Crop yields have been surprisingly robust despite drought conditions that persisted throughout the growing season in Iowa, but they came at the expense of stalk stability, according to several field agronomists.
“It’s kind of like a cannibalization almost, where that plant is doing everything it can, to a degree, and then it just kind of starts eating away at the stalk until we start seeing the standability issues,” said Leah Ten Napel, an Iowa State University Extension field agronomist who monitors the northwest corner of the state. “We’ve had a couple of really windy days, so we have some really rough-looking fields out there right now.”
Strong winds have the potential to knock over cornstalks, which makes them more difficult to harvest. Farmers might need to harvest at a slower pace, adjust their equipment and alter the direction in which they are harvesting to compensate. The downed stalks can also cause more plant material to be pulled into the combine.
The soybean harvest is complicating the situation. Much of the crop has reached an ideal moisture level and should be harvested before it dries further. That leaves some opportunity for winds to push over corn.
“That’s probably going to be the next big thing: get the beans done and keep working on the corn,” said Rebecca Vittetoe, an Extension field agronomist in east-central Iowa. “Hopefully we don’t have to worry about combining any downed corn.”
Vittetoe’s region is the driest in the state and has an area of extreme drought — the worst designation issued by the U.S. Drought Monitor. Despite that, some fields have produced decent yields, she said.