News

Nebraska’s soybean harvest nears one-third mark

Nebraska’s soybean harvest was 31 percent complete as of Sunday, slightly behind the five-year average.

The state’s corn harvest reached 15 percent compared to the 24 percent average.

But for some, the start of harvest is still a few days away. Been Keep farms near Scotia in central Nebraska.

“A few neighbors have started on beans, but we’ve still got leaves hanging on really good yet,” Keep says. “A lot of the corn in our area was late planted and we still have a lot of green stalk.”

Keep says all he can do is wait.

“I’m hoping to start beans at the end of the week and just kind of grind through them,” he says. “Corn—some of the early planted stuff may be in the mid-20’s, but I think I pulled an ear this morning that’s probably still 35 moisture.

“We either need some warmer weather or a good, hard, killing freeze.”

Keep says he is hearing reports of very good yields on soybeans and high moisture corn.

AUDIO: Ben Keep

The weekly crop progress report says winter wheat planting in Nebraska is 84 percent complete with emergence at 48 percent. Both figures are very close to the five-year average.