Oct 01, 2019
2019 U.S. Crops Continue Slow March toward Maturity
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
2019 U.S. Corn - There were heavy rains over the weekend across the central Corn Belt and there are more rains in the forecast for the central and northwestern Corn Belt. The condition rating of the corn crop remained unchanged last week at 57% rated good to excellent, although these rating don't mean very much this late in the growing season.
The 2019 U.S. corn crop is 88% dented compared to 100% last year and 98% average. The corn is 43% mature compared to 84% last year and 73% average and the corn is 11% harvested compared to 25% last year and 19% average. The corn maturity is 35-45% behind the average pace in states such as Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, and South Dakota.
There have only been sporadic reports of corn being harvested across the Corn Belt and probably not enough to make an informed judgment of the early yields. The excessive moisture in the central and northwestern Corn Belt has probably not been beneficial for the corn. It is slowing down the maturity and probably resulting in increased disease pressure and maybe some quality issues as well.
2019 U.S. Soybeans - The weather has been a tale of two extremes - too much rain in parts of the central and northwestern Corn Belt, and too little rain in the mid-south, the south, and the southeastern U.S. The hot and dry conditions in the southern locations is expected to trim the yields of the later planted soybeans because they have received limited rainfall during the important pod filling period. The excessive rains in the central and northwestern areas was probably not beneficial for the maturing soybeans. The crop already had ample soil moisture to finish, so they did not need any additional moisture.
The 2019 U.S. soybean crop is 55% dropping leaves compared to 81% last year and 76% average. The soybeans are 7% harvested compared to 22% last year and 20% average. The percent of the soybeans dropping leaves is 20-35% behind average for Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, and South Dakota. The condition rating for the soybeans improved 1% last week to 55% rated good to excellent.