By TIM THORNBERRY
Kentucky Correspondent

LEXINGTON, Ky. — The state’s corn crop already had enough stress with the dry conditions experienced throughout August. The last thing weakened stalks needed was a bad storm – let alone a hurricane.

Remnants of Hurricane Ike rumbled through the Midwest, bringing hurricane-force winds and plenty of damage in its wake last week. Some parts of Kentucky saw 75 mph winds, equivalent to a Category One hurricane. Power was knocked out to an estimated 500,000 people, while downed trees caused much damage.

While most of the crop damage came in the western portions of Kentucky, where the winds were the highest, producers across the state were affected. Chad Lee, University of Kentucky (UK) grains crop specialist, said as much as half of the corn crop could have some type of damage.

“This is a rough estimate – and I emphasize, a rough estimate – but about half of the corn crop statewide was damaged in some sort by this storm,” he said. “And we can probably expect at least a 10 percent yield loss in those fields. That number may climb or fall back a little once farmers get out and start harvesting.”

If there is a bright spot, it could be that the rain stayed to the west and north of the state. “If we had had the rain, it would have been a lot worse,” said Lee. “Because the soil is dry, this corn laying on the ground is less likely to get mold. That’s actually a good thing for us and because it is dry, it will be easier to pick up.

“Usually when we have these storms that knock corn down, rain comes with it, keeping farmers out of the field for several days, and the corn tends to get mold because of all that moisture.”
UK extension agricultural engineer Sam McNeill said in order to prevent more damage, now may be the time to harvest corn.
“Corn on the ground is the worst case scenario for any producer and weak corn stalks only aggravate the problem,” he said.

Most of the crop was mature enough for harvesting, but producers were waiting on the crop to dry naturally in the field. A harvest now will mean drying the crop in bins, which translates into added energy cost. “Liquefied petroleum is currently at $2.25 a gallon, so that cost translates into four cents per bushel for every point of moisture removed,” McNeill said.

He added if corn is at 25 percent moisture and needs to dry down to 15 percent, it will cost the producer a total of 40 cents per bushel.

Lee suggests that once harvesting begins, farmers should drive slowly and be patient, and much of the downed corn will be picked up.

“We have had warm days and nights without rain and that has been helpful, but I doubt we can let this corn dry down naturally. We’re probably going to have to use some form of artificial drying,” he said.

This year’s corn crop has taken a bit of a roller coaster ride with dry conditions and lower yield estimates recently announced by the USDA, but all told, farmers stood to make good on the crop, which was on track for average yields until Ike’s visit, according to Lee.
“We were looking at having at least an average corn crop, which was certainly going to be helpful, particularly with the prices.
What we have now is several different things that could hit us,” he said.

“One, we know we have a yield loss because that corn is on the ground. Two, we’re going to have to spend more money to dry that corn, probably somewhere between $20 and $50 an acre depending on how wet the corn was; and three, we’re more likely to have damaged kernels because of it laying on the ground, which means we get docked when we try to sell it.”

At this point it looks as though whatever has happened to the crop is not likely to reverse itself, but Lee suggested for those corn producers who also raise cattle, they may want to consider turning their cows into the cornfield once the combines have gone through, if they are able to confine the livestock with some sort of fencing.
“This won’t be for everyone, but more than likely there’s going to be plenty of corn on the ground and bringing cattle out there will be one way to help recover some of the overall loss,” he said. “As long as it’s dry, the conditions are pretty good to let cattle out on the field. Of course you have to deal with getting water to the field and keeping the cattle in the field, but this may be an opportunity for some.”