October 14 Crop Progress and Harvest Reports - NE - IA - US

NEBRASKA CROP PROGRESS – GROWING SEASON COMES TO AN END

For the week ending October 12, 2014 limited rainfall allowed harvest to progress with soybeans nearing the half-way mark, according to the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. Temperatures were above normal in the west but below normal in the east. The growing season has ended with a killing frost in all but a few southern counties. The number of days suitable for fieldwork were 5.8. Topsoil moisture supplies rated 3 percent very short, 19 short, 74 adequate, and 4 surplus. Subsoil moisture supplies rated 7 percent very short, 22 short, 69 adequate, and 2 surplus.

Field Crops Report:

Winter wheat planted was 95 percent, ahead of 91 for the five-year average. Winter wheat emerged was 80 percent, ahead of 63 average. Corn conditions rated 2 percent very poor, 5 poor, 18 fair, 52 good, and 23 excellent. Corn mature was 89 percent, equal to the average. Corn harvested was 19 percent, behind 34 average.

Soybean conditions rated 1 percent very poor, 5 poor, 20 fair, 54 good, and 20 excellent. Soybeans dropping leaves was 97 percent, equal to the average. Soybeans harvested was 45 percent, behind 66 average.

Sorghum conditions rated 1 percent very poor, 5 poor, 32 fair, 40 good, and 22 excellent. Sorghum mature was 87 percent, ahead of 82 average. Sorghum harvested was 12 percent, behind 21 average. Dry beans harvested was 85 percent, behind 90 average.

Alfalfa hay fourth cutting was 89 percent complete, equal to the average. Proso millet harvested was 86 percent, ahead of 82 average.

Livestock, Pasture and Range Report:

Pasture and range conditions rated 5 percent very poor, 7 poor, 32 fair, 47 good, and 9 excellent. Stock water supplies rated 1 percent very short, 5 short, 92 adequate, and 2 surplus.

Access the National publication for Crop Progress and Condition tables at: http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/nass/CropProg//2010s/2014/CropProg-10-14-2014.txt. 

Access the High Plains Region Climate Center for Temperature and Precipitation Maps at: http://www.hprcc.unl.edu/maps/current/index.php?action=update_region&state=NE®ion=HPRCC. 

Access the U.S. Drought Monitor at: http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/Home/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?NE

IOWA CROP PROGRESS – HARVEST PROGRESSING, BUT SLOWLY...

Mostly dry weather allowed farmers to harvest 30 percent of Iowa’s soybean acreage during the 5.1 days suitable for fieldwork for the week ending October 12, 2014, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Muddy fields, especially in low spots, have slowed harvest across Iowa. Activities for the week included fall tillage and the spread of manure on harvested fields. Cover crops have started to emerge across the State.

Topsoil moisture levels rated 0 percent very short, 4 percent short, 78 percent adequate, and 18 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture levels rated 1 percent very short, 7 percent short, 80 percent adequate, and 12 percent surplus. Southwest Iowa was the wettest with just under half of its topsoil in surplus condition.

Ninety percent of Iowa’s corn acreage was mature, 4 days behind the five-year average. Corn harvest reached 10 percent, almost 3 weeks behind the normal pace. Moisture content of corn at harvest remained high at 23 percent contributing to the slower than normal progress. Seventy-six percent of the corn crop was reported in good to excellent condition. Ninety-five percent of the soybean crop was dropping leaves or beyond. Soybean harvest advanced rapidly to 39 percent complete, just over one week behind normal. Seventy-four percent of the soybean acreage was in good to excellent condition.

Grain movement from farm to elevator was rated 15 percent none, 38 percent light, 32 percent moderate, and 15 percent heavy. Off-farm grain storage availability was 8 percent short, 80 percent adequate, and 12 percent surplus. On-farm grain storage availability was 13 percent short, 79 percent adequate, and 8 percent surplus.

The third cutting of alfalfa hay was nearing completion, while hay and roughage supplies were estimated at 0 percent very short, 2 percent short, 82 percent adequate, and 16 percent surplus. Pasture condition rated 66 percent good to excellent. Livestock conditions have been optimal. Calves were being weaned.

IOWA PRELIMINARY WEATHER SUMMARY
Provided by Harry Hillaker, State Climatologist
Iowa Department of Agriculture & Land Stewardship

It was a relatively cool and dry week across Iowa. Very light rain was scattered across Iowa on Sunday (5th) night and across northeast and far eastern Iowa on Tuesday (7th). Rain fell nearly statewide on Wednesday (8th) night. However, rainfall of more than one-half inch was confined to a narrow band from Monona County east-southeast to Louisa County. Weekly rain totals varied from none over far northeastern Iowa to 1.10 inches at Bagley in Guthrie County. The statewide average precipitation was 0.16 inches, or about one-fourth of the weekly normal of 0.60 inches. This was Iowa’s driest week in eleven weeks. Much of northern Iowa recorded a hard freeze on Saturday (11 th) morning with minimum temperatures as low as 25 degrees at Elkader, Mason City and Sheldon. There were also scattered freezes on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday mornings. However, large portions of central and southeast Iowa have yet to record a killing freeze this fall. Temperatures edged slightly above normal in some areas on Tuesday and Wednesday with Burlington the warm spot in the state with a 75 degree maximum on Tuesday afternoon. Temperatures for the week as a whole averaged from one degree below normal across the southwest to five degrees below normal in the northeast with a statewide average of 3.2 degrees subnormal. Soil temperatures at the four inch depth were averaging in the low fifties in most areas as of Sunday (12^th) and are expected to remain near that level for most of the next week to ten days.

USDA Weekly Crop Progress Report

Harvest of the U.S. corn crop was nearly one-quarter complete as of Oct. 13 and the soybean crop was 10 percentage points away from being half in the bin, according to USDA's latest weekly Crop Progress report.

Corn was 24% harvested, compared to 17% last week and a 43% five-year average. Eighty-seven percent of the nation's crop is considered mature, compared to 77% last week and a five-year average of 89%.


Soybeans are 40% harvested, compared to 20% last week and a 53% five-year average. Ninety-one percent of the nation's crop is dropping leaves, compared to 80% last week and a 91% five-year average.


Winter wheat is 68% planted and 43% emerged, compared to 56% and 28% last week and five-year averages of 57% and 37%, respectively.