Well, harvest time is upon us again. In this area we are mostly busy with beans, beets, corn and hay. But sometimes while sitting for hours in the chopper, digger, combine or truck, a person might wonder what is going on in the rest of the world. For instance, what are they harvesting out
in Minnesota?
It’s nice that you asked, because now I can tell you. Among other things, Minnesota is a leading producer of rice. I know that sounds about as exciting as watching paint dry, but believe it or not, rice is kind of cool. First of all, it is grown in rice paddies, which are just small lakes, so when they harvest they use combines that can go through the water. I watched a video and it looked much nicer than a hot, sweaty, dusty wheat field in July.

Down in Georgia, they’re getting the peanuts out. Although it’s known as the peach state, Georgia produces almost half the peanuts grown in the U.S. Their harvesters look a lot like our dry
bean combines.
Indiana produces a lot of corn and soybeans. But did you know they also raise tobacco, tomatoes, mint and potatoes? Yep, it doesn’t all come out of California.
And down south they are picking cotton. In Arizona alone, they produce enough cotton to make a pair of jeans for every single person in the U.S. Add the deep south states like Texas, Louisiana and Alabama, among others, and you have a whole lot of cotton. And that’s good because the world needs a whole lot of jeans.
So there you go, something to think about while you’re harvesting. Even when things are tense or boring or hot or cold, remember that it’s going on all over the country. And it’s a sure bet that things get tense or boring or hot or cold no matter what you’re harvesting.