Compared to my last trip around Coles County at the end of May, conditions are considerably wetter now in mid-July with an estimated 5-6 inches of rain since the beginning of the month, according to the Midwest Regional Climate Center. Most fields are at or near water holding capacity, and although not widespread, standing water could be seen in areas of low-lying fields at the time of this survey (7/16). That said, much of the corn and soybean crop still looked healthy and will likely continue that way if the current forecast holds, and no significant rainfall is experienced in the area over the next 5-7 days. Most corn fields were at least showing tassels, and the most advanced fields were around R2. Most soybean fields are somewhere around R2-R3 with a few stragglers still in late vegetative or early reproductive stages. I saw one field of double-crop soybeans emerged and at V1-2. Insect damage still appears to be minimal, but Japanese beetles and some corresponding defoliation (< 5%) were seen in a number of soybean fields. Except for in the areas of standing water, disease symptoms were also minimal at the time of the survey. Although if wet conditions persist, that may change in the coming weeks.