Fields within one state look different because of Mother Nature
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
As the 2021 growing season continues, Farms.com connected with two Illinois farmers for cash crop updates.
The growers farm in counties about 129 miles away from one another, and Mother Nature has provided each farmer with vastly different fields.
Evan Hutline raises corn and soybeans in Bureau County.
Dry weather affected his farm at the beginning of June. Since then, however, his farm has received timely rains to make up for the lack of earlier moisture.
“Everything looks fantastic,” he told Farms.com.
Hutline’s fields have had little or no weed, disease or pest pressure.
A fungicide application is likely in the cards though, he said.
“Now that we’ve had some rain the opportunity for disease to set in is there,” he said. “With the markets having higher prices and factoring in some other things, we can be a little bit more proactive with our approach.”
Another producer, however, is having a much different experience.
Mark Reichert grows corn and soybeans in Sangamon County.
His fields have experienced heavy rains and flash flooding.
“In the last two weeks or so we’ve had up to 13 inches of rain,” he told Farms.com. “We had several storms, one which brought winds clocked at 82 miles per hour, plus hail.”
Reichert’s early-planted corn is beginning to tassel, but the plants aren’t as tall as he’d like.
“Our early corn is maybe nine feet tall right now,” he said. “Our later corn will be a little bit taller but maybe not by much.”
Because of the heavy rains, fields are too wet to spray and there’s standing water.
These conditions will affect the crops, Reichert said.
“I’m about three days behind spraying,” he said. “That’s three days insects could feed on the plants or diseases could set in. “We’ve got standing water, so my corn is losing nitrogen. My soybeans don’t have that dark green color and are looking kind of pale. We need that dry and hot weather to help turn them around again.”