Back in '79-'82 I worked at a W. R. Grace fertilizer plant in New Albany, IN [there's a Wal-Mart Supercenter today where the plant used to be]. I thought that, even with the Carter recession coming on, that farmers would still have to buy their fertilizer.
Wrong.
Even after the Farm Bureau fertilizer plant in Indianapolis burned, and we started bagging for FB, our business volume steadily decreased. Of course, a lot of small farmers lost their farms in the early '80's--enough so that Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp actually noticed--so I suppose that a lot of farmers still put out their crops, but with a lot less fertilizer than they'd previously used.
In '79, I worked as a "seasonal" employee from March until August, and then again from October until just before Christmas. Each year thereafter, the business sagged, and I worked fewer weeks. In 1982, I worked 6 weeks total at Grace...and yes, it WAS a union job, and I had seniority over newer workers.
But when fertilizer prices or other economic conditions drive farmers to extremes, my impression is that farmers just cut back on the amount of fertilizer they use...or they finally give up and sell out.
We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today. [ About Us ]
Today's Featured Article - Third Brush Generators - by Chris Pratt. While I love straightening sheet metal, cleaning, and painting old tractors, I use every excuse to avoid working on the on the electrics. I find the whole process sheer mystery. I have picked up and attempted to read every auto and farm electrics book with no improvement in the situation. They all seem to start with a chapter entitled "Theory of Electricity". After a few paragraphs I usually close the book and go back to banging out dents. A good friend and I were recently discussing our tractor electrical systems when he stated "I figure it all comes back to applying Ohms Law". At this point
... [Read Article]
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy
TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.
