A New Coat of Paint

Written by: Dan Anco

What you are about to read (or not read) is based on a true story—a story about painting. Be at ease, though, and take comfort; no ears of corn nor ears of men were harmed in the making of this story, at least not in the likeness of that of van Gogh or Orville Redenbacher.

Why, pray tell, painting, and what usefulness could this have for peanuts? Well, we recently painted my daughter’s room, and the memory is still somewhat fresh upon my mind. As far as relating it to peanuts, I’ll try to draw a few similarities without resorting to complete ridiculousness. This column is a little different approach for me, since I normally like to reference numbers from our data and research results. Directness certainly has its appeal in immediacy and tangible utility. It can require an intentional, and sometimes against-nature, pause to be slow to speak, but doing so often brings improvements I won’t take another tangent to explain. Sometimes the indirect route has greater long-term value. Forty years in the wilderness was a patient and powerful purification of a generation.

To start with, I am no Michelangelo. We did manage to get more paint on the walls than on the carpet, so we’ll count that as a small victory. There was also something satisfying about watching the roller loaded with green paint stay on the wall and not launch friendly fire onto the ceiling, which had become a clean white canvas just two days earlier. Had we allowed the paint to wander outside its lane, it would not have been unlike a rotation year where unmanaged peanut volunteers blur what should have been a clean break between host crops. In both situations, we have options to wipe up mistakes or spot-treat problems. While it was good to finish painting the room, it was even better to keep a commitment and involve the children in the work along the way.

I was thankful to receive—and follow—my dad’s advice about not using painter’s tape. I liked the idea of having that extra safeguard against mistakes, but in this situation it wasn’t necessary and would have required its own investment of time to apply correctly. I probably would have spent as much time getting the tape right as it took to simply be careful with the brush. Skipping the tape didn’t mean throwing caution aside. The brush still needed a steady hand and not too much paint.

Taking the time to ensure proper calibration is a worthwhile investment, not only the time required to calibrate equipment but also the discipline to operate using that calibration. That principle applies from planting all the way through harvest. When conditions line up and many fields reach optimum maturity at the same time, it can feel like being handed a brush overloaded with paint and having nowhere easy to remove the excess. Balancing acreage, maturity, and equipment capacity certainly helps, but field conditions can quickly alter even the best-laid plans.

Different situations often call for different approaches. When we painted the ceiling, it would have been more precise to continually move the ladder so I could carefully cut in every few feet. Instead, rather than buying another gadget, I simply secured a paintbrush to the end of a pole with three rubber bands. That saved nearly a dozen trips up and down the ladder while accomplishing the same job. There was less risk because the walls would later be painted, covering any imperfections along the edge.

In a very general sense, I think peanut management works much the same way. Field history, planting date, variety selection, disease resistance, management practices, and the conditions of a particular season all come together to influence how we respond to opportunities and challenges. Sometimes a simple solution is entirely adequate. Other times, a more comprehensive approach is needed. Preventive management of diseases, insects, and weeds often falls into that category, and taking good notes while asking plenty of questions helps sort through the available options. At the same time, as new technologies and products become available, it’s important to distinguish between data that supports their effectiveness and marketing that simply supports their sale.

Surprises, adjustments, and weather beyond our control are woven into every growing season. Even so, remembering past faithfulness helps put each year into perspective, and valuable lessons often come from circumstances we never would have chosen. Looking back, if I had taken a little more time to measure the room before buying paint, I probably could have avoided an extra trip to the store after running out. All things considered, though, that extra trip turned out to be a blessing. It provided fresh air and a break from the paint fumes. It was better than my original plan.

May the season ahead be covered with grace and provide many good things to remember, even if the path there seems to meander a little.