Ground our first batch of corn from last fall today. I noticed that alot of the ears had ice on them and were stuck together. Im hoping it is form the snow and rain from the winter so far and not that way all the way through. We use a Gehl 95 mill and we had a heck of a time getting it to unload. Kept bridging up in the bin. Im hoping that it will get better when it thaws out!
I ground some today. Kernals are dry enough, but the cobs are still spongy. Not enough that it will bridge the tank, but if it sits around too long, it will heat.
Pop and I have been grinding last fall's ear corn out of a squirrel cage crib for a couple of months, without too many problems. We sort out the any chunks of snow and ice as we feed the grinder (2-ton Farmhand). We have ground on pretty cold days, though, so it hasn't had much of a chance to warm up enough for moisture or heat to cause issues. Spring thaw will tell more. We usually grind two loads at a time for a concrete-walled granary, and we haven't had any problems in the granary, either. The corn went into the crib at around 19 percent moisture, and I doubt it has dried much in the crib since harvest.
