Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier, IA
09-18-07
Harvest is under way in Northeast Iowa
By MATTHEW WILDE, Courier Staff Writer
PLAINFIELD --- Corn poured into the grain tank on Kevin Adams' John Deere
combine Monday so fast a 950-bushel grain cart couldn't keep up.
Ideally Adams would prefer not stopping, but yields exceeding 250 bushels per
acre tends to force him to wait for the cart or unload at the nearby drying bin
himself. That's down time any Northeast Iowa farmer can handle.
Monday's U.S. Department of Agriculture Crops and Weather Report said
harvest is expected to be in full swing this week. That's the case on Adams' farm
just south of Plainfield.
Normally he would wait until the end of the month to allow corn to dry down
naturally. Corn Monday was coming out at 25 percent moisture, which won't be
cheap to dry down for long-term storage. But when it comes to wind-damaged
corn, good yields and cash prices still exceeding $3 per bushel, it's better not to
wait. High winds last month blew over to varying degrees about 200 acres of corn
--- about 10 percent of his total --- and he wants to get it in the bin before it falls
down completely. If that happens, Adams said, yields suffer because it's so hard
to combine and ears are inevitably lost.
"That's why I'm out here, there's still a little life in the stalks and they're just
hanging on," Adams said as the eight-row corn head gobbled in corn. He
purchased a corn reel this year, which helps pick up downed corn, but it's not
needed yet.
"See, that's still feeding in. If it lays too long, it just breaks up on the head," he
continued.
Adams isn't alone. Tens of thousands of acres of corn were impacted by 70 mph
winds in mid-July and storms in August.
Corn lodging, along with a dry and hot period around pollination that really hurt
corn planted in light, sandy soil, and a bout with soybean aphids and diseases
have farmers and crop experts skeptical of government yield predictions. In
August, the USDA said Northeast Iowa would average a bin-busting 201 bushels
per acre for corn and 56 for soybeans.
While Adams was ecstatic to see numbers on the yield monitor Monday blow
away the predicted average, he said its deceiving since the land was irrigated. In
July, about 3/4-inches of "rain" -- irrigation --- was sprayed on the ground a week
during the dry spell when the corn on the light soil needed it most. Although in
August, the fifth-wettest since 1873, the irrigation system wasn't needed.
"I've combined in sandy areas already that there was no corn, just stalks," Adams
said, noting after Monday he'll be half done with his problem acres. "I think the
(predictions) are a little far fetched after seeing what the dry ground did."
On average, Adams said his lighter ground is probably averaging about 100
bushels per acre thus far. Some soybeans are ready to go, he said, but he'll wait
until the lodged corn is out.
The first frost hit the state Friday night and Saturday morning. Most crops were
mature enough not to be affected, the report said. Some late-planted soybeans
had leaves nipped, which could lessen yield potential.
As of Sunday, 69 percent of the state's corn is mature. Northeast Iowa is behind
the state average at 61 percent.
The crop is rated 2 percent very poor, 6 percent poor, 20 percent fair, 52 percent
good and 20 percent excellent. Corn silage is finishing up. Rick Juchems, a
farmer just northwest of Plainfield said Monday the silage is averaging 22 to 25
tons per acre. If harvested for grain, a crop adviser told him he would have got
about 185 bushels per acre.
"The frost this past weekend covered much of the northern part of the state and
really put many farmers on pace to begin full-fledged harvest this coming week.
Let's hope the weather continues to cooperate and farmers can get the crop in,"
said Bill Northey, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture, in a press release.
George Cummins, Iowa State University Extension crop specialist based in
Charles City, said preliminary harvest comments from farmers range from "best
ever" to "disappointing." However, he said early soybean yields have been good
and give cause for optimism.
The report said 93 percent of Northeast Iowa's soybeans are turning color and 72
percent are dropping leaves. Both figures exceed the state averages.
The crop statewide is rated 1 percent very poor, 5 percent poor, 20 percent fair,
54 percent good and 20 percent excellent. Cummins has heard bean yields
ranging from the low 40s to more than 50 bushels per acre so far.
"The crop report had Northeast Iowa as the garden spot. Yields could be down 5
percent to 10 percent (compared to last year). That's what people are telling me,"
Cummins said.
The third alfalfa crop harvest is nearly complete, according to the report. Only 10
percent of the state's hay being baled is rated in poor or very poor condition,
though experts expect a hay shortage in the winter.
Contact Matthew Wilde at (319) 291-1579 or matt.wilde@wcfcourier.com.