Ohio
Farmers in the southern part of the state were trying to get their hay in before it started to rain again, said Cindy Meyer, OSU Ag Educator, Butler County.
“Most are finishing their crop planting but the wet weather has made it hard,” she said.
In the northern part of Ohio, the corn was planted and looking good; farmers were “going crazy planting beans,” said OSU Agriculture Educator Mark Koenig, Sandusky County.
He had seen farmers cutting hay but not baling.
Overall, 14 percent of the first cutting of alfalfa hay was complete compared to 21 percent last year and 13 percent for the five-year average, according the Ohio NASS, from Sunday, May 23.
Eight percent of the first cutting of other hay was complete - 7 percent behind last year and 2 percent behind the five-year average.
Planted corn reached 87 percent, that’s 16 percent ahead of last year and 3 percent ahead of the five-year average. Of that, 74 percent of corn had emerged, compared to 33 percent last year and 58 percent for the five-year average.
Forty-eight percent of soybeans were planted, compared to 40 percent last year and 62 percent for the five-year average.
Thirty-two percent of soybeans had emerged, that’s 22 percent ahead of last year and 4 percent ahead of the five-year average.
Some farmer’s market customers will be pleased to find fresh strawberries this week; 23 percent of the crop was harvested, and that’s 10 percent ahead of last year - 14 percent ahead of the five-year average.
By Celeste Baumgartner
Ohio Correspondent
Illinois Precipitation ranged from a quarter-inch up to two inches reported in southern Illinois between Wednesday and Thursday alone. As much as a half-inch more was expected by May 29 before clearing and warming.
As of May 27, Illinois State Climatologist Jim Angel reported northern regions with an average 58.5 degree F. temperature and six inches of rain against an average 3.43 inches, central areas with 60.6 degree F. average temperatures and 5.72 inches of rain against an average of 3.66, and in southern regions an average 65 degree F. temperature with 4.3 inches of rain against an average of 3.8 inches.
What this meant for Illinois farmers is little time in the fields, Emerson Nafziger, Illinois Extension agronomist said.
“Weather patterns for the rest of the growing season will have more impact on yields than temperatures during May,” he pointed out, adding, “growth is usually fairly slow during early vegetative stages.”
As of the May 23 report from the Illinois NASS office, 87 percent of the state’s corn has emerged while 47 percent of the state’s soybeans are in the ground and 27 percent of that is emerged.
By Karen Binder
Illinois Correspondent |
