Planting progress now ahead of last year

Iowa farmers made full use of the four days available for field work on average last week.

After one of the slowest planting starts on record, Iowa's soybean planting had progressed from 47 percent of soybean acreage planted to 78 percent of soybean acreage planted in the week ending Sunday, May 22.

Corn planting, which was already at 92 percent of acreage completed on May 15, ended the week at 98 percent.

Iowa was well ahead of the 18 other major corn-producing states tracked by the USDA in its weekly crop report. Overall, farmers in the United States had planted 83 percent of their corn acreage on May 22, up from 79 percent on May 15. They had planted 41 percent of their soybean acreage, up from 22 percent on May 15.

With planting ahead of schedule, the USDA said the focus of farmers has switched to crop emergence. Because of cooler temperatures and delayed planting, only 74 percent of the corn had emerged from the soil, compared to a five-year average of 67 percent. Only 21 percent of soybeans had emerged, compared to an average of 19 percent on May 22.

Rainfall averaged 1.16 inches across Iowa, but Cedar Rapids received only 0.59 inches, and Iowa City received only 0.64 inches.

Temperatures for the week averaged 1.2 degrees below normal across Iowa, a trend that was more pronounced in the Corridor. Temperatures in Cedar Rapids averaged 3 degrees below normal, and temperatures in Iowa City averaged 4 degrees below normal.

The USDA reported pasture conditions were mostly fair to good, with only 17 percent rated excellent. Topsoil moisture levels across the state were overwhelmingly rated adequate (79 percent) with only 18 percent of crop acres having surplus topsoil moisture.