buy next years inputs?

It may be ridiculous. But money in the bank doesn't earn anything. I will probably buy next years major inputs before years end anyhow.
How might this weather disaster effect fert. prices? I can get a little better price right now than I did last fall. And I don't want to get stupid and think I can afford a piece of machinery, then not have a crop this year to buy next years supplies!

ive personaly never seen fertilizer prices not go up in spring.buyin now is probably a good idea in my opinion.

Probably not a bad idea. The salesman was just here recently and he said the suppliers in general are not going to back off their prices. Those that can afford will buy and those who can not afford will have to figure out an alternative. There were years where I paid interest to the bank to the end of the business year because it would have to be paid then or when the next installment was due. Not a bad idea to address the things you know will be there that needs to be paid. If this year is a bonanza then maybe you could look at equipment. My practice right now is to buy very little in terms of equipment on financing.
I don't know how your crops are faring but since the hot spell my crops actually look better and very well could hit top yields yet. My theory is that the extreme heat sweated moisture up from the subsoil that normally would not be moved up if the temperature was cooler or the crop had canopied. The early beans will probably be fully canopied within the next week to week and a half.

it can work that way if you have enough subsoil moisture. problem where i am is that most of that moisture is even gone now. Im seriously considering just turning up my most marginal ground into lister rows and leaving it fallow.maybe catch some moisture over the winter i can hold till spring. havent winter fallowed a field since i was a kid,but im considering it. this grounds not much anyway,and with it this dry and no moisture as deep as you can dig,i dont know if its worth even the seed money.depend on the next few weeks i guess.

Normally the subsoil here is pretty tight to expect much upper movement of moisture or that it had retained much from winter. Some tile drains are back filled when installed with sandy loam soil (from ditch bank spoil) in key low spots to improve water percolation down to the tile.

I would hold off for right now. I have a good friend that is a merchandise purchaser at one of the large multi-national grain guys. HE buys salt and fertilizer for a five state area. He is not buying right now. The whole Ag sector is too volatile right now for any type of major purchase. I don't think you are going to be able to out guess the big guys.

Also I learned a long time ago that the local fertilizer guy is the last one to talk to about when to purchase. First off he has no "skin" in the game. He will not stand behind anything he told you. If fertilizer prices go down or up he will be the last guy to know about it. Second, he is paid with some type of commission included. So he wants to sell to you anytime and place. Kind of like asking the fox to guard the hen house.

Plus there are tax reasons to hold off. Your income is going to be down so you don't really need the deductions this year. Hopefully next year will be better so then you will need the deductions.

You actually are not buying your inputs unless you are taking delivery. So if you are just pre-paying the local supplier then you are taking a risk. IF that supplier has financial difficulties then you are an unsecured creditor. Quite a few farmers lost big money here about five years ago when a local Coop went belly up. They did not get their inputs and it took them three years to get 40% of their money back.

I have boughten next year's fertilizer before. I have it delivered when I buy it. A couple of concrete bays in an old barn will hold all of my dry fertilizer for the next year. I have tanks to hold my 28% nitrogen if I want to buy early. I don't use anhydrous too dangerous for me plus makes your ground like concrete. I am not going to trust any company with that kind of money to just hold. I have seen some guys get really reamed by pre-paying inputs and also delayed pricing of grain. Both are games the Coops/suppliers make money on.