Some Farmers Considering Replant
With more than half of the corn crop emerged and about ¼ of the soybeans out of the ground, some growers are considering replanting parts of their crop. With all the moisture this spring, it may seem hard to believe but there are some parts of Indiana that have been too dry. Bryan Smith, with Seed Consultants in NE Indiana, says some of his customers are considering replanting part of their crop, “There are some areas where there was enough moisture to germinate the crop, but then it turned dry and the crop never developed.” He told HAT there is an area just south of Fort Wayne that has not seen rain for the past 3 weeks, “There is another area near Silver Lake in Kosciusko County on some sandy soil where growers have had to fill in some areas that did not emerge.”
HAT meteorologist Rob Wasson is forecasting more rain for later this week and much of it will likely fall on Northern Indiana, “Strong low pressure and a cold front will produce strong storms this weekend, some with very heavy rainfall. Total rain amounts Thursday through Sunday could range from 1.5″ to 2.5″, with isolated higher amounts in some areas,” said Wasson.
For most growers, however, too much moisture has been the issue, and weed control and burndown programs have had to be put off because it was too wet. Smith says this has led to fields with plenty of weeds, “A lot of growers are anxious to get into the fields and start spraying to control weeds that are providing serious competition for their young crop.”
Overall, Smith says, the attitude and outlook this year is a whole lot better than last year, “Most guys are very optimistic. They have seen their crops emerge, they have been walking their fields, and that is always a good feeling, especially after last year.” According to the latest USDA update, 56% of the corn acreage has emerged, compared with 95 percent last year and 59 percent for the 5-year average. Twenty-four percent of the soybean acreage has emerged, compared with 77 percent last year and 30 percent for the 5-year average.
Hear the complete report with Bryan Smith of Seed Consultants in the audio section of the Hoosier Ag Today app for smartphones and tablets.