I just bought an Oliver 5 that should be delivered this weekend. I checked on my corn today and about 1/2 of the ears have dropped and it feel relatively dry but the ears are hell to pull off the stalk.
So, does the picker need to rip the ear off the stalk and then husk or does it try to pull the ear out of the husk with the husk staying on the stalk?
Snapping rolls remove ear and husks. Husks will be removed as ears move across the husking bed. Looks like an 8-roll husking bed just before the wagon elevator. Here's a New Idea husking bed with a mounted picker. Some later husking beds alternated metal and rubber rolls.
So, should the ear be easy to pull from the stalk when its ready to be picked? I yanked up and down "hard" on several and they did not seperate from the stalk but the stalk is brown and ear turned down.
Looks almost ready to pick but just not sure.
A lot of the newer hybrids will have a really tough stalk to keep the wind from blowing it down (even when dry). If you've been around corn long enough you can usually tell by looking at it and feeling of the kernels but a moisture test is the surest way.
Are there any places that buy grain or other grain farmers near you? If so, they will probably test the moisture for you with a moisture tester. Just pick a couple of ears and shell them off by hand so you can put it in a moisture tester.
-- Edited by m16ty on Sunday 19th of October 2014 10:33:16 PM
-- Edited by m16ty on Sunday 19th of October 2014 10:34:09 PM
The old timers used to throw an ear in the stock tank, if it floated it was ready to pick.
Some hybrids do not "snap" as well as they used to, I seem to remember we used to plant different corn for picking & cribbing than we did for shelling in the field.
I had forgot about the old floating ear trick. I've heard that from old timers around here.
What I do is pull a ear, shell off a kernel, put it in my mouth, and crush it with my teeth. I can tell if it's ready to pick, maybe a little drier than it needs to be but it won't spoil. Just spit it out after you crush it because it's awful to try and swallow.
