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UpdateDECEMBER 2012

West-Con

Corn & Soybean YieldsFertility, Fungicide & more

Plot Results

Construction Recap: Keeping Pace with Growing Needs Fixed Assets Working for You | Winter Weather Safety

Grain Grading | Getting your Grain to Market Choosing the Right Marketing Professional

Grain MarketinG

Planning AheadFinancing Programs for 2013 Starter Fertilizer, Pre-Emerge Herbicides & Seed Treatment

Update

Wow what a year!! Last winter in my newsletter article, I mentioned that we were going to cut back on capital expenditures for 2012. We did end up doing a couple of large

projects, so perhaps that might be the last time I commit in a newsletter. Both are very solid projects and provide better service for our members and improve internal efficiencies and return on investment for West-Con.

The large and efficient equipment owned by our members and the quick spring season put a lot of pressure on our liquid plant in Holloway. Even with the brand new plant, we were close to maximum capacity. As we planned the new plant last year, we built it with the hope of doubling our business volume. Over the past, our largest liquid volume year was 18,000 ton by the end of May. This year, by May 4th we had put out over 22,000 tons and by the end of May we were at 28,000 ton.

Will we have a spring like this again? Not sure, but if we do we will be ready. We have added an additional 10,000 ton of UAN storage and 2,500 ton of liquid sulfur storage. Last year we had 7 to 10 semis transferring product but with this additional storage, we can instead use this labor and equipment to get the product to the field. We are also investing in two more load out pads and improving on some internal changes of the plant for additional efficiencies. With all these changes our liquid plant promises to be one of the most efficient liquid plants in the Midwest. The added investments to an already efficient plant are at about $2.5 million.

In early spring, our grain department started planning already for fall storage and transportation needs. Considerations were given to the preventive planting acres in 2011, the poor crop that resulted from excessive moisture and the fact that we still ended up over 1 million bushels of grain on the ground. With this in mind and an early planting season, we knew that with even an average crop and additional acres planted, we probably would be full half way through harvest.

In June, after doing our due diligence we brought an additional 4 million bushel storage project to the board. With a projected reasonable return on investment and increased internal effi-ciencies, the project was approved. Eliminating the need to pile $7.00 corn on the ground not only improves our risk manage-ment position but also increases our ability to load freight in the fall when freight rates are normally at their high. It also helps us improve our service to our members.

When we made the decision to add this extra storage this year, I told my staff and Board of Directors that one of two things will happen - we will either look very smart or we will give our critics something to talk about. I am happy to report that we are filled again to capacity, and once again the ROI on this proj-ect and improved services our members will be recognized for many years to come. I would like to thank the Board of Direc-tors for pledging their support to these projects.

Our harvest was absolutely unbelievable with our biggest single day of dumping at 943,000 bushels of grain, which was 1,067 semi loads in one day. Previously, our largest day was 671,000 bushels in one day. Overall, we broke another company record by dumping a record 20,291,000 bushels this fall, which is over 5 million more than our previous record.

At the time of this writing, our agronomy division is also on pace for a near record fall season.

This past harvest season, we were open and providing service to our members for over 40 days. Now that it has slowed down and workloads can be better managed, we will be moving in our “Winter” schedule which means all of our facilities (includ-ing the office) will be open from 8:00 am - 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday.

In closing, I would like to thank all West-Con employees for their hard work and dedication to the fall harvest and also ex-tend a thank you to all members for your continued support. Merry Christmas!!

Dean IsaacsonGeneral Manager

Planning for the Future

2 West-Con Update deCember 2012

contents

Planning for the Future

Construction Recap: Projects Keep Pace with Need

Norm Schwartz Retires

You Call, We Haul: Transportation Update

Making Marketing Decisions: Grain Grading Factors

Diverse Corn & Soybean Markets Create Unique Challenges

Choosing the Right Marketing Professional for Your Operation

Winter Weather Safety: Frostbite & Hypothermia

Recipes from Carol’s Kitchen

Financing Programs for 2013

West-Con Plot Results: Local Research on Seed, Fertility, Starter Fertilizer, Fungicide & More

Agronomy News: Getting Ready for Spring

Soybean Seed Treatment

Benefits of Starter Fertilizer

Considering Pre Emerge Herbicides

Fixed Assets at Work for You

First “Capture It” Photo Contest Winner Announced

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By Scott StrahmAs another year draws to a close, I think we can all be thankful for the successful season that we had. Starting with a great early spring, then on to a warm and dry summer, to a surprisingly bountiful fall and now settling in for winter with plenty of time to prepare. We just never know what the future is going to hold for any of us and with this article I will reflect upon the last few years and what West-Con has done to keep up with your needs.

Let’s start by looking at just the last five years in the grain department. In 2008, we added 10,000 BPH drying capacity in Holloway along with 440,000 bushels of wet holding space. At the time, who would have ever thought that storage would quickly become so handy with the extremely wet years as presented in 2009-2010? Then in 2008 & 2009 we added the cover to our bunker here in Holloway, added a million bushel bunker out at Twin Brooks, SD location, covered it and added the ability to fill it from our main concrete silos.

2010 was looking to be another very busy year with additional grain bins in Hol-loway, Appleton, and Twin Brooks and just as all of this was getting started, we also experienced an explosion at our Twin Brooks location. We carried on as planned and even added an additional bin and dump pit at Twin Brooks. We continued to expand at our Apple-ton location in 2011 with the ad-dition of two more bins and now have turned that facility into a really nice three-commodity elevator. The additional dumping pit for the hoop building in Twin Brooks has worked out so well that we have now added one in Holloway. As we approached 2012, we were fully expected to slow down new construction projects, but in further review of grower demands we made the decision to add more storage resulting in a new four million bushel flat storage building at our Twin Brooks site. We also upgraded our electrical controls

CONSTRUCTION RECAP • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

“It seems no matter how big we build, it is always just a little bit too small.”

West-Con Update deCember 2012 3

Projects keep pace with growing needs


for the dump pits in Holloway and moved to a full automation system.

Our Agronomy division has not experienced such aggressive growth, but nonetheless, has still experienced a number of additions and changes. 2008 saw the addition of our second 2 million gallon UAN tank in Twin Brooks, as well as some emis-sion reductions to our 10-34-0 reactor in Appleton. We also added a seed and chemical warehouse and seed treating facility at Twin Brooks to help relieve some of the pressure off of our Holloway location. This also has heated storage for the temperature

sensitive chemicals. 2010 saw the upgrade of our bulk seed site here in Holloway along with some automation and moving to our current warehouse site.

The most exciting expansion in the Agronomy department was the addition of our new liquid fertilizer facility and 2 million gal-lon UAN storage here in Holloway in 2011. With its doors opening just before spring planting, we were able to put this new facility to a full test and what a spring we had. With all numbers report-ed, we were able to identify the fact that within our first year, we almost DoUBLED our biggest year ever at our Appleton facility.

We expected to see an increase in our numbers, but were a bit sur-prised at how quickly we achieved this growth rate. To accommodate this growth, we are already making some improvements to the plant this year as well as adding an addi-tional two million gallon UAN tank, half million gallon sulfur tank and two additional loading lanes.

CONSTRUCTION RECAP • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

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Finished flat storage construction at Twin Brooks

Best Wishes for a

Happy Holiday Season

and a Prosperous New Year

So for those of you that are keeping track, that is about 8 million bushels of grain storage at the cost of over $25 million; 6.5 million gallons of liquid storage, an additional warehouse and new expanded liquid plant totaling about $10 million. Along with all of this, of course, there is also the stan-dard upkeep of the existing equipment as well as covering some dumping lanes and other upgrades and changes along the way. Even with all of this con-tinued growth, there has never been a year when the grain bins sat empty, or the fertilizer tanks were dry. It just seems no matter how big we build, it is always just a little bit too small.

What’s next on the horizon at West-Con? We have no definite plans to report at this time, but we can assure you that we will continue to move forward in our efforts to keep pace with our ever-changing agricultural community. As always, we extend to you our apprecia-tion for your continued support and we will remain committed in working hard to earn your future business. Happy Holidays!!

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Additional Holloway bulk storage and new liquid plant in Holloway

After 17 years with West-Con, Norm Schwartz has

retired. Norm began his career in agriculture

working at the Appleton Elevator and throughout

the years he has held a number of positions with his

most recent as a member of West-Con’s Transpor-

tation team. He and his wife Marlys have enjoyed

37 years of marriage and raised two daughters.

Congratulations, Norm, and best wishes for years

of well-deserved retirement.

on your retirement, norm


Congratulations


As another year comes to a close, the transporta-tion department would like to thank all of you who made use of our trucking services this past fall and spring. We look forward to doing business with you again in the upcoming year.

During the winter months we will continue to pro-vide pick-up of agricultural products, as well as de-liveries to farms and terminals. As always, we will need to watch the weather and remind you that we do not dispatch trucks during heavy snowfalls, storms, ice or extremely cold temperatures.

During the winter months, we are also available to do on-farm picks and deliver to the destination of

your choice, whether that is to West-Con, CVEC or Denco, etc. Wherever your grain needs to go, it is our pleasure to assist you in getting it there.

To book your transportation needs or for a rate please call us at 1-800-368-3310 and dial 234 to speak with Aaron, 205 to speak with Garb or dial 3 to ring all lines within the transportation depart-ment. As always, when placing your call please have as much information as possible including name, telephone number, county, township, section, quarter and any other necessary information.

We appreciate your continued support and wish you all a safe holiday season.

By garB hohnYou Call, We HauluPdaTE From THE TranSPorTaTion dEParTmEnT


Grain GradinG FacTorSBy chriS aaSLanDRegardless of high or low grain prices, an issue that is frequent-ly discussed with the grain industry is “grain grading.” West-Con handles millions of bushels throughout the year, as do our customers. As an exporter of grain, the customers West-Con sells grain to expect to receive a quality product. To ensure this quality, West-Con recognizes the value of grain grading and its importance.

Instead of looking at each grain individually, let’s take a look at each grading factor. The first factor that has not been much of an issue as of late is moisture. A certain percentage is allowed for corn (15%) soybeans (13%) and spring/winter wheat (13.5%). It’s all about water content when discussing moisture and the dis-counts for higher moisture especially in corn can look steep at times. At West-Con, we dry all corn down to 15%. When we load out trains for export, the moisture needs to be at 14.5% which is the level the overseas customers require. Adequate moisture levels are important to allow grain to store for months at a time until shipment. Grain with too high moisture content is subject to spoiling when the temperature warms up and drying grain to the above levels is required to prevent spoilage issues.

Foreign Material, also known as FM, is just what it stands for, anything that is not a whole kernel of corn, soybean or wheat. This could be dirt, weed seed, excess pods or cobs, stalks, stems and broken kernels that do not constitute a whole kernel. When grad-ing for FM, West-Con runs a sample through a separating machine called a Kicker. This separates whole ker-nels from half kernels known as splits which are not discounted for, and kernels that are crushed along with none grain items. Most FM issues occur when coring a bin for the first time and the first one or two loads may have higher FM be-cause of the fines that

collect in the center when filling the bin. West-Con has the same issue when coring out a bin when loading out a train. The first 10-15 cars may have higher FM due to the excess fines from the cen-ter of the bins. Screening the grain is a procedure we use to help reduce the amount of fines which we do especially for corn trains.

Damage is another thing to look at when grading grain. Everyone likes a good looking product. When you go to the grocery store most people will choose a good can of soup over the one that is dented or the one with the torn label. There are several types of damage to look for: kernels and pieces of kernels that are badly ground up; damage due to weather, disease, frost, insects and heat from over drying, as well as germ and sprout damage.

Test Weight is probably the simplest of the grading factors. The grain sample is weighed and the test weight is calculated. For US #2 corn, the test weight is 54lbs and spring wheat the test weight is 58lbs. Discounts for low test weight are a monetary discount with extremely low test weight grain subject to rejection.

The one thing we can all do to avoid grain grading problems is to check and monitor your stored grain on a regular basis. The

most common issue occurs when high moisture grain is put into a bin and later as the tempera-tures warm up, spoilage can occur. Don’t let good grain go bad, check your bins. Another factor is to check your harvesting equipment and set your combines correctly to avoid kernel damage. It is important to address issues like this sooner rather than later to avoid further problems.

Please contact Chris, Joe, Kevin or Paul with any of your marketing needs and thank you for doing business with West-Con. Happy Holidays and best wishes in the upcoming New Year!

Making Marketing Decisions EasiEr

By PaUL mattSonOne of the things I find most interesting about the grain market is that no two days are ever alike. Just like each day is different, so is each crop year. This past year we have seen wide ranges in weather, price and yields. Once again, expect the unexpected and keep an open mind to all possible outcomes.

One question that many people ask us in the grain department is where does West-Con ship its grain? Most years the answer can be quite short and precise because over time the vast majority of the grain loading from Western Minnesota and Eastern South Dakota goes by BNSF rail to export facilities on the Pacific Northwest and is shipped primarily to places like Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Chi-na. However, this year is proving to be the exception to the rule. The low yielding corn and bean crops nationally have drastically altered traditional grain flows. This fall we have shipped soybeans to a local processing plant as close as Dawson, loaded rail cars that are delivered to the river terminals and re-loaded onto barges headed for New Orleans and beyond. Some trains have gone to domestic processing in Missouri and other trains have gone to the PNW like our beans have done for years. As you can see, West-Con connects its patrons to many different soybean markets.

As varied as the soybean market is this year, the corn market is even more diverse. Many areas had crops that were severely reduced by the drought of this past summer, resulting in a huge U.S. demand for corn. The market’s job has been

to ration export demand down and relocate our stocks from areas of surplus to those areas that are corn deficit. We have not had a corn train go to the West Coast yet this crop year. Our corn has gone to Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, California, and Texas. These are all areas that have been corn deficit and I expect they will be importing corn to those areas all year.

In addition to having poor crops in these areas of high demand, the corn quality has been reduced by toxins caused by the dry weather and crop stress. Many end users are importing high qual-ity corn like that found in our area to blend with their local corn to make sure they have feed and end products that meet their customer needs. We were very fortunate to be in an area that somehow got enough rain to have a crop that varied greatly, but was better than we expected.

West-Con had a record fall for grain handled for the second year in a row and the many investments we have made in storage and drying over the years have really been beneficial. The best news was even though we were very busy we rarely had a wait time of over 10-15 minutes. The employees all did a great job and it was all done safely!

As we go through winter, we will keep working on connecting our patrons to as many markets as possible. These may be right

next door or halfway around the world. At the same time we will continue working on ways to

improve our customer service and keep your elevators well maintained and ef-

ficient. Please contact us for all your grain marketing needs.

Grain Department

Diverse Corn and Soybean Markets Create Unique Challenges


By Joe MeyerDue to increased volatility and higher risk associated with farm-ing, in recent years the open interest of third party marketing advisors has been rising. There are a number of advisors or man-agers to choose from and all are unique and can provide different benefits to producers. This service area is growing and changing the way the grain industry does business. Producers are required

to be experts in many different facets of their business and mar-keting plays a large role in the overall success of their operation. Marketing can be challenging and rewarding or it can just as eas-ily become a nightmare. Anyone who follows the markets knows they are changing all the time and the regulations, trading hours, electronic trading, information and the tools used to decipher them have become more complex.

The first step in choosing a marketing professional is to decide if you want an “advisor” or a “manager.” As the word im-plies, a manager has a lot more control and does the actual sell-ing of your grain. As you can imagine, a marketing manager costs more money and in ex-change for that, also pays attention to your input cost as well as insurance levels. By comparison, if you employ the services of an advisor, you still make the final decision on all grain sales. An ad-visor’s cost tends to be more fixed and it is not uncommon for one producer to have more than one advisor. Many marketing profes-sionals maintain dual roles, representing a smaller portion of the clients as managers and serving as an advisor for a larger number. With any marketing professional, the most important thing is that you work with someone you can trust to make decisions that will represent your best interest.

Over the past few months we have received a number of questions from customers regarding marketing services and in response, I would like to take this opportunity to let you know that here at West-Con, we are in contact with a number of marketing managers. We would be more than happy to make a recommendation and if interested, please call Joe Meyer at ext 213 or Chris Aas-land at ext 211.

MARKETING PROFESSIONALS

ZERO TOLERANCE

WARNINGWARNING The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Grain Standards Act allow

ZERO TOLERANCEfor treated seed occuring in grain

Make sure all equipment is thoroughly cleaned and inspected before using it for grain

Making the right choice for your operation

Careersat West-Con

West-Con has many employment opportunities available throughout our multiple locations. We are continuously growing and looking for energetic, qualified people to fill positions. If you are interested in pursuing a career in agriculture, please visit our website at www.west-con.com or contact Kerry Bonk at 320-394-2171 extension 233.



Very cold temperatures, like very hot ones, can be hazardous to your health. Proper dress and some sen-sible practices can prevent a lot of the problems as-sociated with cold weather.

Frostbite can occur from being in a cold area or from touching an object whose temperature is below freez-ing. Frostbite victims usually start feeling uncomfort-ably cold, then numb, they may also feel a tingling or aching feeling or a brief pain.

Hypothermia can take you by surprise because you can get it even when the temperature is above freez-ing. Windy conditions, physical exhaustion, and wet clothing can all make you prone to hypothermia. You may feel cold first, then pain in the extremities. The body tries to raise the temperature by shivering. Other symptoms include numbness, stiffness (espe-cially in the neck, arms, and legs), poor coordination, drowsiness, slow or irregular breathing and heart rate, slurred speech, cool skin, and puffiness in the face.

The best way to deal with cold problems is to prevent them in the first place. The most sensible approach is to limit exposure to cold, especially if it’s windy or damp.

• If you know you’re going to be in cold conditions, don’t bathe, smoke, or drink, alcohol just before going out.

• Dress for conditions in layers of loose, dry clothes. The most effective mix is cotton or wool underneath, with something waterproof on top.

• Get dried or changed immediately if your clothes do get wet.

• Be sure to cover hands, feet, face, and head. You can lose up to 40 percent of your body heat if your head isn’t covered.

• Keep moving when you’re in the cold. • Take regular breaks in warm area. Go where it’s

warm when you start to feel very cold or numb.

Prevention doesn’t always work. If a person shows symptoms frostbite or hypothermia ensure they get

Northern ExposureFrostbite and hypothermia are nothing to sneeze at

2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen corn, thawed1 cup heavy whipping cream1/2 cup whole milk2 tablespoons sugar2 tablespoons butter, melted2 green onions, chopped1/4 teaspoon salt1/4 teaspoon pepper1 package (8 1/2 ounces) corn bread/muffin mix3/4 pound bacon strips, cooked and crumbled1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, dividedSour cream and additional chopped green onions (optional)

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine the first eight ingredients; stir in the muffin mix and bacon. Fold in 1/4 cup cheese.

Transfer to a greased 11-inch x 7-inch baking dish; sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with sour cream and green onions if desired.

1 package (18 1/4 ounces) devil’s food cake mix2 tablespoons hot water1 teaspoon instant coffee granules1 cup chocolate fudge frosting1/3 cup baking cocoa1/4 cup chocolate syrup1 1/3 cups miniature semisweet chocolate chips2 pounds white candy coating, chopped

Optional toppings: milk chocolate English toffee bits, toasted flaked coconut, crushed candy canes, holiday sprinkles. Have fun using different other toppings.

Directions:

Prepare and bake the cake according to package directions. Cool completely. Crumble cake into a large bowl.

In a small bowl, combine hot water and coffee granules; stir until dissolved. Add the frosting, cocoa and chocolate syrup; stir until combined. Add the cake; beat on low speed until blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Shape into 1-inch balls. Arrange on waxed paper-lined baking sheets.

In microwave, melt candy coating; stir until smooth. Dip balls in coating mixture; allow excess to drip off. Place on waxed paper. Sprinkle with toppings of your choice. Let stand until set. Store in airtight containers. Makes 95.

BaCon-CoRn CasseRole

Heavenly CHoColate-FudGe Cake Balls


to a warm place and get out of any frozen, wet, or tight clothing. For frostbite, first be aware of the don’ts:

• Don’t rub the body part, or apply a heat lamp, hot water bottle, electric blankets, or give a hot bath.

• Don’t go near a hot stove.• Don’t break any blisters.• Don’t drink caffeine.

For hypothermia, call 911 for medical help and keep the person covered with blankets or clothing. Give ar-tificial respiration if necessary and try to keep the per-son awake and dry. It’s dangerous to underestimate the health hazards you’re exposed to in the cold. But if you take some precautions before you’re exposed and know the symptoms and react to them, you substantially reduce your risk. Many times frostbite occurs when the temperatures are hovering around 32 degrees because people don’t dress as warm as they do when the temperatures are colder.

From Carol’s Kitchen

Photo Credit: Hemera Technologies, Photos.com


Financing ProgramsPlanninG aHEad For 2013

By chaD SyLtiEWe have enjoyed a long beautiful fall season with plenty of time to get our outside work completed. Now it is time bring the work indoors and participate in that wonderful chore called “book work.” Book work is not always fun, but it is something which needs to be done in a timely fashion – otherwise profitable buying times can slip away from you. As one farmer told me, “It is better to push your way through book work than have book work push you into a hasty decision.” There is some truth to that phrase.

We will have various financ-ing programs available for 2013. We are trying to keep this simple and we will because there are other areas of your operation which are not. This year we will be of-fering our full-farm financing program which we have offered to our customers for many years. It is a complete operating line of credit to handle all your operating costs throughout the year. This has been an excellent program for farmers to use and it provides competitive interest rates. Along with this program, we do have the option of pro-viding financing for livestock, machinery and real estate purchas-es to qualified applicants. Please stop in or call the Holloway office if you are interested in this program.

Now is the time to get your financing in place so you can take advantage of prepay discounts on seed, fertilizer and chemicals. It will also be helpful in doing your tax planning to finish up for 2012. This year, more than any, it will be extremely important to your operation to have capital available to take advantage of these discounts. As they say in business, “cash is king” and having this cash available allows you opportunity for profitability when it comes to locking in your input costs.

Another avenue for financing input purchases at West-Con this season will be John Deere Financial and Quick-Link. Both these programs give you the ability to purchase inputs from West-Con now and have until December 2013 to pay back the financing company. Both companies do charge interest on the amount of funds you borrow for the amount of time you use it. Many seed companies are using John Deere Financial as their source of fi-nancing, and it does provide a nice, simple way to finance your seed and chemical purchases at very competitive interest rates. Please check with your West-Con agronomist or call me at the Holloway office for more details on these two programs. When talking with your West-Con agronomist, be sure to ask about the interest rates on these special programs because depending upon the products you are purchasing, they will vary.

Our Minnesota customers should also be aware that West-Con is able to handle your crop insurance and crop hail needs for 2013. We have five licensed agents who are ready to serve you in this area. Crop insurance plays a major role in your farming operation

so having the right coverage is important.

Finally, in reference to our ac-counts receivable, I would like to thank all our customers for taking care of their obligations and making our collections run smoothly this year. There are a few agronomy accounts from this summer that still need to

be paid so please make arrangements to get these balances paid as quickly as you can. Remember that if your balance becomes past due, we charge 18% on all past due balances. If you find yourself running out of capital and subject to this 18%, please consider the above mentioned financing programs to minimize potential late fee charges. Last but not least, please remember that all fall fertil-izer purchases need to be paid by January 10, 2013.

Thank you for your support this past growing season and we look forward to working with you another year. May you all have a blessed Christmas and enjoy this special season with family and friends.


By aL goLDEnStEin This year we have had the opportunity to again host a Winfield An-swer Plot® in Holloway. As in past years, we have showcased a wide variety of corn hybrids and soybean varieties designed to fit local farms. Along with seed, many crop management trials have been tested including fertility programs, starter fertilizer programs, fungicide trials and others. The local plots have been a great suc-cess and we look toward expanding our research in the future and provide you the opportunity to see and assess the results. Many of the trials may easily be adapted to your own farming operation.

In addition to the Winfield Answer Plot®, many of you have noticed and inquired about all the plots found just north of the Holloway office. We are very fortunate to own approximately 150 additional acres where we do our own local research and yield trials. Just west of the tarred road between the office and fertilizer plant, we man-aged our own West-Con yield plots, including both corn and soy-bean yield trials. There were approximately 14 acres of corn and 14 acres of beans in the yield plot and this year we had about 40 dif-ferent corn and 40 different soybean varieties in the plot. The area is fairly uniform in soil texture and topography so it gives us a uni-form perspective on yield potential. To eliminate any future mois-ture issues that will distort yield data, this fall we tiled this field. Data on the soybean and corn yields is shown in charts A and B.

On the east side of the road, there were a wide variety of fertility and fungicide trials. The first corn trial was the starter and fungi-cide trials and these trials encompassed approximately 15 acres. The trials were completed on two different 100-day corn hybrids and the data from the two were combined to give an average of the treatment. As indicated in charts C and D, a positive response to a fungicide treatment was recognized. It also reflects a positive response to the use of starter fertilizers and the addition of zinc in starter fertilizer programs.

WEST-CON PLOT RESULTS

Local Research Data Beneficial

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Chart a 2012 Holloway Soybean Plot

Soybean Soybean Harvest Tst Wt. *Bu/Acre @ YieldBrand Variety Moist% lbs/bu 13% mst Rank

Asgrow AG0732 8.2 56.4 56.4 30Asgrow AG0832 8.4 56.4 62.5 11Asgrow AG0833 7.9 56.9 52.1 35Pioneer P90Y90 7.8 57.7 56.4 29Asgrow AG1230 7.9 58.6 60.3 18Asgrow AG1233 7.8 57.8 64.8 3Asgrow AG1431 8.0 58.3 62.5 10Pioneer P91Y40 8.0 58.5 53.9 33Asgrow AG1733 8.4 58.2 65.4 2Asgrow AG1832 9.2 58.4 61.9 14Asgrow AG2031 9.5 58.2 61.4 16CROPLAN R2C1869 9.2 56.1 60.3 19CROPLAN R2C2132 11.2 57.6 59.9 20CROPLAN R2C2120 10.3 57.8 62.4 12NK Brand X2R2020 9.7 58.9 64.3 6NK Brand S20-Y2 9.5 57.9 64.1 7CROPLAN R2C2070 9.3 57.3 64.6 4CROPLAN R2C1972 9.3 56.9 66.4 1CROPLAN R2C1821 8.8 57.0 62.2 13NK Brand X2R1825 9.5 57.0 60.4 17CROPLAN R2C1869 10.2 56.2 59.2 23NK Brand S18-C2 10.1 56.3 63.7 8Dyna-Gro 34RY17 8.5 57.0 56.4 31NK Brand S17-G8 8.1 57.0 59.8 21Wensman W3174NR2 8.5 56.5 57.8 25CROPLAN R2C1770 8.7 57.5 61.7 15CROPLAN R2C1671 8.3 56.7 62.6 9CROPLAN R2C1572 8.3 56.8 56.5 28Dyna-Gro 15RY53 8.3 56.7 64.6 5CROPLAN R2C1531 7.8 56.7 52.5 34Dyna-Gro 39RY14 8.0 57.4 48.9 38Wensman W3142NR2 7.6 57.6 52.0 36CROPLAN R2T1470 7.6 57.5 58.9 24Mycogen 5N110R2 8.1 57.6 56.0 32NK Brand S10-G7 7.7 57.5 59.3 22Dyna-Gro 37RY10 7.6 57.1 47.7 40NK Brand S08-G1 7.7 57.6 57.7 26CROPLAN R2T0860 7.8 57.7 50.7 37NK Brand S06-R9 7.2 57.9 56.8 27NK Brand S06-H5 8.0 57.0 48.4 39

Plot results continued on next Page

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The soybean trials on the east side of the road consisted of the use of fungicides and timing of application of those fungicides. Included in the studies were the uses of CoRoN on soybeans at the R3 growth stage and additional soybean trials included the use of starter fertilizers, plant growth regulators and com-binations. Chart E shows the information from these plots and you will see that information indicates a very nice response to fungicide treatments for soybeans at the R3 growth stage. The yield data in 2011 showed a very similar positive response and it should also be noted that none of the soybeans in the West-Con plots were sprayed for aphids.

To the far east of the research farm, there was an iron chlorosis trial and an additional starter trial was also conducted at the same location. The objective of this trial was to as-sess the value of adding a chelated iron at planting to minimize iron chlorosis effects on yield. The research farm would be considered to have a minimum to moderate iron chloro-sis problem. In summary, the response to a chelated iron was very positive considering the severity of the issue and the information for that plot is reported on chart F.

Some additional trials conducted on our research farm were the use of CoRoN on

PLOT RESULTSChart B 2012 Holloway Corn Plot

Chart C Corn Fungicide Trials

Corn Harvest Tst Wt. *Bu/Acre @ YieldBrand Hybrid Moist% lbs/bu 15.5% mst Rank

Dekalb DKC38-03 11.5 59.1 233.5 7Dekalb DKC39-07 11.0 58.3 210.6 34Pioneer P8906HR 11.2 58.9 204.1 37Dekalb DKC42-43 11.0 58.2 210.0 35Dekalb DKC42-72 11.6 59.7 223.0 17Dekalb DKC43-10 13.0 58.5 220.3 21Dekalb DKC43-48 12.3 59.4 219.5 24Dekalb DKC45-51RIB 13.5 59.0 219.7 23Pioneer P9675XR 13.1 59.1 212.0 31Dekalb DKC46-20 12.9 60.1 223.0 18Dekalb DKC48-12RIB 14.5 58.0 235.0 6Pioneer P9917AM1 15.4 59.5 231.8 9Dekalb DKC49-30 14.3 59.9 229.3 11Dekalb DKC50-66 13.4 59.4 222.3 19Dekalb DKC50-77 14.3 59.7 232.8 8Dekalb DKC52-04 16.5 58.1 243.7 3Dekalb DKC43-27 12.7 59.1 211.1 32Dekalb DKC53-78RIB 15.5 57.7 241.4 4CROPLAN 4975VT3P 15.7 58.2 249.7 1CROPLAN 4721VT3P 14.9 57.6 223.7 15CROPLAN 4022VT3P 13.1 60.7 206.9 36Mycogen 2T496 14.9 57.9 203.7 38NK Brand N40L-3000GT 14.7 58.0 229.4 10CROPLAN 3899VT3P 16.4 57.6 245.2 2Wensman 7270 13.6 59.3 218.2 26Dyna-Gro 37VP71 12.7 58.8 213.2 29CROPLAN 3699VT3P 14.3 60.2 237.1 5CROPLAN 3737VT3P 13.5 59.6 214.9 28Wensman 7268 14.0 56.8 228.2 12NK Brand N36A-3000GT 15.2 56.4 218.6 25Dyna-Gro 35VP40 12.5 57.2 213.1 30Mycogen 2T386 12.2 57.2 203.6 39CROPLAN 3424VT3 14.6 58.0 223.8 14Wensman 7140 13.6 59.4 227.2 13Dyna-Gro 32VP29 11.9 57.6 223.6 16NK Brand N29T-3000GT 12.7 57.3 211.0 33CROPLAN 3390VT3P 12.2 58.3 220.4 20CROPLAN 3299VT3P 12.3 58.3 219.7 22Dekalb DKC43-27 12.2 57.4 215.7 27

Treatment Yield at 15.5% Moisture % moisture Test weight

Headline 6oz. & 1gal. Coron @ VT 239.74 18.8 58.1Stratego Yld 4oz. & 1gal. Coron @ VT 237.09 17.3 58.8Stratego Yld 4oz. @ VT 237.32 17.8 56.5Headline 6oz. @ VT 234.93 17.4 58.5Coron 1 gal. @ VT 237.01 17.25 55.3Untreated 232.40 18.5 57.4

Chart D Corn Starter Trials & In-Furrow Fungicides

Treatment Yield at 15.5% % Test Moisture Moisture Weight

10-34-0 @ 6 gal & 1 qt Trafix ZN per acre 240.61 17.20 57.4010-34-0 @ 6 gal per acre 236.55 17.95 59.6510-34-0 @ 4 gal & 2 gallons RiSeR per acre 230.10 17.20 59.45RiSeR @ 4.5 gal per acre 225.50 17.05 59.606-24-6 @ 4.5 gal & 1 qt Kickstand ZN per acre 229.90 16.90 60.058-24-0 O-Phos @ 4.5 gal & 1 qt Kickstand ZN per acre 225.85 16.75 60.208-24-4 NucleusHP @ 4.5 gal & 1 qt Kickstand ZN per acre 231.50 16.10 60.25Untreated 226.85 15.55 60.45Headline In-Furrow f/b 6 oz. Headline @ VT. 212.50 15.75 60.20Headline In-Furrow & per acre 202.50 15.85 60.00Untreated 190.20 14.65 60.55


Plot results continued froM Page 13


corn-soybean and corn-on corn rotations including the use of fungicides in a corn-on-corn rotation. In 2012, we began a corn-on-corn rotation test on approximately nine acres and these same acres will be used in the future to evaluate different agronomic practices for a corn-on-corn rotation. Herbicide trials are

also being conducted on about 16 acres of the research farm. Managing weed resistance is becoming extremely important and for that reason, we are researching many new tank mixes and combinations. Planting speed, planting depth and planting populations are just some of the additional topics studied on the West-Con research plot.

For those of you who visited the West-Con plot this year, we hope you en-joyed seeing firsthand the many different trials and demonstrations. These plots are designed to evaluate local research and help you make more in-formed decisions on your farm. Just a portion of the total information gathered from our research is included in this article; if you are interested in seeing more, please contact your agronomist. In addition, if you have specific products or methods you would like to see tested or have any re-search suggestions, please let us know. I wish you a safe and prosperous 2013 and thank you for doing business with West-Con.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Chart e Soybean Fungicides & Starter Trials

Treatment Yield at 13% Moisture

Untreated 57.7 Headline In-furrow @ 3 oz. f/b Headline @ 6 oz. per acre @ R3 62.0 Headline @ 6 oz. per acre @ R3 64.4 Headline @ 6 oz. plus CoRoN @ 1gallon per acre @ R3 63.7 CoRon @ 1 gallon per acre @ R3 59.8 Stratego Yld @ 4 oz. per acre @ R3 62.8 Stratego Yld @ 4 oz. per acre plus CoRoN @ 1 gallon per acre @ R3 58.9 Utilize @ 8 oz. plus Coron @ 1 gallon @ R3 57.6 Untreated 57.3 Headline @ 6 oz. per acre @ R3 59.1 Stratego Yld @ 4 oz. per acre @ R3 59.4 Untreated 56.7 Ascend @ planting 56.9 Headline In-furrow @ 3 oz. per acre @ planting 56.2 Headline In-furrow @ 3 oz. per acre plus Ascend @ planting 56.7 8-24-4 NucleusHP @ 2 gallons per acre @ planting 56.3 8-24-0 O-Phos @ 2 gallons per acre @ planting 57.4

Chart F Soybean Iron Chlorosis & Starter Trials

Treatment Yield at 13% Moisture

Untreated 51.5 SoyGreen @ 3 lbs. per acre @ planting 59.9 Ferriline @ 3 lbs. per acr @ planting 57.9 Ferriline @ 2 lbs. per acr @ planting 56.8 SoyGreen @ 2 lbs. per acre @ planting 57.4 Untreated 55.1 Ferriline @ 3 lbs. per acr @ planting 58.2 RiSer @ 2 gallons per acre @ planting 56.3 8-24-0 O-Phos @ 2 gallons per acre @ planting 56.3 8-24-4 NucleusHP @ 2 gallons per acre @ planting 57.3 Untreated 56.7


As the year draws to a close, I would like to extend a Holiday greeting and thank you for doing business with us at West-Con. Once again it is time to estab-lish next year’s farm plans includ-ing fertilizer, chemicals and seed orders. With regard to soybeans, I would suggest that at today’s pric-es, this commodity should not be regarded as just a rotational crop. If we can implement the same practices as we do with corn, starting with treatments, there is

serious money to be made. As you know, whether it is conventional or smart stax, 99% or more of the corn seed is treated before it goes in the ground and for the same reasons, your soybean seed should be treated as well. Poorly drained, wet soils can be typical during spring planting and crop emergence. These char-acteristics favor development of the fungal pathogens that cause soybean seedling diseases which can slow germination and plant

growth. Early season insect pests may also damage soybean seeds and seedlings causing adverse af-fects on plant growth. For these reasons, it is very important to take steps to prevent diseases and insect damage. Seed treatments can help protect seed and seed-lings from pests, resulting in more uniform plant stands, better yield potential and ultimately increased return on your investment. Since soybean seed and seed-lings are susceptible to a number

of pathogens lurking in the soil, waiting for the right conditions for the pathogens is important. Soil conditions can turn cold and wet overnight. Under these cool (less than 60 degrees) and wet soils, the soybean seeds will germinate and emerge very slowly, making them more susceptible to attack by seed and seedling pathogens. Fungicide seed treatments along with the insecticide treatments can be a valuable tool to protect soy-

bean seed and seedlings against these diseases. Under certain soil types and management practices and field histories, the probability of seeing additional benefits from the seed treatment is very good. As most of you know, soy-beans need a lot of nitrogen throughout the growing season. Soybeans are capable of fixing ni-trogen through a relationship with bacteria. For 50 bushel soybeans the plant needs 225 pounds of nitrogen during the season.

“Low river levels in spring could hamper delivery of fertilizer...”

SoybEan TrEaTmEnT

AgRonoMy newS

SuccESSFul Fall, rEady For SPrinG

By roBErt ranUmThis truly was a great fall season. Good yields in most areas with an early harvest allowed fertilizer application to begin early and because of high crop removal of nutrients growers applied aver-age to above average tonnage of fertilize. As of Thanksgiving, we were still spreading fertilizer and had applied the second highest tons of dry fertilizer in company history for a fall season, second only to 2008. We prefer to apply as many acres in the fall as we can because as we all know, the spring season is very busy.

One concern many people have is the possibility that low river levels in the spring could hamper the delivery of fertilizer to the Twin Cities ports. In mid-October the river was about 15 feet be-low normal in many locations and the 90 day forecast was for below normal precipitation. Low river levels mean fewer barges are allowed per tow. It can also mean the barges will have less fer-tilizer in them so they do not sit as deep in the water. Alternative

means of transportation are truck or rail. To put it in perspective, one barge equals about 15 or 16 rail cars or about 70 semi loads. All of this leads to higher cost of transportation and longer ship-ping times to get to the Twin Cities.

West-Con is not affected by these transportation issues in the spring because of our investment in our large facilities. Our fer-tilizer comes in by rail and is not dependent on the Twin Cities terminals. As of the writing of this article, Holloway is full of urea for spring and Twin Brooks has one more train scheduled for December delivery and that plant will also be full of urea for the spring of 2013. The new 2 million gallon 28% tank in Holloway is completed and filled, so along with the other 2 million gallon tank in Holloway and the 5 million gallons of storage in Twin Brooks and Appleton, we are full of liquid 28% for spring also.

Thank you for your continued support and have a wonderful Holi-day season.

By DarrELL Bartz

STarTinG oFF riGHT...

By JoSh WEntzELStarter fertilizers on corn have been used successfully to increase early plant growth, nutrient uptake, and yields. They also promote earlier maturity of the plant resulting in drier corn at harvest. Use of starter fertilizers is increasing in our area and across the coun-try. The results of extensive research have revealed benefits of us-ing a starter fertilizer resulting in a positive ROI for the producer.

There are many benefits of starter fertilizer. The biggest benefit is having the nutrients right by the seedling to get your plant started quickly. Low soil and air temperature can slow root development and corn plant growth in the spring. When root growth is restrict-ed, corn plants often turn purple. Early season purpling varies with variety, but most often it is a symptom of an induced phos-phorus deficiency. The deficiency is described as induced because this may occur even in soils where the phosphorus levels are high in a soil test. The roots need to be able to reach the phosphorus in the soil profile to avoid that plant from starving for that nutrient.

Soils with a pH greater than 7.3 often respond well to starter fer-tilizer, because high pH reduces phosphorus availability. In most cases, phosphorus deficiencies are temporary and symptoms disappear as soon as soil temperatures rise to a point where root growth is stimulated and the plant can reach more phosphorus.

Yields may not be reduced every year by root stunting, but losses can be significant in years when temperatures are low for an ex-tended period of time. Additional factors that limit root growth can also induce phosphorus deficiencies. Some common causes include soil compaction, insect damage and/or nematode damage to the root system.

Here at West-Con, we carry several different options for your starter fertilizer needs. The first one and by far the most com-monly used is 10-34-0 - a polyphosphate starter that is very ef-fective as a “pop-up” program. Another product is Riser. Riser is a 7-17-3 with micro nutrients. One way to help stretch out your 10-34-0 is to add Riser to the mix. Riser can be used to replace some of the 10-34-0. As a general guideline, you can cut back two gallons of 10-34-0 for every gallon of Riser that is added. Riser does have some zinc in it but not enough for today’s needs, so I would still recommend adding some zinc to your mix. We also carry products that are referred to as premium grade starters such as a 6-24-6. These are generally more expensive and some claim to be low salt or no salt and 100% available. Even though I agree that they are very good products, those claims can be slightly inflated. Products like this typically have a salt index of around 10 where 10-34-0 has an index of 20.

Soybeans produce N in the symbi-otic relationship between the plant and bacteria. This bacteria is spe-cific to the host, it will only infect soybeans. It in turn pulls nitrogen from the air and converts it to a form the plant can use, thus giving the plant reserves. I hope this information clearly demonstrates the benefits of treat-ing soybean seed. I encourage you to speak with your agronomist about scheduling

spring treatments and we can have the seed treated and ready for delivery or pickup. Believe it or not it is also time to start think-ing about picking up or scheduling delivery of packaged corn and soybeans. Give us a call and we will be happy to work out the details.

PRoteCt YouR SoYbeAN Seed

Key diseases Key Insect Pests

Pythium bean Leaf beetlePhytophthora Soybean AphidFusarium Seed Corn maggotsrhizoctonia Wireworms

West-Con Update september 2012 17

“Starting off right” continued on page 18


PrE EmErGE HErbicidES

By Scott mattockSWhat a year!! Not long ago we were just putting in the 2012 crop and in what feels like a blink of the eye, where has the year gone? The summer brought huge disappointments in rainfall and who would have thought that you could raise a crop at all? In the Kens-ington area, all across the board, we saw some very good yields including wheat, beans and especially corn. Overall, we did expe-rience a very good year!

However, we all know that with the end of one crop year be-gins the planning process for the next. By now I would expect that most of you have established a seed and fertility plan, but do those plans include fertilizer impregnated with a pre emerge chemical? If so, what are you going to use? On every farm, did you have total control of the weeds in the field? Did you ex-perience some tillage escape, resistance or tolerance issues? Your answer to those questions may prompt consideration of a pre emerge herbicide.

CORN: I would estimate that 90% of the corn acres have a pre go on in the spring, impregnated with the dry fertilizer and incorpo-rated, applied with UAN over the top of planting or pre plant. But,

how do you decide what to use? Is it price, habit or what works best for your farm?

On corn there are a lot of options to pick from and more than one right answer. If there are a lot of weed escapes in the field, Verdict, Valor or a combination of chemicals with a pre is the way to go before doing tillage. Impregnating the dry fertilizer is still a great

option with Triple flex, Harness or Outlook. Still the most ef-fective deliv-ery of a pre is post planting with UAN or even water

over the top. You get less streaking and a more even coverage. With all these options, you still need Mother Nature to do its part with some moisture to activate the chemical. All are great options to start the year off on the right foot.

BEANS: When it comes to managing tough weeds in beans, we have a few less tools in the toolbox. This makes a pre emerge prod-uct more important to getting the season started off on the right foot and controlling some early emerging weeds. For pre emerge on beans, I would put them into three categories. First, Pre Plant incorporated, which would consist of the yellow products such as Treflan or Prowl. These need to be worked in and/or planted through to help prevent chemical loss or a plant response. The second category would be the Pre Emerge group which consists of products such as Valor, Sonic, Optil pro, Verdict, or any of the Au-thority products. To avoid causing plant damage these too must be applied before the bean starts to crack the soil surface. These can also be applied pre plant in a no till application to help with a burn down treatment, but residual is shorter when applied in that scenario. The third category would be the pre plant, pre emerge, post emerge products, such as Warrant, Outlook, or Flexstar. All are good options and the best one to fit your farming program is up to you.

With all the options that are out there for us to use, it would be a good practice to use a pre emerge herbicide in the fight against Glyphosate tolerance and resistance issues that we face. By add-ing a pre into your chemical program, it will broaden the window to allow you to choose when you spray, instead of when you have to spray. Please consult with your agronomist to get a pre worked into the lineup this spring.

Addition of Zinc to the starter fertilizer has pretty much become a standard practice for anyone that uses starter. Zinc is one of the first nutrients that a corn plant takes in and putting Zinc in the furrow or right next to the seed is the most efficient way to add Zinc to a fertilizer pro-gram. Zinc demands have grown as yield expectancies are trending higher. One quart of Zinc in the furrow is no longer sufficient to supply your plant with its zinc needs. Moving forward, a minimum of 1 ½ to 2 quarts will be-come a common recommendation. There is a distinct dif-ference between Poly and Ortho starter fertilizers. Poly starters (10-34-0) mix fine with either a 9% or 10% zinc. Ortho starters, such as 6-24-6 or 9-18-9 needs a 9% zinc to avoid mixing issues. Few things will be more frustrat-ing than having to clean out your tanks and planter when you should be planting. If you have any questions about starter fertilizer, please call your agronomist.

We truly appreciate your business and look forward to working with you in 2013.

starting off right...continued from page 17


FIXED ASSETSWEST-con

aT Work For you

MonDay, MarCh 11, 2013Western Consolidated Cooperative annual Meeting

Mark Your Calendar

KENSINGTON2,400 tons dry storage, 10 ton fertilizer blender, 5,940 sq ft chemical ware-house, 12,000 gal bulk chemical storage, 8,640 sq ft seed and dry storage, bulk seed delivery.

ORTONVILLENon Shuttle Train Loader, 830,000 bu storage, 2,000 BPH dryer capacity, 70 x 12 truck scale, serviced by the Twin Cities & Western railroad and the BNSF railroad.

APPLETONTERMINAL A: 54 car shuttle train, locomotive, grain receiving equipment up to 20,000 BPH, train loading capacity up to 30,000 BPH, 1,530,000 bu storage, 2,000 BPH dryer capacity, served by the Twin Cities & Western railroad and the BNSF railroad; LIQUID PLANT: Two 1,000,000 gal liquid tanks, 350 GPM unattended liq loadout lanes, 10-34-0 manufacturing converter with emission reduction, 40 TPH 10-34-0, NH3 Transport Loading; NH3 Rail unload-ing, Rail unloading & loading capabilities, 18,000 gal NH3 holding capacity; SHOP: Staffed with four full time mechanics and one in Twin Brooks, services over 500 pieces of rolling stock for West-Con including 58 semi tractors, 18 tandems & single axles, 90 semi trailers, 23 terragators, 11 sprayers, payloaders, bobcats and more. New office space added in 2008.

TWIN BROOKSGRAIN: 110 car shuttle train loader, 7,500 feet of circle track, locomotive, grain receiving equip-ment up to 60,000 BPH, 8,300,000 bu storage, 10,000 BPH dryer capacity, served by the BNSF railroad; AGRONOMY: Dry Fertilizer – 100 car shuttle train unloader, 3,600 ft spur track, han-dling equipment up to 1,200 TPH, 44,500 tons storage, 250 ton tower, 120 ton blending tower, Murray Automated Blending System; Liquid Fertilizer – 65 car shuttle train unloader, 15 ton liquid blender, Murray Automated Blending Sys-tem, 360,000 gal liquid storage, two 2,000,000 gal liq fertilizer tanks, NH3 transport loading, NH3 rail unloading, 12,000 gal NH3 holding capacity, 500 GPM unattended liquid loadout lanes; Warehouse: 33,700 sq ft seed & chemi-cal storage, 40,000 gal bulk chemical storage, automated seed treater, bulk seed delivery.

ST. LEO64,000 gal liquid fertilizer stor-age, seed & chemical warehouse, bulk seed delivery, bulk chemical.

RAYMOND500,000 gal liquid tank, 95,000 gal fertilizer storage, 60,000 gal smaller tanks, 16 ton liquid blender, 7,500 sq ft seed & dry storage, 14,500 gal bulk chemi-cal storage, bulk seed delivery.

HOLLOWAYGRAIN: 110 Car Shuttle Train Loader, 2.5 miles of railroad track, locomotive, grain receiving equipment up to 130,000 BPH, 8,533,000 bu covered storage, 3,600,000 bu short term storage, 15,000 BPH dryer capacity, served by the BNSF railroad; AGRONOMY: Dry Plant – 100 Car Shuttle Train Unloader, Handling equipment up to 800 TPH, 38,000 tons storage, 250 ton tower, 120 ton blending tower, Murray Automated Blending System; Warehouse – 33,700 sq ft seed & chemical storage, 26,000 gal bulk chemical storage, automated seed treater, bulk seed delivery; Liquid Fertilizer Plant – 65 car liquid shuttle unloading, two 2,000,000 gal liquid fertilizer tanks, 500,000 gal liquid fertilizer tanks, two 25 ton liquid blenders, 450,000 gal liquid storage, 30,000 gal NH3 capacity, 5,500 tons dry storage, 400 TPH handling equipment, Murray Automated Blending System, 55,000 gal bulk chemical storage, 500 GPM unattended liquid loadout.

Photo Credit: Comstock, Photos.com

Western Consolidated Cooperative

520 County Road 9, Box 78, Holloway, MN 56249

Holloway (toll-free) 800.368.3310 Main Office 320.394.2171 Holloway Scale (ext 217) 320.394.2171 Appleton Terminal A 320.289.1921 Twin Brooks Terminal 605.432.4531 Ortonville 320.839.2861 Kensington 320.965.2688 St. Leo 507.224.2238 Raymond 320.967.4234

BOARd Of dIRECTORSJoe Stelzig, Chairman; Patrick Ascheman, Vice-Chair; Jason Lund, Secretary; Gary Nygard; Sherman Olson; Mark Pillatzki; dean Beyer; Tim Nagler; Roger Schmidt

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDHUTCHINSON, MN

PERMIT NO. 60

If you have stories of interest or would like to be added to our mailing list, please contact Editor, Sheila Hoffman at 320-394-2171 ext 238

Congratulations to natalie Guse, winner of this

edition’s “Capture It” Photo Contest. The theme was

FALL HARVEST, which Natalie beautifully captured in

her photo, titled “Indian Summer.”

For a chance to win a cash prize and have your photo

published in our next newsletter, send us an agri-

cultural photo and tell us why your photo matters.

With each edition of our newsletter, we will be se-

lecting an agricultural related photo as submitted

from our local growers. Each issue, we will be pro-

moting a particular theme and the theme we are

looking for in the next publication is Winter WonDerLanD.

If you have a photo to submit, please email it

directly to [email protected] or contact us at

320-394-2171, ext 238.

Capture itPHoTo conTEST

“Indian Summer” by Natalie Guse

update - s3. · pdf fileended up over 1 million bushels of grain on the ground. ... sd...

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