Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier, IA
05-22-07
Local farmers close to putting away planters
By MATTHEW WILDE, Courier Staff Writer
TRAER --- Northeast Iowa's corn crop is all but in the ground and soybean
planting is nearing the finish line.
Local crop experts think planting, barring major weather delays, could be
wrapped up by the end of the week. The National Weather Service in Des
Moines said there's a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms starting tonight,
increasing to a 50 percent chance on Wednesday. Total rainfall amounts are
estimated at about a half-inch.
Monday's U.S. Department of Agriculture Crops and Weather Report said the
state's farmers were busy last week. Planting progress is now near normal after
weeks of cold and wet weather kept farmers out of the fields.
"Farmers are in the fields and making good progress at getting corn and
soybeans in the ground," Bill Northey, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture and Land
Stewardship said in a prepared statement. "The weather has cooperated with
farmers quite well after the initial heavy rains this spring; hopefully that indicates
a good crop for farmers."
Ninety-seven percent of Northeast Iowa's corn is in the ground, at or near the top
of the nine crop reporting districts in the state. As of Sunday, the state average is
93 percent, which is five days behind last year but only one day behind the fiveyear average.
Warm and moist soil is helping corn emergence. Seventy-three percent of the
area's crop is out of the ground. The corn condition across the state is rated 1
percent very poor, 2 percent poor, 18 percent fair, 62 percent good and 17
percent excellent.
Richard Rickert, who farms near Traer and Reinbeck, hopes to finish planting
seed corn for Pioneer Hi-Bred International by tonight. His commercial corn was
in the ground early this month.
"I think people are pretty close to finishing up," Rickert said of both corn and
beans. "We finished (beans) yesterday (Sunday), but there's some seed wagons
still going around here.
"The biggest concern is the last beans planted in tilled ground. It would be nice to
get some rain, it's kind of dry on top with all these windy days.," he continued.
"The no-till beans are great; the moisture stays right there."
The report said 78 percent of Northeast Iowa's soybeans were planted as of
Sunday, and 26 percent have emerged. Statewide, only 61 percent of the
soybeans are planted with 12 percent out of the ground.
Soybean planting progress is equal to the five-year average while emergence is
two days behind normal.
As of Monday, no significant insect or weed problems have been reported by
farmers and crop experts. Brian Lang, Iowa State University Extension crop
specialist based in Decorah, urges farmers to be vigilant as conditions can
change in a hurry.
"As you check corn fields now for plant populations and weed identification, also
watch for Black cutworm injury through V-5 stage," Lang wrote in Crop Notes, a
weekly newsletter for farmers and ag professionals.
The economic threshold for treatment is reached when 2 percent to 3 percent
plants are wilted or cut and cutworms average less than 3/4 inch in length; or 5
percent plants are wilted or cut and cutworms average longer than 1 inch.
"The significant flights of cutworm into Iowa does not mean that we will have a
pest problem. This pest tends to be infrequent and spotty," Lang wrote, but heavy
feeding can hurt yields and be very costly .
The report indicated livestock is in good condition statewide, and feedlots are
dry.
Contact Matthew Wilde at (319) 291-1579 or matt.wilde@wcfcourier.com.