Ottumwa Courier, IA
11-28-06
Warm winter would benefit farmers
By SCOTT NILES Courier staff writer
OTTUMWA — A mild winter is what some southern Iowans are hoping for; it
could also be good for area farmers.
Mike Owen, a professor of agronomy at Iowa State University, said the soil
does not need moisture in the winter, but the freezing and thawing of the ground
can be helpful to the soil for the 2007 planting season.
“You want enough moisture in the spring before planting to where the moisture
levels are at their maximum capacity,” he said.
With a couple snowfalls, like in previous winters, the ground is able to replenish
any moisture that it may have lost from the season before.
The only detrimental weather that winter could bring is a frozen ground with high
winds.
“If the ground freezes and the winds are high, it can dry out the top layer of soil
and it would make it more erodible,” Owen said.
Wapello County farmer Lloyd Durflinger said that one of his concerns is that the
ground might freeze and stay frozen for a long period of time.
“When the temperatures go below zero and the ground freezes, it can suffocate
the soil and cause it to lose some of its stored moisture,” he said.
Though it may be a slight possibility, Durflinger said the winters that Iowa has
had the past few years have still been good for the ground.
“You need some of those colder temperatures to kill off any crop pests that may
still be around,” he said.
Owen said that while it may seem like the pests are gone, that is not the case.
“Crop pests don’t die; they simply go into a dormant state and then, depending
on how the crops look in the spring, will determine how major the pest problem
will be. There is nothing that can be done to get rid of pests in the wintertime,”
Owen said.
During the winter, there is not much that farmers can do for their fields.
“It’s more or less a time for the ground to rest and build some of the moisture
back up,” Durflinger said.
Even if there is no snow this winter, he said, a good rain could do the same thing.
Another concern — a freeze and then snow or rain.
“This will cause run off and the moisture won’t be absorbed into the ground,”
Owen said.
Durflinger said farmers do not want ice.
“If you get a patch of ice that lingers on areas of the field for a period of time, it
can cause bare spots when the crops start coming up next spring,” he said.
Owen said the ideal winter is one with fluctuating weather.
“Freezing and thawing of the ground is the best thing that could happen,” he said.
Scott Niles can be reached at (641) 683-5360 or via e-mail at
sjniles@mchsi.com.