Economic trends and concerns over the condition of grain because of the drought suggest there's little incentive for farmers to store grain this fall. But those who do will need to quickly dry it down to a proper moisture content and watch for contamination, Purdue University specialists say.

As farmers prepare to harvest poorer-than-expected corn and soybean crops, they have to consider whether to hold onto their grain and hope for higher prices or sell it right out of the field. In most cases, farmers should skip storage and take their grain directly to the elevator, says Corinne Alexander, agricultural economist.

“From an economics perspective, in short crop years one of the things we tend to see is that prices peak early, either before or during harvest, and then decline through the remainder of the marketing year,” Alexander says. “The market is giving a strong signal to farmers to deliver early and at harvest because storage will not be profitable. This is true for both corn and soybeans.”

Markets reacted strongly to a pair of Aug. 10 U.S. Department of Agriculture reports. One report estimated a 2012 national corn crop of just 10.8 billion bushels and a soybean crop of only 2.69 billion bushels, down 13% and 12%, respectively, from 2011. Another report projected lower world grain supplies for the 2012 marketing year.

That news, along with a continued decline in crop condition as a summer-long drought dragged on, sent prices for corn and soybeans soaring. In recent weeks, corn has eclipsed $8 a bushel while soybeans have shot past $16 a bushel.

Farmers considering waiting out the market for even higher prices could be leaving money on the table if they put their grain in a bin, Alexander says. Prices are likely to come down in the first quarter of 2013 as South American farmers harvest their corn and soybeans and provide some relief for stressed world stocks.

There are only two reasons farmers should store grain in a short crop year, Alexander says. “Those would include livestock producers who are supplying their own feed or producers who have contracts with either food or ethanol processors where the contract specifies a later delivery date,” she says.

Storing grain could present a host of challenges this fall, including dry-down methods, mold and leftover fine material in bins and insects, says Richard Stroshine, a grain quality specialist.

Grain could be going into bins at higher moisture levels and temperatures because many farmers planted early and could be harvesting later this month or in September when temperatures are hotter than in the typical harvest months of October and November, Stroshine says.

Unless farmers work fast to get grain dried down to appropriate levels, their crop could spoil in the bin. If grain is placed in a bin dry, it needs to be cooled using aeration, taking advantage of cooler nighttime temperatures, Stroshine says.

That is especially true of corn. “Mold will grow at 15% moisture if the corn is fairly warm – say, 80 degrees or so,” Stroshine says. “It's very slow, but there still can be mold growth there that could eventually compromise your ability to store the corn.”

For early-harvested corn, Stroshine recommends a stored moisture content of 14.5%, or 13% if the grain will be stored through next summer. To get corn down to those lower moisture levels rapidly, farmers should use high-temperature, cross-flow drying.

Farmers who need to dry in the bin can increase the drying rate using a technique called layer drying, Stroshine says. Like the process implies, a farmer will place grain in the bin in layers while continuously drying.

“That first layer will dry faster than normal, and by the time you put your second layer in the bin, you will have gotten some field dry-down of that grain, which should save some in-bin drying time,” he says.

“Another thing to remember is if you don't remove the fine material from the bin before you put grain into it, you'll need to core your bin. Fine material tends to concentrate in the center of the bin. To core the bin, open the center well, pull out a load and you should get a lot of those fines out. If your grain is peaked you also should level the top surface, which is very important for good aeration.”

Other issues farmers should keep in mind as they harvest and store grain this year include:

Additional grain storage tips are available on the Purdue Post Harvest Grain Quality Web site at http://www.grainquality.org.

General agricultural drought information can be found on the Purdue Extension drought Web site at http://www.purdue.edu/drought.