The latest USDA crop progress report has Indiana at six percent of the corn crop harvested coming into this week, well behind last year and the five year average.
Four percent of the soybean acreage has been harvested, also behind the average. Montgomery County farmer David Virgin has cut some beans, but when HAT contacted him Monday he had just started the first of the corn, and the early numbers were “surprisingly good” he said.
“I didn’t know what our moisture would be but it came out about 25-26 percent. Corn prematurely died for us so it could have been a little drier but we’re fine. I probably ran through 5 semi loads of corn that we shelled first thing this morning and as of right now I had a 210 bushel dry average going. Of course that’s just the first day but I was very surprised.”
That 210 puts those fields right near average yields historically.
“In the past we’ve been anywhere from 175 to 250 depending on what the weather gives us, and the clay hills fall short and the black ground is holding on,” he told HAT. “It was a function of water for us and we only had 3 tenths of an inch of rain the whole month of August, and if we would have caught a little in between there who knows where this thing would have been on corn.”
Virgin is very happy with the early bean yields, but he’s not sure that success is going to hold up throughout harvest.
“We had some 2-5’s, amazing really, abot 150 acres, they were running 58-65 and about an average of 62-63 bushels per acre and just dead on 13 percent moisture going across the scales, so very pleased. I’m concerned that the later varieties we get into might start to fall off because they missed that rain.”
Elsewhere in west central Indiana Virgin hears similar yield results but most farmers are just dabbling at harvest right now. The activity should accelerate soon though. He said the stalk strength in Monday’s corn field was good, but he is concerned about whether or not that will continue. Hear more in the HAT field update:Virgin Sept 24 update