Iowa soybean harvest nearly complete as rain delays field work again

Farmers had a slow start to harvest in Iowa following an abnormally wet September that kept combines parked. The first week of November was also unseasonably wet, leaving farmers less than two days suitable for field work, according to the latest crop progress and condition report.

The weekly report, published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture marked 72% of Iowa corn acres had been harvested as of the Nov. 2 through Nov. 8 reporting period. The five-year average pace shows normally 89% of corn acres have been harvested by this reporting period. 

Soybeans, on the other hand, are just slightly behind the five-year average, with a reported 93% of acres harvested.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said in a news release that dry weather in the upcoming forecast should give farmers a “good opportunity to make another strong push toward wrapping up harvest.”

“A wet start to November slowed harvest progress across Iowa, but cooler and drier conditions over the weekend helped get combines rolling again,” Naig said in a statement. “Soybean harvest is nearing completion, and farmers continue to make steady progress on the remaining corn crop.”

State Climatologist Justin Glisan reported that the statewide average precipitation for the reporting period was 1.47 inches, which was more than triple the normal precipitation average for the period. 

Glisan reported most of the rain events hit at the beginning of the week, with high precipitation amounts, more than three inches at some stations, reported Nov. 4. 

“More than 250 stations reported at least an inch with a statewide average of 1.24 inches,” Glisan wrote of the Wednesday night storms in his weekly weather report. 

Topsoil moisture rated 27% surplus during the reporting period, according to USDA, and subsoil moisture condition rated 18% surplus. 

In addition to above average precipitation, Glisan reported higher than normal temperatures during the reporting period. The statewide average temperature of 49.5 degrees Fahrenheit was nearly 8 degrees above the normal.

The warmer, wetter weather conditions are consistent with forecasts from climatologists following “super” El Niño conditions at the equator. 

According to the Iowa Environmental Mesonet, soil temperatures across the state are in the low 50s and upper 40s, as of Monday.