The rates reported in this publication are based on survey results from Ohio farmers. The rates shown may differ significantly by local region depending on availability of custom operators and demand for their services. See ESO 2341, Ohio Farm Machinery Economic Cost Estimates for 1996, for an alternate approach to estimating machinery costs.
*Reported for the 1995 year.
The cooperation and assistance of farmers and county agricultural extension agents is most appreciated.
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soil Preparation | Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Stalk Chopping | acre | $7.00 | $5.00 - | 12.00 |
| Moldboard Plow | acre | 12.00 | 9.00 - | 16.00 |
| Disk Plow | acre | 10.00 | 6.00 - | 15.00 |
| Chisel Plow | acre | 10.00 | 7.00 - | 15.00 |
| Drag | acre | 6.00 | 5.00 - | 10.00 |
| Disk | acre | 8.00 | 5.00 - | 10.00 |
| Disk and Drag or Harrow | acre | 8.00 | 6.00 - | 12.00 |
| Harrow | acre | 7.00 | 5.00 - | 10.00 |
| Field Cultivator | acre | 7.00 | 5.00 - | 12.00 |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Planting (Cost of seed or materials not included) |
Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Corn or Soybeans | ||||
| Row Planter - Conventional | ||||
| Seed Only | acre | 10.00 | 7.00 - | 15.00 |
| Seed and Fertilizer | acre | 12.00 | 7.00 - | 15.00 |
| Seed, Fertilizer, Chemicals | acre | 15.00 | 9.00 - | 20.00 |
| Row Planter - No Till | ||||
| Seed Only | acre | 12.00 | 9.00 - | 16.00 |
| Seed and Fertilizer | acre | 14.00 | 9.00 - | 20.00 |
| Seed, Fertilizer, Chemicals | acre | 15.00 | 10.00 - | 22.00 |
| Soybeans | ||||
| Drill (7") | ||||
| Seed Only (Conventional) | acre | 10.00 | 6.00 - | 12.00 |
| Seed Only (No-Till) | acre | 12.00 | 6.00 - | 20.00 |
| Small Grains | ||||
| Drill (7") | ||||
| Grain Only (Conventional) | acre | 10.00 | $6.00 - | 20.00 |
| Grain Only (No-Till) | acre | 12.00 | 6.00 - | 20.00 |
| Grain and Grass Seed | acre | 13.50 | 6.00 - | 15.00 |
| Grass Seed | ||||
| Grain Drill | acre | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Packwheel Drill | acre | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Broadcast | acre | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fertilizer Application (Cost of materials not included) |
Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Dry Bulk | acre | 3.50 | 2.00 - | 8.00 |
| Liquid | acre | 4.00 | 3.00 - | 8.00 |
| Anhydrous | acre | 8.00 | 5.00 - | 15.00 |
| Lime | acre | 6.00 | 3.00 - | 17.50 |
| Rental of Dry Bulk Applicator | acre | 3.50 | 2.50 - | 8.00 |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weed Control | Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Mechanical | ||||
| Rotary Hoe | acre | 4.50 | 3.00 - | 6.00 |
| Cultivation, Conventional | acre | 6.00 | 4.00 - | 8.00 |
| Chemical (Weed or Pest Control) (Cost of materials not included) | ||||
| Spraying Ground | acre | 4.50 | 3.75 - | 8.00 |
| Aerial Application | acre | 6.00 | 4.00 - | 7.00 |
| Rope Wick | acre | 5.00 | 3.25 - | 18.00 |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hay Harvest | Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Mowing | acre | 7.00 | 6.00 - | 15.00 |
| Mowing/Conditioning | acre | 9.00 | 6.00 - | 15.00 |
| Raking | acre | 5.00 | 4.00 - | 7.00 |
| Bale Hay or Straw (40-50#) | ||||
| Dropped on Ground | bale | .35 | .24 - | .52 |
| Loaded on Wagon | bale | .40 | .30 - | .70 |
| Haul to Storage (add) | bale | .20 | .10 - | .35 |
| Large Round Bale | ||||
| Left in Field (600 - 1000#) | bale | 6.00 | 4.00 - | 10.00 |
| Left in Field (1200 - 2000#) | bale | 7.00 | 5.00 - | 12.00 |
| Bale and Haul from Field (600 - 1000#) | bale | 10.00 | 6.00 - | 12.00 |
| Move Large Bale or Stack | bale/stack | 2.00 | 1.50 - | 5.00 |
| Complete Hay Harvest (mow, rake, bale, store) | ||||
| Share of Crop | percent | 55% | 50 - | 75% |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grain Harvest* | Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Combine Corn | acre | 22.00 | 16.00 - | 30.00 |
| Combine Soybeans | acre | 21.00 | 15.00 - | 28.00 |
| Combine Small Grain | acre | 20.00 | 15.00 - | 25.00 |
| Corn Picker | acre | 18.00 | 12.00 - | 20.00 |
| *Typically furnished 1 man and 2 wagons or trucks and hauled grain 9 miles or less. | ||||
| Grain Drying | ||||
| 20 to 14% | bushel | .15 | .12 - | .20 |
| 25 to 14% | bushel | .24 | .18 - | .32 |
| Grain Storage | ||||
| Initial Take-In Charge plus 1 Month | bushel | .065 | .04 - | .16 |
| Take-In Plus 4 Months | bushel | .14 | .10 - | .20 |
| Storage Charge Per Month | bushel | .03 | .015 - | .05 |
| Hauling Grain | ||||
| Farm to Market (10-25 mi.) | bushel | .10 | .04 - | .24 |
| Field to Farm | bushel | .10 | .02 - | .12 |
| Corn Silage (chop, haul, fill) | ton | 4.00 | 3.00 - | 6.00 |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tile Installation | Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Ditching | foot | .22 | .12 - | .50 |
| Backfilling | foot | .05 | .04 - | .15 |
| Complete Installation - 4" Plastic Tile | foot | .45 | .16 - | .85 |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hired Labor | Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Machinery Operation | hour | 7.25 | 6.00 - | 25.00 |
| General Labor | hour | 6.00 | 5.00 - | 11.50 |
| General Farm Labor | month | 1,700 | 1,200 - | 2,800 |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other | Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Bush Hogging | $/acre | 10.00 | 7.00 - | 25.00 |
| Building Fence (No materials) | $/hour | 13.50 | 7.00 - | 30.00 |
| Grinding Feed | cwt. | .55 | .35 - | .80 |
| Income Tax Preparation | $ | 325.00 | 75.00 - | 1800.00 |
| Accounting and Tax Preparation | $ | 650.00 | 150.00 - | 2000.00 |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Custom Farming All machinery operations for growing and harvesting |
Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Corn | acre | 65.00 | 50.00 - | 100.00 |
| Soybeans | acre | 60.00 | 45.00 - | 100.00 |
| Small Grain | acre | 50.00 | 40.00 - | 85.00 |
| Operation | Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equipment Rental | Unit | Typical | Range | |
| Tractors (100-150 horsepower) | hour | 25.00 | 15.00 - | 35.00 |
| Tractors (Over 150 horsepower) | hour | 40.00 | 30.00 - | 65.00 |
| Combine (20 ft. or 6 row) | acre | 20.00 | 15.00 - | 90.00 |
| Corn Planter (6 row, No-Till) | acre | 10.00 | 8.00 - | 20.00 |
| Grain Drill (14 ft., No-Till) | acre | 10.00 | 7.00 - | 15.00 |
| Bobcat Loader | day | 100.00 | 50.00 - | 150.00 |
| Custom Rates Typically Charged for Selected Operations By Regions, Ohio, 1995 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operation | Unit | State | NW | NE | SW | SE |
| Plant Corn or Beans | ||||||
| No-Till, Seed Only | acre | 12.00 | 12.00 | 15.00 | 12.00 | 13.00 |
| No-Till, Seed and Fertilizer | acre | 15.00 | 14.00 | 15.00 | 14.00 | 15.00 |
| Combining | ||||||
| Small Grain | acre | 20.00 | 20.00 | 20.00 | 20.00 | 22.00 |
| Soybeans | acre | 21.00 | 20.00 | 22.50 | 20.00 | 22.00 |
| Corn | acre | 22.00 | 20.00 | 23.50 | 20.00 | 24.50 |
| Typical Acreage Custom Work Hired or Performed By Respondents, 1995 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Operation | Unit | Hired | Performed |
| Plowing | acre | 30 | 100 |
| Planting | acre | 165 | 275 |
| Spraying | acre | 250 | 985 |
| Fertilize | acre | 300 | 610 |
| Combine Grain | acre | 100 | 220 |
| Combine Corn | acre | 65 | 325 |
| Haul Grain | bushel | 10,000 | 35,000 |
| Chop Silage | acres | 8 | 110 |
| Custom Farm | acres | -- | 120 |
All educational programs conducted by Ohio State University Extension are available to clientele on a nondiscriminatory basis without regard to race, color, creed, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, gender, age, disability or Vietnam-era veteran status.
Keith L. Smith, Associate Vice President for Ag. Adm. and Director, OSU Extension.
TDD No. 800-589-8292 (Ohio only) or 614-292-1868