What impact did those recent 100 degree-plus temperatures have on pollinating corn in the western Corn Belt?
We asked Chuck Emanuel, who farms near North Bend in east-central Nebraska.
“(With) the extreme heat, you could tell the tassels were shedding, probably, sterile pollen–and we noticed that the silks were growing longer and that’s always a sign of them not being pollinated right away,” Emanuel says.
But Emanuel says this week’s cooler temperatures may have arrived just in time to aid the pollination process.
“These last couple days have helped maybe take care of that problem—because now I see that they’re getting pollinated—so the silks are starting to turn brown,” Emanuel says.
“I think now that we have this cool weather—beings we were still pollinating—we should be okay. I’m hoping so anyway.”
Emanuel says their situation was helped by over three inches of rain received near the end of June.
AUDIO: Chuck Emanuel (2:11 MP3)
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