Concern Grows As Unusually Cold Air & Soil Temps Continue To Cause Planting Delays
Concern Grows As Unusually Cold Air & Soil Temps Continue To Cause Planting Delays
April 28, 2022Steve Schwaller
(Lakefield)– Below normal temperatures continue to keep farmers out of the fields and is resulting in a delayed spring planting. Jim Nesseth of Extended Ag Services in Lakefield says concern is mounting among producers with the first of May now just a few days away…
“And there’s good reason to. I mean you look at the calendar and, you know, it’s prime time to be planting corn and soybeans, too, as far as that goes. We’re getting late enough and, you know, the first of May is pretty close by and we haven’t got a lot of work done. Prices are really good so we want to try to get as good a crop as we can and sell those bushels with these good prices that we’ve got but right now most of the seed is in the bag yet.”
Nesseth says some producers have been toying with the idea of planting, even though soil temperatures remain well below the recommended 50 degrees. For those that do decide to plant, he says it’s important to be mindful of the hybrids you’re putting in the ground…
“Definitely pick the hybrids that have got the good, strong, seedling vigor. Right now, you know, we’ve got soil temperatures that are kind of in the range of 35 to 48 degrees at the four inch depth. There’s going to be spots in those fields that are going to be dark and maybe wet yet, so I think those fields you just kind of stay out of.”
He says there have been a few very widely scattered reports of some soybean planting…
“One of the things like with soybeans if we do have some problems with some emergence, most generally they are able to compensate for those lower stands and we don’t really see much yield production. And if you’re planting soybeans this early I would hope we certainly do a seed treatment on those.”
Rain is in the forecast into the upcoming weekend. While the moisture is welcome, officials say that, along with below normal temperatures, will likely continue to keep most farmers out of the fields.
