Farmers Getting Break from Rain for Spring Planting

Farmers are getting a break from the rain this week.

Spring planting has resumed in most areas of the state after a couple of wet weeks. We caught up with several local farmers last week as we delivered our KMCH Plantin’ Snack Sacks.

Jon Ries farms south of Manchester. He told us he wasn’t too concerned about the rainy start to the season.

Roger Beck is the manager at Nutrien Ag Solutions in Hopkinton. They cover farmers in about six or seven counties.

Pat Ryan has a farming partnership with his family east of Ryan. When we caught up with him last Thursday, he was optimistic he’d be able to wrap up planting soon.

Dave Lawrence has a small beef operation near Dundee. He was waiting for the fields to dry out last Friday – but he wasn’t complaining about the rain.

According to the latest Iowa Crop Progress and Condition Report released by the USDA on Monday, about half of Iowa’s corn crop has been planted. Corn planting reached 49-percent this past week – that’s three days ahead of last year, but two days behind average. Corn emerging has reached ten-percent – three days ahead of normal. Meanwhile, thirty-eight percent of the expected soybean crop has been planted – that’s one week ahead of last year and two days ahead of the five-year average. Soybeans emerging has reached five-percent. 

Secretary Naig says with the next week or two looking generally warmer and drier, farmers should be able to make significant planting progress.