(Spencer)– It has not been a good growing season so far for area crops.
Paul Kassel, a Crops Specialist for the Iowa State University Extension Service, says area corn and soybean crops have emerged only to be thrashed by high wind, frost, hail and torrential rain.
Some producers in Clay and O’Brien counties are deciding whether or not to replant after hail up to the size of baseballs battered their crops Friday. Kassel says some of the corn may make it if it’s growing point hasn’t been damaged. Kassel says most soybeans that were damaged will probably have to be re-planted.
Kassel says he’s also heard reports of some soybeans that were frozen by the abnormally cold weather we experienced a couple weeks ago. He says several producers in Clay, Palo Alto and Kossuth counties have been forced to replant because of that.
Adding to the crop woes is torrential rains that have fallen since late last week. That’s caused ponding in some low lying areas, drowning crops.
Nearly four inches of rain has fallen on the Iowa Great Lakes since late last week.
There is a silver lining to all the clouds, though. All of that rain is causing levels of the Iowa Great Lakes, which had been extremely low, to start going back up again.
