Indiana
Harvest is moving at a record pace in the Hoosier state, and moisture content is so low in corn and soybeans that drying is not necessary, in some cases.

Scattered rain throughout the state did little to dampen harvest. There were still 6.3 days suitable for fieldwork in the week ending Sept. 12, according to the Indiana office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). Topsoil moisture is 78 percent short or very short, and subsoil moisture is 74 short or very short, according to the recent NASS report.

There’s no surplus soil moisture anywhere, and pasture condition continues to decline because of the dry soils.

Ninety-six percent of corn was in the dent stage as of Sept. 12, compared to 57 at the same time last year and 79 for the five-year average. Sixty-nine percent of the crop was mature, compared to 6 last year and 28 for the five-year average. Crop condition was rated 56 percent good to excellent, with only 17 rated poor to very poor.

The soybean crop was 7 percent harvested, compared to none at the same time last year and 1 percent for the five-year average. About 60 percent of the crop had shed leaves, compared to 14 at the same time last year and 32 for the five-year average.

The soybean crop condition was rated 52 percent good to excellent and 19 poor to very poor.

Indiana’s third alfalfa cutting is 98 percent complete, compared to 89 at the same time last year and 94 for the five-year average. The tobacco crop is 64 percent harvested, compared to 41 last year at the same time and 35 for the five-year average.
By Andrea McCann
Indiana Correspondent

Illinois
Even though combines have started early and harvest is progressing rapidly, some field activities need to wait, according to N. Dennis Bowman, crop systems extension educator with the Champaign Extension Center.

“Wheat planting and anhydrous applications are at the top of my list of things not to do yet. Wheat planting needs to wait until after the fly-free date, and nitrogen fertilizer applications need to wait for cooler soil temperatures,” he said.

Bowman said the price for wheat is up and some growers may be thinking about planting. With improved varieties, yields over the past 10 years have averaged 75 bushels per acre.

“If you haven’t grown wheat in several years, you may want to do some research on varieties. Check out the University of Illinois’s Variety Testing results at http://vt.cropsci.uiuc.edu/ wheat.html,” he said.

For more information about wheat production, the Illinois Agronomy Handbook is a great reference about issues such as seeding rates, fertility needs and other production questions.

The memory of last spring’s frantic rush to get fertilizer applied prior to planting may be in the back of many farmers’ minds when they think about nitrogen fertilizer this fall. While fall application spreads out the workload, it does greatly increase the risk of losing that fertilizer before next year’s crop can use it.

In the meantime, cooler conditions continued over much of the state in the past week, according to NASS. With small amounts of precipitation across the state, many farmers have taken full advantage of the favorable weather. Last week saw 5.8 days suitable for fieldwork.

The corn crop has reached 79 percent mature, and harvest picked up last week, with 18 percent of the crop harvested. Soybeans turning yellow reached 73 percent, with 42 shedding leaves.

Topsoil moisture was rated 10 percent very short, 23 short, 60 adequate and 7 surplus. Temperatures statewide averaged 66.5 degrees, 3.2 below normal. Precipitation averaged 0.88 inch, 0.18 inch above normal for this time of year.
By Deborah Behrends
Illinois Correspondent

Ohio
Cooler weather over the past week brought relief to both crops and livestock, while some areas of the state experienced severe weather damage, destroying farm buildings, trees and more.

Harvest is under way on many farms across the state as a result of good drying of both corn and soybeans. NASS reports that 90 percent of Ohio corn is dented, up 26 from last year’s numbers at this time. Similarly, 50 percent of the corn crop is rated as mature, 40 ahead of last year and 34 ahead of the five-year average.

“The crop is at moisture levels right now that we would have been dying for last year,” said Peter Thomison, an Ohio State University extension agronomist.

He credits the hastened crop development on warmer-than-average summer weather and the dry spell much of the state has experienced. NASS reports this to be the earliest harvest on record in the last five years.

Thomison recommends growers carefully watch their fields for dropping ears and stalk lodging, two problems associated with extremely dry weather.

“When you get dry weather and weak plants, shanks may not hold ears well. If those ears start falling off, you have to get out there and flag that field for early harvest,” he said. “Dry weather could also contribute to stalk lodging, and that could also throw a wrench in the harvest operation.”

NASS also reports 19 percent of the state’s beans as mature, which is 18 ahead of lat year and 14 ahead of the five-year average.

“The soybean crop is struggling in some cases, primarily the later-planted soybeans,” said Thomison.

“Again, it has to do with the dry weather. The beans haven’t had the moisture to fill the beans on the upper nodes. We’ve got good pod set, but the pods aren’t filling, and that will shave off yield potential,” he added.

For other crops, 78 percent of the state’s corn silage has been harvested and 75 percent of third cutting alfalfa was also completed, 20 ahead of last year. 
By Jane Houin
Ohio Correspondent