Crop surveys around the state indicate farmers could have corn coming out their ears this fall. page 3
Morgan County farmer John Werries implements award-winning soil health methods on his land. page 8
FAA regulations authorizing commercial agricultural uses may not be in place until 2016. pages 10-11
No early harvest for most farmers this year Inside: Harvest section
Monday, August 25, 2014
Three sections Volume 42, No. 34
BY DANIEL GRANT FarmWeek
Farmers anxious to begin harvest and verify whether or not crop yields meet lofty expectations will have to remain patient for now. Decent weather conditions much of the summer continue to extend many of the key growth stages. A lack of growing degree units due to cooler than normal temperatures also slows crop maturity in many fields. “Soybeans and corn both have a ways to go,” Emerson Nafziger, University of Illinois Extension agronomist, told FarmWeek. “They’re pretty green out there, still.” The portion of corn dented last week was 22 percent nationwide compared to the average of 27 percent. In Illinois, 34 percent of corn dented last week, which was four points behind average. “We like that this time of year,” the agronomist said. “One of the ‘penalties’ of high yields is the crops mature a little later
IN THEIR WORDS
Corn and soybean crops in southeastern McLean County retain their bright, green color as the result of fewer growing degree units and cooler temperature. Check out the Harvest special section inside for stories about grain harvest, storage and drying issues. (Photo by Ken Kashian)
and use up more of the season.” Illinois farmers as recently as 2012 harvested 12 percent of the corn crop in August. But the five-year average prior to that was 2 percent of corn harvested prior to Labor Day weekend. This year, farmers may have to wait until early to mid-September to roll out their combines. Silage chopping and seed harvest are expected to begin before that as usual.
Nafziger said the accumulation of growing degree units in Illinois since May 1 lagged about 100 points behind average last week. In central Iowa, growing degree units last week were about 180 points behind average. Crops are even further behind in the eastern Corn Belt, Ohio in particular, and to the north in the Dakotas and Minnesota. Organizers of the Farm
Progress Show, billed as the nation’s largest outdoor farm show, recently announced harvest demonstrations could be scaled back at this year’s show. “The corn did not mature in time for a full slate of demonstrations at this year’s show,” said Matt Jungmann, Penton Farm Progress events manager. There’s a chance about 60 of the 100 acres at the show site could be black-layered and har-
vested during the event, according to Jungmann. The Farm Progress Show will be held Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (Aug. 26-28) in Boone, Iowa. Find more information about the show online at {Farm ProgressShow. com}. Check out the special harvest section in this issue of FarmWeek for more information and a preview of fall harvest.
Farmers share concerns about ‘waters of the U.S.’ proposal BY DEANA STROISCH FarmWeek
Periodicals: Time Valued
Farmers across Illinois remain concerned a proposed rule redefining “waters of the U.S.” will expand federal jurisdiction and make farming more
difficult and expensive. And some farmers put their concerns in writing. Below are excerpts from three letters written by Illinois Farm Bureau members and submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Clint Robinson, Sullivan I was born and raised on a small river that feeds the second largest lake in Illinois, and farm nearly 1,300 acres that surround the lake along with small creeks and drainage ditches that feed it. I can assure you local farmers such as myself go to great lengths to make sure our practices don’t have a negative impact on the environment. To claim that areas of land that have water in them for less than a handful of days or hours in any given year (qualify as “waters of the U.S.”) is simply ridiculous, and a huge overreach and abuse of power. Even though I have always taken great care in farming my land, I am tru-
MORE INSIDE
• Additional WOTUS meetings scheduled • County governments weigh resolutions against proposed rule
ly worried that this abuse of power could make most of the highly productive land that I farm a “no farming zone.” Because I live near a large body of water, I fully appreciate the necessity to maintain a quality water system. However, I am supremely confident that we have the intelligence, technology and, most importantly, the desire to meet this great task without any bureaucrat who has never even been on my land or in my water system making rules and regulations to govern how I operate. Furthermore, as a small, local farmer, I fear that this rule could have even greater consequences that have
not been considered. For example, if every farmer is required to have licenses and permits to operate on their land, there will no doubt be costs associated with those licenses and permits. If a farmer fails to comply with those licenses and permits, that farmer will be fined. It seems to me that any small farmer that is forced into these permits, license and fines will have a much harder time paying for them because of the reduced number of acres they operate. While this may seem trivial on the surface, it is quite clear to me that this will reduce the number of small, local farmers across the nation. Drew Carls, Arenzville I’m 54 and a fourth-generation farmer along with my two brothers. I serve as a drainage commissioner and on the county Soil and Water Conservation District Board. Our farm is located in the Illinois River Basin, and See Concerns, page 4
www.facebook.com/illfarmbureau