Tule Lake Basin Grain

No_drill planting of grain in a tule lake basin farm field, tulelake, ca.  photos by anders tomlinson
No-Drill Planting and Monitoring of Grain Seed Depth
This no-till drill, on loan from the Klamath Soil and Water Conservation District is
planting seeds without distributing the soil surface. This keeps moisture in the ground
and prevents erosion from early spring wind. Another upside is that there are far fewer
passes of equipment in these fields, saving labor and fuel costs.
Farming has a history of adapting.
It Is all in the seed –  This is white wheat Alpowa seed. Each seed,
depending on a variety of conditions,can produce 5 to 9 stalks, also called tillers.
Tillers only have one head, which contain 5 to 15 kernels. Uses for white wheat include
oriental noodles and cookie dough. A seed is now in the ground. Profitable agriculture
is based on extremely close tolerances. There is little margin for error. The planting
date was April 15, 2005. Timing is everything.

Grain begins to sprout and grow in Tule Lake basin grain fields, tulelake, Ca.  photos by anders tomlinson
Grain Sprouts Break Through the Ground – Miracles Have Begun
Farming is all about management. Watering, fertilizing and weeding are considerations
that are influenced by weather conditions and available irrigation water. Nitrogen is
a key fertilizing agent.

Tule lake basin grain grows taller,  tulelake, ca.  photos by anders tomlinson
Green Grain Fields Grow Tall and Then Turn Gold

Combines cut and harvest grain in the tule lake basin, tulelake, ca.  photos by anders tomlinson
Heavy Heads of Grain Await The Moment That Harvest Machines Arrive –
Grain is cut by the header and kernels are separated and up to 5 tons stored in the
combine. Chaff is sent flying out the back. These harvest photos are from August 10, 2005.  
On average a grain crop may take four months from planting to harvest.
Tulelake wheat and barley have the best yield per acre in the western United States.

Grain Will be Off-loaded From The Combines to  Waiting Trucks., tule lake basin, tulelake, ca.  photos by anders tomlinson.
Grain Will Be Off-loaded From The Combines to Waiting Trucks

Grain frops into trucks beds, tule lake basin, tulelake, ca.  photos by anders tomlinson
A Waterfall of Grain Fills Trucks: A Scene Repeated Across the Basin
The kernels are off-loaded into a truck and will be driven to a scale.

Grain arrives at the grain elevators' office where it be analyzed and valued, tule lake basin, tulelake ca. photos by anders tomlinson.
Next Stop for the Grain is The Office to Be Analyzed and Valued.
The truck is weighed fully loaded.

a sample is taken from the truck load of grain to be analyzed, tule lake basin, tulelake, ca.  photos by anders tomlinson
A Small Sample of The Grain From the Truck Will Be Used for Analysis
Farmers bring their grain to an elevator. Here its weighed, analyzed, off-loaded and
stored in large bins until sold. A sample of the load is taken in to be checked for
bushel weight and moisture content.

The grain is weighed and measured for moisture and protein, tule lake basin, tulelake ca. photos by anders tomlinson.
The Grain is Analyzed and a Value Is Determined – A Moment of Economic Truth
100 grams is weighed out from the sample and put into a double pan. Small grain and chaff
falls through a screen into the bottom pan, “the dock. This is weighed and used to estimate 
the load’s condition. The grower is then credited for the good grain and docked for the substandard. The samples are kept for future reference. Yes Virginia, there is a need for math

Grain is dropped from the grain trucks ad will be lifted to the grain elevators, tule lake basinm tulelake, ca,  photos by anders tomlinson
Trucks Are Raised and The Grain Dropped into a Bin and Then Raised Up Into the Elevators.
The truck drives to the elevator. The load drops into a bin. The grain goes by auger
to a belt with buckets that takes the grain to the top of the distributor. From here
the grain is sent to the proper bin for storage. The truck returns to the scales.
This gives the grain’s total weight.

Grain elevators and silos across the tule lake basin, tulelake, ca. photos by anders tomlinson.
Grain Cathedrals Rise Up Across The Tule Lake Basin

Grain silos by railroad trains, box cars and trucks, tule lake basin, tulelake ca.  photo by anders tomlinson
Tulelake Grain Will Travel to Its Destinations by Train and Truck

Lewie Baker remembers grain harvests on a WWII homestead in the 1940’s.

other tule lake basin crops icon

potato icon - tulelake california.  photo by anders tomlinson
Tulelake Potatoes
Tule Lake Basin potatoes are famous around the world. An acquaintance of Anders emailed, in the late 2000’s, that a Chilean potato shed office computer’s screen-saver displayed a anderstomlinson.com/tule-lake/ Tulelake potato harvest image. It is indeed a small world and potatoes have become an integral part of the global food supply. It is the world’s fourth-largest food crop, following maize, wheat and rice.

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grain icon.  tulelake california.  photo anders tomlinson
Tulelake Grain
Grain is cut by the header and kernels are separated and up to 5 tons stored in the combine. Chaff is sent flying out the back. These harvest photos are from the 2005. On average a grain crop may take four months from planting to harvest.
Tulelake wheat and barley have the best yield per acre in the western United States.

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mint icon tulelake california.  photo by anders tomlinson
Tulelake Mint
The Tule Lake Basin is one of two places in California where peppermint is grown. Tulelake Peppermint is well known for its consistent flavor and excellent quality. Warm days, cool nights, rich volcanic soil and talented farmers all factor into the production quality.

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alfalfa icon, tulelake california.  photo by anders tomlinson
Tulelake Alfalfa
Tule Lake Basin alfalfa is known for its excellent nutritional value. There are over 60,000 acres of hay, alfalfa and grass varieties, in the Upper Klamath Basin. Haying, on average, takes place from June 1 through Oct. 15. Of course, harvest timing is is related to weather conditions throughout the season.

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onion icon, tulelake california.  photo by anders tomlinson
Tulelake Onions
The last crop to be harvested in the Tule Lake Basin is usually onions. As late as mid-November trucks with Tulelake onions can be a daily parade down Hwy. 97 to Hwy. 5 south. Drivers take their trailers to Sacramento. There, drivers coming from Gilroy trade trailers and take the onions south for processing.

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horseradish icon, tulelake california, photo by anders tomlinson
Tulelake Horseradish
Tulelake is known as the “Horseradish Capital of the World” and accounts for a third or more of the nation’s production. Some local fields have been in continuous horseradish production for 25 years. Horseradish has been cultivated for at least 3,000 years.

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©2014 Anders Tomlinson, all rights reserved.