Spotty rains are making this planting season quite a bizarre one. Some people are days away from turning a wheel, while others barely got a sprinkle. Either way, there should be no lacking of soil moisture across the county, and this week's forecast -knock on wood- looks like good drying weather.
Due our April showers extending into May, in most cases weeds are a mess. They love the hot weather and rain we have been getting. Big massive weeds usually mean we will be battling them all year. Giant rag, thistles, fleabane and dandelions seem to be especially thriving right now. This means multiple chemicals will be needed when spraying.
A lot of IP soybeans need a good burndown and most chemical must be applied for pre-emerge. With hot weather soybeans will pop up faster than planting in colder weather. Be aware and get the chem on before emergence.
There is still time to plant corn. For longer heat unit corn it would be good to look into getting a lower unit variety if we don’t plant next week.
In Last Week's Poll, we asked whether you had been able to start fieldwork yet. Nearly 60% of respondents were waiting for things to dry up, while 25% had started planting, and 15% were in the field but not yet planting. This week, we are leaving the poll the same. With spotty showers across the county, we are curious whether you have had the opportunity to make any progress!
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