The latest crop production report has USDA factoring in record corn and soybean crops, even though states like Ohio had weather extremes this growing season.
Perfect conditions in northwest Ohio help finish an imperfect growing season.
“I don’t think you can beat a day like this,” said Fred Pond of Scott, Ohio. “You have a full sun, a nice breeze. The crop is drying out nice. It’s perfect fall weather for harvest.”
It’s quite different from the weather extremes this season: a planting date that was too wet to a July which was bone dry.
“We only received around one inch of rain the whole month of July,” said Keith Schroeder of Defiance, Ohio. “Plus, it was warm. The corn crop went through some stress.”
It was the wrong time to stress corn. That stress is still showing.
“The corn is going to be below average,” said Pond. “Corn is 110 to 130 bushels per acre in places. It was just too dry too early for corn.”
“I haven’t been in our corn much,” said Schroeder. “It will be average or maybe a little below average.”
Both farmers say August and September brought good moisture, coming just in time to produce a bean crop.
“Our yields are above average,” said Schroeder. “They are not going to be a record bean harvest, but it’s probably one of my top three or four bean crops I’ve ever had.”
“Depending on your location, a lot of soybean {yields} are making in the sixties,” said Pond. “I’ve had some areas in the 40s {for bushel per acre} depending on what got rain.”
During a year when nationally soybean yields are large, this ‘problem area’ isn’t doing too bad.
“If it rains in August, you get good beans,” says Schroeder.
Farmers are wishing these nice harvest days stick around in an area cutting through multiple years of rocky weather.
“It’s nice harvest weather,” said Schroeder. “With bean yields being good, it’s been real nice.”
“We’ve had two rough years on our corn here,” said Pond. “When you couple that with lower market prices, it’s been tough on guys here raising corn in Northwest Ohio. Corn is below average. It’s still better than last year when virtually everyone was living off insurance checks.”
Both farmers say Ohio is still very variable. Schroeder says the area 20 miles west of him caught some nice rains and is having a better crop.
