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N. IL | Get what you can afford, never heard anybody say they got done too soon. The market for good used 24-30" planters is oversupplied as many of these are being traded with only several years of use. You may get a 1-3 year old 24-30" for the cost of a new 16-30" planter. Take into account the cost of changing other equipment to match the planter. We went 16-30 4 years ago and had to change everything, but the market for 8 or 16 row equipment was reasonable at the time.
Several neighbors this year jumped from 12 to 24 row planters and only spent money on the planter, making it a more affordable decision. They could also quit at dark rather than running late into the night. We could also be doing other profitable activities when not planting, such as spraying or applying NH3, or waiting for the fields to dry out. Continuous corn also requires a little more patience in heavy soils to become fit to plant in damp conditions.
Your location dictates your optimum window for corn planting, yield . The last several years we have struggled to get corn in the ground before May 10. If a breakdown or bad weather slows planting, the yield gain from more early acres planted could pay for the cost of a larger planter.
A planter will last may years with good care, the initial cost can be overcome with one or two challenging seasons. Don't worry about the neighbors, you can help them finish when it gets late and you are already done! | |
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Acres needed for 24 row Planter
