After some much needed heat and sunshine, the crop has really taken off in the last week! Heavy rains in some areas, but there’s pockets that could use a rain as well!

Another good week for field work in the region. Substantial progress was made in both corn and soy planting. Several eighty degree days helped spur growth in planted crops; however, I noted no-till soy fields, especially soy planted into heavy corn residue, were lagging in emergence and development, likely due to cooler soils. It is generally suggested with soybeans that cotyledons provide the needs of the plant during emergence to almost V1 (first trifoliate) stage. After V1, the photosynthesis of the vegetative plant will sustain itself. Early planted corn in the region has reached V4. Underground, the seminal root system has been joined by the nodal root system. The nodal root system of the corn plant is initiated at VE and becomes the major supplier of nutrients and water to the plant by V6.

Scouting fields at emergence and early vegetative stages is helpful in evaluating planter (and operator) performance by observing uniformity of plant stands, spacing and overall emergence. Additional notes can be taken on early season diseases, compaction or poorly drained areas in a field, and early season performance of soil-applied herbicides.

Soft red winter wheat has reached anthesis or flowering. For those considering a fungicide application to control Head Scab, this is a recommended window of application. In forage crops, alfalfa has started to flower, an indicator for harvest consideration (depending upon your goal of quality or quantity) when a favorable weather window permits.

We are seeing a variety of growth throughout the county due to the scattered planting dates. We still have some fields left to plant but are seeing quite a few more fields emerging this week. For us, it’s been a rather wet week with three days of rain in the past week and cooler temperatures swinging in the later part of this week. Pastures are looking healthy throughout the county as well.

Much of the crop in Ford County is in the ground and the remaining fields should get planted sometime this week or early next. As I drove through the county for my survey on Wednesday morning, conditions were starting to dry up just enough for traffic in many fields, although some fields in the southern part of the county were still a bit on the wet side. About half of the fields I drove by and visited had emerged crop, with many of those still in that VE stage. I found a few fields of early planted corn around V4-V5 and soybeans around V2-V3. The more advanced corn was showing some striping (interveinal chlorosis) in parts of a couple fields, potentially from nutrient deficiencies caused by cool temps and the subsequent lack of root growth and slow mineralization of soil organic matter. As conditions warm and root systems continue to develop, previous years have shown these symptoms subside with sufficient sulfur supplied by soils. Warmer temps and relatively dry conditions in the short-term forecast are welcomed and will help the crop catch up a bit from the cool May we’ve had so far.

There were a few days dry enough for field activity such as planting, tillage, side-dressing and pre/post herbicides. We became rained out again after receiving 0.7 inches on Friday, May 15th. There are now a wide range of growth stages of corn (VE – V5) and soybean (VE – V3) with some finishing up planting and others side-dressing corn or applying post herbicides. There also has been some replanting or spotting in of corn and soybeans. Recent heat has finally helped crops green up and grow.

This week we have been busy helping with the Knox County Ag in the Classroom for fourth graders. We helped by teaching students about planting wildflowers and pumpkins. Also, the importance of crops and soil to Illinois and gave drone application demos. We believe it is important to teach younger generations about agriculture and what we do in ag retail to provide support to farmers. Paired with Ag Day, this event helped students get hands-on experience and learn more about agriculture.

Farmers are making good progress planting this week and many are expecting to wrap by the end of the weekend. The soil has finally become fit for planting; this has helped tremendously with field progress. We have also been planting corn/soybean variety test plots to evaluate throughout the growing season. This research will help us know which varieties perform better under this season’s growing conditions in a side-by-side setting.

In our travels this week we have been checking on emerged corn and soybean fields, focusing on emergence and crop stands. Farmers that have waited for optimal conditions for planting corn have finally received their wish. Soil temps have warmed and soils are not sticky to the feel. Now that most farmers have their crops in, we would welcome a nice steady rain to help with crop growth and development over the weeks to come.