Counties of: Buena Vista, Cherokee, Clay, Dickinson, Lyon, O’Brien, Osceola, Plymouth, Sioux
August weather was mostly beneficial to crops. All of NW Iowa had above average rainfall and normal to below normal temps. In fact, looking at the past 5 years (2014 to 2018), our August weather has been somewhat cool and wet each of those years, and it’s no coincidence that each of those years also had relatively good crops. My only complaint is that it seems we’ve also had a lot of cloudy days (and smoke)this month, which obviously reduces solar radiation levels needed for plants to make energy. This is probably a small factor in the big picture, but still notable.
Most corn is well into the dent stage and will start drying from the top of the cob down. The kernel weight is still being determined. This corn crop is generally ahead of normal schedule, which should give it plenty of time to dry before harvest. Also a normal freeze date is not a concern this year. Yields should be good infields that have good drainage and didn’t run short of nitrogen fertilizer. Areas that had extreme rain fall amounts and flooding in May and June will generally have reduced yields.
Soybeans look very good. Some of the early maturity beans are just starting to turn yellow. We are about three weeks from harvest, depending on the weather. This is about normal schedule. Yields are not yet determined. The pods especially at the tops of plants are still developing. Drainage is even more important for good soybean yields this year. I expect most farms with good drainage that were able to get the beans planted on time should have very good yields.
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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