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Time running out to stick with longer season corn maturities

Time might be running short for some corn farmers wanting to stick with their original planting intentions.

University of Minnesota Extension crops educator Jake Overgaard says delays are widespread across the Midwest.

“We kind of hit that point where it starts to drop off on our yield potential, and that’s really what we need to be looking at.”

While it varies by state, he tells Brownfield later planting dates almost always reduce yield.

“What kind of hybrid do you have? What is the maturity rating? And then possibly adjusting that rotation depending on what the date is.”

For Minnesota, extension data points to the last week of April and first week of May as the best time to plant corn.

Dr. Emerson Nafziger with the University of Illinois suggests the optimum time to plant corn in Illinois is typically between mid-April and mid-May.

Iowa State University says optimum planting dates for corn range from mid-April to the second week of May.

Purdue University says maximum corn yields in Indiana can best be achieved between April 20^th and May 10^th.

Michigan State University says the beginning to middle of May is the optimum corn planting period in Michigan.

Data from Becks Hybrids indicates the ideal planting window for Missouri corn is from the first to 15^th of April.

Data from Asgrow/Dekalb claims the best timeframe for corn planting in Nebraska is April 25^th to May 20^th.

A 2017 Becks Hybrids study determined the optimal planting date window for Ohio begins May 1^st and ends May 15^th.

South Dakota State University Extension says while it varies between northern and southern parts of the state, the ideal planting dates for corn would be May 1^st at the earliest and at the latest, May 26^th.

And the University of Wisconsin says the optimum date to plant corn is around May 1^st in southern Wisconsin and May 7^th for northern Wisconsin.