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Storing Grain
2/24/2005
Ron F. Meyer
Area Extension Agent
(Agronomy)
Colorado State University Extension
Golden Plains
Area |
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If you’re planning to hold grain in farm storage for a time,
it’s important to clean and prepare bins in advance to maintain and
protect initial grain quality.
In Colorado, insect problems in stored
grain originate from infested grain trapped in harvesting equipment, or in the
bin itself. Proper equipment and bin preparation can help ensure that
grain quality is maintained during crop storage.
Cleaning bins,
equipment
Grain harvesting and handling equipment such as combines and
augers must be thoroughly cleaned so that insect-damaged or moldy grain is not
dumped into the first new grain passing through the equipment. Carefully
inspect and remove all traces of old grain from combines, truck beds, grain
carts, augers, and any other equipment used for harvesting, transporting, and
handling grain. Clean grain bins thoroughly, disposing of spilled,
cracked and broken grain and grain flour, along with the insects feeding on
this material.
Around the bins, be sure to remove old equipment, junk
and clutter to reduce attractiveness to insects and rodents. Make sure
that the bin is insect- and rodent-proofed by plugging holes, sealing bins,
caulking and making general repairs. Grain spilled near the bin attracts
insects and draws mice and rats. Clean up and dispose of any spilled
grain a few weeks before harvest. If rats have tunneled under
foundations, use baits or traps to reduce or eliminate them.
Tall weeds
can harbor insects and provide cover for rodents. Mow around the bin site
to remove tall grass and weeds to reduce the potential for insect and rodent
infestation.
Treating empty bins
Once empty bins have been
thoroughly cleaned, a residual treatment may be applied to bin surfaces to
protect incoming grain from insect infestation. Follow label instructions
carefully. The following materials can be applied as residual sprays to
wheat bin surfaces; silicone dioxide, silica gel plus pyrethrins, pyrethrins,
malathion and diatomaceous earth. Note that pyrethrins would provide a
relatively short residual and that malathion is not effective for some stored
grain insects due to resistance.
Grain storage and
temperature
After cleaning the bins and equipment, the next step is to
ensure the grain quality going into storage. It must be clean, sound and
dry and it’s essential that it be relatively free of fines (cracked
grain), trash and foreign material.
Stored grain insects cannot live on
extremely dry grain (less than 10% moisture), however it is impractical to
reduce grain moisture much below minimum moisture levels necessary for
long-term storage. The safe storage moisture level for wheat is about
13%, corn 15%, and sunflower 10%. Insect activity and reproduction are
favored by high grain moisture, especially when condensation and molds occur
and fermentation raises the grain temperature. Spoilage and internal
heating allow insects to remain active – even in winter.
Proper bin
aeration can help manage grain temperature. Since insects are
“cold-blooded”, they are less active in lower temperatures.
Maintaining “cool” grain can be particularly important in reducing
insect reproduction. Condensation of moisture in the grain mass is
prevented by slow cooling and gradual reduction of the difference between the
grain temperature and the outside average air temperature.
Typical
harvest temperatures may produce a grain mass that starts off at 95°F or
higher. In a 1994 study, Kansas entomologists found that proper aeration
and cooling after harvest could eliminate the need for grain protectants
(insecticides) in many cases.
Source: “Crop Watch”, University
of Nebraska |
Page Created and Maintained by: Perry D. Brewer, Area
Extension Agent (Technology Education/Youth)
2/25/2005 |
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Colorado
State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Kit Carson, Phillips,
Washington and Yuma counties cooperating. Extension programs are
available to all without discrimination. Where trade names are used, no
discrimination is intended and no endorsement by Colorado State University
Extension is implied. |
