Contact your local Latham RSM with any questions you might have about how to protect your crops and maximize yield potential: minnesotarsm1@lathamseeds.com
September 7, 2011
Dry weather continues to be a concern in southern and south central Minnesota. Corn is showing signs of drought stress in an 80-mile radius of New Ulm. Soybeans are still looking good but they would really benefit from a rain. Unfortunately, there isn’t rain in the forecast for this week. Heavy dews have helped some moisture get into the beans, but the dew may also induce some late-season white mold issues. Redwood Falls and areas west have severely suffered drought conditions and the corn /bean crops have been rapidly deteriorating. In this area, corn is tipped back and beans are starting die off. These same dry conditions have hit many corn production areas as well, so don’t delay ordering. Contact your Latham sales representative today and lock in your orders!
August 31, 2011
Dry weather continues to be a concern in southern and South Central Minnesota. Corn is starting to show signs of drought stress in a 60-mile radius of New Ulm. Redwood Falls and areas west have severely suffered drought conditions and the corn / bean crops have been rapidly deteriorating. In this area, corn is tipped back and beans are starting die off. Soybeans are looking good but they would really benefit from a possible rain shower that is forecasted for this week.
August 11, 2011
Crops in southwestern and south central Minnesota have made vast improvements over the last couple of weeks. Early planted corn looked very good in the beginning of summer but now the later planted corn is starting to look better. While walking a few fields that were planted early, we saw less than expected tip fill possibly caused by heat stress at the wrong time. The later planted corn has really caught up, and it will be interesting to see if we end up with better tip fill on the later planted corn. Beans are looking very good and have done a good job in getting caught up from the later planting dates; beans are in full flower and are starting to set pods. These beans have also reached a normal plant height for this time of year. Later planting dates caused what appeared to be shorter beans, but our improved weather has allowed them to reach a more normal height now. It will be interesting to see the difference between planting dates as the crops continue to grow.
August 3, 2011
Much needed heat has really improved the soybean and corn crops in southern Minnesota. Corn is fully tasseled; bean rows are closing fast and are full flower. In general , we’ve had adequate and timely rainfall. The Greater Redwood Falls area could use a nice rain now. The southwest part of the state has the best looking corn and bean fields. This area was able to plant at more normal dates than the rest of the state. Delayed planting has caused shorter than normal bean plant height in much of my region.
July 27, 2011
Rains continue to fall in areas that were already too wet. In spite of the excess moisture, corn is looking very good except in areas north and northwest of New Ulm. A series of high winds came through and caused a lot of green snap in corn fields. Reports indicate that certain fields in and around the Bird Island area, continuing south west into the greater Redwood Falls area, sustained severe wind damage to farm sites and to many corn fields. Beans continue to improve. High moisture all spring and summer, however, has led to many yellow spots in fields ranging from root diseases to IDC issues. The abnormal planting dates and growing conditions have caused shorter-than-normal bean height. At this point, most beans have started to flower.
June 22, 2011
Minnesota has had rain, rain, and more rain. For the most part, corn and soybeans are looking really tough as we’re seeing stunted growth for both. Conditions have been cool, as well as wet. Beans are yellowing, and the average corn height is less than 12 inches across the area.
June 8, 2011
Conditions in southern Minnesota are finally improving! Corn acres have been planted for the most part, and a few early hybrids were planted for the wet conditions. Soybeans are about 80 percent to 95 percent planted. Once you pass the Twin Cities, you start seeing some 83-day corn being planted. Some seeds are even turning rotten from the saturated soils. For an average for Minnesota, planting continues to progress and is close to being completed. It’s hard to tell how the crops will fare from the wet soil conditions.
June 1, 2011
Regions in Minnesota vary significantly this season. South of Highway 14, corn is 95 to 100 percent planted and soybeans are around 75 percent planted. Of the beans that are planted, you can row most of them while corn is ranging around V1-V3. North of Highway 14 to Highway 19 the conditions are extremely wet, with less than 10 percent of soybeans in the ground and corn close to 70 percent planted. North of Highway 19 to Highway 12 the soil conditions are also extremely wet, with close to 40 percent of corn acres planted and soybeans ranging from 0-15 percent planted. Some farmers have received early corn twice from their dealers and are now close to making the decision to switch remaining acres to soybeans.
When I sit down to write articles for our blog, I feel like I'm sitting down with my family at the dinner table, ready to talk about 