News

Iowa’s crops still lagging in development

Iowa’s corn and soybean crops continue to run behind normal in their final stages of development.

As of Sunday, 37 percent of the state’s corn crop was mature, 10 days behind normal, while 34 percent of soybeans had dropped leaves, five days behind normal.

Iowa secretary of agriculture Bill Northey says farmers are anxious to get the 2014 harvest underway.

“Drier weather last week allowed farmers to get back into the fields to chop silage or make hay.  Harvest of seed corn fields is also in full swing,” Northey said.  “If the weather remains dry this week, widespread harvest will likely begin.  Farmers are anxious to get into the fields for what could be very good yields in much of the state.”

The third cutting of alfalfa was 80 percent complete, which officials say is the slowest progress on the third cutting in over 20 years.  Pasture conditions rated 67 percent good to excellent.