FarmWeek Page 6 Monday, August 10, 2009
CROPWATCHERS Bernie Walsh, Durand, Winnebago County: We finally had the warmer weather we had been hoping for with mid-80s and mid-90s forecast for the weekend. Now we could use more rain. The Japanese beetles have returned in large numbers in some fields; in others, they have been very spotty. Corn pollination is usually complete by this time of the year but it isn’t this year, and Japanese beetles clipping silks in those later fields can be a huge problem. The county fair season is here and time to take a couple days off. Pete Tekampe, Grayslake, Lake County: A cool week in Lake County. Got a quarter of an inch of rain on Saturday (Aug. 1) and a couple of drizzly days during the week. Winter wheat was 16 percent moisture on Wednesday, and I started cutting Thursday. It’s doing about 40 bushels per acre. Corn looks good and most early corn is done tasseling and setting ears. Later planted corn is from knee high to starting to tassel. Early 30-inchrow beans have filled the rows, while later beans are less than 6 inches tall. Both crops need a lot of time and heat to make it. Second-crop hay is growing well. We had a good week at the new Lake County Fair. Leroy Getz, Savanna, Carroll County: No rain for the week. Nothing yet in August, but that could change soon. A dry week and pleasant temperatures allowed wheat and oat harvest to be completed. Straw has been baled and some good hay was made on a timely basis. Most corn has brown silked. I have not done any yield checks yet. Soybeans are improving with the sun and heat. Milk prices are finally starting upward. Many people seem to have a solution for milk prices, but milk must be marketed every day and answers come slowly. Ron Frieders, Waterman, DeKalb County: Twenty percent of the cornfields are still not tasseled. The late planting dates and poor soil conditions of last spring are quite apparent even now. Uneven pollination, low corn price relative to the cost of production, and not wanting to slow the dry-down this fall are all reasons fungicides have been sprayed on only about a third the acres this year. I did hear of at least a few fields being sprayed for bugs, as silk clipping was a problem. Soybeans are coming along. So far, I don’t think bug pressure is great enough to justify spraying. Take some time to rest and enjoy family and the fruits of your labor. Larry Hummel, Dixon, Lee County: We have been asking for more heat all summer, and it looks like it‘s finally here. Temperatures were expected to climb into the low 90s over the weekend and then settle back into the mid-80s this week. With the moisture reserves we have in the ground, I would call that perfect weather. A large percentage of the corn crop will be pollinating this week. There hasn’t been any bugs feeding on silks, but a few aphids are starting to show up on the corn plants. Soybeans are setting pods and look OK. We have three fields that are being sprayed with a fungicide. One is no-till and the other two are minimum-till with one having heavy soils and the other medium soils. Even though Japanese beetles have thinned out, they are still munching away in a few localized spots. Take a look at the average crop revenue election (ACRE) program — Friday’s deadline is fast approaching. Ken Reinhardt, Seaton, Mercer County: It was starting to rain here this Friday morning, with 1 to 3 inches possible. I have had only 0.4 of an inch of rain since last report. Corn on un-irrigated sand is firing, but there is still plenty of moisture most places. A contractor said he had two dozers stuck and was having to pull his tiling machine in the field he was in. No big insect problems other than the constant problems in alfalfa. There are still Japanese beetles on corn, beans, and about anything green. No soybean aphids have been found, but there are some to the north and east of here.
Ron Moore, Roseville, Warren County: We received 0.5 of an inch of rain last week. The corn is starting to fill the ear now, but we still need more rain to fill all the kernels that have been pollinated. The soybeans are starting to flower and form some small pods. I still have not seen any insect problems. Maybe the cooler temperatures have helped this summer. Jacob Streitmatter, Princeville, Peoria County: What a difference two weeks can make. Spent one week in the State of Washington learning about agriculture there. While I was gone, some of our early-planted corn (May 26) started to tassel and pollinate. Now it looks like a field of corn should look in August, except for all the yellow and uneven corn. I still have corn close to pollinating and some a ways off yet. Rain this past two weeks was very spotty, less than 1 inch in a two-week timeframe. I believe it is the least amount of rain all season. Soybeans may be growing, but they are still very short. Tim Green, Wyoming, Stark County: Hot temperatures expected for the weekend are greatly needed. The crop is far behind. Probably 20 percent of the corn in this area is yet to pollinate. Planes have been flying and spraying fungicides. There has been a lot of water and a lot of diseases in the beans fields, so we are thinking a fungicide might help. Not finding too many bugs in the bean fields yet. We are mowing ditches and getting ready for fall, which will be greatly delayed. Mark Kerber, Chatsworth, Livingston County: We are watching the crop continue to grow as we have come to the point in the growing season where rain is the most critical. A long, hot, dry spell could give us a disastrous crop where a couple of timely rains would give us a great crop — late, however. The government‘s ACRE program signup is gaining interest with lower prices. Informational meetings explained how this would add price and yield protection to go along with federal crop insurance, but not replace it. Keeping farms trimmed up and starting to work on fall machinery, bins, etc., are the main chores after vacations and fairs. Ron Haase, Gilman, Iroquois County: The only rain we received was on Aug. 4. The largest amount any of our farms received was 0.05 of an inch. Airplanes were still applying some fungicides this past week due to uneven and late pollination. Most of the cornfields in the area are anywhere from the blister stage (R2) up to the dough stage (R4). Most soybean fields are in the beginning pod (R3) or full-pod growth stage (R4). The local closing prices for Aug. 6 were: $3.25 for nearby corn, $3.14 for new-crop corn, $11.23 for nearby soybeans, and $10.06 for new-crop soybeans. Harry Schirding, Petersburg, Menard County: Rainfall last week, 0.93 of an inch. Total rainfall for August, 0.93 of an inch. Normal rainfall for August, 3.5 inches. A line of storms Tuesday morning did little crop damage, but some trees and power lines were blown down. Conditions are nearly ideal for the continued development of leaf diseases in corn and soybean fields. On days without rain, some producers are beginning to applying fungicide to soybean fields. Japanese beetles are still easy to find, but few other insect pests are causing any damage. Weeds continue to appear in soybean fields as a result of the above-normal rains. Wet conditions continue to hamper both hay and straw baling. Corn nearby, $3.20, down four cents; soybeans nearby, $11.52, up 39 cents; corn for January, $3.19, down a penny; soybeans for January, $10.18, up 59 cents.
Brian Schaumburg, Chenoa, McLean County: Corn development is anywhere from R1 (silk) to R3 (milk). Preliminary yield checks show ear counts that are girthy and stand counts that are 10 percent light. If the sweet corn is indicative of the coming corn crop, it could be tremendous! Soybeans are R1 to R4, short, and 30-inch rows are not all canopied. Still very little insect pressure, but gray leaf spot and common rust are widespread due to cool, wet mornings and lack of sunshine. Corn: $3.26, $3.13, fall; soybeans: $11.25, $9.90, fall; wheat: $4.10. Steve Ayers, Champaign, Champaign County: Storms rolled through the area Tuesday morning with wind and heavy rain. We ended up with 0.5 of an inch of rain with tree limbs down and power out for a couple hours. Seventy mph straight-line winds hit some areas. Bin damage was reported at the Premier Co-op Sidney facility. The Georgetown Fair in neighboring Vermilion County had tent and awning damage but was up and running later Tuesday. Heat and humidity were forecast for the weekend followed by a cool-off. Japanese beetles continue munching on soybeans and gray leaf spot is showing up in more cornfields. See you at Agronomy Day Thursday! Wilfred Dittmer, Quincy, Adams County: Our gauge picked up just a bit more than 1 inch of rain over three different days. There was a little hail but no major damage. Strong winds in some areas did some building and crop damage. Overall, I think corn shares the same problems in a wide area with the blanks, low spots, yellowing, short stalks, etc. Soybeans are beginning to get some growth, but their clock is winding down also. I see just a little leaf feeding on some beans. Hay guys are trying to get the next crop put away between the showers, and there is still some general mowing to do. Tom Ritter, Blue Mound, Macon County: There were light showers early in the week. Some areas received up to 1.5 inches, but most received in the 0.3 to 0.4 of an inch range. We are definitely in a drier pattern and have received only 0.6 to 0.7 of inch of rain in the last three weeks. Cooler conditions have prevented major drought stress on the crop. It’s definitely time for rain. The corn continues to progress, but we are needing the heat expected to come during the weekend before you read this report. We are way behind on growing degree days. Planes are spraying fungicides, but the spraying has been on a more limited basis. Economics are just not there as in previous years. Soybeans also continue to progress but very slowly. They are extremely short considering this is August. It will definitely be a late harvest. Farmers are working on equipment and storage as fall approaches, even though it will probably be late, late September before the majority of the corn will be in full swing. Todd Easton, Charleston, Coles County: Summer heat and humidity seem to have finally shown up here in Coles County. I spent most of last week in and out of several fields to see how the crop is getting along. I was surprised at how much potential we actually have so far. The majority of the corn is in the R2 to R3 stage. I have not seen any pollination problems, and population and kernel counts are very good. Soybeans so far look good also and range from the beginning bloom (R1) to beginning pod (R2) stages and are almost canopied over even in the 30-inch rows. Right now, we have the potential, but we will need rain and warm temperatures through much of September to hold onto it. Grandpa wanted me to mention our rainfall total here so far. It has been a whopping 34.2 inches, and we have received 5 inches since July 1. Hopefully, we will get close to that in August. I am still trying to figure out this ACRE program, and I wish luck to anyone else who is trying to do the same.