Production Blog: Corn Harvest Economics

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (DTN) -- Like an itch that just can't help but be scratched, the temptation to nose the combine into a cornfield is getting harder to resist these days.

According to the USDA Crop Progress Report released Sept. 15, 41% of corn nationwide reached black layer at the end of last week. Once the crop reaches physiological maturity, the grain begins to dry down -- and the urge to harvest goes up.

Harvesting at higher moisture can offer some advantages. It expands the window for harvest and gets the crop out before it can be affected by any factors that might lead to "phantom" yield losses that can occur as the corn dries. But at today's commodity prices, does it pay to harvest "wet" corn and dry it? Or should you let Mother Nature do her part before the combine begins to roll?

PHANTOM FINDINGS

At Precision Planting's PTI Farm in Pontiac, Illinois, lead commercial agronomist Jason Webster has been trying to answer these questions. He's currently in the third year of a study evaluating yield and economics of harvesting multiple corn hybrids at varying grain moisture levels. This past season, corn in the study was harvested at 26%, 24%, 19% and 14% moisture; in 2023, the intervals were 27%, 24%, 20% and 18%.

"In both years, our wettest corn has given us the highest yield," Webster said. "There are a lot of reasons that could contribute to these phantom losses as the corn dries down naturally in the field. Everything from the weather and stalk lodging to increased butt shelling at the corn head at harvest to dry matter loss from respiration."

In 2024, phantom yield loss across the five hybrids in the study added up as the corn dried down. At 26% moisture, the average yield was 269.3 bushels per acre (bpa). Yield decreased incrementally with moisture. The corn harvested at 14.2% yielded 13.3 bpa less than the 26% moisture corn. A similar downward trend also was observed in 2023: the wettest corn yielded the most.

DRYING DIFFERENCES

But the highest yield hasn't equated to the highest net economic return. The PTI Farm study has also accounted for the cost of drying the corn harvested at higher moisture. Webster said they've looked at two options: on-farm drying versus commercial drying at a local elevator.

"What we've learned is that it doesn't pay to take wet corn to town," he said. "Last year, even though our 26% moisture corn yielded the most, when we took that corn to the elevator and let them dry it for us with their drying charges and shrink factor, we lost more than $38 an acre when compared to the 14.2% moisture corn."

However, the economics flipped when Webster dried the corn at the PTI Farm using a continuous flow dryer that was installed in 2023.

"I can dry that grain for much less, so there was an economic advantage of putting that wetter corn through the system on the farm," he said. "Every year, we make a list of the top 10 things that made us the most money on the PTI farm and taking that 26% corn and drying it myself came in as the fifth-best thing I could do last year, bringing in another $72.85 per acre."

BALANCING ACT

Webster added, until the data say otherwise, he's going to continue to run higher moisture corn through the on-farm dryer due to the higher net return.

"My advice to growers: If you're taking everything to town, on a year like this with the prices we have, I don't know that we can harvest wet corn," Webster said, adding that it's also not practical to wait on harvest until all corn reaches 15%. "If you could get it down to 22% and start doing some on-farm drying and allowing some of it to dry down in the field, that would be a nice happy medium.

"However, my disclaimer to that is standability is a real concern. When we start getting downed corn, this whole picture changes," he noted.

Farmers who are waiting for the crop to dry naturally should be in those fields and doing the "old push test."

"Take a stalk and push it toward the neighboring row," he explained. "If that stalk bends or kinks down at the bottom, it's a good sign that you're one windstorm away from that corn not standing anymore."

Read more from DTN: "Corn Black Layer Sends a Signal About Building Dry Matter" https://www.dtnpf.com/….

Jason Jenkins can be reached at jason.jenkins@dtn.com

Follow him on social platform X @JasonJenkinsDTN

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