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Illinois pre-harvest crop tours result in scattered corn yield estimates

Illinois crop tours at the end of August resulted in a wide range of corn yield estimates.

“When you look at the entire state, I think it is very variable.”

White County Farm Bureau Manager Doug Anderson tells Brownfield wind and flood damage took the top end off yields in southeastern Illinois.

“Everybody had high expectations for the crop this year but when we actually got out into it the results were a little bit disappointing. The overall ear length was a little bit smaller. Kernel depth was a little bit light.”

The White County Crop Tour found a high of 190 bushels/acre and a low of 145, ending with a county average estimate of 172.

Anderson says other parts of the state battled pockets of drought while others saw near-perfect conditions.

“The high-end yields are going to be very spotty. The low-end yields are also going to be very spotty. It is going to be a big mix of everything in between and a lot is really going to depend on those localized rainfalls farmers were able to get.”

The Topflight Grain Cooperative Crop Tour in central Illinois saw an average 185 bushel per acre yield estimate with the low of 160 calculated near Atwood and the high of 239 found near Maroa.

The Premier Cooperative Crop Tour gathered data from 25 different towns in central Illinois ending with an average of 194.5 bushels/acre. The high yield estimate of 217 was found in Leverett and the low of 145 was found in Indianola.

The River Valley Cooperative Crop Tour in northwest Illinois averaged 213 bushels/acre, a record high for the region, with the low of 195 near Princeville and high of 237 near Geneseo.