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South Dakota farmer hopes for rain soon

Keith Alverson of Chester, South Dakota says his crops could really use some rain about now.

“I’m kind of in one of the drier parts of our county, where we’ve gotten about two-and-a-half inches of rain between June and July,” he says. “I’m definitely seeing some stress, especially on some of the lighter areas of the fields, where I’m quite certain that we’ve taken the top end off our corn yield.

“But we’ve got some rain in the forecast for this week, so I’m optimistic. I guess I’d like to hope we’d get back close to average if we have some timely rains going forward.”

Alverson sounds more optimistic about his soybeans.

“During that pod set and pod fill period, if we can have adequate moisture, I think that we have some good potential there for a nice crop of soybeans.”

Chester is in southeastern South Dakota.

AUDIO: Keith Alverson