Turning the page on the calendar to June, with few acres planted, may alter cropping plans in many ways. However, farmers in our area continue to stress their desire to seed all of their intended acreage. The intent to grow a crop is ingrained in their character. They take pride in their production skills and have thought out the many contingencies that face them due to the delayed planting season.

Over the past week, local grain markets have incentivized crop producers to maintain corn acreage. Strong demand for livestock, dairy and poultry feed along with ethanol production has strengthened the basis for area farmers. It is obvious that local users do not want to pay the freight to rail corn in from Iowa and Illinois.

Most farmers and seed dealers have not switched corn hybrids unless the numbers were 115 days or more. Long-term averages indicate that we still have time for 105 to 110 day hybrids to mature. Without question, skeptics will note the possibility of yield limiting heat during pollination and the chance of an early frost. However, odds are that a somewhat normal growing season may still be experienced. We certainly should expect to use more gas to dry down this year’s crop with delayed development. Budget accordingly.

There is little or no justification for any switching soybean varieties at this point. However, ordering more seed to boost plant populations may be beneficial. A seed drop of 175,000 seeds per acre is generally more than adequate for April or early May planting. Increasing that to 200-225,000 seeds per acre at this point, coupled with narrow (7 1/2 to 15 inch) row spacing helps provide quicker canopy necessary to maximize sunlight interception.
Although the rain totals to date indicate that Mother Nature may have already provided much of our year’s allotment for moisture, we are still well behind on heat units needed to grow a crop. Let’s just hope excessive heat units are not accumulated during times when adequate soil moisture is not available.
Soil temperatures for seed placed now should induce rapid germination and growth as long as we wait for optimum soil moisture conditions. The mistake of mudding in now will certainly eliminate the opportunity for a profitable crop.
My annual request for rainfall during planting goes something like this: Once planting is well underway, we would benefit from 1/2 to 1 inch of rain every Saturday night after 9 p.m. That helps provide planted seeds with moisture needed for germination and seedling growth. In reality, that irrigation type precipitation would probably work for most of the rest of the growing season. The timing would allow farmers to take a much needed and deserved rest on Sunday, and make family and church obligations easier on everyone.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will soon be conducting the June Agricultural Survey. As one of the most important surveys done each year, it provides the first clear indication of the potential production and supply of major commodities for the year.

Conducted annually in all states except Alaska and Hawaii, the NASS will collect data from approximately 73,000 farms, which are selected from among the nation’s 2.2 million farms. During the first two weeks of June, farm operators will be contacted and may respond using one of the following data collection methods, telephone, mail, Internet or personal interviews.

Readers with questions or comments for Roger Bender may write to him in care of this publication.