cropCENTRAL | Field Crop Production Resources

The 2024 growing season was somewhat unusual in Illinois, with overall conditions good enough to produce record-high corn and soybean yields. The September estimate of corn yield in Illinois is 222 bushels per acre, down three bushels from the August estimate. Soybean yield is projected to be 65 bushels per acre, one bushel less than the August estimate. These declines may reflect the increasing dryness in the state over the past weeks. With early-planted corn and soybean at or near maturity,…

Russ Higgins – Commercial Agriculture Educator
Grundy County
Soil Conditions: Severely Dry (soil is very dry, water bodies are very low, vegetation is stressed)
The 2024 growing season is ending on the dry side in northeast Illinois. Aerial cover crop seed application has started, but limited harvest activity has taken place in the region. I continue to be surprised at the difference in maturity and color of crops across and within fields.…

Russ Higgins – Commercial Agriculture Educator
Grundy County
Soil Conditions: Moderately Dry (soil is dry, plants may be browning or stressed, water bodies are low)
Another dry week.  In travels across northeast Illinois we see both green corn and soy fields, and in others, plants that have browned, dropped leaves and are likely only weeks from harvest. We have had reports of hand shelled corn samples near 30% moisture. For areas that had heavier soils,…

Ratings for the 2024 Illinois soybean crop have been high most of the season, and the August 1 estimate released by NASS is for yield at average 66 bushels per acre. That would be a new record for Illinois, 2 bushels higher than the 2021 yield, and 4.9 bushels higher than the 2024 trendline yield.
While the soybean yield prospects are good, this has been an unusual year, and this lets us watch how the crop’s response to the weather is playing out in the field.…

Kathryn Seebruck – Commercial Agriculture Educator
Jo Daviess County
Soil Conditions: Mildly Dry (soil is drier than normal, plant growth may have slowed)
Soybeans are at R6-R7 throughout the area, and corn is at R4-R5. We have not had any significant rainfall events for a couple of weeks, leading to dryer conditions. I still have not heard any reports of or seen increased incidence of disease or insect issues. Some silage chopping has begun.…

Russ Higgins – Commercial Agriculture Educator
Grundy County
Soil Conditions: Mildly Dry (soil is drier than normal, plant growth may have slowed)
Recent precipitation and current cool conditions are favorable for both corn and soy crop grain fill. The extended forecast is dry and warmer, which could expedite the grain fill window. For crops on some lighter soils in the Northeast, recent rains appear to have arrived late. Corn in sandy and soils with poor water holding capacity senesced quickly over the recent week.…

Wet weather delayed planting of some of the 2024 Illinois corn crop, but stands (except in drowned-out low spots) are generally good. Warm, dry weather in June caused some water stress in places, but kept development moving and helped roots to establish. July-August rainfall totals have been above normal for almost the entire state, while temperatures have been normal to a little below normal.
Reflecting the favorable weather this growing season, the August 1 estimate of yields,…

Russ Higgins – Commercial Agriculture Educator
Grundy County
Soil Conditions: Moderately Dry (soil is dry, plants may be browning or stressed, water bodies are low)
Rain is in the forecast which would greatly benefit the soy crop in drier areas of Northeast Illinois, that crop is still at R5 or beginning seed. As we reach mid R5 we can expect the remobilization of nutrients from leaves and stems to start. While few reports of soy disease have been noted to date,…

Stalk rot in corn primarily leads to stalk breakage and lodging, and consequently yield loss. Stalk rot is caused by pathogens (fungi or bacteria). While abiotic stress like flooding, droughts, or insect infestations can cause similar damage, the symptoms in the stalk can vary depending on the cause.
Stalk rot pathogens attack the pith, degrading it and destroying the vascular tissue within the stalk. This disruption affects water and nutrient movement within the plant, resulting in premature plant collapse.…