What is Masters & Mavericks?
Masters & Mavericks are people who want to talk about emerging trends and issues, so they can help find solutions. And like you, they want to keep their operations healthy by being at the forefront of change and incorporating the best technology.

Chuck Shelby, owner and operator of Shelby Farms in Lafayette, Ind., is the first revealed member of the 2012 Masters & Mavericks. Shelby grows corn, soybeans and wheat, and also runs a cow-calf herd. The operation encompasses 9,000 acres.

Shelby thinks of himself as about 90% master and10% maverick. “I learned a long time ago to evaluate things, to put a plan together and to work to accomplish that longer-term vision,” he says. “But occasionally, you have to step out there and look at something differently.”

See the AG CONNECT Masters & Mavericks contest on Facebook and Twitter for details as each of the Masters & Mavericks is revealed. And don’t forget, the AG CONNECT Expo will be held Jan. 29 – 31, 2013, in Kansas City, Mo.

Case IH knows that with a growing world population, we have a responsibility to produce more food with fewer resources, and our efforts to provide the technology needed to reach that goal are never-ending. We support the Masters & Mavericks program because it spotlights producers who are working hard to Be Ready for the future.

Mark your calendars and be sure to attend the AG CONNECT Expo and Summit in January. Case IH will be there. Be sure to watch for future updates as they become available about the Case IH booth at the show.

Chuck Shelby is the first of the Masters & Mavericks to be identified. Try to guess who will be next. Do you know some masters and mavericks? Tell us who they are and why they fit these descriptions.

In northwest Ohio, most guys started planting the first part of April – two to three weeks earlier than normal. The majority of growers are done with corn. It’s emerging nicely, it’s mostly at the V1 stage, and the stands look pretty good. It was mostly dry during early planting, because we didn’t have much snow last winter or much frost in the soil. But we caught some nicely timed rains the last couple of weeks, and the heat has brought the crop along nicely. For the last 10 days or so, they’ve been dodging raindrops and planting soybeans.

In the northern half of Indiana, most producers are done planting corn and are finishing up with soybeans. Corn is anywhere from V1 to V2. There was a slight frost issue with the really early planted corn that went in the ground late March. But most of the corn was planted in the first and second week of April. They’re still working to finish up corn around the northwest corner of the state, around Lake Michigan.

In Michigan, sugar beet planting is done, and it went really well. We got sugar beets in one to two weeks early. The crop is up and for the growers who used the Early Riser® planter, the stands are beautiful. I’m getting more and more interest from sugar beet growers all the time. I had a dealer do a side-by-side test plot with the Early Riser and a competitive planter in sugar beets, and the Early Riser showed three days earlier emergence compared to the competition.

We’re seeing the same thing in corn. We have a demo planter out with a farmer, and in most cases he’s seeing corn out of the ground two to three days earlier, and in some cases, three to four days earlier.

In Michigan, they’re finishing up regular corn, and starting soybean planting. Seed corn planting also got underway the first week in May.

Equipment-wise, the True-Tandem™ 330 Turbo really showed its advantages this spring. It breaks up residue and incorporates it into the soil, which allows that soil to heat up faster, and leads to quicker, more even emergence. The Tiger-Mate® 200 Field Cultivator is also a hit. Its split-the-middle sweep pattern and shank design really helps residue flow through that machine.

The oddest thing we’ve been dealing with is all the early planting, but our Jump Start meetings greatly helped our customers be ready to get in the fields early. In the meetings, we bring in the new Case IH planter owners and show them how to operate the planter, basic maintenance, and how to use the Pro 600 and Pro 700 monitors.

Did you attend a Jump Start meeting this spring? If so, what’d you think of it?

We’re done seeding wheat, and sugar beets are pretty well done, too. I’m guessing we’re close to 70 percent done with corn. A number of guys have started planting soybeans. We’re just getting started with the specialty crops. Potatoes are mostly in. Edible beans and sunflowers are last to get planted.

We started the planting season abnormally dry all across my area. In the last seven days, a lot of my South Dakota territory picked up anywhere from 3 to 8 inches of rain. We’ve gone from abnormally dry to abnormally wet in a week.

Unfortunately, the Grand Forks area is still abnormally dry. There’s talk of replanting sugar beets in the northern end of the Red River Valley because it has been so dry. It’s the first time anyone can remember that the river never hit flood stage, because there wasn’t any snow. Good grief, it was 75 degrees in February. Normally we’re messing with mud, not with dry dirt.

American Crystal and North Dakota State University invite growers to bring in their planter meters for testing to make sure they’re working correctly. The Advanced Seed Meter from the Early Riser® planter performed awesome with sugar beets for spacing and singulation and showed better results at higher planting speed than any other meter on the market! So our seed meter tests great, but that doesn’t measure the bottom half of the row unit. That’s where planting demos and stand counts come in.

We’ve been doing a lot of sugar beet and corn planting demos with the Early Riser 1260, a 36-row planter with 22-inch row spacing. I’ll be doing stand counts in those fields all this week. The stand counts are the final piece of the demonstration. We’ll enter the data into www.standcount.com. That’s a Case IH website site that will help you evaluate your plant stand quality, compare your results and access our database of agronomic data. It’s free, and it’s a great tool.

The big buzz in my area is tiling and drainage rights. Yield response to drainage tiles has been phenomenal. In the South Dakota Prairie Potholes region, you might have 20 acres of little potholes in the field that are always kind of wet. As soon as you put in drain tile, the guys will see a 20-80 bushel increase in corn yields. Some South Dakota farmers have paid for their tile investment the first year – it just takes a year or two to get all the permits and jump through all the hoops.

In North Dakota, they don’t have as many drainage rights issues because they already have drainage ditches. But most of the installations here require a lift pump to lift water out of the tiles and get it drained off. It’s great soil, wonderful ground, but it’s so flat that getting rid of excess water is a problem. Farming changes completely once they tile a field.

Have you tiled any fields to improve drainage? What kind of results did you get?

There was a LOT of seed put in the ground last week. There were planters running all over the place. The guys on the eastern side of Colorado are on pace with Nebraska. I’d say corn is 80 to 90 percent done here. We’re well on our way in beans, too, probably 40 to 50 percent done. We’ve had such an open spring that some of these guys have been in the field since February. We’re getting our crops in as early as ever.

When you get down into southern Colorado, we’ve got some corn that’s rowed up, and some that still isn’t planted. There are spots in central and eastern Nebraska that were able to get corn in early, and it’s starting to spike through and row up. Growers in Colorado are 100 percent nervous about the dwindling snow pack in the mountains.

Everybody in my territory has weather concerns – it is dry. In central Nebraska, we’ve only seen 3 inches of rainfall since January. There has been some spotty, significant rainfall amounts in eastern and southern Nebraska, but we only had a couple of big snows last winter. There are guys in central and western Nebraska already running pivots.

Our True-Tandem™ 330 Turbo has been dominating the field. It cuts and sizes the residue and preps the seedbed, and a lot of guys are seeing the advantages of not disturbing the lower profile of the soil. That’s a big benefit, and guys are falling in love with it. I’m still farming in Red Cloud, and I ran a Turbo across about 50 acres to test it. I can see why it’s selling itself.

I also own an Early Riser® planter. This is my first year using it. I’m planting 500 acres of corn and soybeans with it, and I’m very impressed. I put seeds in the ground on April 13. I checked last weekend, and corn is already starting to spike through. Everything we tell you about the Early Riser, the seed singulation, ease of use, no-till planting capabilities – I’ve seen with my own eyes are true. Red planters and tillage products are doing a great job in Colorado and Nebraska. I also think my personal knowledge and experience with the equipment is making me a better field rep for my customers.

Got any stories about your Case IH field rep going above and beyond? We’d love to hear them!

We’re closing in on 80 percent complete with corn planting in northwestern Illinois. Some corn went in the first week of April. Normally, planting starts after April 15. Some guys have already switched to beans. We’ve had good weather and they’ve got big planters, so there’s been nothing keeping them out of the fields until the weekend rains, which we really needed.  It had been really, really dry in Illinois.

Eastern Iowa has been getting more rain, which is keeping them out of the fields, so corn planting has been a little bit slower. Four or five years ago, they also got frosted off, so Iowa growers are bit more cautious. But they’re clipping along now.

There has been frost in some areas, and the cooler weather last weekend wasn’t ideal. Ground temperatures need to be above 50. We’re not out of the frost range yet, but I don’t remember a year when Illinois farmers lost substantial yield to frost. They might have lost a leaf or two, but you need to lose three or four leaves before you really lose yield. Unless frost hits the growing point, you’re okay.

We’ve been selling a lot of red planters this spring. I think with the improvements we made last year to distribute air more effectively, this is the best Early Riser® planter we’ve ever made. We have superior seed flow from the bulk tank to the mini hopper. When you’re planting treated corn in hot, humid weather, that’s a tall order – and we delivered. The Early Riser is also the only planter on the market that puts the seed in the best agronomic environment possible. That includes seed-to-soil contact, uniform pressure, accurate planting depth across the field, accurate population and seed spacing.

The True-Tandem™ 330 Turbo has also been a big hit, especially since residue has become an issue.  With BT corn and higher plant populations, there’s a lot more, tougher residue out there. The 330 Turbo is hugely effective at sizing residue and keeping it in the top 3 inches where it’ll break down. When we demo it, it’s as good as sold. We’re also selling a lot of Ecolo-Tiger® 870 disk rippers. It gives you good fracturing, takes out compaction and leaves you with a level field after deep tillage in the fall.

For spring tillage, this has been a great season for using the Tiger-Mate® 200 with an Advanced Conditioning Systems (ACS) harrow. The tines level and the basket breaks up the clods, leaving a nice, smooth field to plant. It’s a great tool for the conventional tillage guys.

What do you use to break up tough residue and level your fields? Let us know.

In eastern Kansas, probably 60 to 70 percent of the corn is planted.  The “magic number” varies in this area to when guys start planting corn – in the southern part, they start planting in late March.  In the northeast, the magic number is somewhere between April 5 to 10.  Guys haven’t really transitioned yet to soybeans or milo though.

Guys have just started to scratch the surface on the western side of the state.  A few farmers were planting corn last week, although the magic number in western Kansas is April 20.  But since it’s 80 degrees this week, they’re going to run fast and furious. If you talk to 100-year olds, they’ll tell you this spring has been the warmest ground temperatures ever, which impacts both planting season AND wheat harvest being earlier than normal.

We’ve also been historically dry, and this spring we’ve had very good rainfall.  In some areas, we’ve had more rain in three months than we had all last year.  We’re getting back to normal moisture levels, even in the dryland areas.

In areas that got a lot of moisture in a short time, the True-Tandem® 330 Turbo has been coming in handy, drying out the top 1-2 inches so you can get back in the field sooner.  Kansas hasn’t historically been a key tillage area, but people are running with the 330 Turbo because of the field finish.  It leaves the best seedbed on the market.  That ties directly into how well the Early Riser® planter works – together, the Turbo and the red planter work very well together.

Whether you wear red or green, I can tell you that agronomically, with a leading disk, clean trench, and two stage closing system, the red planter gives the seed what it needs to perform!

I do test plots with the De-Terminator – the experimental planter that has six row units to compare the Earlier Riser planter vs. competitors’ planters.  Case IH wins on average 80 to 85 percent of the time.  And in the real world, if you can win 85 percent of the time, you’re kicking butt.

Have you seen the De-Terminator planter in action?  Do you know anyone who has recently switched to a red planter?  Let us know!

Just about everybody’s going a couple weeks earlier than normal. I had one guy in central Missouri who started planting corn in mid-March. We had growers in the Hannibal area, south of Quincy, Illinois, who were planting the week of March 19.  April 1 is more the norm.

In southwest and northeast Missouri, there has been good planting progress. In southwest Missouri, there are a few farmers done planting corn, others are getting close. As you go North of I-70 in the northwest corner of the state, it has been wet.  Some people have the planters rolling, but a lot of guys haven’t started yet.  Everybody got rain over the weekend, so everything stopped.

In central Illinois from Springfield to the west, there has been a lot of progress, and a few people in this area are done planting corn.  It has been unseasonably warm and unusually dry, so we were pretty happy to see the weekend rains. There’s corn up between Jacksonville and Quincy, and some of it has been up for awhile.  We had some areas with frost last week, I have not heard of any crop damage.

One thing we’re noticing throughout my territory is that the fall work we did with the Case IH Ecolo- Tiger 870® to cut up the stalks and get them mulched into the soil has left us with a really good foundation this spring. The 870 set us up with very uniform, level fields, and it’s producing some very nice seedbeds.

We recently had three “jump start” meetings for 300+ farmers who are new to red planters (and guys who just want a refresher course).  Early Riser® owners come in and we walk through the software, show them how the planter works mechanically, and get it set up so they’ll be ready to plant when the sun shines.

Have you heard of any frost damage in your area? Let us know.

It seems like we’ve been planting since Christmas. In the middle part of my territory – central Mississippi and northern Louisiana – most corn is already 6 to 8 inches tall. Way down in southern Louisiana, I’d bet corn is only a few weeks from tassel. We’ve had a great year, with fairly dry conditions to start out, which let us get the crop in quick.

A large portion of the rice crop is in the ground and up, and due to the dry conditions, some guys are finding it necessary to “flush” (briefly flood the field with water) the fields to get enough moisture for the seed to emerge.  This is the exact opposite from last year when a majority of the Mississippi Delta was dealing with record high rainfall and flooding. There’s some beans planted in central Mississippi and Arkansas, and the crop’s looking great. We’re running 10 to 15 degrees above normal, our highs have been close to 80.

In one area of the Delta, we had marginally wet planting conditions, and we used a 42-foot True Tandem® 330 Turbo and Steiger® Quadtrac® 600 to air out over 400 acres per day. We fluffed up the top 2 inches of soil to dry it out and prepare the seedbed, and got the crop in that much earlier to take advantage of the subsoil moisture that we had.

In the strip between Memphis and St. Louis, planting is moving northward quickly. Farmers are working the fields as hard as they can, as fast as they can go. The Case IH Early Riser® 1200 Series planters are definitely helping guys move faster. Corn’s going in the ground. Some corn is through emergence and already in the V2-V3 stage.

There aren’t many beans in the ground yet, so those are getting started, as is cotton. I’ve talked to two or three farmers who have started planting cotton, but most guys are waiting until April 15-20. Spring’s so early that they moved the crop insurance dates up by a week or so.

For the guys in the far northern part of the country, they need to be ready. Get all your decisions made quickly. Around the St. Louis area, we’re not used to working the ground until mid-March, but guys have been in the field since late February.

If the weather holds and the planting season keeps going at this rate, I think most growers will be done by May 1.

How far ahead is planting in your area? Will this year be the earliest you’ve ever put seed in the ground?

At the end of April, Case IH will wrap up its Field of Deals sales event. One lucky grand prize winner will win a 2012 Ram truck and free fuel for a year.

As part of the Field of Deals sales event, we asked producers a series of question related to some of the featured equipment, including what they would do if they won a 2012 Ram truck. One young woman feels her dad deserves a decent truck for everything he’s done to help her. And a rancher told us the first thing he’d do is “put it in its work clothes.” Watch this video to see and hear what other farmers and ranchers would do if they were to win the truck.

We also asked producers about their favorite part of hay season. While one farmer quipped, “When it’s all over!” another mentioned the satisfaction he feels in putting 12 five-by-six big bales on the flatbed behind the pickup and hauling them to the barn.

To focus on the tractor side of the sales event, Case IH also asked producers what features they think are most important in a utility tractor. They mentioned versatility, dependability and the importance of a heavy front-end. They also want something that is easy for both men and women to use.

A sturdy, reliable pickup is as much a part of your operation as a tough pair of work boots or a dependable utility tractor. It’s an extension of who you are and what you do, and will help you Be Ready to meet the growing demands of a global population.

Right now, we’re offering great deals on Case IH Farmall®, Puma® and Maxxum® tractors, as well as balers and windrowers. To find out more about the Case IH Field of Deals sales event and to enter the sweepstakes, visit a participating local Case IH dealer.

Many of you are still gearing up, or perhaps just impatiently waiting for the first crop insurance planting date:  April 6 for corn in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio and April 11 for Iowa and Minnesota. So what’s top-of-mind for you during this critical window? 

Our Case IH team – in the field, at our headquarters in Racine, and at our many manufacturing and engineering centers around the world – is continuously focused on finding new ways to deliver Efficient Power and help you get the most power, performance and return on investment from your equipment, especially during this important season. We’re committed to providing the complete offering – products, technologies and services – you need to help you Be Ready for the future.

For example, Case IH uses Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) engine technology to cut down emissions without throttling back engine performance, and now Case IH Tier 4 engines are accepted as the proven industry standard. But Efficient Power means more than engine technology. It includes products, technology and services that we put to work for you.

Products
Certainly, our SCR-equipped Tier4A tractors are setting the standard for the industry. We will meet the 2014 Tier 4B, Final engine emissions standards using this same technology.

But that is just one example of the innovation Case IH has brought to the marketplace. We deliver:

• Improved flotation and the ability to get in the field faster with Quadtrac® tractors
• Unmatched spray accuracy with Patriot® sprayers
• Higher grain quality and grain savings from Axial-Flow® combines
• Greater seed placement accuracy with Early Riser® planters
• Consistent seedbeds with Case IH tillage implements
• Better cut quality and bale formation with Case IH hay tools

Technology
Case IH Advanced Farming Systems (AFS) and AFS Connect, the new telematics product from Case IH, are examples of how our commitment to Efficient Power continues. Our corporate AFS field team and AFS certified dealers, backed up by our AFS Support Center team, are ready to meet your needs, especially as precision farming technology and data continue to evolve. Like our SCR Tier 4 solutions, AFS Connect will change how we deliver value into the future.

Let’s consider some benefits. AFS Connect allows you to view fuel information for every machine you have in the field, and you can choose how you want to view it right on your computer. Maybe one machine is close to empty and another has a quarter of a tank left – you can time the fuel truck to meet both vehicles’ needs.

Fleet management is another important feature of AFS Connect. It lets you pinpoint the location of a given machine, while alerts and security can guard against theft by ensuring a machine stays within certain coordinates. Curfew management will send alerts if a machine is started after working hours. These and other features help minimize your down-time and maximize the value of your equipment.

Service
Beginning last month, the AFS Support Center became fully operational. Working in conjunction with your dealer, AFS Support is available 24/7/365 through three global locations.  And Case IH dealers are demonstrating an extraordinary commitment to further develop their in-house capabilities. Many have a dedicated AFS specialist on staff, or plans to add that support soon.

So as you can see, Case IH Efficient Power means MORE than ever before, as we continually strive to help you get more done in less time with fewer inputs.