cropCENTRAL | Field Crop Production Resources

WILLAg Radio Week 28 in Review

  • July 11, 2026

  • Todd Gleason

The following is a summary of the WILLAg.org content from the work week ending July 10, 2026. WILLAg.org is a partnership of Illinois Public Media and University of Illinois Extension. Its mission is to distribute regionally, nationally, and internationally information and analysis of commodity markets and agricultural weather.
Agricultural Markets Synthesis
The agricultural commodity markets experienced a post-holiday upward surge early in the week, driven out of contract lows by deteriorating international crop conditions, technical buying,…

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Illinois Crop Update | July 10, 2026

  • July 10, 2026

  • Illinois Extension

Kathryn Seebruck – Commercial Agriculture Educator   
Winnebago County 
Soil Conditions: Mildly Wet (soil is wetter than normal, local vegetation is healthy) 
With the ample rainfall received over the past month, some fields in the area with low spots still have standing water and areas where the crop will not recover. It is advised to be diligent about scouting as fungicide application decisions are being made. As has been shared in other reports,…

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Seeing crops through a wet June in 2026

  • July 6, 2026

  • Giovani Preza Fontes, John Jones

Despite June temperatures averaging near normal across Illinois, weather conditions shifted dramatically during the second half of the month. The first half of June was very warm, with temperatures ranging from 3 to 10°F above normal. Conditions then turned cooler and much wetter during the second half of the month as multiple rounds of storms moved through Illinois. Total June rainfall ranged from about 2 inches (localized areas in southern Illinois) to more than 10 inches in other parts;…

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WILLAg Radio Week 27 in Review

  • July 4, 2026

  • Todd Gleason

The following is a summary of the WILLAg.org content from the work week ending July 3, 2026. WILLAg.org is a partnership of Illinois Public Media and University of Illinois Extension. Its mission is to distribute regionally, nationally, and internationally information and analysis of commodity markets and agricultural weather.

Weekly Agricultural Markets Synthesis
The agricultural markets during this period were characterized by a transition from technical liquidation to a highly sensitive weather- and policy-driven environment. Prior to the release of the June 30 USDA reports,…

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Jul 02 | Climate Review and Weather Update

  • July 4, 2026

  • Todd Gleason

by Trent Ford, State Climatologist
ISWS PRI University of Illinois
Temperatures this week packed a punch, ranging from the high 70s in northern Illinois to the low 80s in southern Illinois, between 1 and 4 degrees above average. This week featured our first real summer heat wave across the state, as high temperatures reached into the mid 90s, with very high humidity pushing peak heat index values well over 100. However, that persistent humidity and very warm nights were the truly remarkable feature of this heat wave.…

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Illinois Crop Update | July 3, 2026

  • July 3, 2026

  • Illinois Extension

Steve Brand – Commercial Agriculture Specialist
Dekalb County
Soil Conditions: Mildly Wet (soil is wetter than normal, local vegetation is healthy)
The heat wave is upon us this week bringing 90+ degree temperatures with very high humidity. After a few weeks of cooler weather and lots of precipitation, the corn and soybeans that were not waterlogged are thriving, and have jumped multiple growth stages since last week. I scouted corn fields anywhere between V5/V6 up to V10 with rapid growth from all the heat units being added into the environment.…

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Corn leaf aphids – when to scout and what to expect

  • July 1, 2026

  • Nick Seiter

As our earlier planted corn begins to tassel, folks who have experienced corn leaf aphid outbreaks the last couple of years should begin scouting. This insect remains an uncommon pest; however, several hybrids were affected both during the rather large outbreak we experienced in 2024 in central Illinois and in 2025, when overall corn leaf aphid numbers were much closer to what we see in a typical year. Most pest aphids are sensitive to differences in cultivar,…

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WILLAg Radio Week 26 in Review

  • June 27, 2026

  • Todd Gleason

The following is a summary of the WILLAg.org content from the work week ending June 26, 2026. WILLAg.org is a partnership of Illinois Public Media and University of Illinois Extension. Its mission is to distribute regionally, nationally, and internationally information and analysis of commodity markets and agricultural weather.
Agricultural Markets Synthesis
The agricultural commodity markets throughout the week of June 22, 2026, experienced a distinct seasonal downtime, driven heavily by investment funds liquidating long positions of over three billion bushels across corn,…

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Jun 26 | Climate Review and Weather Update

  • June 26, 2026

  • Todd Gleason

 
by Trent Ford, State Climatologist
ISWS PRI University of Illinois
We wrap up another week of wild weather in the prairie state. Average temperatures this week ranged from the mid-60s in northern Illinois to the mid-70s in southern Illinois, between 1 and 8 degrees below average. This week brought more beautiful evening and morning temperatures, and a few hours of chillier conditions including nighttime lows of 48 degrees in Rock Island and 52 in Champaign.…

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Illinois Crop Update | June 26, 2026

  • June 26, 2026

  • Illinois Extension

Steve Brand – Commercial Agronomy Specialist
DeKalb County
Soil Conditions: Severely Wet (ground is saturated, standing water is abundant, flooding may be present)
What a turn of events over the last couple of weeks from the start of the season. Heavy rains, hail, strong winds, and even tornadoes have brought us out of the early drought and well past into extremely saturated soils. Areas hit hard by storms have significant standing water,…

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