Nov 14 | Weather Review and Market Update

– Weather with Trent Ford
– Register for the Farm Assets Conference
– USDA Crop Production and WASDE Reports
– Commodity Week Podcast

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CLIMATE REVIEW & WEATHER FORECAST

 

Welcome to winter… no wait, it’s back to summer. The roller coaster weather this week is typical for mid November. Overall, average temperatures this week ranged from the high 30s in northern Illinois to the high 40s in southern Illinois, between 1 and 4 degrees below normal.

by Trent Ford, State Climatologist
ISWS PRI University of Illinois

The bottom dropped out on temperatures on Sunday as a strong low pressure system moved through the upper Midwest. Most places struggled to reach into the mid-30s for highs on Sunday and Monday, and there were some truly impressive cold nighttime temperatures including 18 degrees in Danville and 19 in Mt Vernon. The first two weeks of November have been near to slightly colder than average, which has been quite a change from what was a very warm summer and first half of fall.

The big weather story from this week was our first taste of the white stuff. As the low pressure center moved to our northeast, it reversed winds and pushed a lot of relatively warm, humid air off of Lake Michigan down through the eastern half of the state. The result was significant lake effect snow from Waukegan all the way down to Effingham. In fact, lake effect snow was reported as far south as Evansville Indiana on Monday morning. Even though soil temperatures were still well above freezing, the heavy snowfall was able to accumulate in the northern half of the state. Total accumulation ranged from around 1 inch around Charleston to nearly 12 inches in eastern Kankakee County. Champaign-Urbana picked up just over 2 inches on early Monday morning, making it the earliest 2” or greater snowfall since 1989. However, the snow was short-lived as temperatures reached back up in the 50s and 60s later in the week.

Looking forward, we are going to move back into early fall with highs in the high 60s to mid 70s statewide on Saturday. Enjoy it, though because real November weather comes back early next week with highs in the 40s and 50s and better chances of rain. 7-day forecasts show potential rainfall accumulation ranging from around half an inch in far northern Illinois to possibly 3 inches in far southern Illinois. Farther out, the week of Thanksgiving is looking a bit cooler and possibly wetter, maybe hinting at some interesting weather for watching the Lions and Packers game.

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REGISTER FOR THE FARMDOC TEAM WINTER MEETINGS

The 2025 Farm Assets Conference is scheduled for Friday, December 12 at the AgriCenter in Bloomington, Illinois. The doors open at 7:30 a.m. central. The program starts at 8:00 a.m. Registration for 2025 is $80 per person through noon December 8 and $100 thereafter. Media and Extension personnel may register for free.

CLICK TO REGISTER and for complete Farm Assets Conference details.

LET’S TALK FUNDAMENTALS
Commodity Markets and Crop Budgets
Trade, Transportation, and the Global Grain Markets.

DEMAND ON THE HORIZON
Signs Point to a Bullish Biofuels Policy
BioManufacturing and the Future of Ag
Ag Policy Objectives and Prospects

SPREADSHEETS AND MUDDY BOOTS
Why you should use the N-Rate Calculator
Crop Sciences for the 2026 Growing Season

RESEARCH, OUTREACH, AND WORKING TOGETHER
Round Table with the Ag Leadership

You may also want to register for the 2025 Illinois Farm Economic Summits. Visit the IFES website for more details about these ag econ meetings in DeKalb, Peoria, and Mt. Vernon.

Contact Todd Gleason at tgleason@illinois.edu or (217) 333-9697 if you have questions.

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USDA REPORTS TO BE RELEASED FRIDAY MORNING

USDA will release updated corn and soybean yield forecasts Friday morning at 11 a.m. central time. Tune in to WILL AM580 at 2:06 p.m. across a large swath of Illinois and Indiana to hear how the trade reacts during the Closing Market Report or listen to it using the player at the bottom of this page or on our website at willag.org.

The following tables will reflect the changes in the USDA numbers after 11am. Check the date in the corner to be sure you are seeing the latest information.

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PUBLIC RADIO FOR THE FARMING WORLD

WILLAg.org radio programming for the work week ending November 13, 2025

Commodity Week can be heard in the 2 o’clock hour central time on WILL AM580 or you may subscribe to it using the links in the player below. This week the panelists include Shane Holtorf from Logic Ag Marketing, Brian Stark of The Andersons, and Chip Nellinger with Blue Reef Agri-Marketing.

The Closing Market Report airs at 2:06 p.m. central daily on WILL AM580. It, too, is a podcast. Subscribe using the link in the player.