Crop Conditions
Some corn took a beating this week, but it still has a lot of yield potential. Also, register for our Farm Journal Corn & Soybean College. We have all new agronomic topics to help you harvest more grain this fall!
The core of the Corn Belt is forecast to see above normal temperatures and below normal rain next week, and it could hit as the crop is in prime pollination with 50% of U.S. corn planted in a two-week period in May.
Corn and soybean yield potential took another hit across the U.S. this past week, according to the USDA Crop Progress Report.
Nebraska farmers have faced various challenges this spring and which may cut into yield prospects for the 2022 season.
The 70% in the good-to-excellent rating for the U.S. corn crop is two percentage points lower than last week’s 72%.
Record-breaking heat. Unprecedented flooding. Hail that proved to be devastating to corn fields in Nebraska. The extreme weather can all be attributed to a ridge of high pressure parked over the country.
Nearly 80% of the corn crop has emerged and 73% has a condition rating of good or excellent.
Less than 50% of the continental U.S. is in moderate drought for the first time since November, but with another drought record still running strong, forecasts show drought could grow over the summer months.
After a historically slow start, corn and soybean planting progress have both reached average paces.
It’s crunch time for farmers in the northwestern corn belt that are facing prevent plant decisions...due to excessive rains that have delayed planting.
Pay attention to the low-lying areas, sandier soils and no-till fields and scout soybeans to evaluate stands and determine final plant population, advises Missy Bauer, Farm Journal Field Agronomist.
We spoke with three weather experts this week to gauge when the best time is to press “start” on planting, what to expect this growing season and how you can use weather as a chess piece in your marketing plans.
USDA’s first Crop Progress Report of the year showed only 27% of the nation’s winter wheat crop is rated “good,” far below the trade’s expectations. The numbers show the battle against drought is brutal in winter wheat.
Colorado farmer Brian Brooks thinks 80% of the dryland winter wheat in his area may not survive, as some acres didn’t even sprout. Prevent plant for spring may be his only option without moisture in the coming weeks.
AgResource Company released the latest soybean crop production estimate for Brazil, showing a crop size of 119.5 MMT. A recent crop tour shows the weather took a major toll on the crop in the Southern portion.
Markets Consolidate as US Harvest Nears Completion
Make adjustments to your combine now to get more yield out of the field before more corn goes down and molds set in.
Export Sales Fall Within Expectations, But Lower on the Week
As the Great Plains see plunging temperatures this week, one meteorologist thinks crops in the core of the Corn Belt escaped major damage thanks to constant cloud cover. However, livestock producers may not be so lucky.
According to USDA’s latest Crop Progress report, 60% of the U.S. corn crop is rated good to excellent, unchanged from last week. Illinois corn conditions continue to improve each week.
The National Weather Service shows isolated areas of Iowa saw more than 20 inches of rain during the month of August. But with much of the summer and month being dry for northeast Iowa, the change was a sudden switch.
100 mph winds were clocked in Oelwein, Iowa, which is located northeast of Waterloo. Chip Flory says driving through the damage, he describes fields and infrastructure damaged in northeast Iowa on Tuesday.
Scouts saw drought damage instead of derecho devastation in eastern and north-central portions of Iowa on the Pro Farmer Crop Tour this year. Minnesota was much the same, with fields showing clear signs of stress.
Pro Farmer scouts pegged the Indiana average yield estimate at 193.48 bu. per acre on Tuesday, just slightly below USDA’s prediction of 194 bu. per acre.
The latest Crop Progress report put the corn crop this week at 62% good to excellent, a two-point drop in a week. Soybean conditions dropped 3% across the country, now sitting at 57% rated good to excellent.
As scouts set out on the 2021 Pro Farmer Crop Tour Monday they got a soggy start, a good sign for soybeans in August. While Ohio did not disappoint, South Dakota showed scars from the drought with a mature crop.
Drought conditions continue to plague portions of the Western Corn Belt, but in the East, it’s a much different story with Ohio farmers potentially sitting on an above average crop.
Pro Farmer Crop Tour is hitting the fields starting Monday, with a week of roughly 100 scouts capturing more samples across 2,000 fields. The scouts will work their way toward Rochester, Minnesota by Thursday.
On August 17, Pro Farmer scouts will be walking Illinois corn and soybean fields checking crop conditions and making annual yield projections.
Drought is deepening in Nebraska, but corn and soybean crops are hanging tough so far.