The green is alfalfa, the brown corn.

"That looks like corn in the middle distance. Probably silage for a cow operation?"

Meade says "That's good corn. You wouldn't use that for silage. That's dried in the field. I didn't see any bad corn anywhere."; 10/13/14, 9:36 PM
Hagar said...: About all we are lacking at this hour is a major volcano blowing its top somewhere.; 10/13/14, 9:43 PM
Anonymous said...: Corn from "American Pop":

Tony: What is this?

The Blonde: Corn.

Tony: Corn? Corn comes in a little white box from Birdseye. Corn? Kansas is corny! Can ya eat it?

The Blonde: Yeah.

Tony: Can ya smoke it? Can ya drink it? Can ya lie in it?

The Blonde: Sure.

Tony: Then lie in it with me.

The Blonde: Are you crazy?

Tony: Yeah, I'm crazy. I'm crazy in love with your blue eyes... and your corn-silked hair. Your corn-silked hair. I'll never eat corn again without thinkin' about you. Canned corn, candy corn, popcorn, Crackerjacks! You're the prize in my box! And my box is this country. It's all tinfoil on the outside. Corn and sweetness on the inside.; 10/13/14, 9:50 PM
Anonymous said...: Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice:

Frank Redbear: Koyaanisqatsi. It means life out of balance. My ancestors would have told you that man should be at one with the earth, the skies, and water. But the white man has never understood this. He only knows how to take. And after a while, there's nothing left to take. So, everything's out of balance. And we all fall down.

John Garrett: Wait a minute... so that's what happened here in Gatlin?

Frank Redbear: No... what happened in Gatlin was, those kids went ape-shit and killed everyone. '; 10/14/14, 12:22 AM
Anonymous said...: Do not look up 'corn on the cob' in the Urban Dictionary. Just don't.; 10/14/14, 12:33 AM
Anonymous said...: My Danger-Shape Spirit often walks the corn fields of Wisconsin while I sleep.

People will report seeing a spider over six feet in height in the corn, walking on two legs, but no one will believe them. The fact that no one will believe them is the worst part, other than the dreams. Once they have seen the Danger-Shape Spirit their dreams are corrupted, and they will often startle awake at night, frantically shying imaginary (?) spiders from their skin. In extreme cases the victim will exhibit what they believe to be spider bites.

Common among those who bear witness is the reporting of what appears to be a horned black face on the giant spider's yellow abdomen; this, too, is typically met with disbelief.

Sometimes I run after them: I am driven by the need to explain that I am only a Danger-Shape Spirit and that I mean them no harm, it is just who I am when I am not myself. However, my Danger-Shape Spirt cannot speak, and the witnesses only see my dark glistening mouth opening and closing in rapid succession, often adding to their fright. This is understandable, but doesn't not make me feel any better.

I have been caught in car headlights when crossing roads, and more than one car has swerved into a ditch upon sighting me; I am sure their auto insurance agents refuse to believe them, too.

As of yet, I do not understand the meaning of my Danger-Shape Spirit, and why it persists. To those in the Althouse community who have been in corn fields and seen this, you can now relax your minds: it was just me, and I wasn't even awake at the time.; 10/14/14, 1:02 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: I saw some nice cornfields and farms in northern Indiana last week while going between Chicago and South Bend. I was there on business. Got to see my first Notre Dame football game. Drove along the coast of Lake Michigan a little, saw some nice dunes that reminded me of Cape Cod. All in all a very nice time. The people were great. Looking forward to heading back to the midwest soon.; 10/14/14, 5:20 AM
Jaq said...: Is it just me, or does it look like if ISIS can just resist large scale terrorist attacks in the West, that they will have their state?; 10/14/14, 5:35 AM
Mid-Life Lawyer said...: There is a lot more cotton growing in Mississippi this year than in the last several years. I say this from my casual observation while driving around large swaths of the northern part of the state over the last month.

It probably has something to do with racism. Or maybe economics.; 10/14/14, 8:25 AM
Hagar said...: I think there will be war in the Middle East (from Morocco to Pakistan). Perhaps 2, 3, or even 4 wars, and with some very strange bedfellows as the conflagration develops.
But, no, I do not think ISIS will come out on top - if there is any top left.; 10/14/14, 8:44 AM
Jaq said...: I am for unclamping the pressure cooker and letting it go, give up on whatever we were cooking in there. Stop supporting iron-fisted dictators for the oil. There will not be democracy there in our lifetimes. Let them vote with their guns and their willingness to be killed and kill.

This is how nations are made. Bidon was right.; 10/14/14, 11:46 AM
Unknown said...: Gorgeous photo.; 10/14/14, 12:27 PM
Unknown said...: The horizon is roughly horizontal but from looking at the near buildings I am guessing you tilted the frame a bit. Good move.; 10/14/14, 12:29 PM