Counties of: Buena Vista, Cherokee, Clay, Dickinson, Lyon, O’Brien, Osceola, Plymouth, Sioux
All of NW Iowa remains in Moderate to Extreme Drought as classified by the U.S. Drought Monitor. Rainfall amounts in July were not evenly distributed. Areas with less rain are showing more stress. Hot temperatures add to crop stress. Recently, temperatures have moderated, but the forecast calls for heat returning and possibly sticking around. Long-range forecasts show a warm August with below average rainfall chances.
Corn is showing minor drought stress, especially in light soils. Pollination will be largely finished this week. Despite the warm, dry weather, most corn fields continue to look good. Weather conditions over the next month or so will greatly impact kernel weight. Stress during this time can cause fertilized corn kernels to abort, tip back ears, shallow kernels, and poor test weight. Modern hybrids are very good at resisting drought stress, so don’t give up on this crop yet.
Soybeans will soon start their most important time period for determining yield. They are now blooming and making pods. New growth may be limited by dry conditions. By mid-August soybeans will shift energy more to filling pods. We need a few good rains between now and the end of August to make a respectable soybean crop. We are starting to find low numbers of soybean aphids, which can be a serious pest in August (especially in drought years). Many fields may need sprayed with an insecticide over the next few weeks.
Please click on the links on the right to view the past pdf’s of our Northwest Crop Conditions reports.
1705 N Lake Ave
Storm Lake, IA 50588
Real Estate Licensed in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and South Dakota.
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