Most summers, rain can be a farmer’s best friend. But two weeks ago in Ohio it became a grower’s biggest enemy.

According to the NASS Great Lakes Region office, there were just 2.5 suitable days for fieldwork as heavy rains in most parts of the state kept farmers out of their fields. Hopes of dealing with insects, disease and weeds were put on hold for another week.

Butch Schappacher, a corn and soybean grower, has felt Mother Nature’s pinch. He resides in southwestern Ohio, which has received the most rainfall reported with an average of 1.5 inches.

"It was really dry the first two weeks we planted the beans and many growers in this part of the state didn’t get that germination that they needed," Schappacher said last week. "Then we had the germination we needed but the beans that didn’t come up have left bare spots and the Johnsongrass took over.

"Now, with all this rain we can’t even get in to spray. There’s nothing we can do but sit and wait."

Other farmers in the area surveyed see a potential for yield loss in both corn and soybeans, though the full extent of the damage to these crops won’t be known for some time.

NASS officials said the effects on corn in Ohio vary widely, depending on how early the crop was planted. The variance in growth stages complicate rescue efforts such as the application of nitrogen to replace what was lost. Lodging, scab and vomitoxin are the primary concerns for wheat.

Farmers across the state report 97 percent of their soybeans have emerged. Soybeans and corn are rated as fair this season, while wheat and oats are reported in good condition. Oats across the state are at 88 percent headed.

Sixty-six percent of the state’s winter wheat has matured, with 13 percent of that total harvested. Twenty-three percent of hay is reported in the second cutting.

Higher-than-normal rainfall was reported in all areas of Ohio. Fifty-one percent of the state’s growers say they have a surplus of topsoil and subsoil moisture. The northwestern Ohio cities of Bryan and Wauseon, however, reported no rainfall over the past seven days.