harvest has a way of creating urgency
There’s weather coming. Another field is ready. Trucks are waiting. Daylight is disappearing. And after a long day in the cab, it’s tempting to save a minute wherever you can.
But some minutes aren’t worth saving.
As National Farm Safety and Health Week comes to a close, it’s a good reminder that safety doesn’t end with Safety Week. It matters every day of harvest.
Slow Down Around Equipment
Before clearing a plug, making an adjustment or working around moving parts, shut equipment down completely. Keep guards and shields in place and take the extra few seconds to walk around equipment rather than stepping over moving components.
Those few seconds are always worth it.
Don’t Let Fatigue Make Decisions for You
Harvest means long days and late nights. Fatigue can affect concentration and reaction time, so build in breaks, stay hydrated and recognize when you’re too tired to safely keep pushing.
The crop will still be there after you rest.
Stay Visible on the Road
Harvest puts more combines, tractors, grain carts and trucks on rural roads — often early in the morning or after dark.
Before heading out, make sure lights, signals, reflectors and slow-moving vehicle emblems are clean and visible. Give other drivers plenty of warning when turning and remember that large equipment comes with large blind spots.
And for everyone sharing the road this fall: slow down, be patient and give farm equipment room.
Keep Everyone in the Loop
Whether you’re harvesting alone or with a crew, make sure someone knows where you’re working. Communicate when equipment is moving between fields and take extra care when children and family members are around the operation.
Harvest is one of the most rewarding times of the year. It can also be one of the busiest.
So take the extra minute. Shut it down. Look twice. Get some rest.
Because no bushel is worth risking the people who make harvest possible.
From all of us at Latham Seeds, have a safe and successful harvest.