Kent's Korner for December 1999

TSM Logo December 1999

Kent's Korner

By Kent Durbin, President
TSM Services, Inc.

Here it is the first part of December and we have not had any snow. In fact, we will be faced today with sunshine and 60-degree weather. Where have our winters gone? I may want to wait to make remarks like this because Mother Nature has ways of making up for lost time.

This fall has been a record setting fall for us. We processed over 62,000 acres in October and over 76,000 acres in November. Usually, our work tapers off around Thanksgiving but it didn't taper off this year. For all of this we are extremely thankful.

Another record was set this season. Our research plots yielded the highest yields ever. As I was reviewing this data (which is included in this issue of the newsletter), two important things stood out:

Over the last 8 years, the TOTAL SOIL MANAGEMENT^® outyielded all other fertility programs 89% of the time. (the lowest we have ever been was 84% in 1992 and the highest we have ever been was 93% in 1994) These tests include several universities (Illinois, Purdue, Ohio State, Michigan State, Iowa State, Penn State, Missouri and others). When you offer your customers our fertility programs (Total Soil Management^® and Head Start), you are assured of the best there is!
Over the last 7 years, we have "fine-tuned" our recommendations to a point that 100 pounds more fertilizer than we recommend or 100 pounds less than we recommend will reduce yield. Here is the proof: (7 year average)
- TSM E Budget 1 179 dry bushels of corn/acre
- TSM A Budget 2 174 dry bushels of corn/acre (-5 Bu/a)
- TSM I Budget 3 169 dry bushels of corn/acre (-10 Bu/a)

1 TSM E Budget is the equivalent of MEY (maximum economic yield)
2 TSM A Budget is 100 pounds of fertilizer more than the TSM E budget
3 TSM I Budget is 100 pounds less than the TSM E budget

Did you get the real meaning of what I said above? We have the recommendations so well defined that 100 pounds more than what we recommend will on the average lower your yield 5 bushels of corn per acre. And even worse than this, if you put on less than we recommend, you can easily lose 10 bushels of corn per acre. WOW! Do we have it figured out?

Perhaps even another record is being set. We have the highest number of prospective dealers looking into what we do right now than ever before. The future is looking very good. Again, for this we are very thankful.

The manure processing projects I have been working with are all still viable and progressing on. It still is my goal to have product for you this spring. We will be starting our training efforts this winter on how this processed or composted manure product can be used properly. The product will be 3/16 inch in diameter and will blend with your other fertilizer materials. I will be discussing this topic at our Winter Conferences. So be sure and sign up. If you are a non-TSM^® dealer, you may sign up also and be our guest. It's all free and you will receive CCA credits. We will be having some additional regional meetings for the new non-TSM^® dealers. You will be contacted individually for invitations to these meetings. Remember that you will have the market exclusivity to our products and programs.

I know that the farm economy is not as good as we would like it. I still recommend that if you are having trouble meeting your cash flow needs or if you have customers who are having these problems, the ALMS GROUP, Inc. could easily be your answer. It does not cost you anything to make a connection with these people. Call George Hoherz at 1-319-269-2567 or 1-319-269-2203 mobile and see what they can do for you. Their services are geared to help you where you need the help and take your personal needs very seriously. Call them today and say, "Durbin sent me!" I will not be responsible for the results you will get for saying that!

I have had some calls on what has happened to our new program called "TSM^® 2000"? This program will revolutionize all fertility programs. With the economic times that we face today in the farming community along with some uncertainties ahead, we have put this program on the back burner for awhile. This program will be coming up again soon, we hope.

Looking forward to seeing you at the Winter Conferences. Be sure and fill out the questionnaire on topics you want us to cover at the conferences. You will receive a nice prize for returning it.