(La Crosse, IN) - The record yields for corn and soybeans predicted in Indiana are not showing up in some parts of the state this harvest season.

 

Matt Schafer of LaCrosse gave just an average grade to the yields of corn, so far, harvested from his fields 30 miles from the southern tip of Lake Michigan. Most of his problems are with corn in pockets saturated for an extended period from as much as 10 inches or more of rain in late June and early July. In addition, he said it was incredibly wet in his more fertile soil, which takes longer to dry out than his sandier ground.

 

“The ears are smaller than what we’d like to see,” Schafer said.

He said some nearby corn growers who didn't experience as much rain are seeing better results but nothing close to record yields.

 

“That’s what a lot of guys in our area are saying even where it was good,” he said.

Schafer gave a B+ to the number of soybeans he's bringing in, though. He would have given a perfect score to his soybeans had it not been for yields being down in spots impacted more by the heavy early summer rain.

 

“The soybeans are pretty good. It’s not something I would have bet on in June,” Schafer said.

The results appear a bit more encouraging in Washington County at the far southern end of the state. However, Danielle Walker, an educator with the Purdue Extension office in Salem, reported nothing out of the ordinary yields locally.

 

“I haven’t heard anybody say anything negative but I haven’t heard anybody say 'my gosh, I’ve had the best crop I’ve ever had',” she said.

According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service under USDA, the latest projection for Indiana corn is 194 bushels per acre. That's seven bushels more than last year but three bushels less than the previous month's forecast.

 

Total corn production in the state is predicted to be 1.02 billion bushels or four percent above last year's total. According to NASS, if the expectation is realized, this will be the highest Indiana corn yield on record.

 

NASS projects Indiana soybean yields unchanged from the previous month's forecast at 60 bushels per acre. As a result, total soybean production in the state is predicted to be 341 million bushels which would also set a record.

 

Schafer said slightly more than 50-percent of his corn and about 40-percent of his soybeans are harvested. His corn reached maturity a little early this year, and the ground was dry enough for him to start bringing it in sooner. However, recent heavy rains have forced Schafer and other farmers out of their fields in parts of the state until things dry out a bit.

 

As long as there are no upcoming weather extremes, Schafer said there's still a good chance of him being finished with harvesting by no later than Halloween or the first week in  November.