Editors' Notebook

Each week, I email a group of farmers who have volunteered to keep me posted on crops and weather in their areas. I then share that info with all DTN readers. I enjoy doing it, I like getting to know these folks and I think the information they share is interesting and valuable.

Normally I have an idea for a clever (well, in my mind anyway) lead in to the comments, or a premise to use to tie them all together. This week I got nothing.

I am hoping this blank I've drawn does not persist. After all, if I can't come up with something to write about, I'm not sure my job is all that safe.

Disjointedly, I can tell you that there are areas still suffering from too much rain, which is drowning plants, leaching nitrogen and encouraging disease. The Eastern Corn Belt seems to be in the center of the problem, especially Missouri and Illinois. But there are pockets in other states too. See DTN Staff Reporter Emily Unglesbee's "Covering Up" in DTN Ag News for information on cover crops for prevented planting acres.

Other areas of the Corn Belt are quietly growing some of the best crops they've ever seen.

But you knew all that.

So I'll stop wasting your time and get right to the reports from readers I've received this week. I appreciate hearing from these folks, as I'm sure you do too.

And I promise to get my brain better engaged before next week's offering.

Bob Birdsell, Stanberry, Missouri, wrote: "We finished beans on 7/3. We were going to see if wheat was any good on Monday, but we ended up with 1.5 inches of rain on Monday. There seems to be lots of vomitoxin this year and very poor test weights."

From Crawford McFetridge in the Finger Lakes area of New York: "It was hot today (Tuesday). First really hot day all summer. The humidity just hung in the air. It was blue even close up. Well there was some planting going on today. Corn maybe being planted. There are still places in the fields that are left. It's those known wet spots. Well that's all over now. It has rained again. All I can say is we were under red on the radar. So things are wet. Some have been cutting hay. Some fields look more like late wet fall cabbage fields. There are some real beauties; ruts, deep ones. Time to start waiting for the next dry-out. It's that other heartbreaker tonight in the Finger Bowl -- there are flash flood warnings up."

Phil Carter, of New Era, Michigan, wrote: "We had a good week finishing some jobs but heat arrived (we need some more GDD) and got 2 inches more rain, making again one apple orchard a mud bog. The big news (if anyone cares) is cherry harvest is about to begin around here. Our area is estimated to have 33 million pounds of tarts. Less than last year. Processing sweets (for maraschinos) is ongoing, so of course the wind has been blowing for two days. Lots of peaches, pears, apples, etc. have been sprayed so growers won't have to during harvest. All tarts are harvested by shakers into water in steel tanks, cooled by well water at the farm and hauled to receiving stations, further hydro-cooled and transported to canners. That product goes into pie filling, dried cherries and cherry juice. I could go on and on but time is short. Hope this increases your knowledge of the cherry industry. Michigan is the top producer of tart cherries in the U.S."

Gerald Gauck in Ripley County, Indiana, reported: "From the last time I wrote [three weeks ago ] till now, things have gone downhill in the non-gmo soybeans. Lots of yellow and weedy beans. The RR soybeans are holding up very well and looking good as of now. The corn all looks real good; ready to tassel and is dark green. This includes about a 30-mile radius from central Ripley County. We have one field of corn that is hurt badly because the wrong herbicide was used."

From Basehor, Kansas, Stephen W. Tuttle wrote: "Wet and busy describes farming in Basehor Ks. We had 4.55 inches of rain in one hour on July 6. I have lived on our farm since 1965 and have never seen that kind of damage from fast flowing water. We had three water gaps in pastures that are completely gone; nowhere to be found, lucky no cows got out. Many houses and basements flooded in town. Lots of erosion in fields (even no-till fields). Ponding in bottom lands. We still have 110 acres of wheat to cut, and may not get to plant all of our double-crop soybeans. Hay harvest is almost a nonevent because of the weather. On the bright side, corn is silking and liking the cool and moist weather. Soybeans are 30 days behind but looking good. What a challenging year it has been!"

Mark Nowak of south-central Minnesota wrote: "We NEED some heat in south-central Minnesota. A very nice 1.25 inch rain Monday morning. Then by mid-afternoon with some type of positioning in the atmosphere, the Canadian wildfire smoke rolled in big time. Very hazy and very smoky smell in the air. We closed up the house and turned on the air to keep the bad air out. ... I have never seen it as bad as it was Monday evening. This morning the air is fresh and the sky is pretty clear. This smoke haze has been on and off here for the last two weeks, depending upon the jet stream and pressure patterns. Crop continues to look 98% good to excellent."

Jared Peroni in southeast Arkansas wrote: "In southeast Arkansas there were torrential rains over the area. We have heard from 4 to 12 inches depending on where you are located in our territory. The crops in the low lying areas are suffering. The Mississippi River is near flood stage in our territory, which will affect some acreage not protected by the levee."

If you'd like to be included in this email group, send me a note at cheri.zagurski@dtn.com.

(BAS)

© Copyright 2015 DTN/The Progressive Farmer. All rights reserved.