Editors' Notebook

OMAHA (DTN) -- It's been quite a week. Quite a week, indeed.

Copious amounts of rain through the Midwest that ended up cutting one day out of the three-day Husker Harvest farm show. Sporadic hail and tornadoes that hit some fields. Snow! More reports of disease and fungus from various areas.

And then there was a USDA report. A USDA report that says we can expect the biggest corn and soybean harvests we've ever had when 2014 is done.

I was going to try to spin a clever phrase from "Think Globally, Act Locally" into something pertinent to agriculture, pointing out how the local conditions often don't matter as much as the overall crop output. But, as I said, it's been a heckuva week and the words just aren't flowing.

Lucky for me, some DTN readers emailed me their local condition reports to share. The info that these guys share with me opens my eyes to what is going on outside Douglas and Sarpy counties in Nebraska and reminds me that we're all in this together, no matter the final crop size.

Here are the emails I received this week.

Bud Tate, Greenwood, Mississippi

We are rolling in the Delta. Corn harvest is about 60% [complete] and soybeans about 20%. Most reports are a little better than last year, but some corn yields are low, on low plant populations, but this is a very small percent. Soybean yields are all up from last year.

John Moore, Manhattan, Illinois

In our neck of the woods, we're up to our necks in water (as in a good part of the Corn Belt). Today (Sept. 10) was to be the annual Will County Corn and Soybean Growers Field Day, which had to be postponed until next week because of the 3+ inch rains we had overnight. I guess we should count our blessings as I heard parts of western Illinois and Iowa-Missouri areas got as much as 10 inches. Way too much rain for trying to get those final hay cuttings in the barn. Wet field conditions make it easy to tear up hay seedings if you can even get the hay to dry. First-planted soybeans in my area are still about 1-2 weeks away with most beans still as green as can be. Several early-planted corn fields are getting close to harvest time as well, but many fields have a long way to go. No sense rushing Mother Nature with drying costs as high as they are. I think we're all in that "sit and wait" mode. Probably a good time to take a va-ca, maybe go fishin'.

David Tollefson, Starbuck, Minnesota

Here in west-central Minnesota we are having trouble getting the last of our wheat straw baled. The wheat was combined around mid-August -- the latest that I can recall. It was a good crop, but the low spots had green straw and the medium-square baler did not like to tie that stuff, so it has been turned and re-turned several times. Hopefully by next week we can get the straw to the horse and dairy people who will use it. If I wrote a story about it, I would call it "the last straw."

Doug Zillinger, Logan, Kansas

Lots of corn going in the silo again this year. Lots of sorghum sudan hay being put down at this time. It has really grown in the last 2 weeks thanks to the rain we had. Others are getting ready to plant wheat. I saw one field of corn where they have test cut to see if it was dry enough to cut for grain.

Phil Carter, New Era, Michigan

Been chasing my tail more than anything else. Doing some repairs, hauling oats for a neighbor and trying to get ready for apples to start. Finishing up spraying (that job never ends with apples), hauling apple bins back from processors, sorting and repairing them. Have trucks to service, a final mowing of sod centers and servicing lift tractors. The peach harvest is winding down and pears are almost done (don't have either). Corn crop is moving along but 2 weeks to a month are needed to make the crop around here. Some are thinking about corn chopping soon. As I said earlier, very busy time of the year.

Dan Hiller, Hardin County, Ohio

Beans are turning from both maturity and SDS. A lot of corn has died from the bottom up and top down rather than maturing. Harvest will start in a couple weeks for the beans. Corn will be in October.

Bob Birdsell, Stanberry, Missouri

We had another 4 inches of rain last night (Sept. 9), but we missed the worst of it; some in the area had up to 7 inches, tornadic winds and hail up to tennis-ball size. I went to a meeting over the weekend and they were shelling corn along the Missouri River at Carrolton, Missouri. There were lots of fields in that area getting close. It will still be the end of September before it will go here. Been looking at several bean fields and I sure hope we miss the frost. I think the dry weather was harder on the beans than first thought seeing a lot of two-bean pods from a third to half way up then they go to three bean pods. I hope everyone misses the frost and have a safe week.

Mark Nowak, Wells, Minnesota

.4” rain this morning (Sept. 10). Now on a frost watch from now until Sunday morning. Crop will be pretty good if we can keep the growing season going at least 3 more weeks.

If you'd like to share info on crop conditions in your area, send me an email at cheri.zagurski@dtn.com

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