Spring Planting is Really Really Slow
Trent Brandenburg has been hunting dry fields to plant. At the end of April 2022, he has planted about 20% of his corn and 20% of his beans. Trent doesn’t believe the early planting will make much difference because the seed has yet to germinate. “It’s too cold,” Trent observed. “If we have a good growing season, we’ll be all right,” he concluded.
Central Illinois farm operators like to plant in April in order to maximize yields. Very little planting occurred in April 2022 because it has rained almost every day, keeping most fields too wet to plant. Working the heavy clay soils when they are too wet causes compaction which inhibits drainage and aeration, both needed for optimum plant growth. The high base exchange capacity of the heavy soils holds more fertilizer ions for better plant development and higher yields. So every year farmers do a dance around the weather and soil conditions to plant for better yields.
More from The Field Report
Not Quite Harvest Time Just Yet
Trent Brandenburg's earliest-planted corn is "about a week away" from drying below 25% moisture. At that level, he could lower his drying expense at the grain elevator. "Now, if there's an incentive..., " Trent indicated that an elevator offering a [...]
Replanting Done, Corn and Beans Look Good
Trent Brandenburg has replanted his few ponded field "wet spots" as many as three times. The replanted areas are "thin," Trent observed, because "It has been too wet. But at least [replanting] will keep the weeds down." Trent is now [...]
First Round Of Planting Done, Ponds Need Replanting
Trent Brandenburg is done with his "first round" of planting, as he puts it. The corn and soybeans he planted in April are up and growing in excellent condition. Trent's later-planted crops are germinating but not as far along as [...]