News

Big jumps in planting progress

Warm, dry weather gave Indiana farmers a chance to catch up on corn and soybean planting last week.  According to the latest weekly Crop and Weather report 86 percent of the corn crop is planted even with the five-year average and 60 percent of the crop is emerged.  Sixty-nine percent of the crop is rated good to excellent.

Sixty-three percent of the state’s soybean crop has been planted with 29 percent emerged.  The southern portion of the state is the furthest behind with just 25 percent of the crop planted as fields are still too wet to plant.  Ninety-one percent of the winter wheat crop is headed and 73 percent of the crop is rated good to excellent.

Farmers took advantage of the dry week to begin cutting and baling hay; 52 percent of alfalfa and 17 percent of other hay has been cut.

Range and pastures are in excellent condition with 81 percent of the crop rated above fair.