Lack of rain may stunt corn crop
By Kat Russell, Photojournalist
Kentucky New Era
July 19, 2014
http://www.kentuckynewera.com/web/news/article_05c68c64-0ef9-11e4-aa2f-0019bb2963f4.html
Kat Russell / Kentucky New Era
In the past couple weeks, Kentucky has seen some glorious weather. Temperatures haven’t been too high, the humidity has been mild, and, best of all, there hasn’t been much rain to prevent people from enjoying the pleasant climate.
Although this sounds great for people, it’s not so great for corn.
The United State Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service released a crop progress and condition report this week stating that dry conditions over the last month could affect this year’s corn crop.
According to the report, Kentucky received an average of .38 inches of rain statewide last week — .61 inches below average — making it the fifth-straight week of below normal rainfall.
Rainfall has been so sparse across the state that the U.S. Drought Monitor has determined that 48 percent of the state is abnormally dry with a slight portion in the southeast experiencing moderate drought conditions.
Christian County, where corn makes up approximately 50 percent of the row crops planted, is no exception.
According to Kentucky Mesonet, the month of July has brought 1.51 inches of rain thus far to Christian County, which is down nearly half an inch from last July. The total amount of rain received from January through June has measured in at 26.22 inches — 8.74 inches less than last year during the same period.
As a result, some local corn growers are starting to see signs of drought stress in their crops.
“It varies,” said Jay Stone, agriculture agent at the Christian County Extension Office. “We’ve had some parts that have received some rain, when other parts haven’t ... Because of that, certain types of soils start to show drought stress quicker than others ... so you may see parts of a field that are showing corn curling up when other parts aren’t.”
Although this sounds great for people, it’s not so great for corn.
The United State Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service released a crop progress and condition report this week stating that dry conditions over the last month could affect this year’s corn crop.
According to the report, Kentucky received an average of .38 inches of rain statewide last week — .61 inches below average — making it the fifth-straight week of below normal rainfall.
Rainfall has been so sparse across the state that the U.S. Drought Monitor has determined that 48 percent of the state is abnormally dry with a slight portion in the southeast experiencing moderate drought conditions.
Christian County, where corn makes up approximately 50 percent of the row crops planted, is no exception.
According to Kentucky Mesonet, the month of July has brought 1.51 inches of rain thus far to Christian County, which is down nearly half an inch from last July. The total amount of rain received from January through June has measured in at 26.22 inches — 8.74 inches less than last year during the same period.
As a result, some local corn growers are starting to see signs of drought stress in their crops.
“It varies,” said Jay Stone, agriculture agent at the Christian County Extension Office. “We’ve had some parts that have received some rain, when other parts haven’t ... Because of that, certain types of soils start to show drought stress quicker than others ... so you may see parts of a field that are showing corn curling up when other parts aren’t.”
Kat Russell / Kentucky New Era
Stone also stated that even though the weather has not been ideal, the situation is not dire.
“There are so many variables that go into making up a corn crop that it’s hard to say how big of an impact moisture has right now, although we know it’s going to have an impact — we know that our lack of moisture will probably impact our corn crop, but to what degree, it’s hard to say right now,” Stone said.
Overall, Stone said he sees no reason to worry yet.
“We believe it’s been dry enough that we will see some yield reduction, but we are not in a worrying or panic situation by any means yet.”
Local farmer, Tony Folz, is one such corn grower whose crops are showing signs of drought stress.
Folz’s farm sits on Boddie Road near the east edge of Christian County, and he said they have received less than a half-inch of rain this month.
Folz said he has approximately 2,700 acres of corn growing and that some of the fields are having problems, while others are holding up well despite the parched soil. The worst of the fields, he said, are so dry, that getting rain now would make very little difference.
In one struggling field, Folz pointed out the telltale sign of water-starved crops.
“You see the leaves browning at the bottom and the reduced ear size,” he said, “a lot times you can tell there’s drought stress that way.”
Other signs include smaller or fewer kernels on the ear, and a curling in of the leaves, which is the plant’s method of minimizing exposure to sunlight and thereby retaining moisture.
From the fields that are struggling, Folz said he hopes to get 125-130 bushels per acre at harvest. In the most arid fields, Folz said he’d be lucky to yield 60-80 bushels. A good year, he said, would normally be 170-180 bushels per acre.
Christian County is not alone in its dry-weather woes.
Curt Judy, agriculture agent for the Todd County Cooperative Extension Office, said farmers around Elkton are also having problems.
“We still have the potential for a good crop this year,” he said. “It’s been dry, but the temperature has been good — we’ve avoided that extreme heat that can hurt the corn — and we had good temperatures for pollination. What damage I have seen has been scattered and on a small scale.”
The scattered dry-damage, he said, is not indicative of disaster.
“If we get some rain from here on out,” he said, “Farmers should do OK.”
“There are so many variables that go into making up a corn crop that it’s hard to say how big of an impact moisture has right now, although we know it’s going to have an impact — we know that our lack of moisture will probably impact our corn crop, but to what degree, it’s hard to say right now,” Stone said.
Overall, Stone said he sees no reason to worry yet.
“We believe it’s been dry enough that we will see some yield reduction, but we are not in a worrying or panic situation by any means yet.”
Local farmer, Tony Folz, is one such corn grower whose crops are showing signs of drought stress.
Folz’s farm sits on Boddie Road near the east edge of Christian County, and he said they have received less than a half-inch of rain this month.
Folz said he has approximately 2,700 acres of corn growing and that some of the fields are having problems, while others are holding up well despite the parched soil. The worst of the fields, he said, are so dry, that getting rain now would make very little difference.
In one struggling field, Folz pointed out the telltale sign of water-starved crops.
“You see the leaves browning at the bottom and the reduced ear size,” he said, “a lot times you can tell there’s drought stress that way.”
Other signs include smaller or fewer kernels on the ear, and a curling in of the leaves, which is the plant’s method of minimizing exposure to sunlight and thereby retaining moisture.
From the fields that are struggling, Folz said he hopes to get 125-130 bushels per acre at harvest. In the most arid fields, Folz said he’d be lucky to yield 60-80 bushels. A good year, he said, would normally be 170-180 bushels per acre.
Christian County is not alone in its dry-weather woes.
Curt Judy, agriculture agent for the Todd County Cooperative Extension Office, said farmers around Elkton are also having problems.
“We still have the potential for a good crop this year,” he said. “It’s been dry, but the temperature has been good — we’ve avoided that extreme heat that can hurt the corn — and we had good temperatures for pollination. What damage I have seen has been scattered and on a small scale.”
The scattered dry-damage, he said, is not indicative of disaster.
“If we get some rain from here on out,” he said, “Farmers should do OK.”
