With drier weather, farmers make some progress on harvest

After an incredibly wet September with just a handful of days suitable for field work, the first full week of October brought drier, warmer conditions that allowed farmers to make some progress on corn and soybean harvests.

According to the crop progress and condition report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 14% of Iowa corn acres and 31% of Iowa soybean acres were harvested as of the Oct. 5 through Oct. 11 reporting period. 

The corn and soybean harvest percentages represent a big increase from the single-digit amounts in the week prior, but are still well behind the five-year average pace. According to the report, 59% of soybean acres and 34% of corn acres have typically been harvested by this period. 

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said that while farmers had drier conditions during the reporting period, many are still having to “battle wet field conditions.”

“Farmers took advantage of last week’s warm, mostly dry weather to get combines rolling and make significant harvest progress,” Naig said in a statement. “With more favorable weather in the forecast, we expect another busy week as farmers keep combines moving, seed cover crops and tackle other fall farm work.”

Despite the rainy conditions and longer time in the field, corn and soybean crops are still in good condition, according to the report which rated corn 71% good to excellent, and soybeans 69% good to excellent. 

Wade Boehm, a row-crop farmer based near Colfax, said he had heard of some mold issues in soybeans and he suspected some of his corn had sprouted, but his acres were still too wet to really get out and harvest as of Oct. 6. 

“We’re anxious to get out there and see,” Boehm said. “So far the corn is respectable – for what it’s been through.” 

Boehm, speaking Oct. 6 following an event with U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, said his farm got more than a foot of rain at the beginning of July, then flooded again in the middle of the month. Then the state had one of its wettest Septembers on record when Boehm said he normally has nice dry conditions to start on harvest and to work on calving for his cattle herd. 

“Just a normal day,” Boehm said with a laugh. “What stress is this.” 

Following a month of excessive rainfall, State Climatologist Justin Glisan reported Tuesday that the first week of October was dry and unseasonably warm. 

According to Glisan’s weekly weather report, the statewide average temperature for the reporting period was 65.5 degrees Fahrenheit which is 9 degrees above the normal for the period.

While there were some scattered thunderstorms bringing rain and hail between 1 and 2 inches in diameter, the statewide weekly precipitation total was 0.55 inch, slightly more than a tenth of an inch below the normal.